R & R Day Three and Day Four

Ziad and I

I finally made it to the Villagio Shopping Center and had chance to take a look around before I was to link up with Ziad. The mall is very new and not all the stores are open yet nor are the restaurants in the food court. With the painted sky above, the second floor facades lit and the architecture of the stores it really looked like one was walking down a European street. The mall was a mix of Santana Row with the design and Valley Fair with the stores, except for several small kiosks the stores were of a mix of the usual mall stores, plus some upgraded stores, ie Zara, Lacoste, Massimo Dutti, etc. The gondolas floating down the canals was a nice touch. Ziad showed up right on time and we both made the comment that we basically looked the same, he hadn't aged since I last saw him in Kansas, I unfortunately had mostly white versus the light grey hair of 7+ years ago.

We decided to go and eat and that was the probably the best way to get caught up with our lives. He took me to a Syrian restaurant and we ordered lots of small plates and then a main entree. It was quiet a sampler and I got a chance to try lots of Syrian food, grape leaves with rice and meat inside, artichoke pieces with garlic and olive oil, eggplant with some spices with garlic and olive oil, chickpeas and yogurt, pita with small pieces of lamb, some empanadas with lamb meat, marinated lamb brains, some meat rolled up in dough and fried-I called it Syrian Sushi because that is what it looked like. The main entrees were skewers of lamb, chicken, beef and mixed vegetables. We ate to our hearts content and talked about everything, kids, our better halves, work, politics, soccer (who would have guessed) and what's in our plans for the future.

Unfortunately all too soon it was time for me to head back to the bus for the ride back to post. We got the kodak moment picture which is above, said our goodbyes and if all goes well I should be here one more time before my year is up and we'll get a chance to see each other again. I reminded him that next time it's his turn to see me back in California. We'll see what happens.
On the way back there was a major accident on the road heading back to base so we got to see Doha au noit as we drove through neighborhoods which I don't think the driver even knew existed as he was trying to get to another road which would take us to the base. The trip lasted almost an hour. I hit the pub for my ration of beers and then spoke to Carmen and hit the sack.

This morning it was sleep in and do the laundry since I will either be leaving late tonite or sometime tomorrow and depending on how long I will be in BIAP waiting for transportation, it is better safe than sorry when it comes to having enough clean clothes to last for 3-4 days if necessary. I then headed off to the PX to take one last look at some souvenirs and then it was a visit to my favorite place the swimming pool. I was there for about 3 hours and took a well deserved nap laying in the shade. The water was nice and felt great each time when I got in. I ate a late lunch wolfing down a Chile Mushroom Burger and fries, not knowing when I will get another chance to eat something like that. Funny thing is that even though they have a DFAC here I have avoided eating there like the plague since when I get back to Taji that will be the only game in town!

I headed back to the room, showered got all my things on the bed ready to pack tonite if I leave late tonite, if not then I'll pack the ruck tomorrow when I get up. Right now I am at the MWR site chilling out reading my personal email, blogging and in a few minutes will grab a beer and some dinner here. In about 90 minutes they will post the departure formation time so I would rather eat so if I have to pack and clear quarters I can do so quickly.

That's it for now, if I don't leave until tomorrow I may post something but more than likely I will update you all when I get back to my temporary home sweet home Taji Iraq.

The Colonel

R & R Day Two and Then Some

I am finally starting to like this place, even though with Ramaden our chances of seeing some scenery off the base is limited, at least I am not in Taji working and with all the sleeping in I have realized that this is definitely habit forming. Today I slept in and after getting my coffee and bagle headed to the pool, where this time I made sure to put SPF45 on my belly to not get burned. After a couple of hours there I headed back to the room, changed signed up for the inland sea tour and another shopping mall visit for Day 3. I ran into a couple of the guys from my Division and decided to linkup with them later in the afternoon. I grabbed some lunch over at the food court and then we shot some pool and did the usual war story tradeoffs. I then headed back to the room changed and waited for our mall bus to arrive. As luck would have it there was a tanker that overturned at the main gate and with the fuel spill we were delayed leaving for 30+ minutes. So by the time we got there it was 1900 hrs and we had to be back on the bus by 2100 hrs. One of the guys I met on the bus, we decided to grab dinner first then check out the mall. The food court was alot like our food courts but with a more arab/indian flavor to it. I went for the curry shrimp with salad, vegetables, colored rice, Arab bread and some Iranian tea. It was nice to eat something local and varied for a change. The mall is the third largest one in Doha and was basically a typical western mall, except they had some definitely Arab stores but most was like ours. It gave me a chance to check out the jewelry, especially with two women in the house whose taste is about the same when it comes to earrings and other jewelry. Carmen reminded me of the type of jewelry she likes and I couldn't figure out if she was hinting at something or not. I must not have had my hearing aids on when she was explaining what she liked!

