Church

This wasn't taken while I was there, but it's still the same. We loved it!

Boot Camp Weeks 4 and 5

We had been looking forward to Week 4 for a very long time. What is the reason? What could possibly be so great about Week 4 that we quivered with angst? This is the week we are fitted for our blues, we are halfway done, but most imiportantly, we get OREOs when we get fitted. Oreos? Really? Yes, really. Rumors were spread throughout the laundry network that we would actually be able to eat cookies and this was definitely something to look forward to. Pathetic.

By now I am horribly and completely sick. I coughed every night, keeping probably the entire flight awake. They never said anything, but I'm sure they hated my guts. At least I got cough drops! Unfortunately, that's about all they would give me. Cough drops and Tylenol. Oh, and small packets of salt to gurgle with water for my sore throat. Couldn't they just give me some Nyquil??? I will tell you now, I have never been so sick in my entire life. It was that bad. I met the IDMT folks about every other day. I knew them on a first name basis and was basically given VIP privileges because I saw them so often. I didn't have to wait in line. I got all the cough drops I wanted. They'd give me sleeping waivers so I could take naps in the middle of the day. Sometimes they would just let me sleep there. I would cough until I threw up. I lost my voice (EC duty was a real hoot). It sucked bad.

There were 2 things I was looking forward to doing in boot camp: pugil sticks and the obstacle course. They sounded like a blast. I couldn't wait. The night before leaving for the obstacle course, we had our bags packed and ready to go. Anxiously waiting the next morning, TSgt Fisher looked down at me and said, "Trainee Banks, you're not going." Curses! I'll admit, staying in bed that day did wonders, but I was so mad! Everyone came back (and woke me up) with tales of falling in the water, working as a team, how much fun they had, etc. Hmph! Guess it wasn't meant to be.

We were still spending the majority of our day in classes but we were also practicing for Retreat (our graduation ceremony) and drilling more. Drill, for me, was boring and I loved that I was on laundry crew so I got to skip it often. Something that stressed us out this week was our weapons evaluation. We had to take our weapon apart and put it back together in under 2 minutes. I don't know why this was a big deal. Even if you failed, it didn't matter. But there was so much pressure to do this well. Looking back, it's so funny to remember how freaked out we were, but it really wasn't a big deal.

Week 4 was also the week of CBRNE: the gas chamber. Now, this was actually something we were looking forward to...for the MRE. See, MREs have candy in them usually and that's certainly something to celebrate. So, we are all excited for the day to finally arrive. We get out to the sticks where the chamber is. We get our chemical warfare gear, MREs and gas masks. We have lessons on how to don our gear and all that garbage. Finally, it's time for lunch. We tear open our MREs right when they tell us to put all the candy in the middle of the floor. We weren't allowed to eat it. WTF? My Skittles had to be pried from my sickly fingers. They CBRNE instructors put all the candy in a huge garbage bag and took it away. We all wondered where they would take it. Homeless shelter? At home to their kids? I would find out in Week 6.

After lunch it was time for the gas chamber. We basically just put all of our gear on, go into the chamber, do some jumping jacks and then one by one remove our gas masks and give a reporting statement: "Sir, Trainee Banks reports as ordered." This is enough to actually make you inhale and then cough your lungs out. I was nervous. When I was doing my jumping jacks, the neck of my gear came loose and I could feel the gas burn my neck. But I did my reporting statement and walked outside, blinded by the gas and coughing up really unpleasant stuff. It is the worst feeling. You can't breathe. You can't see. Everything burns. It's terrible. We had to walk in circles outside until the effects of the gas wore off. We were really sexy afterward. Later on in the afternoon, we learned about IEDs and got to see some explosions. For us, that was pretty exciting compared to the hum drum life in a classroom.Learning to don our MOP gear. Ha ha, like the gas mask insert glasses?

Learning Chemical Warfare procedures

One of the trainees sweating like crazy in MOP gear.

Getting checked before going into the chamber.

Inside the gas chamber.

Letting the air clear things up. Walking in circles, blind and coughing crap up.

Week 5 I was still sick as a dog. They've bumped up my medication to nasal sprays and some stuff that makes me drowsy so I don't have to do EC duty (my prayers have been answered!). My satchel rattled with pills and cough drops. The IDMT had decided I had pneumonia and bronchitis. I was a hot mess. I was so scared they would recycle me (hold me back until I got better). This is a trainee's biggest fear. Almost everyone gets recycled for being sick or not performing at the minimum standards. We had two females that got recycled in Week 2 because they had really bad attitudes and didn't want to do what they were told. We would end up getting 5 trainees get washed back into our flight. NOBODY wants to be in boot camp longer than necessary. My temperature was at 101.9. At 102, I would have to go to the emergency room where you are almost certain to be recycled so you can recover. I had a heart to heart with the IDMT lady and she didn't end up sending me. :)

Week 5 is considered Warrior Week. We would finally get to fire our weapons, do pugil stick training, build temper tents and prepare for BEAST. Of course, I missed pugil sticks, too, because I was sick. BLAST! But I couldn't worm my way out of temper tents. It's pretty much just a group of people putting up a huge tent. It's a pain in the butt and everyone has a different way of doing it, so it's really about teamwork.

