The Trip to Doha, Qatar
Greetings,
I have returned from Doha in one piece. I have broken my trip down into days for your reading pleasure or displeasure.
Day 1: We arive at BIAP (That is the Baghdad International Airport for those keeping track of the military alphabet) at 0800 with a depature time scheduled for 1200. Eight (8) hours or so after getting aquaintied with the terminal, our flight arrives to take us away. It is a lovely C-130. We are off with a combat take off, which means straight up while turning sharply and having your eyes pop out of your head like on Beattle Juice. Our original destination is Kuwait, which is a quick trip of about an hour and a half. One hour ticks by and gradually my legs start to fall asleep and with so much leg room in the plane I really can't move. Finally after about three hours the load master (e.g. a guy in the flight suit who thinks he is a pilot) informs us that we will not be landing in Kuwait but will be continuing on to Qatar. This isn't so bad, I guess . Although that means another hour or so in the cargo plane with 30 or so of my closest friends and neighbors. I really think that boxes fit much better in a C-130 than people do. Another three hours or so tick by. We are told again that we have not been cleared to land in Qatar. Back to Kuwait it is. Finally after about what seems to be forever we are cleared to land in Qatar. We arrive at Qatar a little before 2200. Once again we are herded into a little room to wait for a bus ride. We finally arrive at our destination. We are checked into a giant cordoned off warehouse with sections referred to as "Bays" complete with bunkbeds. It is frigid. We hear a nasty, but we what we hope is true, rumor that the bar in Qatar is open until 0300. Once we get settled we are off in search of a beer. We wander around the area and find the bar. This is no ordinary bar. There is a set of three bars inside another warehouse. There is no roof on the bar and I feel like I am on a movie set. Of course the bar is closed and I guess shooting ended for the day. We go to bed thirsty.
Day 2. After sleeping in, we still wake up thirsty, but figure it is time to get one of the tours that are offered. We settle on the Dhow Boat cruise that will be going out the next day around the Persian Gulf. After getting that settled, we find out the correct hours for drinking. After an aftenoon of movie watching and finding our way around post. It should be noted that they do not give out maps due to security reasons and there are no pictures on base because they were mortared three years ago and a Brit lost his life. It should also be noted that Baghdad and the fighting are a ways away from this place. Anyway we make our way to the pub. It was not the "set" bar but a free standing club called the Oasis. At long last we get the first of our three daily beers. Of course we pick alcohol content over taste. After sitting at the Oasis club and watching "Soul Line Dancing" we decided we had had enough and left.
Day 3. It is Boat Cruise Day. The day started out great. On the bus ride down to the docks we met a very nice and attractive female Marine Captain named Beth. The cruise was great as we were able to take in the sites and eat an authentic haji barbeque aboard the ship. After touring around the Persian Gulf and swimming we head back to the "set" for our beers. With our new friend along we figure that we can get more bang for our buck and convince her to give up some of her beer. Lucky for us she doesn't like beer all that much so she leaves it on the table. Oops her mistake.
Day 4. Happy 21st Birthday for the 17th time CPT HarsheyAfter a stellar day on the water, we arise at a decent our from our "bay" to enjoy a nice day around Camp As Salayh (near Doha Qatar). It is a very special day for a very special boy. It is Harshey's birthday. In honor of his birthday we take him to the Chili's. This day would not be complete without a regular WTF moment. Harshey attempts to order a bacon cheese burger. However, because we are in a Muslim (e.g. Hagi for those UN PC folks reading) Country, there is no bacon available. I offer to go to our dining facility (The DFAC in military speak) to pick up some bacon for his sandwich. At that point, Harshey comes up with a new word and one which is hajicon lexicon worthy. The word is infidelicious. Here I pause to add it. Infidelicious adj. 1. To enjoy something that is infidel in an non-infidel country. Harshey found his real bacon cheeseburger to be infidelicious.After our lovely dinner we head to a concert. This is no ordinary concert. We are going to see a country singer. The general consensus was this particular artist either, in the past, now or both, has exercised her 1st Amendment right to "dance." You can check her out at http://www.gingerlewis.com/ and decide for yourself. According to her bio, she "has revolutionized country music and she is as talented as she is beautiful." As we drink our three or so beers, the music gets better. At this point another word is created for the hajicon lexicon although this is a universal one.Beer phones. n 1. What one develops after drinking beer to make any band playing music sound tolerable. See also hajigoogles, beergoogles, coyote ugly. After two beers, Seamus drank beer, put on his beer phones making the concert sound okay.After a couple of hours of fun. Ms. Lewis herself came to sing Happy Birthday to Harshey. Once again a good time was had by all and it was a blast helping Harshey celebrate his 21st birthday.
