need some info, internet Px living conditions, things to bring etc

Yes, it's TRUE!!!

They closed all of the AAFES concessions...so no more BK, Subway, gear shops, Faux-kleys...

Unintended consequences (as there always are):

In an attempt to cut down on logistical requirements of having all that Pizza Hut and BK shipped into theater, they are no more...to be replaced by non-AAFES (read non-US) concessions...so the airfield still has the logistical load but now the $ goes ?

Go figure.

Other than that it's like the bar scene out of Star Wars...what else would you like to know?

lol i just had to watch that scene on youtube cause you said that we all laughed

Internet is a good question:  I've had good luck one way or another.  My unit in 2007 had a "private" (commercial) set-up that was the bomb...we lived on the back row of the "mods" and worked on the flightline...had internet "beamed" all over the base.

Not sure about AAFES or .mil provided internet but would imagine it's OK.

Housing?  There is one of everything here now ("mods" or modular housing, CHUs, CMUs, CORIMECs, etc.).  Where and what you end up in depends on your unit.

The "surge" (instead of ramping up forces per the original plan) created a SEVERE shortage of everything here but it's in the process of being fixed.

Who are you coming here with?

a military police company








 

I don't know where the MP unit(s) are...the new housing is largely for the Aviation BDE which they "dropped" here last summer; went from an AVN BN to and AVN BN + BDE HQ...with very little advance planning = housing crisis.

Someone in your unit should have contact with the guys you are replacing and they can tell you specifically what to expect.

Kandahar or KAF?
Two different entities.
As for KAF, you will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villiany.

True enough. Was nice to visit for a short time, but with the concessions all shut down, not much point in that.

Fuck me I have started to look into the threads and email buddies that have been FOBing it up and it looks like the same old shit different location. F-me I hope I get selected for something else.

Is it all really shut down? I was there in early April and everything was normal. I heard there was no way they were closing that brand new TGI Fridays.

I left in November, so I can't say but from what I've heard. The word was that the only thing that was protected was Green Beans because the higher ups liked their products. Hopefully someone currently at KAF could comment.

Tim Hortons still there?

I'm home on emergency leave, and will return to K soon.  It is indeed a shithole, but all of the so-called restaurants were still open on my departure, and more were opening on the Boardwalk.  So much for GEN McChrystal's elimination of the food court.  Tim Horton's is a permanent fixture:  Canadians lead the league as giant fatasses, and are very defensive about its closure, so it won't happen.

I wish anyone coming here the best, but after four tours in IZ, this is a full-on joke.  Hang in there, brothers.

The Canadians are moving it to thier compound soon. So we may or may not have acess to it.

Burger King, Pizza Hut, Subway, Oakley, and the framing shop are closed.  Everything else is still open.  They also added a Lebonese place the other day next to the still open ice cream shop.

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That's funny since the USAF flew it in on a C17.

On my third trip to KAF. Answers to some general questions.

Southpark (tents):
Far from everything.
There is a MWR tent & Shopette on the south side of the compound.
Wireless internet is available for an arm & leg ($100+/month).
There are latrine & shower cadilacs there. The ones by the chow hall have hot water, usually.
Southpark Chow Hall has the best chow.
Can flood waist deep during/right after a heavy rain. Happened once to us. Sucked. Hard.

Mod Housing (hard billits):
The Main BX is right by the Mod Housing. Fairly well stocked.
MWR building across from the Main BX.
Internet is available in the Mods. ~$40/month for the cheapest option. ~$100/month for the most expensive. Hard wired.
Mod housing is currently 6 to a 15'x15' room. Unless you're an O6 or above, than it's 2 per room.
Nice showers & shitters.
Green Bean coffee shop. Pretty good.
The Boardwalk is across the street, but most stuff is closed now.
2 close chow halls adjacent. Niagra & Far East.
Wait time for Mod housing is a few months long.

Gyms:
The NATO Gym requires you to have two pairs of shoes. No outside shoes are allowed in the gym.
The Prison Gym (Kandahar Gym) is OK. Crowded though depending on what time.
Both located next to Mod Housing.

Laundry:
You can have the hadjis do it, but at your own risk. There have been more than a few people here that have had non-uniform stuff stolen. IE white socks, t-shirts.
Self-service washers & dryers loacted in Mod housing. No free detergent. Usually crowded at all times of the day.

