The state of things

I've gotten some comments off-line, and I thought my response might be of interest to the wider audience..... Btw, is anyone actually reading this? Leave comments!

"Yes, the villa is pretty nice. For now I'm sharing a room, but all things considered it's fine. Yes, I'm comfortable, and I feel very safe. I thing we've got a great security team handling things for us.

Work is good, and very interesting right now. I always love having new challenges, and I've got a huge amount of learning to do right now, so I'm enjoying the process.

Fun & relaxation? Well, there's not much of that. In theory, our work day is 11 hours Saturday through Thursday, with 6 hours on Friday (which is the holy day here, and the afghanis aren't working) - in practice, I can see that I'll often be working much more. Still, I have the internet to surf and my websites to read, plus books to read (there's a good-sized library left by other folks). Thursday night is a bit of a party night - we'll often do a cookout, and I've been told of a standing Thursday-night poker game.

I see a limited selection of Afghani people. We've got a number of them working with us at the villa - including housekeeping, admin, security, and technical staff. Some women, but mostly men. I work directly with a handful - they seem like really great, talented people. I can't really tell much about their customs or lifestyle - I've only been here for a bit over a week, and tend to interact with them on a professional level. Give me a few months, and I'll probably be able to tell you more."

Jalalabad Road

We were out visiting a site on Saturday, so I got a chance to see a bit more of the country. The traffic is crazy - vehicles squeezing through any hole, going any direction. What's amazing is that they never hit anyone......

One Week Here

I've been here a week now. I'm starting to get used to the place, but it's a bit like drinking from a firehose. Lots of work, and lots to pick up, but good folks to work with. More & more projects are coming in the door, too, there's job security......

The villas where we're staying are nice, too. We've got four in a small compound where we live & work. It makes for a short commute, but it's also hard to get away from talking about work stuff....

Here's the Villas:





Here's where I work - just inside the front window....



A view of the area:



Another view:

Once more into the fray......

I'm headed to Afghanistan once again. This time it actually looks like I'm going to make it. Dubai is much the same as last time, but slightly cooler. 100F actually seems reasonable...

We had a great dinner last night, at the Ottomons Restaurant at the Grosvenor House. www.lemeridien.com/grosvenorhouse A very nice Turkish restaurant. The manager, Ahmet Bakay, took great care of us. What a small world - he's turkish, but spent 4 years in Savannah, and then 4 years in Atlanta before moving to Dubai a year ago.

Upon looking at the menu, Karon asked him to simply bring us food - whatever he thought best. It was a great choice. We had an amazing selection of foods, and shared them family style so everyone had a sample of the options. We spent three hours at dinner, finishing with cigars (not me) and single-malt scotch on the balcony overlooking the Dubai Marina. Perhaps it's the time difference, but I didn't even mind that we didn't get back to the hotel until 1am......

I can tell I'll do my best to come back for dinner whenever I come through Dubai.