Today would be our first mission outside the camp’s perimeter. We are going on a joint patrol to drop off two MITT team members at Combat Outpost Anah. Here their mission is to talk to the Marines and smooth over the Jundi’s being late for guard duty. I rode in the front passenger seat of an uparmored Humvee (where the TC or truck commander sits). This is the first time I rode in the seat because when I ride along on the convoy escort missions, the back seats are the only ones open. As we headed down a street in Rawah that veers to the left, the driver said, “Not to scare you or anything, but this corner is where they lay IEDs (improvised explosive devices). Along the way, I also noticed several cars that had pulled off on the shoulder of the road and the occupants were standing several feet from them with all the doors open. This is what the Jundi expect motorists to do when they’re on the road. When we arrive at this outpost, Bastian meets with the Iraqi commander. While they were doing this, Kent and I took photos of a few Jundi holding up weapons like AK-47 machine guns and rocket propelled grenade launchers (without the grenade). The Jundis’ living quarters are pretty sparse also. They sleep on thin mattresses on top of cots. Their rooms are made from the inside of Hesco barriers (a common barrier in this country). They are nothing more than large cylinders made of fencing and some kind of material filled with sand. The square fencing does make good coat hangers for them though. Later I notice one the MITT Team members being invited into one of the rooms. He is offered a lunch of some kind of meat on a bed of rice. Of course he sits down. They also offer him a large red looking vegetable that looks like an apple but tasted like a raddish. The Jundi also eat with their fingers. One tried to teach me how also. You are supposed to grab the rice and meat and put it in the palm of your hand. Then you take the back of your thumb and push the food up to the end of your middle finger and forefinger. Needless to say I didn’t master it. On our way back to Rawah, we stopped at a checkpoint where Bastian once again met with the Iraqi checkpoint commander. I followed him into a small room where they met but it was too dark to photograph. I did notice where the Jundi stayed (in a tin building). I couldn’t help notice that their boots were placed outside the door of this building. I left the area and stayed near the vehicles. Kent also attempted to assist a Jundi in backing up a cargo truck. I don’t think the Jundi understood the situation because he nearly backed into Kent and the hesco barrier. I also photographed the Jundi searching the vehicles entering the checkpoint. The motorists parked their vehicles several hundred meters away from the guard and walked to where the guard was standing. Here they were searched. Once they were searched, the guard went to their vehicle and searched it.