We got back almost at 2200 hrs and it gave me a chance to grab a a couple of beers and head to the room for the night. It was going to be a short night since I had signed up for the inland sea and sand dune tour. 0600 hrs came around pretty quick and I was at the MWR site by 0655 for the 0700 hrs meeting time. We all got into Toyota Land Cruisers and headed off the base and past the airport before turning out to the sea. We got to a section of huge sand dunes and the drivers let out some air in the tires and off we went 4 wheeling. The 4 wheeling was pretty tame if you ask me but at least it gave us a chance to see another part of Qatar that we had never seen before. We than arrived at the sea location where they had set up like a camp. There were the usual bedouin tents with AC, some open but offering shade, and tables and chairs under straw roofs where we could sit and go into the ocean and swim. The bouyancy in the Persian Gulf we were located in the Dalwhat Salwa Bay was incredible you could literally float and I must have spent 20 minutes treading water effortlessly.

We got a chance to play some beach volleyball and then had a nice Qatar lunch arab style sitting on cushions in an AC tent. Chicken, beef and lamb kabobs, three types of salad, hummis, pita bread, rice and some fruit. After lunch I headed back into the water where some of the folks decided to partake in smoking some Arab tobacco via the hookah! It was then time to get back into the land cruisers and do some more 4 wheeling and then head back to the base. The traffic was lousy and there must have been more roundabouts then they have in Chiclana Spain!

I was all coated with salt when I got back to the room so I took a shower discovered that there is that spot on your back where you sort of can't reach to put on sun tan lotion, well guess who got burned there, yours truely. So obviously I can't put any lotion on that spot so I am screwed until more than likely my skin peels there.

I guess that's it for now, as I am heading back to the room to change grab a quick snack and get ready for the Villagio Mall which is like the Villagio hotel where they have a canal going down the middle and there are gondolas, with the painted ceiling to look like a sky. I am looking forward to seeing my friend Ziad tonite and get a chance to spend a couple of hours with him at dinner in the mall.

The Colonel

R&R Day One

No alarm clock to wake me up this morning is what I was dreaming about as I laid in bed this morning oblivious to what time it was. I finally checked my watch and it was 0850 which was a nice way to start day one! I headed over to grab a Mocha (not as good as the ones back at Sun) a muffin and off to the swimming pool to rest, relax, knock off a few chapters of Laura Ingrahams "Shut up and Sing" and actually maybe even go in the pool and get my hair wet. I found a reclining chair and made sure I got most of it under the shade so I wouldn't get burned. So I put the usual SPF 45 on my face, legs and shoulders just in case I decided to go into the pool. It was nice and reminded me of Spain except there were no topless women around! ;>) Actually the female Soldiers can't wear a two piece suit unless they have a t-shirt on and us guys can't wear speedos!

I have always known that a high percentage of Soldiers tend to have tatoos, but what I saw today really blew me away. I think that average guy had 3-4 tatoos, the female Soldiers weren't too far behind either. Out of the 25 Soldiers there today, maybe 5 or 6 of us didn't have any tatoos! You name it they had it, eagles, Chineese symbols, flowers, barb wire, dragons and the best one was the guy who had the American flag tatooed on his arm. Each time he walked by I didn't know if I should stand up and salute old glory!

It was so nice to lay down and just relax and read, I did go swimming a couple of times and yest Ascension I did get my hair wet! The music on the PA system wasn't too bad, there could have been more twang but as long as I can understand the lyrics and the music isn't bad I don't mind. Unfortunately there was a 45 minute period of rap and I thought I was going to die, I couldn't understand much except the four letter words that seem to come out every sentence or so and the references to the female gender starting with the letter H.

I headed back to my room and got ready for the 1400 hrs signup which is where we have to go and signup for the next days activities. As previously mentioned with Ramadan all but two activities were cancelled. I really don't feel like going to an inland beach in SUV's through sand dunes to swim in very warm water with jelly fishes and have a BBQ in the hot sun. So it came down to going to the malls. If you would have told me last year that I would be looking forward to going to a mall I would have said that you were crazy. But yes I do want to go to a mall, not so much to go shopping but to link up with my buddy Ziad and spend the time at the mall with him and enjoy dinner. So tomorrow night I will be going to the Hyatt Plaza Mall.

