I survived week 1.

Camp Marmal (near Mazar-i-sharif) – Week 1

I have officially been here a week and I am still alive. I will attempt to guess questions you might have and answer them as best I can. Feel free to ask me more questions that you wish for me to answer in my future blogs. If my reply doesn't involve me having to kill you after answering your question then I'll most likely add it.

Am I safe?As safe as one can be in Afghanistan. This is a Nato base mainly run by Germans. We have not had a mortar attack since I have been here but its only been a week. I do hear gun fire and some explosives being detonated but am told that is just our troops practicing.

Is it what I expected?No, its better and here are a few reasons why:
1) I thought it would be colder. Don’t get me wrong it is really cold to me here but manageable.
2) I thought I was going to have to sleep in a bunk bed in a 20 person tent having my neighbor, Ronda, stare at me while I slept. I am in a 20 person tent but they have partitioned off rooms with plywood. I have a desk, dresser, nightstand and rug. I still have to be quiet in the morning and night as you can hear most noise through the plywood… still not bad. As the base gets more built up they might add wet CHUs and dry CHUs. I’ll let you google those. I allegedly live in the best tent city at Camp Marmal for the US called Prime Beef. We have the nicest bathrooms and showers as well as our own private gym. We are surrounded by a fence and the gates are locked at night adding extra security to my city that most of the other tent cities don’t have.
3) I thought I was going to have to pee in a porta potty and shower with perfume. There are porta potties located around the base, some marked for women only (Thanks God) but in my housing area we have enclosed bath/ shower area. Very similar to what you would find at a 24 hour fitness. The water is treated with some salt solution and is not potable. This bathroom is about 75 yards away from my tent. Which makes peeing in the middle of the night a chore.
4) That it would be easy to lose weight because the food sucked. The food here is ok, there is a German DEFAC and a USA DEFAC. The USA put butter on everything… which makes it taste pretty good. And they have cakes, cookies, ben and jerry’s icream, etc. It will take a lot more self discipline on my part which I haven’t started yet. I feel the German’s have healthier choices and usually don’t have desserts, however, they are allowed to drink so they make they make up the calories in beer (note: All USA citizens are forbidden to drink).
5) Not sure what I expected but I didn’t think it would be like a mini town. There are a few gyms and they have classes you can take (spin, zumba, Insanity, etc). There is a church. There is a free movie theater. There is a pizza hut, burger king, and some coffee shop. They have a place to play pool (free), place to play video games (free), rooms you can rent with flat screens to watch any movie you want (free), phones to call anywhere with a 30 min limit (free), a bus system with bus stops around the base (free), bars (if your non-American), a service that does your laundry (free), an airport, a beauty salon including massages and mani and pedis (not free)… I’m sure I am leaving stuff out but you get the point.

How many times have I been hit on?This is easy, 0, even though the ratio is about 100 to 1 men to women. It could be the 5.11 pants, hiking boots, the leatherman I carry on my belt, the no make-up or all of the above that makes a guy here think we are playing for the same team so why bother. Joking aside everyone here so far has been very professional and focused. It is refreshing. Plus we can’t drink so no one has liquid courage.

Have I made any new friends?I have made friends with a few of the ladies in my tent. They are older black women who are showing me the ropes. One even took me to a Zumba class. I have 2 coworkers here that I spend most of my time with. I haven’t ventured to the USO or other hangouts yet as the jet lag has been kicking my behind. Out of the 1 week I have been here only 1 day did I fall asleep after 9PM. Last night I slept from 7:45PM till 7:30AM. I am hoping to adjust sooner than later but I guess the 12.5 hour time change is harder on my body than I thought.

Am I glad I came?Yes! It does feel a little like that movie groundhog day because you work 7 days a week, rain or shine, holiday or not but it’s still interesting most of the time. There are new challenges here you don't get back home. It’s only been a week so I am still learning the ropes but it nice to see what it like in the sand box.

Do I miss you?You betcha!