Travel Postcard: 48 hours in Kabul

KABUL (Reuters Life!) - Once a thriving crossroads, Afghanistan is definitely off the beaten tourist track as Western and Afghan military forces try to quell a Taliban insurgency.

But for adventurous travelers who find themselves in the war-scarred capital Kabul, Reuters correspondents with local knowledge help visitors get the most from a short stay.

If you don't have your own transportation and don't speak the local Dari or Pashtu languages, make sure you find an English-speaking taxi driver.

Most importantly, make sure you seek out local knowledge about security before venturing out. Kabul has seen occasional kidnappings and suicide bombings, although the raids have been almost exclusively directed at military targets.

Women need to wear a headscarf and should try for a low profile and to remain inconspicuous.

THURSDAY

4 p.m. - Thursday afternoons and Fridays are Afghanistan's weekend, and offer good opportunities to see the sights while there are fewer cars and smaller crowds in the streets.

Take a trip to the bombed-out but hauntingly evocative Dar-ul Aman Palace near Afghanistan's National Museum about 16 km (10 miles) from the centre of Kabul. The palace was built as part of a 1920s modernization drive by King Amanullah Khan. It was badly damaged in a coup after the Soviet pullout from Afghanistan and was rebuilt, to be ruined again during the civil war.

The drive out there is stunning, taking you past scores of ruins in one of the most battle-scarred areas of the city.

5 p.m. - Another must-see is Babur's Garden, the burial site of the 16th century founder of the Mughal dynasty whose empire stretched from Samarkand to central India. It has been renovated and a short drive from the place.

7 p.m. - Dinner at L' Atmosphere, a French restaurant in Qalaye Fathullah that has its own swimming pool, extensive gardens for relaxing in summer and cosy enclosed, wood-fired lounges in winter. It is the favorite hangout for NGO types and the local French community and there really are lots of rabbits and kittens in the garden, so no, you're not hallucinating. Email: latmospherekabul@yahoo.fr

FRIDAY

8 a.m. - Start the day with a drive to the top of Television Mountain for a clear view of most of the city. It's impressive, but don't wander on the mountainside as it was only recently demined and is not considered completely safe. The drive is spectacular, but not for the faint-hearted, with steep drops on the side and no room for passing traffic at times.

9 a.m. - Breakfast and coffee at the Intercontinental Hotel. Perched on a hill, the hotel has the most famous bookshop in Kabul, and sells dried fruits and locally made handicrafts such as jewelry and carpets.

10 a.m. - Drive to Qargha Lake or Paghman, both picnic resorts some 30 minutes from the city, to relax and swim.

Take a walk around the Bala Hissar, an ancient fortress built around the 5th century. It saw some of the worst fighting between Afghan forces and the invading British during the two Anglo-Afghan wars in the 19th century, and remnants of heavy weapons can be see in the remains.