Sunday very well could have been the best day I've had since I have been here. I was given a driving mission to pick up a judge from the airport with another sergeant in my office. I've been to the airport before, really not that exciting. We drive to the "back door" military entrance and sit and wait in a parking lot for two hours for the plane to land and the VIP to get off and find us. Planes always land after dark so you can never see anything cool on the way and the drivers are insane. But I was then told it was a daytime mission to the civilian airport! Whoa. Sunday is my half day and we were scheduled to leave at 1300 and return by 1700, that meant I didn't even have to go to work and I could spend the day in civilian clothes.
We left the office a little after 1300 with our memos that stated that we could leave the Camp. Our first order of business was Starbucks. The SGT I was with exaggerated the arrival a bit to give us time to fill up on whole beaned goodness before we had to start our mission. Coffees in hand, we went through the many checkpoints necessary to clear the Camp and join the civilian world.
One thing I find funny is we aren't allowed to leave the Camp in Uniform. I understand that, we don't want people seeing we are soldiers being that we are targets outside the safety of the Camp. But, it is still quite obvious who we are. Two tall white guys with military haircuts, drinking Starbucks and wearing jeans and t-shirts. We really didn't blend too well into the surroundings.
Once we passed the last checkpoint I was eager to see what was out there! I had never seen the outside world around the Camp in daylight. The first thing that surprised me were the trees. Very dense olive trees lined the small highway that connects to the main freeway that leads towards Kuwait City and the airport. Also, lots of garbage strewn about. In the trees, shrubs, road and ditches that ran alongside it. As we neared our on ramp to the freeway I couldn't help but notice the horizon becoming a very deep blue, then it hit me. That was the Persian Gulf! As we drove closer the deep blue gave way to a beautiful sparkling turquoise. Distorted on the hazy horizon I could make out many ships on their way to different destinations in the world. I assume many of them were oil tankers being I was also driving by the biggest refinery I had ever seen. We exited onto the freeway and the gulf disappeared behind the urban sprawl of Kuwait City.
During the daytime the drivers recklessness doesn't give up! Our vehicle has a governor on it that doesn't let us surpass 120kph (just so happens to be the speed limit on the freeway) Other cars were passing us easily going 90 or 100 MILES per hour. We were behind an SUV and I was surprised to see two boys no older than my girls literally hanging out of the window. Their body's out of the window from their waist, gleefully waving and enjoying the wind in their faces. Looking around me I noticed that no car seats were present in any of the vehicles with small children. I guess this shouldn't surprise me but boy did that make me nervous.
I've been asked if the females here drive. They do. I never saw on the night drives, but in the daytime I noticed that many women here drive. I also learned that they vote and have all the rights that men to in the country.
I was brought along to learn how to get to the airport so I could drive the next time. There are no signs that say "airport" so we learn through landmarks. So, I have to make sure to exit at the amusement park, then again at the "Suzuki Bridge". If I see a Burger King I have gone too far and I will not find a good place to turn around. Instead of graffiti, all of the bridges have advertisements spray painted on them. I couldn't tell you what any of them are for, but us Americans only recognize the Suzuki symbol.
There was a major accident on the highway that ran around the airport. We saw the back up and all sorts of flashing lights. When we got closer we saw a semi had tipped and spilled it's load all over the highway. All of the lanes were blocked from the accident and debris, but that didn't stop the hundreds of vehicles racing for the airport. Everybody just went off road to get around the truck (including us). It's a good thing we had an SUV, don't think that would have worked in a sedan. The driver of the semi must have just gotten out. There was blood running down his face and he was on the phone. I couldn't tell what the load was, but it looked like plaster or chalk. We made it to the airport with time to spare and I was delighted to see that the waiting area for arrivals was a two story mall! We then saw that his flight was delayed two hours. We were in heaven. Getting off post, then realizing we had hours to kill in a mall instead of sitting in a cube all day. A Cinnabon caught my eye and before I knew it I was indulging in a sweet cinnamon treat. I was surprised to see so many American stores there, even a Bath and Body Works! My SGT and I spent the next hour or so just calmly shooting the breeze and enjoying our day out of "jail". Our judge found us and we sadly left to go back to the Camp.
On the way back I was trying to wrap my head around the size of this refinery I was looking at on the way to the airport. The freeway ran adjacent to it and it just went on and on. Hundreds, maybe thousands, of steel structures jutting into the dusty sky. Many of them were lit with bright orange flames shooting out the top. Behind the refinery were the oil tankers distorted by the emissions of the steel towers. They were floating around a Gulf that looked a dirty gray from the pollution in the air. I looked on Google Maps later that night and found the refinery is three miles long by about 1 mile wide.
