UMMMM....

Right before I came back to Germany I checked out my favorite travel blog, let's get lost.  While they had nothing on Germany they did have a post about being a tourist in Afghanistan.  Totally reasonable!  I am not allowed outside "the wire" but if I ever get a day pass off the base I'm heading straight to the Kabul Zoo. Shhhhhh don't tell my mom and dad!

APO

I do not have my official APO box yet but I thought I would post some of the restrictions on packages sent to me.  This took me a really long time to find on the internet so I wanted to make sure everyone reading this knows exactly what they can and can't ship in the multiple packages that they plan to send me.  I'll post my address as soon as I get it!

Prohibited items that will be confiscated

Please do NOT send the following items to a soldier in Iraq or Afghanistan. Packages are scanned and these items WILL be confiscated:

Alcohol and alcohol-production products and ingredients (R, R1)

Fruits, live plants and animals (M)

Pork and pork by-products (H1)

Pornographic and sexual materials (including nudes and semi-nudes) (E2)

Obscene materials and horror comics (C1)

Non-authorized political materials (E2)

Religious materials contrary to Islam in bulk quantities (E2)

Firearms and ammunition (F)

Cash, coins, securities or precious metals in their raw state (A)

Hazardous, flammable, toxic and radioactive substances

Tip: Don't use packing boxes that are labelled with a prohibited substance.

Items that may melt, leak, explode or turn on

Use common sense and realize that packages can be subjected to high heat and bouncing around. Use Ziploc bags and lots of padding where applicable:

Batteries in summer

Aerosols and other pressurized products

Liquids in glass containers

Perishable food products that can spoil

Electronic devices with batteries installed

happy days

I am indulging in every food craving while i'm here.  My nights are spent in the hotel courtyard with a glass of wine and a bowl of ice cream.  Thanks to general order number one, while in afghanistan civilians and military cannot have alcohol.  I'm hoping my nightly glasses of wine will hold me over until January.

After eating a huge sundae I decided it might be time for a run.  The weather was nice and I need to take advantage of the weather and the ability to go where I want.  I have to stay within the wire when I go "Down Range" and i've been told it will probably hit 120 degrees this summer.  After two right turns from my hotel I found myself in the middle of the German gardens.  Since a lot of people in Germany live in apartments they have big pieces of land that they divide up and the gardens are right next to each other.  I was too distracted to take real pictures but I grabbed a few as I was running by.  It was pretty amazing!  I think I might head out for another run right now.

xoxo

SURPRISE!

I tried to keep my trip to Germany a bit of a secret for awhile because I didn't want my friends in Garmisch to know I was in the same country as them.  This weekend I was able to rent a car and head down there to surprise them.  There were some tears and lots of hugs! it was pretty awesome.  Living there I never realized just how beautiful that place is.

Rollover

I spent the last few days in Grafenwoeher doing required trainings for deployment.  I was briefed on the law, a thorough history of Afghanistan, IEDs, first aid, and rollovers.  My favorite part was the history of Afghanistan.  It took two hours but I actually payed attention to the whole thing.  It was super interesting and the instructor made it fun.  My law school instructors could've learned a thing or two from him.

My first aid instructor saw immediately that I could not handle seeing pictures of medical stuff.  He would tell me to cover my eyes before showing the class really gross pictures.  He thought it was hilarious that I couldn't handle the pictures.  He is probably wondering why such a wuss would sign up for Afghanistan.

The civilians in the training all stayed off base while the soldiers in the training were housed on base.  The line to get onto the base took forever and all the civilians were late.  The soldiers looked less then amused with us when we showed up for formation that morning.  The soldier in charge of the trainings yelled the cliched response to all the civilians, "Formations are at 0745, not 0746, not 0747. 0745..."  Next time I have a formation I'll make sure to leave earlier!

The big part of the training was the roll over drill.  We were put into a simulator of an army truck and they flipped it over and we had to get out.  I felt like a bad ass when it was over and then someone in the air force told us that they have a plane simulator that does the same thing except it lands in the water and they have to get out.  Way to kill my adrenaline rush!!

After the rollover drill we headed home.  I forgot how much I love driving on the autobahn!

things I miss ...

Here are a few things about Germany that I didn't realize I had missed...


1. the chalk blessings above the doors

2. Outdoor markets

3. Fresh veggies

4. Cobblestones

5. Sitting outside with a  glass of wine/beer/fanta.

Germany

I made it to Germany.  I almost missed my flight from Charlotte to Frankfurt.  We were ready to leave San Francisco when they announced that the airport had been shut down temporarily because air force one was arriving.  I got to watch air force one land before we took off.  It was a pretty awesome way to leave the states.

My time in Germany so far has been spent trying to adjust to the time change.  I don't do jet lag well! I'll post pictures as soon as I start taking them.  This weekend I head over to Graf where I will learn how to get out of a car that has rolled over and how to spot IEDs.  I can't wait!!!!