Posts Tagged ‘army’

Sorry the blog has been so quiet… even though I know Michel and I both still have plenty to say about the trip (and don’t worry, you will hear it all!), I think we both needed a couple blog-free days to let it all sink in.
Hmm.  That implies that it has actually sunk in now… [...]

So. We’re back in Holland… but we’ve barely begun to share all the stories we heard while we were there.
So, while Michel and I have a little R&R and spend a little time with loved ones, here’s a quick entry to entertain you (hopefully you find it as funny as you’ll hear I did!!).
***
One of [...]

home!!!
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Yep. As of the middle of the night tonight, Michel and I will be “on the road again” (too bad you can’t hear me sing as I say that).
I’m telling you this less because I’m excited to go home and more because I don’t want anyone to worry if there aren’t any entries for a [...]

Kandahar is good, don’t get me wrong. The boardwalk is interesting, there’s Tim Horton’s hot chocolate and bagels, and there are lots of Canadians (and Americans and British and French, oh my!).
But I miss TK.
I was there for less than two weeks but it was still “home”.
I miss my armoured sleeping “chalet”, I miss the [...]

It’s strange to me that life goes on when somebody dies.
I mean, of course it does. But shouldn’t something change? Dramatically? Visably? Not just an absence… but… something?
I don’t know.
But that’s what people keep saying - “life goes on.”
And I know this morning, when I got up after Not Enough Sleep (I was up ’til [...]

Last night 4 rockets were fired at TK.
Two fell outside the camp.
One landed in the Afghan National Army compound. The other landed just outside the compound in Kamp Holland.
One Dutch soldier - Azdin Chadli - was killed. Five other Dutch soldiers and two Afghan soldiers were also wounded. Two of the wounded were flown here [...]

Just had to write this: one of the buildings here is called the TLS (yet another acronym, in this case for “Taliban Last Stand”). I’m sure you can guess at the inspiration… an allied bomb through the roof ended it all for them. The hole is still visible.
Speaking of bombs, they seem to have more [...]

When I think of an engineer, I think of someone who builds roads or bridges.
But in the army, there are engineers… and then there are engineers.
Some of them build bridges and roads just like I’d expect.
But others have the special / important / deadly / exciting / crucial / high-pressure job of walking in front [...]

I’m counting down the days till my departure. With mixed feelings. It will be nice to come home, to eat food that hasn’t been cooked for the masses, and a glass of wine will go down very nicely, thank you. After all, there is no alcohol available on the bases here. On the other hand, [...]