Home is where your Temperpedic pillow is!

What a crazy and eventful past two weeks its been.  Finally arrived in Mazar to begin the new job.  There seem to be great people on this project - barring one - but she was just forced to resign.  More on that later.  Still no official word on the future of the project, but we are moving forward with a greatly reduced staff.  I spent the first two weeks in what I'll refer to as the "ghetto villa" - old, dirty, a mattress of torture and a shared, nasty bathroom with a less than considerate young guy - and it smelled like the monkey house at the zoo.  The whole place did thanks to old plumbing and sewer gas coming up through the drains.  Not much to write home about when the day ended and I came back to my room.

However, the upside here is plentiful.  A market we can visit and shop for groceries and other necessities, a few restaurants we can patronize, alcohol available for purchase (but at greatly inflated prices) and the city is green and beautiful!  The first week I was here I attended a cookout at a German organization's house - it was attended by many people from different UN organizations, the ICRC and other NGO's.  Really fun and tons of interesting people just hanging out and enjoying food and drink.  There was also a house dog and a few bossy kitties wandering around which was great.  They have these elevated platforms here with small railings around the edges and usually some kind of cover or roof on the top.  The platform is covered with pillows and you just lounge around on them, smoke the Hookah (the apple is my favorite flavor) and chat - I think I need one of these on my deck when I finally return home.  I love them - have no idea what it's called, but they had a similar setup in the cafes in Turkey.  Lounge Lizard!  We have one here and other than a few mosquito bites, it's really fun in the evening.

I made my first journey to the city of Aybak my first week to discuss their park project - how convenient for me to have planned parks for 2 short months - really coming in handy.  Interesting meeting and I had a media camera in my face the whole time.  I also have finally had to cave and now wear a headscarf to these meetings.   A real experience - they trap the heat, you have limited peripheral vision and they make me feel like an old gypsy woman for some reason - think old horror movies and the gypsy caravan... I had it going on, except for the requisite facial mole and crystal ball... "leeet meee warn yoouu (cue the howling in the background) about de fun-diing of de prooojeeect."  I was a sweaty, hot mess and when you have the meetings with the big guys, it's very formal and somewhat intimidating - and it's hot as hell here right now.  They sit across a very large room and the discussions occur through an interpreter - lots of pregnant pauses and much more being said than is ever translated.  Plus they always serve you hot tea, most likely with local water, and you better drink it and worry about potential intestinal problems later.  I couldn't wait to get that damn thing off my head, jump into my gypsy caravan wagon and skedaddle into the sunset.  On the way there and back we drove through the most beautiful area I have ever seen here - the Kholm Pass - reminded me of the landscapes in the American west.  Stunning.

This week we finally moved into our gorgeous guest house!  I am on the 3rd floor, with a beautiful view of the  mountains from my private balcony.  Seriously, I am living in such a nice place (finally) that I forget I'm actually in Afghanistan.  With the comfy room, beautiful house and grounds, freedom of movement and my own bathroom, I often have to remind myself where I am these days.  We did have a bicycle bomb a few days ago and that was a gentle reminder to watch out.  Tomorrow I leave for Kabul for a couple of days of training and as luck would have it, two of my favorite past co-workers will be there as well - we plan to meet up for dinner.  See - kind of normal right now!

I thought I would devote the end of this quick post to a collage, if you will, of all the places I've lived since I've been here.  Quite interesting and I cannot believe I managed to deal with some of these places - I'm telling you it makes a world of difference to begin at the bottom and work your way up.  I've met people here who would never consider living in a tent or a plywood hut with no windows.  When I decided to come here and work, I just did it.  Just did it... and now looking back I'm amazed because it was hard, and tough, often unpleasant, frequently frightening, often boring but also one of the most exciting things I've ever done - so far!  I think I'm blessed with the bliss of ignorance and the willing to make the best of almost anything - but more importantly, a phenomenal other half, family and group of friends.  Trust me when I say that this was only made possible by having the support network I do.  So, enough of reflection and sweetness - here's the walk down my housing history in Afghanistan.  I so wish I would have taken pictures of the bathrooms, because that's where the real personal fortitude comes into play - most of them were either disgusting, a hike from where I was living or a combination of both.  On rare occasions have they been tolerable.  Enjoy!


My first "home"

My small space - arrived at 3am in a rain storm with a flashlight

the muddy road in front - had to walk over a mile each way to work every day.  Bathrooms - disgusting!

Ghazni - 3 weeks here at Polish Camp

My home for 6 months at KAF

KAF, small 8 x 10 room - and mice

But the bathrooms were great!

broken ankle in tent room - not fun - beer, fake

New job - Hotel Kandahar, 2 months

Office compound and some favorite co-workers - didn't take a pic of my room

My room at hotel - not bad at all!

Hotel Kandahar courtyard

my container at KPRT in Kandahar - had an 8 x 10 side and had to share - not great - also on the perimeter wall, but I had a pet cat - Lt. Dan

My fabulous room in Mazar!

nice room at FOB Wilson - HORRIBLE port-o-john!

View from my balcony

patio at FOB Wilson

the balcony!

and... drum roll... my own, clean, sunny bathroom!

After looking at these pictures, I realize that I've been living like a turtle with my house on my back - I've carted my stuff all over this country!  I've also tolerated a variety of vermin, flies, scorpions and snakes.  Finally, I'm in a really nice place and hoping the contract lasts, I can do my year here in comfort, the work remains interesting and the co-workers fun!

And the best part... Drink of the Night - an Italian red wine, purchase legally!  Pinkies up!