Kuwait

28 September 2008

Happy Birthday first of all to everyone who has a birthday today. I count at least 3.

Second, this blog is written for you all from the dusty FOB Warhorse that I'll be at for the next undecided number of months. I landed in Kuwait just over a week ago at approximately 1100pm. It was hot when we got off the plane, so I wasn't too excited but once we got to our training camp and were able to settle in a bit things weren't too bad. We were living in tents similar to those we stayed in in California only they held about 1/2 the people which was nice. The dining facilities (DFACs pronounced D-fact) were very nice. One looked kind of like a palace with tiles and pillars. The food is good too, there are several things to choose from, fresh fruit, plenty of beverage options. My boss and I worked on improving our plan for supporting the unit. As with everything else in life, nothing will ever be FINAL so we are constantly adjusting and re-working our plan to keep up with the ever changing unit mission.

Kuwait is the Port of Entry (POE) for all Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines from every Allied country going into Iraq or Afghanistan. Because of that we had a couple classes that are mandatory for deployed Soldiers, everything from financial briefs on what our entitlements are to the current enemy situation. We had a British Lieutenant give a brief on all the friendly forces and there are a lot more countries with Soldiers in Iraq than I thought. Granted one country has 4 people here, but the US, British, and Australians have the largest footprint so we learned what their uniforms and equipment looks like to minimize fratricide.

Another requirement is for all Soldiers to fire their weapon in Kuwait before heading to Iraq. It's to confirm your zero which is basically making sure that the iron sites on the M4 are still adjusted so that when you aim at the center of the target, you hit the center of the target. because we had all already zeroed in Alaska, it was a pretty quick and painless process. We did have to drive out to a range about 45 minutes from our camp, and all I can say about the Kuwait landscape is that it is flat, beige and sandy. There is literally not rise in elevation, no vegetation, no towns except for Kuwait City which boarders the coast. The roads are paved to there's a long black line running through the sand, convoys of semis taking shipping containers somewhere are common and they travel in packs of about 50. There was a camel herd near the range so I did see camels, they were kind of far away and I'd forgotten my camera so I didn't get a picture, but I'll try to get some from other people who did. We also saw a herd of sheep or goats, or something but they too were really far away.

I left the entry camp about a week after I got there to head up to Iraq and start working on our plan with the unit we're replacing. We fly out of Ali Al Salem on Air Force planes. It took two days to get a flight out because of the dust storms and the delays caused by the dust storms. The accommodations there weren't too bad though, we were sleeping on mattresses rather than cots which was nice. There are MWR (Moral Welfare and Recreation) tents which have pool tables, ping-pong, Internet access, movies, TVs, and places to sit and read, so it wasn't too awful trying to spend the time.

Once we got on a flight our travels went pretty smoothly. We flew into Balad and only had to wait about 2 hours to get on helicopters and fly to our FOB. The worst part of traveling like this is that there is no check you bag at the check-in counter and pick it up at your final destination. It's load your bag onto a truck, unload and load it onto the plane, unload it and load it on a truck, unload it and load it on the helicopter, unload it and carry it to the truck, unload it and carry it to your room. So not only am I sore because you don't move just your bag, you shuttle bags until they're all in which means you could carry several bags, but I have bruises all over me from huge awkward Army bags of varying weight. Quit an experience.

We are getting settled here though. We're living in CHUs (Containerized Housing Units) basically a shipping container with a door, beds, air conditioning, and various other furniture. They're not awful, definitely do-able for a year. The worst part is the dust, but we're approaching rainy season so soon it'll be mud which will be equally bad. The DFAC here is even better, huge with a lot more choices. The shopping areas are a little sad, but who knows how much we'll really need.

I'll be adding pictures soon. Look for the link on the right side for pictures.

Until then, I'll try to update as often as possible, but fortunately life may be a bit boring and I may not have much to report.