The Arrival

My watch read just after 7:00 AM and we were on our way, even though the condensation from the plane's a/c dripping from above made a puddle on my pants right where you don't really want a puddle. We headed for the runway and within 10 minutes were airborne on our way to Kabul with a flying time of 2 1/2 hours. Of course as soon as the plane went "nose up" the condensation from all 7 rows forward found the easiest way out which increased the size of my puddle to that of someone who was really really scared to fly. Once we evened out the water subsided a bit but the helpful flight attendant brought out a roll of clear 2 inch tape and decided to do some patch work above my puddle. I sure hoped this wasn't their fix-all for the engine as well or any other vital organ on the airplane.

I tried to close my eyes a couple times but was awoken after each attempt by the pools of water finding its way around the patch work. Once on my bald head, once on my nose (you get the idea). I wish the water had landed on some of my traveling companions since it had been weeks since their last attempt at a shower. Time for the meal and drinks cart. I had been warned before not to eat the meal and make sure and have something before flying so I was now very grateful for my $12.00 club sandwhich that I had back at the Hyatt. As we left Iranian airspace and entered Afghani the pilot came over the intercom and welcomed us to Afghanistan. He did it in Arabic and then the flight attendant translated into Pashtu (local lingo) and English. For some reason I didn't feel incredibly welcome but I reclosed my eyes and thought happy thoughts.

When we were told to put our seats up and tray tables away, I knew we were close. Due to the capability of small arms (or bigger arms) being able to "take out" the Boeing 737, the approach to Kabul International is one of the steepest I'd ever experienced. Emma my dear, you would have been beyond queasy on this one. We weren't pointed straight down but darn close to it with a last minute pull-up to make sure the front wheel didn't hit first. Ten point landing in my book - especially under these harsh conditions. The overhead sights of Kabul, as well as those on the ground, are not too hard to describe. Mud huts abound and more dust and dirt than you can imagine. The mountains coming in were incredible and the largest were even covered in snow, but the city was drab and lacked anything that I would consider pretty. I saw one cool looking building that from the air looked like a wagon wheel with each spoke being a separate inner building with courtyards between all the spokes and a round courtyard in the middle. This was later identified to me as the largest prison in Afghanistan. Not so cool afterall.

Once we were on the ground and allowed to move someone opened the overhead bin above me where my computer bag had been for the last 3 hours. The smell that escaped from this bin is honestly indescribable. Think of 100 baby diapers (soiled of course), horse poo, dog poo, cat poo and duck poo, rolled into an enchilada with a big hunk of cheese and left out in the sun for 3 days. My computer bag still smells of yuck and to think, me with no frebreeze. The plane did not pull up to the airport but was left about 100 yards from the terminal. At the bottom of the stairs was a man holding a piece of paper that had the American Flag on it and in black letters it said "American Embassy". I gave him a "thank-you god" (or allah) sort of look and showed him my passport. He checked my name off his list and said give me your passport and two dollars. I was very hesitant to turn my passport over and what did he want two dollars for. The other Embassy guy explained that this gentleman was an expediter and would use the money to tip the guys that were getting my luggage off the plane since they do not work for salary. Can you imagine an international airport with no paid baggage handlers? Here's my money and I sure hope to get my passport back.

I was escorted to the VIP area - a gravel lot on the other side of a fence - where I was greeted by my predecessor and my new boss. We loaded the heavily armored Humvee and proceeded to the Embassy through the roughest airport road I'd ever been on and passed some of the most depressing squalor I'd ever seen. People everywhere and nothing but poverty. My first question of course was what did it look like before we started helping them?

That's it for now - more episodes to follow.