my journey back to the US

On Monday I will be commencing my journey back to the US for my 15 day Rest & Relaxation period. This journey entails first of all to catch a flight from Herat to Bagram by a certain date, in my case 26 June when I am slated to fly to Kuwait via Qatar on another military flight. The flight to Kuwait is the one I have to make so I hope the flights on Monday will go as scheduled, military flights are not the most reliable unfortunately. Then once in Kuwait I will have a one to two day wait before catching a charter flight (a real plane, not a military one!) to Atlanta with a pit stop (and beer stop?) in Ireland to refuel. Then from Atlanta I will catch a flight to Baltimore where I will begin my R&R. I will split my time between the DC area and Miami.
It appears to me that illegal immigrants have an easier time entering the US of A no?

awards and tact

Since I will be leaving for my two week vacation on Monday, and when I will return the Army Colonel in charge of the base might have transferred, I was asked by the head Navy officer to provide bullets for an award for my work here. I am not sure where the merit is in putting oneself in for an award, should the award not be... well awarded for doing a good job and not because one asks for it, but I nevertheless reluctantly provide 7-8 bullets listing what I have done over the past four months. I don't care much for awards, and besides I only wear the uniform a week-end a month so should I really care all that much?
Well, the head Navy guy replied to my e-mail asking to be more specific, to which I replied after a careful thought process that the bullets I provided reflected what I have done in Herat so far, that I believe I have contributed to the effort in some capacity and am satisfied about my performance, and that the best award I can ask for is to go home with both arms and legs, but I thanked him for considering me for an additional award.
The head Navy guy found me later in the evening to again ask me to be more specific, but what do I care I am starting my journey back home tomorrow!

when plans go wrong, and not enough underwear!

This past Sunday I was scheduled to go to Kabul for the day to carry out some business before going on my two-week vacation, leaving Herat in the morning and returning in the evening. But as fate would dictate our plans didn't quite go as.... well, planned!
Me and a few others left Herat as scheduled on Sunday morning, around 8 am, on a German military plane. The flight to Kabul normally takes about 1.5 hours, and after sitting inside the plane for close to two hours we were starting to wonder what was going on, and the fact it was quite chilly in the plane did not help either. A few minutes later the crew announced that because of a dust storm we would not be able to land in Kabul and instead were heading to Mazr-e-Sharif, in the northern part of Afghanistan where the Germans are stationed. We knew then that our day-long trip would most likely include a night, but where exactly. And fortunately I had somewhat planned for this eventuality by bringing a second set of undergarments, but would that be enough foresight?
We landed at Mez an hour later, took a bus to the terminal and tried to figure out what the future had in store for us. After grabbing some lunch in a dining hall that would not have been out of place in any IKEA store, we eventually were allowed on a plane to Kabul that afternoon, grateful not to have to spend a night in Mez. And we enjoyed the German efficiency, while we could see our plane from the terminal and would just about knock our heads against it when walking out, we had to board a bus that did a 100 foot loop at the most to get us to said plane. It definitely got a good laugh out of most of us!
We spent Sunday night at Camp Phoenix in Kabul, took care of our business the following morning and returned to the airport to catch a flight on Monday afternoon. While we were waiting in the terminal thankful to be returning to our "home" in Herat (I was wearing my second and only other set of underwear) we were told that the flight had been cancelled at which time I realized I might have to do the unthinkable... wear dirty underwear! And with no flight before Wednesday I would have to wear dirty underwear on two separate days!!! Please forgive me for this transgression but sometimes a man has to do what a man has to do.
In the meantime I had the pleasure of meeting some Belgians, but only those civilized enough to speak French. And I was mesmerized by some of the women from the many foreign militaries that are at Kabul International Airport, mainly the Czechs, Norwegians and Danes. I was wondering what such beautiful women were doing in the military, surely it wasn't the proper place for these ladies, and had a hard time imagining them charging the enemy from the trenches a la WW I and II! And then I realized there must be quite a few "extracurricular" activities going on around here (the airport) that I did not take part of. To clarify a little I did walk into the male bathroom one evening only to open the door and have a French woman walk out followed by two French men... with their pants around their ankles!
Just kidding about that last part!
Anyway, I am now back in Herat, with clean underwear on, and am looking for a flight to Bagram to catch another flight to Kuwait on the 26th to catch a third flight to the US for my two-week vacation.