Day 5. After a hard night of three or so beers and celebrating we once again lounge around. Capt S and I decide to sign up for a sponsor to take us into Doha proper. We get a very nice and interesting sponsor to take us around the city. Our first stop is some authentic Qatarian cuisine, Applebees. This is like any other normal Applebees. There is a bunch of Americana junk nailed to the walls. However, and you knew this was coming, WTF moment whatever at this point. Just as we sit down, a man dressed in a very elaborate mandress comes in along with his three wives and little kids. The wives, of course are covered from head to toe all in black. In the meantime we have the Backstreet Boys playing followed by Britney Spears. What a country. After eating we venture to a somewhat more Qatarian experience the Souke Markets. However when we get there virtually everything is closed because it is "naptime." From the hours of 1pm to 4pm everything shuts down so people can nap. The work day, keep in mind, usually starts around 10am. What a life. Unfortunately my quest for a mandress fell short on this trip. We also made one final stop to the mall. It was your normal mall, except there were prayer rooms next to the restrooms and there was an equivilent to Ikea.
Day 6. It is time to head back to the WTF. After a great trip of relaxation and fun it is time to come home. A good time was had by all. We were all tan, rested and not ready to return. The upside is now I have only 42 days left in paradise.
I have returned from Doha in one piece. I have broken my trip down into days for your reading pleasure or displeasure.
%20Barry%20&%201LT(P)%20Harshey%20boarding%20our%20Dhow%20cruise%20in%20Doha,%20Qatar%2013JUL06.jpg)
%20Seamus%20Barry%20&%20CPT%20Beth%20Falcon%20on%20the%20Dhow%20cruise%20-%20Doha,%20Qatar%2013JUL06.0.jpg)
Day 1: We arive at BIAP (That is the Baghdad International Airport for those keeping track of the military alphabet) at 0800 with a depature time scheduled for 1200. Eight (8) hours or so after getting aquaintied with the terminal, our flight arrives to take us away. It is a lovely C-130. We are off with a combat take off, which means straight up while turning sharply and having your eyes pop out of your head like on Beattle Juice. Our original destination is Kuwait, which is a quick trip of about an hour and a half. One hour ticks by and gradually my legs start to fall asleep and with so much leg room in the plane I really can't move. Finally after about three hours the load master (e.g. a guy in the flight suit who thinks he is a pilot) informs us that we will not be landing in Kuwait but will be continuing on to Qatar. This isn't so bad, I guess . Although that means another hour or so in the cargo plane with 30 or so of my closest friends and neighbors. I really think that boxes fit much better in a C-130 than people do. Another three hours or so tick by. We are told again that we have not been cleared to land in Qatar. Back to Kuwait it is. Finally after about what seems to be forever we are cleared to land in Qatar. We arrive at Qatar a little before 2200. Once again we are herded into a little room to wait for a bus ride. We finally arrive at our destination. We are checked into a giant cordoned off warehouse with sections referred to as "Bays" complete with bunkbeds. It is frigid. We hear a nasty, but we what we hope is true, rumor that the bar in Qatar is open until 0300. Once we get settled we are off in search of a beer. We wander around the area and find the bar. This is no ordinary bar. There is a set of three bars inside another warehouse. There is no roof on the bar and I feel like I am on a movie set. Of course the bar is closed and I guess shooting ended for the day. We go to bed thirsty.Day 2. After sleeping in, we still wake up thirsty, but figure it is time to get one of the tours that are offered. We settle on the Dhow Boat cruise that will be going out the next day around the Persian Gulf. After getting that settled, we find out the correct hours for drinking. After an aftenoon of movie watching and finding our way around post. It should be noted that they do not give out maps due to security reasons and there are no pictures on base because they were mortared three years ago and a Brit lost his life. It should also be noted that Baghdad and the fighting are a ways away from this place. Anyway we make our way to the pub. It was not the "set" bar but a free standing club called the Oasis. At long last we get the first of our three daily beers. Of course we pick alcohol content over taste. After sitting at the Oasis club and watching "Soul Line Dancing" we decided we had had enough and left.
