Happy New Year!!!

Our VP visit

We recently had the chance to visit the home of one of our VIPs: the 1st Vice President of Iraq (they have 2). Although he wasn't there, we still had the opportunity to tour his residence and meet some of his staff.

This is the front door...shiny tinted glass makes a really old stone building look cool.

We wanted to get up on the roof but the only way up there was an outdoor spiral staircase. Take a look at this beast:

About 3/4 of the way up, I looked out and saw that I was already higher than most of the surrounding buildings. It definitely gets your heart pumping.

Once we made it to the top (and caught our breath), here's what it looks like:

Just imagine how nice the scenery would have been if we weren't there blocking it for you. That's the Tigris River running through the middle of Baghdad. They say it's about 2 meters deep in the winter - only about 1 meter in the summer.

Hey, remember Saddam's Crossed Swords? If you squint, you can make them out from here.

Here's the back yard. Now, keep in mind where we are when you look at this one - most of Baghdad doesn't look nearly this nice...

This is the VP's grill. Vintage! Apparently, the ash adds flavor. Just put a blacklight up in the top there and you've got yourself a party.

Some of the security guard mentors that we work with actually live out here so they decided to spruce the place up a bit. They planted some flowers and set up a little (fortified) patio in which to hang out.

I'll leave you with a trip back down the spiral staircase. I tried to capture the distinct feeling of nausia you get as you approach the end of the climb/descent. Enjoy!

Baghdad School Visit

Our office coordinated a visit to the local schools in the IZ. Some folks from home sent us school supplies and we were more than happy to hand them out to these children and school teachers.



That blue gate is the back entrance to the elementary school. We also brought some candy to hand out. Strangely, the kids went straight for the candy instead of the pens/pencils/notebooks.

However, some of the kids were a little more tame.

Especially the high schoolers. These guys were friendly. One of them spoke english well enough to translate for the group. The guy next to me was named Ali and he wants to be a pilot. The guy on the far right (in uniform) is John - he's my partner out here...we share the same desk as we do shift work.

Here's another clip from my camera - sorry for the back-and-forth fuzziness. I was just trying to capture the absolute mayhem that totally enveloped the school that day... :)

We wrangled a few in for a quick photo. Capt on the left is Phil - he's a Space guy from C. Springs. Maj on the right is "Smiley." He's an F-16 test pilot from Eglin.

Group shot at the end. Those were some happy, sugar-filled kids.

"Back to work!" That our boss behind us.

Hope you enjoyed it!! - Jason

Duathlon Anyone?

It was pretty exciting because I'd never been in a multi-event...event before. :)

This one was a 2 mile run then 8 mile bike then 2 mile run. They would've made it a triathlon but we don't have any indoor pools out here and, believe it or not, the water is too cold to swim in.

Here we are at the starting point getting ready - it's about 0600.


Here we are about 1/3 of the way through the first run. It's my fault the picture's blurry. I was just moving WAY TOO FAST...some cameras can't keep up.



The 8-mile bike was not easy after running. Some people rode real bikes (mountain bikes on trails) and the others rode on these stationary bikes.



There was a nice cool breeze and it was about 70 degrees so it was perfect!




Then back out on the road for another 2 miles...

It felt like I was moving in slow motion until about the last quarter mile. I ended up with a time of 1:08:19. Not too shabby...I forgot to hack my watch for the split times but it was my first...maybe next time - when I know I will make it to the finish line. :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving! It was my first one away from home so that was a bummer - it's usually a family reunion type of holiday for the Brown clan so I missed out on the 2007 fun. That means I get twice the cherry O cream pie next year.

Even though it's a coalition force out here, it's still predominantly American so they did a pretty good job out here of celebrating. Here are a few pictures I took at our dining facility (DFAC).

Here's what you see as you approach the front door:

In the foreground, Phil in the grey t-shirt is clearing his 9mm at the clearing barrel (making sure there aren't any bullets loaded. We have to do that every time we enter a building here. The guards with the M-16s are with a Peruvian contract security company called Triple Canopy. They will check to make sure you have proper ID before you can enter the dining facility. Those guys with the orange feathers are wooden statue guardsmen. Nice touch, huh? Notice the nice artwork on the concrete barriers - that was painted by the previous security contractors who were South Korean.

After washing your hands at the front door, you walk in and see this display:



There were many ice sculptures and carved watermelons (that looked like turkeys) and many other decorations. They (KBR contractors run the support functions out here) really did a good job.

So here were are enjoying our Thanksgiving meal.

Most of the guys that I work with are in this picture although you can't really make much out.



Sorry for the camera flash - it really made those reflective T-shirts stand out. Yes, those are candles...no, it was not romantic.

Now: time to shop?! Here's to a happy and safe holiday season to all of you back home! We love you and miss you.

More to come soon!

Prosperity for Everyone

Hello again from Funkytown!

Lets continue our tour by taking a look at one of the forward operating bases (FOBs) here in the Green Zone:

FOB Prosperity

Those two guys work with me - they joined me on this little trip.

The big scene here is As-Salaam Palace - located on the site of the former Republican Guard Headquarters, which was destroyed in Operation Desert Storm.

"The 814,000- square meter complex included orchards (orange, lime, date
and other fruit trees), a series of artificial pools, lakes, and ponds, outdoor
patios with freestanding hearths, and related out-buildings. The United States
attacked the palace by air in 2003, hitting it with seven guided bombs. The
evidence of those strikes is readily apparent today in the ravaged dome and
upper floors. "

The hallways and rooms of the main building are a maze of plywood boards dividing the large palace interiors into living quarters, offices, storage spaces and a gym. Here's a picture of the gym - it's situated in one of the old ballrooms.

