Some History

WOW!! I can't believe that it has been so long since my last update. I wish that I could say that I have been very busy, but the truth is I just could not get all of the pictures uploaded. I ahave had a very difficult time lately with this partiular website. So today, I decided to go to work a little later than normal because the network seems to move a little faster in the morning rather in the evening.

This is Truvy and she is a therapy dog. I was at the helipad because some of my guys were supposed to go on a trip and Truvy and her handler were there because she was supposed to go on a trip later and they wanted her so see, hear and feel a helicopter a few times before her trip. She was an awesome dog and reminded me of Daisy.

She just liked to be outside around other people and especially liked her jacket because she knows, if the jacket is coming out, then she is going out. She was a special dog.

Last Sunday, a few of us went on a trip courtesy of the local garrison command. They conduct these tours every Sunday in and around the FOB and it is a history lesson. It was awesome!! Saddam built two palaces here; Victory Over Iran (VOI) and Victory Over America (VOA). He built VOI after the Iran-Iraq war to celebrate his victory and he was in the process of building VOA in 2003 when this war broke out. He had hired a french company to build the palace and when fighting started, the french company went home leaving all of their equipment including the cranes. The have asked the US for $12 million as the cost of the cranes and the US just said "no."

The building appears just as it looks in the pictures; like it is falling down, and it is. It was on the receving end of a JDAM missile or two and the whole thing was just weird. This was the front door.

As we were walking around inside there wasjust a strange feeling. This building was bombed. We probably should not be here, but it held up and we continued the tour. This was inside on the second floor. I know that the picture is dark and the lens is not dirty, that is all of the dust floating around.

This is the site of the JDAM. Just like tourists, we all wanted our picture of us standing in the JDAM hole; strange, but really cool.

One of my team.

From the top floor, there was a very strange sight -- grass. It is the first green that we have seen since we left the US.

While on the tour, I ran into an old neighbor. Does anybody recognize him?

On the top floor, there we these three flags. What an amazing sight.

If you all remember, this FOB used to be a big hunting and vacation ground for Saddam and he and his sons used to enjoy the water features and have a good time. Saddam built this "playground" for his grandchildren and named it Flinstone Village because he liked the Flinstones cartoon. It is huge and I am sure it was very enjoyable for the kids.

Justone of me enjoying the fresh air on the tour.

This is called the perfume palace because it looks like a perfume bottle and this is where Saddam kept all of his lady friends. More on that later if required.

The final stop on the tour was the old Ba'ath Party Convention Center. As you may remember, this was Saddam's party. This building was used for a meeting place for the political leadership if Iraq. In March 2003, President Bush delivered an address and told Saddam that he has 48 hours to surrender. After 24 hours, he delivered another address that told the world that US forces had started the attack early because there was reason to believe that the leadership was gathered in one place. The convention center and the VOA was that place. This building was the site of a Tomahawk and JDAM strikes. This is T'hawk damage in the dining room.

At one time, there was a very impressive looking lighting fixture attached to the ceiling. I say impressive looking because it is just cheap tin and glass.

JDAM damage.

Me being a tourist, and not very well.

All of these palaces look very ornate and lavish on the surface, but after a few well placed bombs the real truth is revealed. This is a fine example of Iraqi construction. This is a load bearing wall and it is just full of junk. randomly placed bricks and rocks and just pumped full of concrete. Finally a thin layer of marble is placed on top giving the impression of an ornate palace.

This is one of the last murals of Saddam in the city as all of the others have been ripped down.

Once again, I apoligize for the delay in posting. I enjoy keeping up to date and keeping in touch with everybody. If there are any specific questions, please let me know.

Thanks for everything.

Another Big Adventure

WOW, what a day!! I had the opportunity to go on yet another big adventure. All of this with the constant reminder that there are potentially bad things that can happen all of the time. So everything that we do is done very safely and always with well prepared and trained teams. We are always in good hands!

Today, we had an opportunity to go to another FOB for several reasons, but today was going to be something new as we were not going in an MRAP (see previous post for an explanation), but today we were being escorted by contract security. This was something new. Today,we were driving in a Ford Excursion. I was going to take a picture, but it just looked like......... a Ford Excursion. we have all seen them.

On the way out, we were all business, but on the way back in, I asked the team leader if we could take some pictures and he said "sure." We were off to the races. There were four of us in the truck and all of us had our cameras out and clicking away. Because we were inside a moving vehicle, some of the pictures will be better than others.

The truck in front is part of our team and I took this because of the flag. We are here to assist the Iraqi people take their country back from the thugs and it is jsut nice to see nationalist pride, no matter which nation.

I took this one just to demonstrate the traffic. in some parts of the city, traffic is very normal for any international city of this size. When we left early in the morning, there was no traffic on the roads and we had the big truck moving about 65 mph. Gotta love big Ford diesels. ;)

I have no idea what this banner says, but jsut around the corner was a very big outdoor market.

I think that this represents transitioning from one suburb of Baghdad to another. Those people that have been to Korea might be familiar with this concept. Outside of the airbase in Deagu, there was a bridge with an archway like this. (A shout out to my Air Force readers and I wear my gloves all of the time over here.)

Just a picture.

As you drive arond, you can plainly see that this city once was very nice.

