I am taking off today for a new adventure. I will be working for one year in the Middle East. I decided to take a paid job for this year and will likely resume traveling as a volunteer veterinarian next year.
This job is with a company called American Canine (AMK9). They are a United States based company that breeds and trains working dogs for the military and domestic and overseas corporations/facilities.
AMK9's website
I will be based in Basra City, Iraq and will be staying at Energy City which is a secure compound that houses civilian contractors (mostly oil and defense company contractors). It actually looks like a pretty nice place - two gyms, a coffee shop, good food and 24/7 security. If I have to leave the compound for any reason I will be given security detail. The veterinarian that has been there for the past year contacted me and assured me that it was a safe place and she enjoyed her time there. Needless to say, I won't be wandering the streets of Basra City so home will be the compound. I'm guessing I'll be spending lots of time in the gym and the coffee shop :)
Iraq Energy City website
I have lots of books loaded on my Kindle and a couple of memory sticks with movies/TV shows loaded on them so that will help me pass the time too!
Basra City is Iraq's port city on the Persian Gulf. It had an estimated population of 1.5 million of 2012. Basra is Iraq's main port, although it does not have deep water access, which is handled at the port of Umm Qasr. The city is part of the historic location of Sumer, the home of Sinbad the Sailor, and a proposed location of the Garden of Eden. It played an important role in early Islamic history and was built in 636 AD or 14 AH. It is Iraq's second largest and most populous city after Baghdad. Basra is consistently one of the hottest cities on the planet, with summer temperatures regularly exceeding 113 °F! Yikes! At least the humidity is low :)
I'm not 100% sure what I will be doing other than acting as the veterinarian for all the AMK9 working dogs at that location. I was told there is about 60 dogs there. I am assuming that I will be treating lots of dermatitis, otitis externa, heat stroke and bloat. I was told that I will have limited supplies and no surgical suite. If a dog needs surgery they medivac them to a veterinary clinic in the city. Iraqi customs does not allow many of the medications and equipment that we need into the country. It should be interesting...... More on that once I figure out what I'm doing.
I was looking forward to getting settled into Iraq before I had to travel and cover for one of the veterinarians in another location. I knew I would need to do that at some point in time but it turns out that I have to do that first. AMK9 has three locations in Iraq that have a vet stationed there and one veterinarian in Afghanistan. So, I will be headed to Kabul, Afghanistan first. I will be spending at least one month there. The reason for this is that the vet there needs to take one of her leaves of absence (we get two-29 day leaves during our year) and also, my Iraq visa has not come through yet. So, if my visa does not come through by the time my month is done there I will have to stay there until it does......I have no idea what to expect in Kabul. The vet there has been in contact with me and she has given me quite a bit of information but I'm still not 100% clear as to my duties. Oh well, que sera sera! I will figure it out :) I do know that it is not as hot there! Thank you baby Jesus! I do not really like hot weather!
So, as of now, I am sitting in the Denver airport awaiting my flight to Atlanta. I will have a 3 hour layover there and then I will go on to Dubai. That will be almost a 15 hour flight. I will be in Dubai 2 days to get my visa for Afghanistan. I have no idea how this works. Apparently (hopefully) I have someone meeting me there to facilitate this. I then fly to Kabul on June 3rd.
That's all I know for now. I heard the intenet isn't stellar in Kabul so I may not be in much contact while I'm there. The internet in Iraq is supposed to be very good. I guess I'll find out when I get there.
I will blog as much as possible. Hopefully there will be some good stories but I'm hoping it won't be a "stuck in Afghanistan" blog :)
Please keep me in your thoughts and prayers :)