CATUM (weapons shooting) was by far the most fun day in BMT. It was the best! We went out to the range, took a few safety classes and then shot our weapons. We qualified, some would make marksman (definitely not me), and then we would have lunch: MREs! AND WE GOT TO EAT THE CANDY! That was amazing. Nothing could touch us after that. We cleaned our weapons afterward. A guy from our brother flight said something like "Oh yeah, clean that barrel" and he got recycled 2 weeks for that! Retarded! The girl that tattled on him was pretty much ostracized by the rest of the flight because everyone thought she handled it poorly.

We spent a couple of days learning how to handle DFPs (Defensive Fighting Positions). This would be paramount in BEAST. You know that phrase "Halt! Who goes there?" Yeah, that's still used today by your Air Force. DFPs are hanging out behind sandbags, waiting for strangers to come and making them do what you want (or shoot them). It's not very much fun and you don't want to get yelled at for doing it wrong, but at least it's not the classroom.

Waiting to do DFPs.

DFPs

Lots of practice

We also learned CPR this week. It was a boring class, but a little more action packed than what we were used to in a classroom.

Week 5 also leads you to believe you are a badass because your name finally is sewn on your uniforms. You have an identity!

I believe in Week 5, I also started attending the Muslim church. As I mentioned before, we got candy, got to write letters, sleep and take our shoes off. It was a hidden treasure I wish I had known about a long time ago. This was also something I learned from the laundry network. I only went a couple of times because I missed the songs in the contemporary service. Ahh, church.

Boot Camp Week 2 and Week 3

Week 2 is still a mess, but we are getting a little better. Things get done a little bit quicker and we start to act more like a team. From here on out, the majority of our day is spent in the classroom. Not what you expected? Me neither. Way too much of our day is spent in the classroom. I was wanting more...I don't know...military stuff? But what you've heard about the Chair Force is true. Again, it's an optimal place to catch some extra ZZZ's, but you are toast if you ever get caught. We went through extreme measures to stay awake. I mostly tried to drink water until I had to pee really bad. Some people would pinch themselves, bite their tongues, try to take notes...it was terrible.

Our lockers/living areas start getting inspected, which is nerve wracking. Luckily, I have made friends with the laundry chief and I have convinced her to fire one of her laundry people and let me on her team. This becomes the best move ever. I missed so much drama, cleaning, drilling, inspecting, and yelling! I spend the majority of my days in the laundry room, meeting other trainees further ahead in training that can give me advice to pass on. It's hot (May in Texas=humid hell). There's no air conditioner in the laundry room, but I would choose it anyday over the regular garbage everyone else had to go through.

People are starting to get sick. Too many people living close together. Some probably not washing their hands. Ugh. I still hate them.

It is during one of our laundry sessions that my friend, Orr, is sucking on a cough drop. It smelled delicious. It smelled amazing. I HAD to have one. Cough drops?!? Yes, it smelled like candy. She gave me one that she got from the IDMT (the doctor people) and it was the best thing I'd ever had in my life. I was like a crack addict finally getting my fix. Orr said she felt the same way. This is where the candy need comes in. It was so strange that it had only been a couple of weeks, but man, it was bad.

In Week 2, we learned about EC duty (watch). Certain procedures have to be followed to let someone in and out of the door. It's really stressful because an MTI will come banging on the door, screaming at you and if you mess up...even stutter, you are toast! It was inevitable during Week 2 that whoever was on EC duty would be on their face or doing flutter kicks for messing up the procedures. EC duties also include bomb threats, fire alarms, and the overall safety of the flight. Usually an EC (Entry Controller) shift is 2 hours and it particularly sucks when it's in the middle of the night. You have to carry your gun the whole time, you can't sit down, and you have to stand there and write down all the procedures to turn in. Everyone hates it. BAD.

Week 3 is said to be similar to 0 Week because at this point you are getting too comfortable so they have to stir up trouble. We had a PT test to see where everyone is at. There are actually people that can't do one situp. Way too many people can't do a proper pushup. But PT is still my favorite part of the day, despite that our PT pad directly faces a McDonald's sign.

We also spend a lot of time drilling, taking classes and learning Self Aid Buddy Care (SABC). This is sort of ad hoc medical care if you were out in the field. It is my least favorite thing to learn, but it is something we continually have to take classes on throughout my Air Force career.