Boardwalk (what's left of it):
Timmy Ho's.
Ice Cream shack.
Dutch BX. Tacticool crap.
French BX. Sammiches & other assorted French things. Good coffee.
All Seasons. OK food. Just north of the Boardwalk.
Wireless internet available on the Boardwalk. Buy airtime at the All Seasons restauraunt. I don't remember prices.
Duty-Free shop. Just north of the Boardwalk, next to the All Seasons. Cigarettes, Cigars, and overpriced electronic crap.

Bazaar is on Saturday. Worth going to at least once. About a mile from the Boardwalk. Get pestered by the little hadjis to buy stuff. Have bootleg DVDs of dubious quality.

The British BX (which is on the British Compound) has some neat stuff. They have magazines that have boobs in them. Kosher for them and not us. It will get you in trouble with GO1B.

Chow:
Supreme sucks.
South Park Chow Hall is pretty good. Th best on base.
Niagra Chow Hall(north side of Mods)
Far East Chow Hall (South of Mods)
Cambridge Chow Hall (British Chow hall on the British compound) is pretty good. But you may need a Brit to sign you in. It's been since last trip since I have been there. (6-months)
Luxemburg Chow Hall. East of the Boardwalk.

Things I would recommend to bring:
Bedding for a twin-sized bed. Usually (read almost always) not available at the Shopette. You will have to go to the Main BX to get it. About a mile-ish walk from Southpark.
Sturdy soled flip-flops or crocs.
Laundry detergent if you are going to do your own at the Mods.

Get used to the shit-pond smell.

The AF and the Army are working on a large amount of hard billets. I don't know much about the Army ones, but they should be opening soon. The same goes for the AF ones.

IIRC, the Canadians  only have a year or so left in country. Once they pull up stakes, I bet Timmy H's goes away.

Wow, things seem to have changed dramatically over the course of a week.  When I left all of the eateries on the Boardwalk were in full bloom.  Good call to mention the incredible stench from the sewage pond.  Niagara vs. Luxembourg?  Same old:  after four tours in Iraq, this is pretty sorry.  Guess I'm spoiled, as my last trip to this place had me happy to be able to draw a case of #2 MREs.

Good call on the bedsheets, as the PX runs out.

I preferred Niagra.
I didn't even see sheets most of my first year there.

The Niagra is always good for breakfast. The Lux is always good for midnight chow.

All that being said, I have yet to go to the chowhall this trip. I only went twice last trip. We usually go get food for everybody (marmite containers) at our site from the Far East DFAC. We don't have enough people to cover our normal ops to send folks to the chow hall.

I usually eat at southpark. If I have the time an access to an NTV I will drive around the flightline to DFAC 8  (across from xray ramp). Im out at Frontenac now but when I come back we should have a KAF ARFCOM meet.

I was at KAF in 2004, and other than the shitpond and Green Beans, I have no idea what any of you are talking about.  

Then you'll be downright shocked to hear that they paved the main roads last year.

Pretty much nailed it.  They do have a new chow hall over by the heavy ramp open, 24hrs a day,  Its called north line or something.  Food is just like the Niagura.  

get used to smelling this

In 2004, there was a wooden raft floating around in the shitpond that had a poster board sail labeled "Taliban Navy".....

They didn't have the "Biohazard - Do not enter" signs posted around it then either ––- I really hope that the reason they placed the sign was due to an overeager and highly motivated young safety officer as opposed to having to place it because somebody jumped in thinking it would be a great idea to go for a swim.....

hey guys thanks alot!!

A British trooper on a dare, jumped in it. He almost died. contracted damn near every known disease.

it is not a dutch px it is german its not to bad here 3 of us split the internet so its 60 bucks a person not to bad it is hot and only getting hotter right now

Wow, I'm going to be getting there next week and this thread did nothing to make me excited. Maybe I can catch up with some of you fellow Arfcommers while I'm there though.

Let us know what FOB you'll be on, conditions, etc.  I'm headed that way in a few months.  Not sure where though, possibly Kabul.

You can, ummmmm, scratch off the Ice Cream Shack from the boardwalk list...

