flintstones and steaming in a C-130

HI all,
Today is Tuesday and I started off the day pretty uneventfully. I went to the Palace to pick up something and then began our trek over to BIAP to get on a flight out of Iraq and back to Kuwait. On our way to BIAP we stopped off at another Camp within Victory Base Complex called Camp Slayer. THere is another palace there that was never completed called the Victory over Americas Palace. I don't know if it's as big as the AL FAw palace, but it looked pretty nice. The whole reason we went to this palace in the first place is because there was a Flintstone-like house behind it that Saddam built for his grandkids. Apparently it was made to be like the Flintstones cartoon. Anyway, we took a couple of pictures and drove by it, and it did look like a big stone complex with tunnels all over. It was pretty neat...I mean, it was one of those things that every kid would probably like. Anyway, this palace complex also had a big lake, canal and a swimming pool. It's crazy to think that there are lakes in the middle of the desert.
Anyway, then we headed over to the flight terminal and got onto a flight just after lunch. It was a C-130 and we were packed in it. Unfortunately we had to sit on the airfield for about an hour before even taking off. Let me tell you, there is less room than in an economy seat and there is no air. Everyone just sits on two rows facing each other on both sides of the plane. So, your knees are touching and leaning agains the people's knees on either side of you AND on the person across from you. Oh, add the fact that you have your carry-on in your lap, your flack jacket on, and your kevlar helmet on, too. It got SOOOOOOOOo hot after that hour because the engines are on and we were just sitting there. It was just my luck that it had been windy and pretty brisk while waiting for the flight so I put on my sweatshirt and fleece vest. I was steaming. But, even though it was kind of miserable, I cannot complain. I cannot imagine how much the soldiers have to go through doing this all the time.
We finally got off the ground and it cooled off drastically for the 2 hours we were in the air. We arrived at Ali Al Saleem in Kuwait and took a bus from the airfield to the passenger terminal. We checked into tents for the night and headed over for a nice sit-down meal...chicken, sweet potatoes, collard greens....a proper southern dinner. Then I had some Baskin Robbins ice cream for dessert. I have to say, so far the food has been pretty darn good everywhere I've been.

We found the USO tent and are chilling out in here for a while. It is super cool in here. I love the USO and if anyone is looking for a non-profit to support I recommend it. The walls are purple, there are two buses in here painted in psychadelic colors, and there are comfy sofas and chairs everywhere. One of the buses has chairs in it and a large screen tv that they show movies on. The other bus is up front and serves as the reception desk. I thought it was neat that they make you take your shoes off before you come in. There are not many places you can go without boots on. Even when you're at your bunk, the floors are plywood and dirty so you try to keep at least flip flops on. They have a bunch of books, a couple of tvs with video games and some Morale phones that you can use. The USO is so good for morale and they really provide an escape.

So, that was my day...full of travel and lots of sitting and waiting. I will say that after this month-long trip my trapezoids and lateral muscles are going to be pretty strong after dragging around a heavy backpack and duffel bag over my flack jacket. That's good, though, it will help me get back into working out when I return.

Tomorrow the advance team and I are going to pick up our 10 other team members at Kuwait Int'l Airport. We'll get to spend the night in a hotel so it will be nice to get away from the dust for a night. I keep on forgetting to have pics ready to upload, but I will do it tomorrow evening. I hope the hotel in Kuwait City has good connectivity so I can post some. Take care all of you and thanks for reading my ramblings. Erika