MIddle East - Last Days

WOW ~ we never thought we were going to get out of Camp Speicher. We were stuck there due to a sand storm that had had cancelled all flights to the base. Speicher was Sadam's air force headquarters and olympic training facility. I got a tour of the headquarters that was bombed out as well as some of the housing that that was in a fire fight. Big holes in roofs from missiles, thousands of bullet holes in the walls, mangled re-bar barley holding the concrete together... it was interesting. Its hard to try and think back and put yourself there to try and recreate what went on and what was going through the peoples heads.

The base was also home to the Iraqi olympic training facility... weird I know. But Sadam had built a mini complex with a track, soccer field, gym, and swimming pool with a 10m platform. Now, if you were an Iraqi olympian and did not succeed.. you were killed, so we were told. So this base has seen some action.

After 2 flight cancellations, we barely got out yesterday and we landed in Kuwait at the base there. Its a strange feeling being over here.

Its hard to take it all in, what I have just experienced, the people and their stories... we are in a war zone and yet it didn't feel like it, at least as of now. There are other smaller bases that I am told where it does feel like you are, sleeping in a big tent with dust covering everything, no air conditioning, going to sleep with the sound mortars going off in the distance... next time!

Are flight leaves at midnight tonight (friday) and we head to Europe then back home in time for to get a normal lunch! :)

Middle East - Day... I lost track...

Northern Iraq

Last nights BBQ was pretty cool. the moral and emotion of the troops here are much higher then we have seen at other bases. People were laughing, playing games and even dancing. I know see how important it is for the troops to have these special events.... 9 out of 10 troops I talk to say the only thing to do here is work then go to the gym. So when entertainment comes through, they take every advantage to soak it in. I was not expecting the troops are just as interested in knowing what I do as I am of what they do. Most people here come from military backgrounds, and one officer was telling me how the military is becoming separated from the civilian world more and more because they are getting less "fresh" applicants... meaning most entries into the military are only those that come from a military family. I can see why though because of all the negative press that we see back in the states. After being here only a week, my opinion has totally changed. This is one big family over here. Everyone is helping everyone out in whatever way they can. On todays run, DT, a special opps (the bad asses on camp, the green barrettes) troop crossed the finish line in 5th place after the first lap, then he stopped. I thought he was either tired or hurt and when I asked him what was up, he said, "Im staying back to run with the person at the end of the pack" It hit me right there of how great of people our soldiers are, just little things like staying back, "No man left behind" was so awesome that it not only applies to them in the field, also with life and their everyday activities. At our coin ceremony, the general brought us back to the briefing room that had pictures of all the fallen troops in their branch, and he told us the story of one solider who threw himself on a grenade when one was thrown into a room with him and 14 other of his unit, all whom which would have died if he hadn't sacrificed his own life. Everyone should be grateful for what these troops are doing. Its such a humbling experience.

The concert tonight id moved indoors due to a sand storm moving in. They can last up to three days... so I hope the running crew will be able to make it down South for their flight home... but we were told things like this happen and there can be days of down time.

Day 7 -

The race this morning was cancelled due to the sandstorm that is still here. We met up with the Commanding General of (CG) Speicher today for his little deal. We saw on the "secret" weather report there is a good chance no one will be able to fliy our until thur, which means the runners that are supposed to fly out tomorrow will miss their flights. Most of them have other obligations to attend... so who knows what will happen.

Just got done with the Catchpenny show a theater. Nice crowds and the troops took and active roll in the night!

It looks like we will be stuck in Northern Iraq for while due to the sandstorm. Tomorrow we are going to see Transformers 2, pretty excited about that.

My body is confused right now. When we go to breakfast, I want dinner and vise versa.. its tough to reset your internal clock.