Day 3. It is Boat Cruise Day. The day started out great. On the bus ride down to the docks we met a very nice and attractive female Marine Captain named Beth. The cruise was great as we were able to take in the sites and eat an authentic haji barbeque aboard the ship. After touring around the Persian Gulf and swimming we head back to the "set" for our beers. With our new friend along we figure that we can get more bang for our buck and convince her to give up some of her beer. Lucky for us she doesn't like beer all that much so she leaves it on the table. Oops her mistake.
Day 4. Happy 21st Birthday for the 17th time CPT HarsheyAfter a stellar day on the water, we arise at a decent our from our "bay" to enjoy a nice day around Camp As Salayh (near Doha Qatar). It is a very special day for a very special boy. It is Harshey's birthday. In honor of his birthday we take him to the Chili's. This day would not be complete without a regular WTF moment. Harshey attempts to order a bacon cheese burger. However, because we are in a Muslim (e.g. Hagi for those UN PC folks reading) Country, there is no bacon available. I offer to go to our dining facility (The DFAC in military speak) to pick up some bacon for his sandwich. At that point, Harshey comes up with a new word and one which is hajicon lexicon worthy. The word is infidelicious. Here I pause to add it. Infidelicious adj. 1. To enjoy something that is infidel in an non-infidel country. Harshey found his real bacon cheeseburger to be infidelicious.After our lovely dinner we head to a concert. This is no ordinary concert. We are going to see a country singer. The general consensus was this particular artist either, in the past, now or both, has exercised her 1st Amendment right to "dance." You can check her out at http://www.gingerlewis.com/ and decide for yourself. According to her bio, she "has revolutionized country music and she is as talented as she is beautiful." As we drink our three or so beers, the music gets better. At this point another word is created for the hajicon lexicon although this is a universal one.Beer phones. n 1. What one develops after drinking beer to make any band playing music sound tolerable. See also hajigoogles, beergoogles, coyote ugly. After two beers, Seamus drank beer, put on his beer phones making the concert sound okay.After a couple of hours of fun. Ms. Lewis herself came to sing Happy Birthday to Harshey. Once again a good time was had by all and it was a blast helping Harshey celebrate his 21st birthday.
Day 5. After a hard night of three or so beers and celebrating we once again lounge around. Capt S and I decide to sign up for a sponsor to take us into Doha proper. We get a very nice and interesting sponsor to take us around the city. Our first stop is some authentic Qatarian cuisine, Applebees. This is like any other normal Applebees. There is a bunch of Americana junk nailed to the walls. However, and you knew this was coming, WTF moment whatever at this point. Just as we sit down, a man dressed in a very elaborate mandress comes in along with his three wives and little kids. The wives, of course are covered from head to toe all in black. In the meantime we have the Backstreet Boys playing followed by Britney Spears. What a country. After eating we venture to a somewhat more Qatarian experience the Souke Markets. However when we get there virtually everything is closed because it is "naptime." From the hours of 1pm to 4pm everything shuts down so people can nap. The work day, keep in mind, usually starts around 10am. What a life. Unfortunately my quest for a mandress fell short on this trip. We also made one final stop to the mall. It was your normal mall, except there were prayer rooms next to the restrooms and there was an equivilent to Ikea.
Day 6. It is time to head back to the WTF. After a great trip of relaxation and fun it is time to come home. A good time was had by all. We were all tan, rested and not ready to return. The upside is now I have only 42 days left in paradise.
posted by PNWJAG at 2:01 AM
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