Episode 75 - Travelling With François-Xavier Paradis-Garneau - Hitchhiking in Afghanistan + Pakistan in 2021/22

Hello and welcome to number 75! This week I am joined by François-Xavier Paradis-Garneau (Frank) who talks about his hitchhiking adventures in Afghanistan this year and also his experience of hitchhiking in Pakistan either side of his trip to Afghanistan. Frank was one of the first tourists if not the first tourist to visit Afghanistan after the Taliban took back control of the country. Whilst in Pakistan, Frank collaborated with the Taliban to get a tourist visa for Afghanistan and then he extended it three times whilst in the country. We talk about what it is like to travel there by hitchhiking, the endless checkpoints where he is checked for his documents, the amazing hospitality of the local Afghans, his favourite parts of the country and some of the awful roads. You can check out his BBC documentary about it below (there is a story to that in this episode).

We then delve into Pakistan where Frank travelled for 6 months. We concentrate on the northern region around Kumrat Valley to the Shandur National Park and as far east as Gilgit. He tells hilarious anecdotes of bouncing off on a polo game, meeting some former royal family, nearly getting hypothermia in Darkut as well as many other tidbits. A super inspirational chat about travelling it its most raw form and we go deep into how friendly the locals are. We recorded this in two sessions, the first half in Pakistan and the second half in Namibia where Frank is at the time of release. Frank currently only has Facebook from which you can contact him below and you can also watch the BBC Urdu documentary for some context on Afghanistan. Enjoy!

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100015965017185 - please feel free to contact Frank anytime on Messenger if you have any questions about travel.

BBC Urdu Doc - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21DXlvns2rE

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