A Taste of Normalcy

The first day I was here, Ron and I joined an RAF pilot named Robbie and a USAF pilot named "Pins" (American pilots all go by their callsigns... It's so "Top Gun") for dinner. We did a quick internet search for the kind of restaturant we were looking for and headed off post to a local swanky hotel. On the first floor, with a view of the marina, we dined on hundreds of dollars worth of sushi. It was so great to feel like a normal person again; eating good food in a real restaurant without plastic utensils and plates like back on my home base in Kuwait.
Yesterday, Ron and I ventured off post again and had lunch at a Turkish restaurant. Those cooks can do incredible things with flatebread, chicken, and spices. We then drove along the coast and stopped at a huge mall near the water. This place was enormous and was as nice (if not nicer) than any mall in the states. In fact, if not for the men in white robes and women covered in black, I'd have thought I was in the Galleria back in LA. There were hundreds of shops, an ice rink, and a game area for kids that took up two floors and 90,000 square feet. We did some shopping and then took in a movie while we were there: the new Zorro flick complete with arabic subtitles and amateur editing-out of the passionate kissing scenes. After the mall we had another great dinner and made our way to Ron's base by way of a British pub.
Tonite is the centerpiece of my trip: the Army Navy game. The series is tied now 49-49-7. Army has won its past four games this season and is poised to kick the snot out of Navy tonite. Regardless of the game's outcome, it's been nice to get away from work and to relax with a good friend who I haven't seen in a long time. The chance to get together 10,000 miles from home has been a truly unique experience.
I seem to have misplaced my USB-to-Flash-Card adapter, but when I find it I will upload some pictures of the goings-on I described above.
GO ARMY - BEAT navy.