Kandahar air base
I’ve been watching Warzone on Five.
I watch it because, as I have mentioned before, I wanted to join the military when I was younger. I always wanted to join the RAF. Failing that, the Royal Navy. Alas, it was not to be. Back then being gay was a sackable offence (unlike now) so it never happened.
I still regret it not happening.
Top Gun is one of my favourite films and, funnily enough, I’m really enjoying this fly-on-the-wall documentary. 10,000 NATO troops from 32 countries are stationed at Kandahar air base. It’s like a town; a melting pot.
I saw a colleague today who is not long back from India (she is British of Asian descent). She said it had an ‘edge’ and a ‘vivid colour’ to it that made her feel alive and that being back in the UK feels like ’shades of grey’. I knew exactly what she meant. My father lives in East Africa and it’s exactly the same. I grew up abroad, in Africa and the Middle East. To people that haven’t experienced ‘the edge’ it’s inconceivable to want to experience somewhere not in the West, somewhere not so safe, somewhere more colourful, more alive, more adventurous, more real.
Some get where I’m coming from. Most don’t.
I can’t wait to do more travelling to less-westernised countries. Nowhere is anywhere near here (Sydney) so why waste flight time going to more of the same? On the list: Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Japan (not exactly edgy, but I can’t speak the language). That’s enough to keep me going for a few years.
Sven
January 20, 2009 at 2:12 am
Sven – I’m vvvvvvv.jealous! I remember going to South Korea 10 years ago when I lived in Japan and I loved it. Felt very different to anywhere else. Very large military presence (due to N.Korea), huge US airbase, lots of marines wandering round, etc. Very atmospheric. I have photos somewhere. I should dig them out.
Milo
January 20, 2009 at 9:08 am
[...] The Guardian is quite condescending), set at Kandahar airbase. It’s a follow on from Warzone which was on earlier in the year. I like these kinds of documentaries set on warships, airbases, [...]
I wanted to fly Chinooks « The Year Zero
June 20, 2009 at 10:13 pm