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JAFA-Rease Says: Right outside one of the Iraqi schools, the teachers decided to paint a mural. Unfortunately they forgot to use spell check ; )
JAFA-Rease Says: Couldn't resist posting one more picture inside from inside an Iraqi school. They kids seem to be having a blast!
JAFA-Rease Says: While convoys are travelling through Iraqi territory, they frequently encounter many children who aren't in school. They have a tendency to swarm around convoys if they stop looking for handouts.They're commonly referred to by military personnel as "Street Urchins".
JAFA-Rease Says: Kirkuk Air Base has an operation called "Operation Crayon". It isn't exactly publicized by the mainstream media, but is publicized through other means. Donations are received from generous people in the USA. Donations are primarily clothes and school supplies.Volunteers at...
JAFA-Rease Says: As with all travel in Iraq (at least for now) it is highly encouraged to "tour" in groups.Oh, the flames also stink the place up. It wouldn't hurt to bring something to plug your nose...
JAFA-Rease Says: It's said that the flames cannot be extinguished. If you stomp one piece of flame out, another flame will rise nearby.
JAFA-Rease Says: Not far from Kirkuk is the "Eternal Flame". It's a significant Christian and Muslim holy site. The flame is said to have been burning for over 2,500 years now. It's the flame referenced in the Book of Daniel, chapter 3:
JAFA-Rease Says: Unfortunately some of the remaining factions aren't as friendly. This of course requires us to be a bit vigilant.Don't try this one at home ; )
JAFA-Rease Says: What you see here are more remains of the headquarters.Recently the Kurds have been moving back into the area, after many years of SEVERE suppression. Needless to say, they're considered "friendlies" for the most part.You can't see it well in the picture, but even though...
JAFA-Rease Says: Tested the zoom on my camera to get as close of a shot as I could here. You can't see it well, but folks are starting to move into the stands of the old stadium.We got the binoculars out and could see kids waving at us. Kinda interesting really. The children are very...
JAFA-Rease Says: There isn't a heck of a lot left of it now, but what you see here is the remains of the Iraqi Ba'ath party headquarters.This was actually the headquarters and control area for all of northern Iraq. In the background you can see what used to be a large stadium.The stadium...
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As far as military chow halls go, the one here is about average. It is of course free. That's a great bonus ; ) The only other choices are MRE's (field rations, which come in handy if you can't or don't want to go to the chow hall), Burger King (Ugh!) or Pizza Hut (yes we have one, but they have a VERY limited selection).
I haven't been here for one yet, but apparently they run low on items when convoys don't come in in time. You know you're running low on food if you run out of rice in the middle east ; )
Favorite Dish: Haven't been here long enough to have one!
Written Sep 19, 2004
Address: Kirkuk Air Base, Iraq
JAFA-Rease Says: Kirkuk isn't all that big, but it sure doesn't hurt to have your own transportation. It's more convenient... Plus, my new ride happens to have functioning air conditioning and a stereo ; )There are buses on base as well.If you notice the flame in the background, it's natural...
Germany to Kirkuk, the Military way...
JAFA-Rease Says: I had a very long trip to Kirkuk. There was enough to write about it that I can't possible scale it down to the 2047 characters I'm limited to in this Tips section. So, the rest of this tip will be in my Travelogue entitled "Germany to Kirkuk, the Military way..."* If you...
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GENERAL ORDER 1A
The purpose of General Order 1A is to identify conduct that is prejudicial to the maintenance of good order and discipline of Air Force personnel assigned to or attached to duty with in the AOR. General Order 1A prohibits:
a. Possession, manufacture, importation, distribution or consumption of alcohol
b. Introduction, purchase, possession, use, sale, transfer, manufacture or consumption of any controlled substances or drug paraphernalia. Prescription drugs must be accompanied by the original prescription label of the prescribing medical facility or authority
c. Introduction, possession, transfer, sale, creation or display of any pornography or sexually explicit material. This includes but is not limited to photos, videotapes, movies, drawings, cartoons, books and magazines. “Sexually explicit” means depiction or description of nudity, including sexual or excretory activities or organs, in a lascivious or lustful way. The exceptions are magazines videotapes lawfully obtained by AAFES, AFRTS, and MWR center.
d. Purchase, possession, use or sale of privately owned firearms, explosives or ammunition.
e. Gambling of any kind including sports pools, lotteries and raffles.
f. Entrance into a mosque or other site of Islamic religious significance unless directed by military authorities as part of a military necessity or official tour.
g. Removing, possessing, selling, defacing or destroying archaeological artifacts or national treasures
h. Selling, bartering or exchanging any currency at other than official exchange rate
i. Adopting mascots caring for or feeding any type of domestic or wild animals
j. Proselytizing (preaching) or attempting to win converts to any religion, faith, or practice
k. Taking war trophies as souvenirs
l. Attending disciplinary ceremonies of any kind, such as public executions
Violations of the above rules are punishable under Article 92 of the UCMJ.
Written Nov 25, 2004
JAFA-Rease Says: In the part of Iraq I'm in we don't have a lot of sand. What we have is a lot of powder. The stuff is so fine that walking in it raises clouds of it. It gets everywhere. It's so fine in fact that the impact of rain on it raises it into the air. Instead of making the air...
Time to change my underwear...
JAFA-Rease Says: Now that the story's been in the European Stars and Stripes, I can say what happened to me the other day. As I was walking towards the chow hall I noticed some smoke. When I got a bit closer, there was a fairly loud explosion. I happened to be close enough to feel a bit of...
Random photo op turns out to be VERY interesting!
JAFA-Rease Says: Found this interesting little burned/bombed out structure this morning and couldn't resist the opportunity to get a picture.Found out later what the test on the wall is. I was a bit surprised. Translating it literally: "Liberation is for us, and this point of view is the...
JAFA-Rease Says: For those with a US Air Force background, the picture speaks for itself... For the rest of ya:Every US Air Force base housing has a monthly competition for the best yard of the month. Typically it comes with a day off, a designated parking spot for the month or another...
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Favorite thing: While I can't really get out to "enjoy" the countryside, I can appreciate some spectacular sunrises and sunsets!
Written Oct 5, 2004
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Living in Kirkuk from Sep 04 until Jan 05!
Kirkuk Regional Air Base (KRAB), Iraq I was stationed at Kirkuk for a little over four months. While there I was fortunate to be able to access VT. I just didn't have much time to... No...
Unfortunetly I did not come here as a tourist, but because I had to do my job here. We were not allowed to leave the base, so the pictures you will see are all from the military base in Kirkuk. You'll...
Sunday, July 13 went to my last American event before I headed overseas - The Texas Rangers. I did not know it at the time, but the irony was written all over that game. It was hot, a long game and a...
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