Toto, we're not in Kansas anymore!

Greetings from Herat in western Afghanistan! We arrived midday on today on a C-130, have unloaded gear and took our first walk about.

We left Manas AFB in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan on the 31st of August and landed at Kabul International Airport late that morning. The airport is mainly occupied by a NATO contingent so we saw military from over 20 countries including Nepal and Mongolia! The French uniforms were striking: camoflage but with short sleeve shirts and very short shorts. The Czechs have a liberal dress code and we saw dyed hair and mohawk haircuts. The food at the airfield was fabulous and quite international.

For safety reasons, we convoyed over to Camp Phoenix about 2 miles away after dark and settled into large, crowded, very grubby tents with bunks. We stayed at Camp Phoenix for 6 days, receiving training and orientation, but mostly getting bored. The mission there is wonderful and the progress in safety and the training of the Afghan Army and Police is going quite well. The food there was amazing; we had king crab and grilled steaks one night. The Camp also offered internet, movies, free laundry, free phone calls, a gym, etc. The air was fairly polluted in this city of 2 million that lacks any pollution controls. The poor here burn anything for fuel, including garbage and old tires, so pretty rank.

Yesterday, we convoyed back to Kabul Internation Airport (how would you like your airport to be called KIA?). We stayed overnight, then saddled up for the trip to Herat. We're here, safe and sound, ready to roll. The mission starts in a few days and we are all excited to make a difference.