We made it back safely to Camp by 1730 and to the office at 1800 on the dot. It was a perfect day. Instead of working a half day I got to go for a drive, finally see some culture, spend time at a mall and even see the Persian Gulf. Not to mention the Cinnabon and Starbucks!
We left the office a little after 1300 with our memos that stated that we could leave the Camp. Our first order of business was Starbucks. The SGT I was with exaggerated the arrival a bit to give us time to fill up on whole beaned goodness before we had to start our mission. Coffees in hand, we went through the many checkpoints necessary to clear the Camp and join the civilian world.
One thing I find funny is we aren't allowed to leave the Camp in Uniform. I understand that, we don't want people seeing we are soldiers being that we are targets outside the safety of the Camp. But, it is still quite obvious who we are. Two tall white guys with military haircuts, drinking Starbucks and wearing jeans and t-shirts. We really didn't blend too well into the surroundings.
Once we passed the last checkpoint I was eager to see what was out there! I had never seen the outside world around the Camp in daylight. The first thing that surprised me were the trees. Very dense olive trees lined the small highway that connects to the main freeway that leads towards Kuwait City and the airport. Also, lots of garbage strewn about. In the trees, shrubs, road and ditches that ran alongside it. As we neared our on ramp to the freeway I couldn't help but notice the horizon becoming a very deep blue, then it hit me. That was the Persian Gulf! As we drove closer the deep blue gave way to a beautiful sparkling turquoise. Distorted on the hazy horizon I could make out many ships on their way to different destinations in the world. I assume many of them were oil tankers being I was also driving by the biggest refinery I had ever seen. We exited onto the freeway and the gulf disappeared behind the urban sprawl of Kuwait City.
During the daytime the drivers recklessness doesn't give up! Our vehicle has a governor on it that doesn't let us surpass 120kph (just so happens to be the speed limit on the freeway) Other cars were passing us easily going 90 or 100 MILES per hour. We were behind an SUV and I was surprised to see two boys no older than my girls literally hanging out of the window. Their body's out of the window from their waist, gleefully waving and enjoying the wind in their faces. Looking around me I noticed that no car seats were present in any of the vehicles with small children. I guess this shouldn't surprise me but boy did that make me nervous.
I've been asked if the females here drive. They do. I never saw on the night drives, but in the daytime I noticed that many women here drive. I also learned that they vote and have all the rights that men to in the country.
I was brought along to learn how to get to the airport so I could drive the next time. There are no signs that say "airport" so we learn through landmarks. So, I have to make sure to exit at the amusement park, then again at the "Suzuki Bridge". If I see a Burger King I have gone too far and I will not find a good place to turn around. Instead of graffiti, all of the bridges have advertisements spray painted on them. I couldn't tell you what any of them are for, but us Americans only recognize the Suzuki symbol.
There was a major accident on the highway that ran around the airport. We saw the back up and all sorts of flashing lights. When we got closer we saw a semi had tipped and spilled it's load all over the highway. All of the lanes were blocked from the accident and debris, but that didn't stop the hundreds of vehicles racing for the airport. Everybody just went off road to get around the truck (including us). It's a good thing we had an SUV, don't think that would have worked in a sedan. The driver of the semi must have just gotten out. There was blood running down his face and he was on the phone. I couldn't tell what the load was, but it looked like plaster or chalk. We made it to the airport with time to spare and I was delighted to see that the waiting area for arrivals was a two story mall! We then saw that his flight was delayed two hours. We were in heaven. Getting off post, then realizing we had hours to kill in a mall instead of sitting in a cube all day. A Cinnabon caught my eye and before I knew it I was indulging in a sweet cinnamon treat. I was surprised to see so many American stores there, even a Bath and Body Works! My SGT and I spent the next hour or so just calmly shooting the breeze and enjoying our day out of "jail". Our judge found us and we sadly left to go back to the Camp.
On the way back I was trying to wrap my head around the size of this refinery I was looking at on the way to the airport. The freeway ran adjacent to it and it just went on and on. Hundreds, maybe thousands, of steel structures jutting into the dusty sky. Many of them were lit with bright orange flames shooting out the top. Behind the refinery were the oil tankers distorted by the emissions of the steel towers. They were floating around a Gulf that looked a dirty gray from the pollution in the air. I looked on Google Maps later that night and found the refinery is three miles long by about 1 mile wide.
We made it back safely to Camp by 1730 and to the office at 1800 on the dot. It was a perfect day. Instead of working a half day I got to go for a drive, finally see some culture, spend time at a mall and even see the Persian Gulf. Not to mention the Cinnabon and Starbucks!
2 comments:
Sounds like a great day. Women got the right to vote in 2005. I've been reading up on Kuwait. Mom
So nicely written, I can imagine myself out on the road with you! Good job, keep it up!
-dad
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