hot

So I was asked yesterday if I could assist with a humanitarian mission today (Thursday) as a driver of one of the hummers. The mission entailed us delivering tents to a school in the village of Jabrail to be used as classrooms followed by a stop at the U of Herat to deliver food and other items to the students. Apparently Afghanistan also suffers from the starving college student syndrome. Then again, most of this country is probably very hungry most of the time.
Anyway, after spending over four hours in the driver seat and just as we were about to return to Camp Stone, our home camp, my legs started to feel very warm. Now, the weather outside the hummer was very f-ing hot while with air conditioning it was only f-ing hot inside the hummer, not the best air conditioning on the market and besides there is a big hole in the roof of the vehicle for the gunner, not the best way to keep the cold air inside I reckon. But the warm sensation I was feeling along my virile legs was caused by the engine overheating, as indicated by the temperature gauge being in the red zone along with the red overheat light. I had learned not too long ago that when this happens the remedy is to turn off the air conditioning and turn on the heat to cool down the engine, and this I did. Fortunately we could see Camp Stone by this point and so knew we would not have to endure this condition for too long, and it quickly went from f-ing hot to "holy shit how hot can it possibly get in here" in a matter of seconds.
But then the flatbed truck we were driving with apparently had mechanical issues and had to pull to the side of the road, and so we had to turn around and assist it as best we could... with the heat still on! And did I mention we were literally within spitting distance of Camp Stone. Why could that truck not have waited a couple more minutes to break down!?
Thankfully after a few minutes waiting around the Afghan Army returned to render assistance to their truck (they had practically abandoned their own truck and probably only returned because we had stopped following them) and we resumed our journey to our home away from home, and by this time the engine temperature had returned to normal and I quickly turned the air conditioning back on.
I guess people spend a lot of money to get to use a sauna, I essentially got paid to sit for over 4 hours in one!

TOA

The Italians had their transfer of authority ceremony, the outgoing group has been here for 6 months and it is time for them to leave. I have enjoyed working with some of them, especially Macari the Scottish-Italian (hearing him speak English is a hoot, he sounds like he comes right out of Braveheart!), and while they could have done more as a whole they sure are fun to be around. But of course maybe not right now as their football team (the real football, the one being played around the world) got the $%(# beat out of them by the Dutch!
Anyways, they will be missed, and I sure hope I will enjoy the new guys as much as I did the ones leaving in the next few days.

village of Jabrail

Here are the pictures from my drive to the school for girls in the village of Jabrail to deliver school supplies. To get there we had to drive through Herat, a first for me, and the village was right on the other side. And while I had to stay in the vehicle to maintain security with the gunner, I still had plenty of opportunities to take pictures. The place was essentially overrun with children, and it was a nice sight to see. The girls were ecstatic at getting a backpack and notebook, and it appears most of them were in a hurry to check out their new possessions once outside the school. My vehicle meanwhile was surrounded by gawking boys, I essentially felt like a fish in a bowl. But at our second stop to check out a school for boys, I entertained a few boys, and myself, by waving back at them. They seemed to get a kick out of me mimicking them. Of note, this village is mostly inhabited by Hazaras, the persecuted people. But they all seemed very friendly and appreciative of us.











all the pictures

This morning

The only part of this ordeal that is better than an 8-5 job back in the States, or anywhere for that matter. But add the heat, the location, the lack of women, and then it's definitely not worth it. But shooting for fun is still fun!

school for girls

In an effort to leave my base at least once a week, I volunteered my services as chauffeur to drive to a school for girls to deliver school supplies, nothing more than a backpack and a notebook. I think I need these short excursions one day a week to break up the monotony of my week, and this was a great humanitarian mission to be a part of. Granted, I had to stay in the vehicle (HMMWV) along with the gunner to provide for security but I still got to witness many school girls leaving with their new backpack and notebook, and just about all of the ones I saw had a huge smile on their face. It was a sight to see, and very uplifting, to see the joy a simple notebook and backpack can bring to people. Before returning we stopped at a nearby boy school at the request of the Afghan National Army, and while I was once again confined to the HMMWV I entertained myself and a bunch of boys around my vehicle with hand gestures. They seemed to get a kick out of me waving at them and them waving back, and once again a very uplifting moment. There is hope for this country after all!
Of course, with the rather hot temperatures and the very limited air conditioning blowing inside the HMMWV, and add to that body armor and a helmet, I was quite hot and wet after spending 4 hours in the driver's seat, but I enjoyed most of my time on this trip. Sure enough I took some pictures that I will be more than happy to share in a day or two.