Impressions of Afghanistan - William R. Polk - The Atlantic

My second visit was a decade later. Kabul had hardly changed but the regime had. Afghanistan was in a sort of golden age of reform. Everyone was full of hope. The markets were full of furs, rugs and the melons Babur Shah thought worth more than all of India, Hippies, then known as “world travelers,” flooded into the country equipped with their parents’ credit cards to the delight of local merchants. But what was really impressive was the university. Filled with earnest young men and bright, alert and daringly dressed young women, it had an air of excitement. - Impressions of Afghanistan - William R. Polk

Will We Learn Anything from Afghanistan? William R. Polk, Part 1