This stone mural was a little freaky. I know it's hard to make out so I'll describe it: At the top center is a bomb with "U.S." inscribed on it. At the bottom center is a huge flame. Between the two are little children who are apparently dismembered and/or burned. Parents on the lower right and left trying to pull them out. Angels on the upper left and right. It definitely catches your attention.



One of the camp’s lesser-known claims to fame is that one of parking lots is also the temporary resting place of some of the “Big Giant Saddam heads” that once graced the top of the nearby palace. Three of the colossal busts showing Saddam in a military uniform and wearing a replica of the golden dome of Jerusalem as a helmet stand in a row in a dusty field surrounded by tanks.

One of the busts was dismantled and shipped to an Army post in the United States.

That's all for now! More to come soon!

Hands of Victory

Hello again from sunny Baghdad!

I thought I'd take you on a trip to see one of the local sights around town. This is the "Hands of Victory" monument.

To celebrate his "victory" over Iran, Saddam decided to build this colossal monument. As you can imagine, it dominates Baghdad's skyline - especially when you're within a mile of it.

There are two of these arched pairs of crossed swords - one at each end of the parade ground. They're about 140 feet above the highway.

The swords are actually made from the guns of dead Iraqi soldiers that were melted and recast.

Captured Iranian helmets are in a net held between the swords. And surrounding the base of the arms are another 5,000 Iranian helmets taken from the battle field. The fists that hold the swords aloft are replicas of Saddam Hussein's own hands.

When Saddam inaugurated these arches, he rode under them on a white horse.

The day before the first bombing run on Baghdad during the 1991 Gulf War, Iraqi TV showed a mass of Iraqi soldiers marching beneath the huge crossed swords of the Victory Arch, to the theme music from 'Star Wars'.

HA!!

Sorry for the delay!  It takes a while to get the pictures uploaded out here with the unreliable internet connection.

More to come soon!

Baghdad Bound

So I get a call from my Squadron Commander one Sunday...

First of all:

Laura, bless her heart, went to stay with her parents in Lubbock. She wasn't even there a whole day when she was involved in an accident.

She was out riding her bicycle with her dad when this pickup comes up from behind her (doing about 50 mph) and slams into her. She was ejected from the bicycle and landed (thank God) in a soft dirt ditch. She was promptly medivac'd to the hospital where they bandaged her up and put some stitches in her left heel. Apparently, the bicycle tire rim snapped and stabbed her heel through her shoe before she was ejected.

Her dad said all she wanted to know was "Is my BIKE OK?"

Long story short: she doing better now. She is wearing a special boot that keeps her from stretching her achilles tendon (which was slightly frayed). She sent me pictures out here but I don't think she'd want me to share those. Sounds like she'll be in recovery through the holidays so please keep her in your prayers.



Where was I? Oh yeah - that crazy phone call. "You're the wing's pick for a 120 to Baghdad."

It was surreal at first. It took me about two days to actually believe it.








Crazy talk!! One minute, I'm in the kitchen talking about our trip to Tuscon, AZ for the next bicycle ride, the next minute, I'm back out in the desert. Except...this time, I'm learning how to shoot my M-9 "tactically" while in motion because there will be no flying for me on this adventure to the sandbox. Only new and exciting tales will I be telling over the next 4 months. This picture was taken at Baghdad International Airport the day we arrived (125 degrees).

From there, it's a convoy ride across town to the International (or "Green") Zone. That ride used to be very dangerous but they've really secured the path nowadays. It was a quiet ride (except for the constant "yo mama" jokes from the Army guys).

Here is where I work:

It was Saddam's presidential palace. It's been converted into a temporary U.S. Embassy while the official one is being built. You can tell that this picture was taken a while back: there are no protective concrete barriers or billeting trailers to be seen (they're everywhere around here).

More to come soon!

Jason

Hotter N Hell 100

Yay! We're back from our trip down to Wichita Falls where we rode in the annual Hotter N Hell 100.



There were a little over 10,000 people this year and it was by far the biggest event we've ridden in. Fortunately for us, it only got up to 94 degrees and the wind wasn't too bad...although we did have some thunderstorms threaten to end the ride early but it all worked out and we finished in just over 9 hours (whew!).

Being unsure of whether we could even finish at all, we took it nice and slow. We couldn't be too slow in the first 60 miles, though because there was a time restriction: if you didn't make it to "Hell's Gate" at the 60 mile point by 5 hours, you were not allowed to finish the 100 mile track. We made it though, and THEN we took it easy. :)  Here we are at Hell's Gate (obviously, the timestamp was a little off...):




Here we are at the finish! Team Tortoise came in together across the finish line victorious. :)





Here we are proudly displaying our "Team Tortoise" jerseys. We heard remarks as we passed some people:
"I resemble that jersey."
"Well, SOMEone has to be the hare!"




As you can see, we were all pooped and a little sunburned at the end of that long day. :)


 
Here were the pictures taken by Marathon Photo:

Jason and Dad



I like this one: the dynamic duo!



Laura looking good...



Jason...what a ham...


Thanks for tuning in!
Jason and Laura

XIT Rodeo and Reunion

This year, my family decided to get together over the summer during the big XIT rodeo in Dalhart, TX. It was a lot of fun and it's much easier to get together over the summer than over the holidays so it sounds like it'll be happening next year too!

Here's the whole group of us. Can you pick us out? :) 


This is my favorite picture - it's tough to get all the brothers and Dad together anymore!


And what would a Brown get-together be without the absolutely mouth-watering Cerry O Cream Pie? DELICIOUS.