Look how huge I am to everyone else! One of these things is not like the other...

If you aren't practicing SABC, you should be studying.

Practicing SABC

It is also in Week 3 that we have to take our M-16's everywhere. It's just a huge pain in the butt. We practice taking them apart, putting them together, and cleaning them. But we definitely haven't got to fire them yet. It's irritating, but we do get to do more military stuff. We learned to a low crawl and a high crawl in the dirt (with our gun...good luck not getting it dirty!), different ways to beat someone up with our gun, etc. In a sick sort of way, it's fun. At least we aren't stuck folding shirts and socks with rulers.

Week 3 is also when it's acceptable to be grilled on the study materials we'd been studying since day 1. At any time, an MTI will call you out and ask you questions. If you get one wrong, a 341 was pulled. It's so stressful; wondering if you'll get called out...wondering if you'll get the answer wrong. I was only asked 2 questions my entire BMT experience. Most people probably get about 2 a day. I got them both right, but I am pretty sure they left me alone because I was so old. I was older than my MTI! Have some respect for your elders. Ha ha! From here on out, we could get asked questions at any time.

Finally, it is in Week 3 we get our BCG's (Birth Control Glasses). They are so hideous, I can't explain how much we hate them. And they are virtually indestructible!

Sexy glasses

Boot Camp 0 Week and Week 1

I said I would blog about boot camp later and now it's later. A year later! I'll try to remember as much as I can. As I mentioned before, boot camp was hell. When I first arrived at the airport, I was rudely ushered into a hallway where I waited for about 4 hours with about 100 other scared bunny rabbits. People there to answer our questions were rude, yelled, and were basically there to give us a taste of what the next 8.5 weeks of our lives would be like. Every now and then they would pick a "trainee" from the crowd and spaz out at them. One guy came with a ring of hickies around his neck and he got lots of extra attention from them.

We finally got herded onto some buses at around midnight and were taken to Lackland AFB. We were too scared and too tired on the bus to even talk. Once we got to in-processing, we were given a few supplies, a sandwich, and had our feet tested to see what kind of shoes we would need later. But mostly we just sat around. People filed in and filed out, but for some reason, my name would never get called to file out. So I waited. And waited. By 2am, I was finally called to my squadron. We took the bus to some suspect looking building. When we filed off, there was a female MTI there waiting for us...screaming. She ushered us off the bus and filed us into a dorm. We all sat on the floor (we would not be able to sit on the couches until graduation) while she yelled at us and told us how grateful she was that she wasn't our TI because we were the most pathetic excuse for trainees...blah blah blah. There were a few trainees that were there to help us "adjust", "teach us the ropes" and whatnot. But pretty much, they thought it was a good opportunity to yell at us, too. Other trainees! They taught us how to do our hair and basically what to expect the next day. They also were on EC duty, which is basically night watch. At this point we are too new to know the proper procedures, but I can assure you...my time definitely comes.

By about 3:30am, we were sent off to bed. Nobody slept a wink. You could hear sobs in the back of the bays and we were all just waiting for our MTI to come in to start reaming us. We had no idea what to expect.

Reville starts at 0500. We didn't know what to do, but we did get to sleep in that day because we
had just got to bed 1 1/2 hours earlier. Around 0930, we got to meet our lovely MTI...TSgt Fisher. Born and bred hillbillie, you could actually hear the drawl in each word he shouted. Favorite phrases would include "What the piss, trainee?" and "Ya'll are retarded, you know that?" He was tall and he, like all the other MTIs, wore the Smokey Bear hat. You know the one I'm talking about. A symbol that, to this day, makes me stand straighter, look dead ahead and shut my pie hole.

TSgt Fisher calling someone retarded.

He yelled a lot. I don't really recall anymore what about. Anything, really. That first day we spent 3 hours making our beds, aligning our beds, cleaning the floors (hand and knees only...no brooms), and scrubbing the bathrooms. Oh, you can be sure everyone had a job: chrome cleaner, latrine queen, shoe aligner. Later on, leadership positions would be assigned. We were so scared of getting yelled at, we fumbled and kept our heads down as to not make eye contact. It was scary! But we also didn't know the proper way to do anything, so it just made it worse. Instead of just asking to be taught, we'd just keep trying and failing. To make matters worse, anytime you spoke, you had to use a reporting statement: "Sir, Trainee Banks reports as ordered."

