Go karts…

One of the fun things to do in Djibouti, is go-kart racing. There is a track just off base where you get a 10 minute race for 2,500 Djiboutian Francs, which is about $15. It’s a lot of fun. The attached file is a live-action video of me racing around the track. The video is a little bouncy. If you get motion sick easily, you can look away from the video every few seconds to re-orient yourself. Enjoy!

My CLU

I took some pictures of my CLU this week. I just put up an Illini window covering that my mom sent me. This is where I live. As you can see, it is air conditioned. I turn the AC off during the day to dry the CLU out and then turn it on at night to cool it off. It is a comfortable living arrangement. It’s only a 5 minute walk to work vs the 15 minute walk I had at the CLU I used to live in.

Helicopter ride

I got to go in a helicopter ride recently! It was really cool. A few of the construction guys needed overhead photos of their construction sites, so the Marines agreed to take us for a ride. We took off and circled around the construction sites taking pictures and then we flew out to Mousha Island. We took some photos there and then we headed over to Lac Assal. It is one of the saltiest lakes in the world. It is several hundred feet below sea level. When we got there the helicopter landed and we got out to walk around a bit. It was really hot! We took some pics and then got back in the helicopter to come back to base.

Drew Brees

Drew Brees came to visit Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti in March! He threw the football around in a pick-up football game and signed autographs. For those of you that don’t follow football, Drew Brees is the MVP quarterback of the 2010 Super Bowl Champion New Orleans Saints. Drew also is the national spokesperson for Advocare. I got to the turf field early, stood in line for a few minutes, and got his autograph! My wife had sent me his rookie football card when I heard that he would be coming to base. It was really cool!

Cheetah Refuge

The other day I went with a few friends from the office to the Cheetah Refuge. That place is just a hop, skip, and a jump away from base. First we went on a guided tour where we got to walk amongst the wild animals (not the cheetahs). We saw some ostriches, gazelles, and some zebras and zonkeys (a cross between a donkey and a zebra). We also saw some turtles. After we finished the guided tour, we saw some of the cheetahs. They were pretty cool. It was getting dark, so I didn’t get very many pictures of the cheetahs, but I’ll see if I can find some that other people took and try to post those.

Mousha Island

Last week I went to Mousha Island with some other people in the wardroom. It was great! We went snorkeling and scuba diving in the morning, ate some lunch at the clubhouse, and then hung out on the beach in the afternoon. It was a very relaxing trip and it was nice to get away from Djibouti for a bit. Mousha Island is only a 15 minute boat ride from the Djibouti harbor.

Scuba diving was really cool but a bit freaky at first. If you’ve never been before it is difficult to stick your head under water and trust that you’re still going to have air when you take a breath. The cool part was that it was just like those dreams where you can breathe under water, but it wasn’t a dream. When I go snorkeling, I usually end up sucking in some sea water when I breathe through the tube and then I have to stick my head above water gagging and spitting to get the water out. That isn’t quite as easy to do when you are scuba diving, which can be a cause for concern. This realization occurred to me shortly after I submerged my head below the water. I quickly moved back up to the surface where there was plenty of air. The instructor that was swimming with me asked what was wrong and I told him I was just freaked out. He gave me a moment to calm down and then we went back underwater.

We got to check out a lot of coral reef and some really cool looking fish. Before we left the boat the instructors told us to be careful where we kick our fins because the coral is very fragile and it will die if it gets kicked. So I didn’t kick most of the time I was in the water. The instructor had his hand on my air tank and he just guided me around the coral. It was really neat. If you ever end up in Djibouti, you should definitely check out Mousha Island. J

Moustache March

Well, here we are again at the 3^rd month of the year, March. Or as some like to call it, “Moustache March”. A time when young Naval Officers (perhaps other branches as well) decide to have a little fun and see who can grow the best looking moustache by the end of the month. I usually don’t participate in such activities, especially since my wife is not fond of “the stache” but I decided to partake in the fun this year. There are a number of junior officers from NMCB 7 as well as some other people on camp participating. With a little more than a week left, my moustache is looking pretty good. Not quite as good as the seasoned veteran and our skipper, CAPT Finn, but it’s coming along nicely.