Hi All, I hope you enjoyed the first posting that covered the travel from Ft Benning, Georgia to Kuwait. I am convinced that the military takes the longest route possible to get you from home station to your initial port of entry for the deployment so by the time you arrive in Kuwait, you're happy to be there!
All kidding aside, there is a method to the madness. We arrived early evening on the 19th of July to Kuwait International and from there, boarded a bus to Ali As Salem Airbase. It's quite a surreal experience for the first time deployer (fortunately or unfortunately, I already knew the drill). The bus windows are covered for security purposes and usually it's dark outside by the time you arrive. I think it was 108/109 when we hit the ground and the dust was blowing for effect (hence, the Darth Vader sunglasses). Another life lesson...go the bathroom before you board the bumpy road bus for over an hour to the airbase. (Don't worry I passed this on to my travelmates based on my '04, '05, '06 travels in the area.)
We arrived a few hours later at the airbase and then the fun really began as everyone scrambled to get on an airplane to the respective final destination (some to Baghdad, others to Kandahar, many of us to Kabul). We just missed the flight to Kabul by an hour, so prepared to bed down in Kuwait until the following morning. We would've made the flight, but a young CPT forgot her weapon on the airplane so we had to conduct an accountability for over 300 people's weapons. Another life lesson for young Soldiers...know your weapon's serial number, it makes it a lot easier to determine whose weapon was lost:-)
I've attached a few pics of our stay in Kuwait...the bus' first stop, tent/housing, the golden arches that lit the sky (you can't make this stuff up) and the 3 duffles I'll live out of for the next year. Thanks to my parents for teaching me early on the importance of a good load plan! All for now; the next posting will cover the move from Kuwait to Kabul. Thanks again all for your love and support!!
Hey, Andrea,
ReplyDeleteI'm guessing the tv shows "Design to Sell" or "House Hunters International" are NOT going to feature the digs you've displayed in the pix above. Unless, of course, you hire this artist to come paint something wild and wonderful on the outside (in camo, of course)! Okay, maybe even THAT wouldn't fly.
So, are the little box structures on the outside of the, let's call them TENT structures (for lack of official term), the lavvies? Or is that classified information? I'm looking at the pictures solely from the point of view of interior (exterior) decorator, of course! It's all good, right!>!>!???
In the bus picture, you're still smiling. That's a good sign!
News from the neighborhood...remember that rock garden of mine that we used to populate the community garden with ROCKS??? Well, heh heh, my little garden is now ROCKLESS. And filled with rich, dark, yummy (for the worms, I suppose) DIRT...AND, the best part, a gorgemous new japanese maple!!! I'm faithfully watering it, regularly (aw, you know this is a labor of love cuz I do NOTHING regularly)...actually, just protecting a very expensive investment! It looks awesome, and is my latest garden baby. (It beats the $$$ spent on termite removal, which was the LAST major garden investment this summer.) Life is good. Termites and all. Lovin' your blog. Keep it up!
M
Marty,
ReplyDeleteI love your comments. Your words are as vibrant as your personality. When I read your comments it's almost as if we're sitting in the backyard swapping stories:-) Yes, my digs are in serious need of design. The little box structures on the outside are the doors/entry point. You go through a little door and then flip the tent flap. It helps keep the inches of sand out. The lavvies are trailers further down the road. Let's just say, when you have to go in the night, you best get moving!
Congrats on the new zen garden. Japanese maples are just gorgeous! The next BBQ is at your house:-) Chyrel mentioned that she's learning green thumb techniques...are you her tutor? Fun!
Hope you're having an awesome weekend. Chyrel's spending time with her family. We Skyped today with Kaley and Chyrel's mom and sisters. What a hoot!
Have a beautiful weekend!
Andrea