Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Apparently Afghanistan Is a Much Nicer Place Than I Originally Thought

From the AP writeup about the rather touching story of that country's first Olympic medalist:

Noor Ahmad Gayezabi said a silent prayer while watching the small family TV with his 13-year-old son. "Help Nikpai. Help Nikpai. Help Afghanistan."

Then he watched his country win its first-ever Olympic medal.

Rohullah Nikpai defeated world champion Juan Antonio Ramos of Spain on Wednesday to earn the bronze medal in the men's under 58-kilogram taekwondo competition, sparking applause, wide smiles and laughter in homes, restaurants and ice cream parlors around the country.

I'm sorry, could you repeat that? I thought you said "ice cream parlors."

What?

And yes, the article goes on to tell an anecdote about people in just such a parlor celebrating the medal. Still: extremely strange. Does the AP have an agenda here? If they're trying to convince the public that things are peachy keen over there, this is a little over the top.

3 comments:

Jack M said...

Ice cream parlors are all over Afghanistan; it's well noted in UN reports. Unfortunately. it's based on bad listening comprehension. Observe:

UN Guy: So what's that building over there?
Afghan Guy: iscream parlor.
UN Guy: Ice cream, eh?
Afghan Guy: Yes, the warlords drag me in there. I scream, 'please help' I scream.
UN Guy (walking away towards "ice cream parlor," pulling out cash): A double scoop sundae would really hit the spot right now.

JimA said...

If you aren't allowed to drink, and most of your country is a desert, an ice cream parlor isn't a bad place to be. What does ice cream made from goat's milk taste like?

Tonus said...

I hear that "Poppy Surprise" is a very popular flavor.