QOSINRAQ has been posting regularly on the Doonhamers
Message Board and has agreed to write a series of
articles on his experiences in Iraq.
Here is part 1 of a fascinating series
LIFE OF A QUEENS FAN IN IRAQ
I have now been in Iraq for 3 years and 3 months. I will always remember my first day with the new company as the only flights to Dubai they could get me was on that famous day of 25 May 2008. I was absolutely gutted to miss being at Hampden for the cup final but managed to watch it on my laptop on the train to London. I did however witness the Semi-final and in my opinion the greatest Queens match I have ever attended.
A born and bred Doonhamer I started my working life with Wallaces the butchers and at the ripe old age of 17 years and two months went to Catterick for basic training in the Royal Signals. After almost 23 years in the Army I took up a job as a Regional Health & Safety Manager in South West England for Lorne Stewart. I was offered a post with a company in Dubai who had a 3 month project in Iraq which I accepted and am still here to the present day.
I work 10 weeks on and 3 weeks off and try and adjust the three weeks off to try to get to some of the better Queens games.
I live on one of the US military bases in Iraq and am now the Manager in charge of Iraq operations for the company. The company specializes in life support services and we carry this out for the US Military and Oil companies. The company I work for employs about 280 staff (in Iraq) 10 Expats, 120 Indians/Pakistanis and the remaining 150 are locals.
My accommodation is very basic, with a bed, TV, computer table ward-robe and drawers but I have managed to make it homely. I have internet in my room which allows me to keep up to date with all things Queens. As we provide catering services for one of the larger oil company’s food is great, although I miss the simpler snacks in life, an odd bag of crisps, a haggis supper etc.
The local food is something else altogether though. All meals have rice, salad and fruit, fruit and salad is the main diet of most Iraqis as the economy doesn’t stretch to a lot of meat. Point for any travelers be careful of the rice as it is sometimes cooked in non-drinking water which can play havoc with your insides as I found out once.
The biggest threats out here are IED (road-side bombs) Kidnap and rocket/mortar attack. Whilst the security situation is getting better we still receive random rocket attacks. When I first arrived these attacks were several times a day but now they are down to about once a week or fortnight.
Whenever I leave the base to visit oilfields and clients I have to travel in an armoured car with a security team for fear of IED’s and Kidnap which is not always ideal as it has to be planned 72 hours in advance but it is better to be safe than sorry.
On route to Iraq I was the most nervous I had ever been (in the army you have a rifle and mates to back you up along with extensive training) however upon landing the company took good care of me, issued with body armour, helmet etc and then 2 days of induction on what and what not to do. All of this is now second nature and is part and parcel of life in Iraq but can certainly be daunting to new arrivals.