The European flavour
August 10th, 2009 | Chow Foreign navies Morale Shore duty The Middle East | Posted by Phil Ewing
KANDAHAR AIR FIELD, AFGHANISTAN — Before we arrived on Sunday, people kept telling us this place was like Mos Eisley Cantina in “Star Wars,” and it is, kind of — a Babylon in the scrubland, filled with people in strange uniforms, speaking exotic languages. There are service members here from the dozens of NATO nations that form the International Security Assistance Force, and it is fine sport to sit and observe their different camouflage patterns, badges of rank and unit insignia.
The Australian uniforms here are in a “99 Luftbaloons”-pattern, with gray and brown spheres over a tan background, as though a huge balloon release had taken place in the area just out of the picture, under the soldier’s feet. Some of our U.K. friends wear red feathers in their berets. And there are a few nations that have sent troops in uniforms that include comically short pants. We’re all super-joint, 21st century warfighters, of course, so nobody blanches at all the international flavour on this base.
And there’s a broader theme at work here in Afghanistan, beyond the difference between the U.S. and international uniforms. Unlike Americans, European commanders acknowledge that troops want to enjoy their free time, and the international bases we’ve seen in Afghanistan reflect that philosophy. On Saturday, for an interview with Rear Adm. Greg Smith, ISAF’s top spokesman, he and I sat in a charming, shaded beer garden across the street from ISAF Headquarters in Kabul. The fountains gurgled and the tall pines sighed in the mountain breeze — Kabul is above 6,000 feet, I learned, which keeps it much cooler than the rest of the country. Dutch soldiers enjoyed cigars at a table near us. It was a highly civilized place to relax, and there is nothing like it at the U.S. posts we’ve visited. In the American military, if you aren’t working or fighting, you’d better be sleeping, or we’ll find something for you to do, shipmate.
Kandahar has an even bigger and more elaborate area for social life: A long, square boardwalk, which surrounds volleyball courts, tables and even a hockey rink, and includes shops and cafes on the outer edge. The boardwalk is shaded against the punishing Afghan sun and you can sit in the heat, as I did, trying to connect to the sluggish wireless network.
Women walked past in casual, hot-weather vacation attire — flirty-slogan t-shirts and shorts, or capri pants — wearing their pistols, as is required for service members here. A group of British soldiers in their tiger-stripe uniforms sat listening to Premier League soccer on the radio. Canadian troops ran into the hockey rink, dressed with full pads and gear, for a pick-up game with a ball for a puck. After dark, the boardwalk area became a crowded junior-high mixer, where British soldiers flirted with U.S. air-women and a lonely female voice floated from a U.S. Army karaoke party, singing Bonnie Rait’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me.” The convivial din was broken often by the peal of fighter jets taking off nearby.
Our experience in the “Luxemborg” chow hall was just as flavourful — literally — where I enjoyed the curried pork vindaloo with byriani and a green salad with fresh feta. German bier wurst was available at the salad bar, or one could take the salmon quiche, naturally. Apparently European service members don’t like frozen novelties, however, because there was no freezer full of ice cream sandwiches, as in Iraq. One tries one’s best to manage in these situations.
Comments
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Michael Squires Says:
August 10th, 2009 at 4:47 pmBravo. You captured the imagery perfectlym alive on the page.
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Aspiring FSO Says:
August 10th, 2009 at 10:28 pmit sounds like a great experience, even amidst chaos…
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Military Sports Report - After Action – Looking for some relaxation? Try Iraq Says:
October 22nd, 2009 at 9:34 am[...] a caution: Karaoke in the war zone can be haunting and poignant, rather than drunken and [...]
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The Scoop Deck – We build, we fight, we visit museums Says:
January 29th, 2010 at 1:29 pm[...] Scoop Deck learned during a recent visit to the U.S. Central Command area of responsibility, you can’t swing a reporter’s [...]
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The Scoop Deck – ISAF: Enough of all this nice stuff Says:
March 26th, 2010 at 9:01 am[...] died already, this probably means the end of the famous boardwalk at Kandahar Air Field. (Shame: Great, surreal memories of that place.) No word on whether this affects the Canadian Forces’ beloved Tim Hortons, [...]
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The Scoop Deck – The civilized way to go to sea Says:
June 15th, 2010 at 12:27 pm[...] The scene in the wardroom bar was livelier after dinner, especially on an evening when the air wing wasn’t flying the next day, meaning all its pilots could drink too. The atmosphere was about what you’d see in a land bar at about 9:30 on a Wednesday: Not quite boisterous; just short of rollicking; but loud and lively enough that it was clear everyone was enjoying themselves. An iPod was hooked up to the wardroom hi-fi playing Muse, Bloc Party and Lady Gaga. Compared to what can feel like the mandatory fun of command events I’ve seen in the U.S. Navy — well, there was no comparison. In the American military, as we’ve seen, if you aren’t working or sleeping, we’ll find you something to do, shipmate! [...]