Rough night last night...

i hadent got to try it yet

Well damn it all to hell.




 

ill be over in there just dont know where yet

Ice Cream Shack is now reportedly open.

The sewage pond has a awesome stintch to it!!!! Some dumb ass drove a HUMVEE in that thing!!! Its not that bad of a place I went there in 05'-06' and again in 07'-08'. I always did my own laundry because it gave me a chance to go get a piece of mind an I didnt have to worry about the foregin nats misplacing my clothes or getting someone elses stuff. I was in a tent both times I was there but over on the other side of the flight line (main base)  they have mods and a couple of awesome chow halls. If you work along side any of your NATO brothern they will more than likely invite you to there compound to do some partying and hang out with them on a chill day. In 07 they seemed to have a nice gym with plenty of weights and machines.  Have fun and be careful Brother!!!!

Shah Wali Kot district Center: Elevation 3,953 feet.

The counteroffensive has begun.  More accurately, it might be called a counter-counteroffensive.  Close to a decade ago, we beat the Taliban and al Qaeda here.  The Taliban regrew and waged an increasingly successful counteroffensive.  And so our ninth year at war is the year of our counter-counteroffensive.

The most remarkable feature of our counter-counteroffensive likely will be the Battle for Kandahar, or BfK.  Kandahar was the birthplace of the Taliban and Kandahar City is the provincial capital.  The Taliban is succesfully wresting Kandahar back into their control.  The BfK is likely our last effort to halt and reverse Taliban influence from spreading.  The winner in the BfK will be set to eventually take most or all of the chips off the table, and so BfK is crucial to the outcome of the war.



“Route Bear” starts at Highway 1, passes by Arghandab River Valley, by FOB Frontenac, by the district center (where this mostly was written) and on up to Tarin Kot in Urozgan Province.  The Aussies, Dutch, U.S. and others use the route for convoys.  Most of the areas out here are the wild unknowns where no, or almost no, Coalition or Afghan government ever goes.   We know little about the villages.  Route Bear and other roads follow the paths of least resistance while Afghans follow the water.  If you see green down below, it’s safe to bet that Afghans live there.  And so the main routes such as Bear—of which there are few—often are far away from the nearest villages, but within easy distance when Taliban decide to strike.  Even if there were no bombs, our heavy armor cannot get to most villages in Afghanistan, but the Taliban can scoot all over on their motorbikes and light vehicles.

The villages of Shah Tut and Padah, in the Baghtu Valley, are mostly unknown to us.  Some Dutch, however, should remember it well because they have been attacked where Route Bear crosses the Baghtu Valley.  This war has been going on for so long that it’s hard to know what’s happened here.

Charlie Company drove out under cover of morning darkness off Route Bear into the hills a few kilometers from the villages of Shah Tut and Padah.  As the Strykers approached a dangerous chokepoint, far from the villages, the soldiers fired grenades from the Mark 19 (automatic grenade launcher) and some machine gun bursts at potential ambush spots.  It is important to note that there were no civilians or villages in this area but anyone hiding in ambush would likely fire back or flee.  This tactic is sometimes called “recon by fire” and can be very effective.

The soldiers drove to a prearranged area, dropped ramps on the Strykers and began the walk toward the villages.  A lizard and a grasshooper were the only creatures to be seen.  The desolate area is a work of natural art.

Read the rest here: http://www.michaelyon-online.com/battle-for-kandahar.htm

Well, I made it in sunday morning. The boardwalk looks pretty good, they apparently did a very quick job of repairing that. I'm in a tent for now but apparently just waiting to be able to move into the mods

Good luck acclimating to the joys of the shit pond.

I will be at the airfield in a few weeks but I am not starying. Elements from my brigade should be getting there now or in a few days. Look for 2nd Stryker Caverly Regiment.



I wont be staying on the airfield though, FOBs and COBs here I come.

Can someone find this knucklehead and lead him to a phone to call his wife and kiddo?



 

Sometimes it takes a while to get internet access set-up, and phone calls might be a tad difficult as they just killed a ton of DSN lines here.

It's usually a little rough for the first few weeks.

This may be a stupid question, but....

In the time we've been there, why haven't our engineers drained that shit pond and filled it in to get rid of it?

Where would they put the shit being created?