I spent some time watching the movie Borat at the MWR site and then headed back to change to sign up for the sponsorship program, which is where a Soldier or Airman based here signs out one-three Soldiers and takes them to where they want to go for the evening. With Ramadan you have to be wearing long sleeves, long pants, no earrings for guys and closed toed shoes. When I got back to my room to change I realized that my stomach was sore, I took off my shirt and I was redder that a lobster. Putting one plus one together I realized that the shading they had at the pool provided shade but didn't keep out the UV rays, so I was burned below the area where I put suntan lotion on my shoulders and neck and face. Not good, although I have been putting moisturing cream on I will be sore tomorrow.

At the end even though I signed up not enough people left post so I stayed here and read, went to Chiles for dinner and am hear at the wireless area drinking a few beers and listening to the folks try Karaoke! Right now two guys are making Garth Brooks cry with their rendition of "Friends in Low Places", such a great song massacred!

That's it for now, time to give Carmen a call and see how things are back at home, then it's off to bed, as the sun and humidity have taken it's toll on me.

The Colonel

R&R Day Zero

As I mentioned in yesterdays blog, I didn’t hit the sack until 0600 hrs. I slept in until approx 1200 hrs and decided that with this being day 0 I might as well go check out this post and see what there is to see and do around here. I walked into the bathroom and was amazed at how nice it was! I guess that after almost 5 months up in Taji using porta-potties and taking showers where the floors are wet with water and slippery as hell this was nice, no this was really nice! My accommodations are better than most since I am a Colonel. We get our own rooms with TV/DVD and plenty of room. The rest of the Soldiers and officers share open bays and depending on what your rank is there are more or less Soldiers in each of the bays. The building we are in makes me feel like the movie Cocoon. It is a large warehouse that has AC. Inside the warehouse there are double decker connexes which have AC, two bed, two wall lockers, TV/DVD, a table with two chairs and some night stands. The lighting inside the warehouse is low so that the Soldiers can sleep at all hours of the day since there are some Soldiers stationed here who work nights and sleep during the day.

After showering and changing I decided to head out to the MWR (Morale Welfare and Recreation) Building which is a huge warehouse fitted out into individual rooms, large TV areas, and other sites. This is where we were briefed early this morning. They have DVD’s to check out, an USO area with books, TV, play station and other amenities. DSN Telephones which we can use to call back to the states and speak with our families. Computers to check up on email and free snacks.

In the back of the building they have a huge TV room, billiards (about 10 tables) a stage, wireless internet area, bowling alley, and what everyone wants a couple of restaurants where they serve beer and wine something that we are not allowed to consume back in Iraq. The scenario is much like a town with a main walkway with tables and a couple of establishments such as a wine bar, pub and restaurant.

After checking that out I decided to head to the PX and check out what it was like. Although the PX is smaller than Taji’s they have lots of smaller shops that sold jewelry, rugs and other souvenirs. It had the usual food court, with BK, Subway and a pizza joint. They did have what I haven’t been able to find up in Taji, one pound bags of sun flower seeds!

I then decided to take a walk instead of using the shuttle bus to go check out the pool and the Chevy’s restaurant. The pool definitely looked nice and more than likely I will swing by there tomorrow to lay in the shade and catch up on my reading. Since it was late and the DFAC had already closed I decided to eat at Chile’s. Having eaten at the DFAC’s since I have arrived in theater I decided to eat what I usually can’t. So I had the chips and salsa just like Carmen and I do when we go out for snacks back home on a Friday night. I then decided to eat their original burger and it tasted soooooo good, it was as if I had been transported back home and was sitting in the Chile’s on Stevens Creek Blvd with Carmen sipping my beer and she her margarita. It was a nice way to ease into this 4 day R&R.

I decided to walk back to the room and the first thing one notices here is the humidity, unlike back in Iraq where a bad day the humidity may get up to 30 percent here it remains at about 70 percent and it is muggy and just plain uncomfortable in the sun. Once again I should have taken the bus because although I was wearing my A’s cap my face was red and as Javier would say, I look like “Tomato Man”! I finally headed back to the MWR site where I called my friend Ziad who lives here in Qatar and spoke with him for a bit. He and I became friends on the Spanish Soccer Site and actually met for the first time when I was TDY in 1997 at Ft Leavenworth, he lived in Wichita, KS. We had linked up with another guy on the list Pedro who lived in Manhattan KS. We keep in touch via email and after almost 10 years I am looking forward to see him again, this time though he is no longer single but is married with two kids.

