Day one of Kuwait.
Well here I am again at Camp Buering in Udari Kuwait. For those who don't remember, we are way out in the desert near the Iraqi border. Our long flight ended up making two stops. First, we stopped in Bangor Maine and then it was on to Leipzig Germany. Leipzig was pretty cool although we didn't get to leave the airport. I guess the host country's can be a little nervous to let 200 armed U.S. solders loose on their streets. The flight from Leipzig to Kuwait City was long as well. Once we landed in Kuwait, I was surprised to see that it was only 85 degrees. Last time, it was something like 130. After we deplaned, we rode busses to Udari, which takes about two more hours. Once we arrived here we began some of our briefings and went to bed. Since I had been up for about 48 hours, sleep came easy. I was able to call Liz once and I am pleased to report that AT&T continues to make huge profits on soldiers deployed to Iraq. The international calling cards they sell are only good for one fifth of the number of minutes advertized and they charge you something like a 15 minute surcharge for each call regardless if someone picks up. Today I was able to get the lay of the land so to speak. We had some counter-insurgency training for about four hours and then were off the remainder of the day. The temperature reached the triple digits and it is starting to feel like the old Kuwait I know and love. Last night I was pretty depressed thinking about my situation and being bombarded with all the memory triggers I had forgotten. Today I felt better. Not too much has changed at this place in the four years since I was last here. There are a few more services, which are nice. They now have a Starbucks, KFC, Taco Bell, Burger King, and Nathan's hotdog stand none of which were here in 2004. I was shocked to see that AFN was broadcasting my favorite news program (Countdown with Keith Oberman on MSNBC at 6:00 and 10:00 Mnt time) on the TV while we were eating lunch. It looks like Faux News may be losing some of it's strangle hold on providing one-sided information to troops serving in combat. I was able to work out at the gym tonight, which is my main stress reliever and it looks like I am scheduled for more IED training tomorrow. Not much is on the schedule for us; it looks like most of our time is supposed to be spent acclimating. The tell us we should be here for 10 to 12 days.
3 comments:
I'm glad you finally landed. I'll bet the weather change from here was drastic. There was still ice this morning where sprinklers had come on in the night. If you are there for 12 more days, you may get to see Kip. He would love to see you before he comes home. I talked to him yesterday on the phone and he was that everyday soldiers who had worked with dad tell him what a great soldier he was. He would be very proud of you for your courage and valor. We all love you and are grateful for your informative blog.
Love MOM
At least this time I can be of greater service to you and your family. Can't wait to send you my first package so let us know your address soon as you can. Enjoyed spending the day with Liz and Jacob Friday. We miss you lots. Sandi
Rhett - we hope things are going well. We think of you often and pray that your time there will go quickly. I'm sure you'll be able to help many soldiers and you most definitely are a blessing to many of the people around you. Hang in there!
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