YouTube creator Joe Fazer is known online for his upbeat fitness videos, lifestyle experiments and those high-energy vlogs that has pulled over two million subscribers.
But his latest trip, a personal attempt to see the "real side" of Afghanistan, turned into one of the most unsettling experiences of his life.
The idea was simple enough. Five days in Kabul, travelling around with a local guide, meeting people, trying food, and showing his audience a side of the country beyond headlines and hashtags. Instead, the visit barely lasted 24 hours.
"This trip was stepping out of my comfort zone," he says in the video. "I was on my way to Afghanistan, statistically the most dangerous country in the world. But I wanted to see the real side, not just what you hear online."
Nothing about what followed went according to plan.
Stepping Into Kabul
The journey began in Istanbul, where Joe and cameraman Jack waited for their connecting flight.
"Are you getting nervous?" Joe asks while they were about to land in Kabul.
"Um, yeah, a little bit... I just don't know what to expect when I get to the airport," says Jack.
By the time the plane touched down in Kabul, the tension was real.
Joe with this guide. Photo: YouTube
But the first few minutes surprised him. At border control, the officer simply asked if he had a job in Afghanistan. Joe replied, "Just see the place," Passport stamped. No drama.
Outside, the welcome grew warmer. Locals approached with smiles, offered help, even their phones. "The hospitality was amazing," Joe says. A Taliban member even came up to greet them and wished them a safe trip.
Soon they met their local guide, who Joe describes as "such a sound, kind, genuine guy". After checking in at what was described as one of Kabul's best hotels, the pair changed into local clothing as advised. "This is what we've been told to wear," Joe says, as Jack laughs approvingly.
Up to this point, everything was calm. "As soon as I spoke to the first person at the airport, my nerves went away," he admits.
When The Rules Got Real
Things shifted on their first outing, Jack shared in his YouTube Video, that the recently posted. "One of them even asked for my number and sent me Afghanistan memes," Joe says, still sounding amused at the absurdity of it.
But a few streets away, at a mosque they hoped to visit, Taliban officials stopped them. One began searching Joe.
"What is this?" he asked, pointing to the microphone clipped to Joe's shirt.
"It's a microphone," Joe replied.
Joe with the officials. Photo: YouTube
"Why have you brought a microphone with yourself? Do you have journalist visa?," the Taliban official asked
He didn't.
Before the trip, he had checked with travel companies who assured him a tourist visa was enough for a YouTube vlog. But on the ground, the rules had changed. Officials blocked the lenses, took their passports and photographed them. The tension was unmistakable.
Their guide managed to defuse the moment, but the mood had shifted sharply.
Joe then heard something even more unsettling: two other YouTubers had recently been jailed.
"What happened to those two YouTubers?" Joe asks.
"They are in jail something," the guide replies.
"For how long?"
"Maybe for three months."
The new rules, he was told, viewed filming without permits as suspicious. "The government, they think between the tourist people, there are some spies," the guide explains.
'They're Starting An Investigation On You'
Joe and Jack moved to a quieter area, a park, trying to keep a low profile. But soon other group of the Taliban officials stopped them for shooting at the park. Soon again enough ere still talking in the background, making calls, and discussing them.
"What's going on?" Joe finally asked.
His guide looked at him and said the words that changed everything:
"They're starting an investigation on you."
"At that point, me and Jack just looked at each other, obviously thinking the worst," Joe says.
But soon after checking their passports and permits, they let them go.
The risk felt too real. "We don't want to risk going to jail," Joe tells the guide. His guide agreed immediately. "Just go... let's get out of there. 100 percent," he adviced
Back at the hotel, the decision was made. They booked the next flight out and prepared to leave within hours of arriving.
Leaving After 24 Hours
The irony is that apart from that single run-in with officials, almost everyone Joe met was warm, curious and helpful. "The people of Afghanistan were lovely," he says. "I genuinely believe if you're going there to be a tourist, you'll be completely fine," he says.
But with his passport photographed, a microphone in his bag, and reports of others being detained, he wasn't willing to gamble on it.
"We didn't know if we were breaking the rules or not, and we just didn't want to take the risk."
He left Kabul the next day he arrived. He explored the country for only 3 hours.
A Country He Still Wants To Return To
Despite the chaos, Joe insists he will return, just without a camera and a mic next time.
"I'm definitely going to travel to Afghanistan again in the near future. I really want to explore the country," he says.
For a creator used to documenting everything, leaving a place with more questions than footage wasn't the plan.
Watch the video here:
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