July 2012
21 posts
4:46pm July 14th, Grand Junction, Colo: Trip...
So Calvin and I are back in the good ol US of A. It actually feels good to be home and to be able to take the mundane for granted - like toilets that have the full compliment of parts correctly in place for completing a full flush.
The rest of our flight was pretty uneventful except my checked bag has gone missing. Hopefully it’ll show up in the next few days. Calvin took one for the team...
11:04am July 13th, Paris, Fra.
Hello from Charles De Gaulle Internationale Airport (that’s EhrrPorrrr in French). Calvin and I are out of Afghanistan and on our way back to the world of air conditioning, slow lanes, and one wife per dude.
So the last day went pretty well. Calvin and I enjoyed the remaining 4 group presentations all presented “In the Name of Allah.” It seems that group dynamics are a challenge...
5:09am July 12th, Kabul, Afghan.
So I’m getting up a little early on our last morning to squeeze in my final post from Kabul. Calvin and I have definitely had a special week here with our Afghani hosts. In many ways I feel a little cheated to be leaving so soon, but I’m not afraid to admit I miss some basic western comforts, in particular decent air quality. The dust and smog make for a unique throat-wracking,...
8:30pm July 10th, Kabul, Afghan.
So today was notable for some mind widening exchanges. This morning seems long time ago: I think there was a delay getting picked up and an exchange with Mr. Rick Deputy GM about security but I can’t remember… let me check yesterday’s post… yeah I think today was something about the driver brushing his hair the wrong way and triggering about 16 alerts at the gate. Either...
8:32pm July 9th, Kabul, Afghan.
So I’m learning that it’s all about “the guy” here. You want to dig a hole in the ground, you need “the guy with the shovel,” to go anywhere “the guy who drives your car,” to go home, “the guy who locks the door.” Invariably “the guy” appears between 15 mins and 2 days after the window for the required task has closed. I...
8:41pm July 8th, Kabul Afghan.
So today was so uneventful I’m almost disappointed. We did get a a lecture from Deputy General Manager Rick for attempting to walk from the hotel reception to the street (rather than wait behind the gates) to meet our driver. Without being silly he was right. Unecessary risks are foolish in Kabul and while it was at the request of our driver so he didn’t have to deal with the hassle of...
8:09pm July 7th, Kabul, Afghan.
I think Calvin and I have weathered the initial storm that Kabul has thrown at us. I feel comfortable saying we’ve stopped being surprised by surprises.
First this morning Calvin and I were all ready for our driver to arrive and take us to the first day of our train the trainer workshop when our cell phone started ringing off the wall.
Ajay: “Good Morning Denis, where are you and...
8:45pm July 6th, Kabul, Afghan.
So after checking in we had our second breakfast with hosts Ajay (CSU) and Habib (Ministry of Ag, Afghanistan). Habib is a smiling cheerful guy with a deep belly chuckle that makes you smile even when you’re jet lagged out to wazoo. I ask him about his family: 1 wife, 20 kids. “!!??” Well actually 6 kids (3 boys, 2 girls) but it feels like 20 he says.
Calvin and I finished...
12:47pm July 6th, Kabul, Afghan.
So here we are and Calvin and I are slowly coming to grips with our new surroundings. In some ways Kabul is everything we expected, but in other ways it couldn’t be further from our expectations. There’s barb-wire everywhere and camo’d soldiers with AK-47s behind checkpoints at every corner, but it’s surprisingly unintimidating. It appears as if these guys are pretty...
10:29pm July 5th. Dubai Int'l Airport
So after what was actually a pretty smooth if long flight Calvin and I are now enjoying Baskins and Robbins (“Love Potion”: raspberries and chocolate chunks in vanilla ice cream - not bad) while we await boarding for our SAFI Air leg to Kabul (pron Kah-bool, not Kah-ble apparently). We’ve had great luck with people so far. We sat next to a guy who trains teams of sniffer dogs and...
8:42pm July 4th, Atlanta Airport, Georg.
Hello Atlanta,
Calvin and I have arrived safely in Atlanta after the first two domestic legs on our air epic to Kabul. Calvin impressed the check-in attendant by blowing out Delta’s luggage scale with an whopping 72lbs worth of show and tell. After our $75 luggage charge we connected smoothly with our flight in Salt Lake. Calvin enjoyed telling the lady next to us that I’m his...
10:44pm Tues July 3rd - GJ, Colo. USA
I still haven’t packed. Rule #1 (#2, and #3) of taking random assignments in war-torn south asian countries is don’t agree to leave the same day you’re supposed to be out of your house so a tenant can move in. I had half a bottle of coke for supper. I had a whole bottle for lunch. I have some malaria medication I plan to take for a midnight snack when I get home.
I appreciate...