Middle East - Iraq Al Asad, Taji, Spiecher

(Its been a while since we have had an Internet connection fast enough to be able to post due to weather conditions and access issues)

Day 3 - Camp Al Asad. The camp that Sadam used for his main air field. We flew in on a helicopter which was a pretty cool experience. The camp is known as a "Cupcake" camp due the the easy living conditions compared the other bases here in Iraq. The food at the bases are amazing. I eat better here then I do back at the states. I'm talking lobster tails, salmon, and rip its!

Day 4 - Camp Taji. Upon arrival by helo, we were told that yesterday that camp took on rocket fire, but not be alarmed because it happens all the time. The camp is so large that it did not pose that much of a threat to us, but its always in the back of your mind. Taji is also the main site were they keep the detainees, the bad guys. When we landed at Taji, we had to land at a different location first because they were bringing in a load of prisoners who were all blind folded and zip tied. Pretty intense. The band played 2 shows at Taji, one earlier in the day for the prison guards in the North side of the base, then the other show at night for the rest of the gang, which was a great turn out of a couple hundred troops.

Day 4 night/ Day 5 - Wow. All I can say. There is a lack of communication here because there are no cell phones or an easy way to get a hold of someone. That being said, long story short, our helo ride to our next location, Camp Spiecher, was a 4 hours adventure for what should have only been a 30 minute ride. Nothing is set in stone here as far as flights. What we are told and what actually happens is crazy. We have to arrive at the pick up spot early because the air craft will not wait, and if we were to miss a flight, it could be up to 3 days to get another one. So we arrive early to find out the helos are delayed 2 hours. Then there are other troops that need to go to different bases that are with us, so after two or three stops and refueling we finally reach our destination, which they were not even aware we were coming. But we made it, pulled into camp around 4:30 in the morning. Camp Spiecher is pretty amazing. 22 thousand troops in total. Today is our day off at the camp. They have a BBQ planed for us then a movie later on. I hear they also have an Apache helo simulator that I am going to try and hit up. That is pretty much it for now... we have a race in the morning and a show tomorrow night. I believe we are here for 4 days, but again, that is just what we are told, we could be out of here sooner, who knows! Oh yeah, it was 120 when we woke up today. Yaaahhoooooooooo

Middle East - Day 2: Al Asad

Today, we left to Al Asad, the largest base in Iraq on an C-130 cargo/refueling plane. Its common to have your flights be delayed when hoping around from base to base, which ours was today for some reason for 4 hours. It was a good time to catch up with the troops stationed at the base as well as astronaut Sandy Magnus (who 3 months ago just came from from a 4 month stay in the space station) and Olympic Gold Medalist Frank Shoter. We were also very fortunate to meet one of the most interesting soldiers, soon to be Major, CPT (P) Jesse Stewart. CPT Stewart has experienced it all, no exaggeration. (more to come about him later). Hearing all their stories today has to be one of the coolest things I have experienced so far, mind blowing and eye opening.

Catchpenny played a show tonight at the base that went really well. Tomorrow morning will be the first 3K race for the troops. Its projected that 250-500 people will be at the starting line tomorrow at 6am (it will only be about 80 degrees... three hours later it will be around 115 degrees) which means I have to get up in 4 hours.... g'night from Iraq!

Middle East - Day 1

Just got settled in to Kuwait at Camp Arifjan... 108 degress at midnight, cool. This is a pretty upscale base, its feels like a college campus.

Tomorrow we are headed North to Iraq for the first show/run of the tour. Along with Catchpenny playing shows at bases, they are also having a 2 mile race with the troops as well as a couple of NASA astronauts. These races are the real deal... they brought all the technology over that they use in the Boston Marathon to time the runners. Awards, medals, and swag will be given away to the top performers (Chris thinks he's gonna sweep every race..... ha)

Here are a couple pics, one from the Amsterdam airport, Kuwait, and Zach sitting in the hall at our 'hotel' at camp Arifjan getting an wi-fi signal. I am currently sitting on a garbage can and my computer is on an ironing board in the laundry room.

Maestro Knows

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Maestro of http://MaestroKnows.com, Los Angeles's story teller.

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Shots taken on film with the RZ.