Tonite I grabbed my computer and hit the wireless site where I currently am now, grabbed some nice Kulkenny Irish Lager, ate one of my favorites for dinner-Nachos and listened on line to my beloved Betis play and actually win tonite. Once I get done with this blog I will be calling Carmen and then will sign out a DVD “V for Vendetta” and head home to watch it.

That’s it for now, I will let you all know of my adventure tomorrow on my official day one of R&R.

The Colonel

R&R in Qatar

Well after 5+ months in the box it was time to take some well deserved Rest and Relaxation in Qatar. The US has a base here called Camp As Sayllyah (CAS) and I had put in my pass during the first week I was in theater for 1-4 October.

This is perfect timing for my R&R, we graduated the first class of Iraqi Soldiers that will be working in the Depot on the 27th. The Australians had taught the first phase of training (23 day training cycle) and we had a nice ceremony, gave out diplomas, honor graduate and some other awards. The Iraqi Deputy Commander spoke, as did the Aussie Senior Officer and myself. The Soldiers were happy to have finished phase one and to then have 10 days of vacation. With them being gone, these next 10 days were more a refit for the Aussies and to prepare the OJT instruction and materials, take care of paperwork and for us finalize some logistics issues, and continue to get the Depot ready in terms of life support and the upcoming refurbishments.

In order to get you to Qatar the Army has to get you to the closest AF Base. Although I am closer to Balad, since I was in Baghdad when I filled out my pass form, they listed BIAP as my departure point. I booked a chopper flight early in the week for a flight on the 29th towards evening since it's cooler and safer to fly at night. The night before I go and check on flight times and the SGT says I am good to go but on the manifest they have me going to Liberty not BIAP. I told him nicely that I had checked BAIP, he goes and looks at the paperwork which did say BIAP. Unfortunately Thiele-Sardina means "Murphy" in andaluz and there were no seats going to BAIP since that was the 6th stop and that leg was full. But he would see if I could get on the later flight and for me to check the next morning. Ditto same problem and there are no seats on the later flight, but Victory has a shuttle that will take you to BIAP Pax terminal so I figured that was better than not flying last night.

At church yesterday right before I had to go to the pax terminal Father John's sermon was about our guardian angel and that we need to constantly communicate with them so that they can help us out when we need them. That was probably a good sermon to have to right before my pass. I checked in for the flight to Liberty and once we got on the tarmac we were told that the chopper had mechanical issues, so we spent about 45 minutes laying down on the ruck sack looking at the gorgeous moon and stars above. It's somewhat strange that here out in the middle of Iraq that for 45 minutes you can forget where you are and just admire how peaceful this world is. I finally got going and I arrived with no problem to Liberty. After waiting for almost an hour the shuttle bus arrived and took me to BIAP. While driving between the two bases which are connected, we must have passed numerous fuel and supply convoys that were waiting to pull out with much needed supplies. The road network is perfect for women who are at full term in their pregancy and want to go into labor, there are more pot holes and ruts than in all of San Jose (which was rated this year as the worst city in the US in this category) on that stretch of road.

When I check I was expecting the usual you have to come by tomorrow at 2100 or 2200 hours for your checkin since my pass started on 1 October and they try to get you their late the day before or on your actual start day. Instead the Sergeant says there are no scheduled flights but there may be one that leaves at 0200 so stop by at 0100 and will let you know. So with the temps in the mid 80's it felt great sitting out in the screen covered waiting area until 0100 hrs. I stopped by the desk and she told us that we were lucky that the flight was a go, but they had to unload cargo, refuel and load additional cargo. At 0200 we were on the C-17 which is the first time I flew on this plane, it is huge and unlike the C-5 where the seating compartment is above the belly of the plane here you sit in the belly but the fold down seats are much more comfortable than a C-130 or C-141. We had to help the crew roll back a ways a 13 ton 750KW generator that had been loaded too far forward. The four of us Soldiers besides the two generators had the plane to ourselves. It was a quick and quiet 2.5 hour flight to Qatar as we all fell asleeps right away.

We arrived in Qatar, went through customs, waited for our LNO to come pick us up and after the mandatory briefing, linen pickup, the sun had come out (0545 hrs) I hit the sack at 0600.

All in all I was happy to have avoided staying an extra day in BIAP, today the 30th is then my 0 day which means tomorrow is the start of my first day of R&R. I guess I can thank my guardian angel for squaring me away last night and early this morning.

The Colonel