15 Nov Here in Irbil (aka Erbil, Arbil or Gerbil)

15 Nov Here in Irbil (aka Erbil, Arbil or Gerbil)

I finally made it to Irbil (aka Erbil, Arbil or Gerbil) and it's a very small camp in northern Iraq. There are probably only about 100 people here and that includes soldiers, US civilians and contractors and foreign contractors (TCNs). Walking around during the day I might see one or two people out and about. The biggest group I've seen has been at the DFAC and that might be 30 people or so. Anyway, here are some pics. The round structures are tents and inside are cots. Right now I've got a whole tent to myself. The pic with the twalls is the main housing area for permanent residents. Hooches are behind the twalls. The pic with the guard tower is the edge of the camp. Like all bases and camps in Iraq, the guard towers are manned by Ugandans. The pic with the far away shade structure is where I work. I actually work in the white building to the left of the big shade structure. And in the center of camp is a US flagpole. This is kinda cool since only a year or so back it wasn't authorized to fly the American flag. Evidently it was a sign of foreign invasion. Rules change...

R/Chris