Bagram Bound

       Not sure how many people out there are reading my posts, but according to the fact I have only received 2 comments, apparently not too many.  Either that or I’m a boring blogger, which could certainly be the case as well.  Also, I still have 26 invites outstanding for individuals to be added to the blog access list.

       Moving on, 7 days have passed since leaving FE Warren, and I have finally made it to my final destination…..exhausted. My body is still trying to adapt to being 12 hours ahead.  The couple of days spent at Manas were exceptionally boring.   You can only search the internet for so long before you run out of pages to read and Facebook posts to comment on.  I would like to give a shout out to my co-workers that follow my blog and let them know that I miss our daily interactions.

       I’m excited to be here and gainfully employed in a good cause.  The Lt that I’m replacing seems to be a real cool cat.  We will have a full week of overlap, which is unexpectedly spectacular, so I don’t have to try and figure everything out on my own.  I met the Medical Group Commander tonight, whom I will be working for, and he seems like a very down to earth, low maintenance (his own words) kind of guy.  I anticipate we will have a very productive working relationship.

       As for the trip, it began by palletizing all the bags that were to be place on the C17 aircraft that would transport us to Bagram.  I’m sure many of you are thinking, “why’s everybody working while your standing there taking pictures”?  Well, I wasn’t going to ask them to stop working….that would have defeated the purpose J.  I wasn’t able to get a photo of how they load the plane, but it was a pretty cool process.  The second picture is my view from the inside of the plane looking out the back loading dock.  All the crates in the back are the bags that came with us.

       Below, you will see a couple more photos of the C17.  As you can tell, it’s a large piece of equipment.  No in-flight movies or snacks.  Good thing it was only a 2-hour flight.  What it was, however, was exceptionally warm, especially with our battle-rattle and brain cans on.  The arrival into Bagram was pretty intense.  Once you fly over the Hindu Kush mountain range, the objective is to get the plane on the ground as quickly as possible.  This is called a tactical decent.  I would say the angle of the incoming aircraft is equal to that of the departure angle.  Certainly a stomach churner if you’re not prepared for it.

       And this here will be home for the next 6 months.  It’s equivalent to dorm living in college but with 8 dudes in the same room.  4 bunk beds adorn this cozy 15*15 abode.  Obviously it will be a fairly intimate environment.  I’m ready for some of these guys to roll out so I can snag a bottom bunk.  It’s hard to see in this pic, but what I would like to draw your attention to is my Green Bay Packers blanket covering my bed.   It’s like American Express, don’t leave home without it.  On a side note, the First Sergeant is also a Packers fan.  What else could a guy ask for.

Guess that is all for now.  Will update later in the week as I have enough to fill another post.