I go around this traffic circle every time we go out although I have no idea where any of the roads go.

One of the most famous sights is the crossed swords. I found out today, that there are actually two pairs of them and today, I saw both pairs. This is one pair wa off in the distance.

As we continue to get closer......

Closer still..............

And yes, we were able to stop and get out. Now, before anybody get nervous, this spot is inside the green zone which means that it is surrounded and secure. I was actually standing underneath one pair of swords taking a picture of the other.

Amazing!!

On the left hand side is Saddam's museum and on the right side, just out of frame is the tomb of the unknown Soldier. Our crew chief was very knowledgable and friendly and explained some of the history. The base of the swords is made up of Iranian helmets which symbolized to the public how successful the Iraqi was during the Iran-Iraq war. The space between the two pairs of swords, Saddam would cover with US dollars and march over them to show the country his power over the west. So, I have had the opportunity to see the Berlin Wall, Tiananmen Square and now Saddam's Museum. it is an odd situation, but still history.

This winged man just happen to be there. I have no idea who or what it is.

I took this picture just down the road from where I live and I hoped it would turn out just like it looked. Even over here, the sun comes up and the sun goes down and each one of these means that we are one sunset closer to being home. Just as sunsets are, this one was quite beautiful and caused me to think of home because as the sun sets here, it will soon rise on Household 6 and connect us again.

Thanks for all that you do. Everybody here is okay and we continue to learn and grow as a team.

One more thought, our dining facility, which has a sports theme has both OU and OSU flags, but no flags from TX. I wonder if that means anything.

Shout Out

I just want to give a shout out to one of Household 6's Ya-Yas and say "Happy Anniversary." Congratulations!!

Happy Valentine's Day

This is just a note to all friends and family to say "Happy Valentine's Day 2009" Thank you for all of your thoughts.

Normal Day

Some of you may be wondering what a normal day or week is like over here. Well, first let me say that nothing is normal, but most days I get up at 0600 in order to use the phone and catch up on the morning news. I try and get in and out of the shower before 0730 and then it is off to breakfast which is about 500 yards in one direction. After breakfast, it is off to the office, about 500 yards in the opposite direction, where I try to sit down and read email and catch up on the night's events.

During the morning, I am going here and there addressing one problem or another and about 1200, it is time for lunch. Now that we are getting settled into a routine, I take some time after lunch for me. This might be going to the gym, shopping at the PX or something else. Late in the afternoon, there is a daily meeting where I have to be. After that, we huddle with the team and then it is off to dinner. After dinner, depending on what time it is, I will either go back to work, or head home.

This is the schedule for everyday. We will eventually institute a day off program as well as four day passes to various places. Sunday is the only exception to this routine and on Sunday, I sleep in, clean my room, strip the sheets and do general housekeeping chores.

Do not confuse my script with the fact that this is still a very dangerous place and although we live in relative safety here, there are ever present reminders that there are bad guys out there. Also, here at the headquarters, life is relatively good with private rooms, hot showers, good food, PX, etc andwe are not out and about living in the city. I have the opportnity to go out and visit them and I am very thankful for what I have.

They are the Soldiers that are sitting on the wall keeping us safe in here. These Soldiers live and work along side the Iraqi Army and Iraqi Police and they are the ones making the biggest impact.

Once again, thank you all for everything and if you have any questions, please let me know.

TOA

Transfer Of Authority - This is a BIG deal!!! This is the equivilant of a two star change of command. The 4ID tranfered control and authority of all military units inside Baghdada proper to us, the 1CD and everybody who is anybody was there. Not only were all of the required military people there, but all of the local and regional Sheiks were also there and getting them all there, passed all of the security checkpoints was no small feat.

As a symbol of how far we have come, here is our National Colors along with the Iraqi National Colors in the same colr guard during the ceremony. Additionally, the color guard is mixed with US Soldiers and Iraqi Soldiers. Quite a site.

Every military ceremony has to have general officer flags and this was no exception. There were both US and Iraqi generals present during this transfer.

And no proper miltary unit worth its salt goes anywhere without its band. Here, the 1CD band entertains before and provides music during the ceremony.

After the ceremony, all of the local sheiks and generals say goodbye to the outgoing Commander and hello to the incoming one.

Some of the local leadership.

At Fort Hood, before we left, and expertly chronicled by Household 6, the Division held a Casing Ceremony where we put the division colrs away ans we would uncase them when we arrivved in Iraq. This was that ceremony. Here, the Division Commander waits for the Division Colors to be lowered so he can pull the case off and announce the Division's arrival.

Here he is actually pulling off the case. This was somewhat emotional because I actually saw them being cased and now this is the other half of the process.

Here they are, blowing proudly along side the National Colors of the two countries.

Once we officially took over, all of the old 4ID look had to come down and we had to make the place home. This is the front door of the office building where I work. Notice the Iraqi Soldier that happens to be in the picture.

Recently, the local Baghdad government presented the Command, Multi-National Division Baghdad (MND-B) with the Eagle's Head statue that now sits proudly and prominently just outsid ehte front door.

As we continue to make the building ours, we had to bring in some of the Cavalry tradition. Here is Trigger and this carpet that normally sit inside the foyer of the Division HQs at Fort Hood.

All in all a very good day. "First Team - Team First, Live th Legend!!!"