As the title suggests, I have been at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar for two weeks now, and I am simultaneously amazed at how quickly the past 14 days have gone, and also feel like these next 50 weeks are still looming ahead of me. Honestly, though, the adjustment has not been bad. I definitely stressed myself out leading up to my departure more than I needed to, but let’s be real, would I even be the Meghan you all know and (hopefully) love if I did not stress myself out unnecessarily from time to time? Luckily, I was coming from Germany, so I didn’t have the brutal jetlag that most people who deploy experience. I did have a middle of the night layover in Kuwait for a few hours, but I mostly huddled inside the air-conditioned trailer and watched my brother Ben’s college graduation’s live stream (Yay, Benny!!).
The processing of arriving at Al Udeid wasn’t too bad, just a little timely of a process. After finally making it through all of the customs without any issues (Thank goodness for that, the Qataris are STRICT!), I met my Sponsor who picked me up from the passenger terminal and helped me get my three heavy bags situated in my room. My living quarters are absolutely stunning, just 10/10, best accomodations I have ever experienced (heavy sarcasm). Just kidding, they’re pretty rough, but they suffice. As you can see in the picture below, I have a lovely bunk bed, a desk, and a wardrobe. I also have a closet which is actually pretty big so that is nice, and I have a sink in my room as well. My room then attaches to a shared kitchen and shared bathroom. My suitemate is very nice, but she won’t be here much longer, so the other room will be vacant for a bit until a new person moves in.
My dorm is pretty smack in the middle of the living side of base, equidistant from the cafeteria and the gym, so that is a big win for me. I try to walk as much as I can on base to get some extra exercise, even though it’s literally in the 100s+ everyday, but I do drive to work because the base is pretty huge. I’ll come back to the heat in a sec; I have many thoughts about it lol. The dining facility (or DFAC as the military affectionately calls it), has a rotating schedule of food that is on a two week cycle. I have not had everything yet, but I also am pretty basic with my meals. I honestly think the food is fine; a lot of my colleagues who have been here longer moan and groan, but I haven’t had time to get sick of it yet. I also hate cooking, so having free food that is relatively healthy and made for me is honestly pretty sweet in my book.
The gym is super nice, albeit a bit packed pretty much 24/7. I have been trying to workout 5-6 days a week, combinging running, swimming laps, and weight lifting. I am currently doing a half marathon training plan which feels a bit crazy, but I either run at 5 in the morning or wait until 9pm to run, when it is not so hot. It’s amazing how balmy 80 or 90 feels when its 110-120 during the day.
Which brings me back to the heat. When I first arrived, it literally felt like my eyeballs were melting in my head. Literally. It was so hot that my eyes were burning and tearing up. The heat here is oppressive. I feel like I walk so much slower and it takes so much more effort. My first day here, I thought I had enough water to combat the heat, but i had a pounding headache at the end of the day, so I had to increase my intake a lot. I have also incorporated gatorade, which I never used to drink regularly before, just to keep some electrolytes and minerals in my body. It is also so hot here that there are no clouds. At all. Like literally not a single cloud in the sky. because it is literally that hot and they are just burned off For some reason, this is one of the weirdest parts for me. After living in New Jersey and then Germany, I’m used to heavy cloud coverage, so seeing no clouds at all. Unfortunately, with all the wind and sand, its not even a pretty blue sky most of the time. Usually, it just looks kind of hazy during the day, but I will admit, the sunsets are beautiful with all the sand particles in the air reflecting the colors.
I haven’t really gotten into my new job yet because I am focusing on turnover with my predescessor, but it seems like I will be consistently busy here without getting too overwhelmed, so that’s good. Aside from work, I am looking forward to getting off base and exploring the local area more as well. I’ve already been to downtown Doha twice and honestly I love it. The architecture is beautiful and super unique and the downtown area is pristine. It feels super safe and it’s well-maintained. It also literally feels like an oasis in the desert because its one of the only places you can find grass rather than sand, and the ocean is right there and is beautiful. I will have to get used to driving here as it is a bit more aggressive than I am used to, even compared to New Jersey which was terrible, but I know that comfort will come with time.
I think that’s it for major updates for now. I will do my best to keep everyone up to date on the goings on, and I hope everyone is doing well back home. Love and miss you all, and don’t forget, if you want to be pen pals, my mailbox is open!
Travels in Germany 