The Road to Afghanistan - George Washington University

masculine in appearance than many Russian men. Their more moderate consumption of alcohol,their accents, and different behavior were other factors of attraction. Afghans were distinguishedby generosity, reserved nature, self-control, ability to keep promises, magnanimity towards theweak, respect for their elderly, loyalty in friendship, and a tender, attentive attitude to women andchildren.There was a wide array of Soviet women living in Afghanistan: young and old, of variousethnicities, different intellectual backgrounds and aspirations, and different political agendas.Some sincerely loved their Afghan husbands, while some took advantage of them to leave the“Soviet hell” for the “capitalist heaven.”Yura was fond of women, particularly his wife, Tatiana, but he did not like the women whomarried Afghans, particularly when they made demands on him constantly and threatened toreport him to Brezhnev. Yura often thought about those Soviet women who fled to Afghanistan inorder to escape socialism, only to find that their new place of living offered more of the same.“Where would they run now? To Israel? To America? To Madagaskar?” thought Yura to himselfwhen dealing with the disappointed former Soviet women.Natalya Nurzai called.“Yura, how did you and your family manage during the events? Did anything happen toyou? My husband and I were so concerned about you and your family. Are you well? How are theboys?”“They’re okay. Everything is okay.”“My husband and I want to invite you and your wife to visit us in Mikrorayon. Let’s havetea. Let’s catch up. We haven’t seen you in a long time.”Yura liked Natalya’s husband, Abdul Khayyum Nurzai. He always looked very serious. He131