Saturday December 29

Heading home

I hear of a helicopter flight to Kandahar this morning and quickly grab all my kit.

Luckily the laptop and other stuff I left at Tombstone have turned up safely so there should be no delays.

I feel I have done all I can out here and really want to be heading home.

We are told there is a delay but not for how long. But at least sun is shining and it is just a little bit warmer than in Musa Qala.

The flight is a lot smoother and I manage to get a few aerial shots through the window.

We land in Kandahar which seems a different world after spending so long in Helmand.

It is strange to see people in uniform going to Burger King and Pizza Hut just like downtown mainstreet USA.

There is an American social club where people tend to congregate to play pool and video games.

It is quite surreal to see soldiers playing PS2 shoot ‘em ups – which are almost like a training video. Maybe I should have bought Call Of Duty Modern Warfare before I headed out here as preparation?

We chill out in Echoes – a Dutch place – which has a covers band on stage.