Eventually TSgt Fisher got tired of yelling and it was time to eat. Eating is challenging, to say the least. Our first meals were very short. I'm talking 10 minutes from lining up, to finishing your bite. With 50 people to get fed, that's not a lot of time. First, you always have to look ahead...difficult when you are trying to select what you are going to have. Both hands have to be on the tray and you actually side step, sliding your tray along like a moron through the whole line until you are done. There are fridges full of desserts and granola bars that we would die for, but they are sort of off limits. See, there is a certain way you have to get these things. Certain procedures to follow but nobody will tell us how, so we never get them. The food is good though. We eventually learn to take it day by day, meal-to-meal. No matter how bad it would get...there was always an upcoming meal. At the end of the line is the Snake Pit. The Snake Pit is where the MTIs eat. They love to sniff out weakness. They will call you over and ask you questions, harass you, and if you answer things wrong, pull a 341. A 341 is a form that has your name on it so they can pull whenever you are retarded and write up your offense on it. You always have to have two on you at all times. They become the bane of our existence. Nobody really knows what happens when too many are pulled, but we know it's not good. Anyway, if you can sneak past the Snake Pit unscathed, you are gold. You finally get to eat. But, as soon as the table in front of you leaves, you have to leave. Luckily my flight learned this very early on and there was an unspoken agreement that you just eat slower. We always had to have 2 glasses of fluids and there was a myth that peanut butter would give you more energy. So everyone would stock up on peanut butter. Trust me, no change is noticed in energy levels due to mass consumption of peanut butter.

This first week there is no exercising. The Air Force and their politics. I hate to mention that we weren't allowed to be put "on our faces" 1 hour after a meal. Soft I tell ya! LOL I definitely didn't mind. We would move on to learning facing positions, marching, different commands, etc. It was actually a treat when we got to wear our uniforms. See, everyone can distinguish what week you are in training by certain things. When you are still wearing civilian clothes, they call you the Rainbow Flight (because you are all different colors). The guys eventually get their hair cut and black girls get their weaves taken out, but we start to look better in uniform. But the next week, we wear ABU's with sneakers. "Sneaker Weekers" we were called. Week 3 you get BCGs (Birth Control Glasses). Hanus, hanus eyewear. By week four, you get your name sewn on your uniforms (apparently by week four is when they decide you will probably stick around). Week 6 you are at BEAST so nobody sees you. Weeks 7 & 8 you wear your blues on some days. You get the idea. The earlier in training you are in, the meaner everyone is.The hot mess in the blue is yours truly. We are learning facing movements and getting yelled at in front of a bunch of civilians that were there for that week's graduation ceremony.

Lookin' all kinds of butch. The ginger next to me ended up quitting.

"Right HACE!" Ha ha ha!

0 Week is full of administrative duties, getting uniforms and supplies, learning to march and starting to study. Oh yes, there was always studying. The chain of command, clearing a weapon, rank structure/insignia...stupid stuff. By the end of BMT, our papers would be shredded from so much use. We also got drug tested, where you have to pee in a cup in front of somebody. I had the worst time with this. She just STARED! I was seriously the last person done because I just couldn't go! The third day in, I was chosen as Dorm Chief. This is, without a doubt, the worst job. You are in charge of all 50 people in your flight. If one screws up, you end up paying for it. It's terrible. I was definitely the oldest of my flight (freaking 18 year old pukes), so I'm sure that's why he chose me. I knew my life would be hell. TSgt Fisher wanted me to yell at everyone but it's just not me and I was no different than anyone else, so it didn't come easy. A male MTI is only allowed to be in the dorms until 8pm so it's up to the Dorm Chief to make sure everyone showers, cleans the dorms (again...always twice a day, no matter what), sing the AF Song, recite the Airmans Creed, check night displays, etc. Night displays are you uniform hung up a certain way at night so they are easily put on in the morning. Seems easy enough, but the buttons have to be facing a certain way, you have to have x, y, and z in these specific pockets, everything has to be centered on the hanger, the belt has to be facing a certain way. It sucked bad. I hated my flight already...by Day 3!

It is this week that we get our satchels. Our satchels carry all of our supplies. We are also issued our wet belts and canteens. HYDRATE! There is a ridiculous emphasis on hydrating and bathroom breaks would be lines of everyone filling their canteens (and peeing). By Week 6, we have two. These come in very handy and are also a huge nuisance. Your canteen and satchel is like a part of your uniform. You don't go anywhere without them. I cannot emphasize what a huge part of our lives they became.

Everyone always wants to know about showers. It's a communal shower with about 10 heads and it's very holocaust-like. Eventually we take our times, shave, etc., but those first days were a quick dip. Everyone was still shy and self conscious. By the end of training, everyone was WAY to comfortable around each other. We had to shower twice a day, which really sucked for the latrine crew, who had to have a dry floor when inspected.

Life was miserable by the end of 0 Week. On Sunday we went to church. It was understood that everyone goes to church, if you are religious or not (that way the MTI can go do something else for a while). It's the only time you can get away from MTIs, yelling, and so much discipline. So we went. Frowns on our faces, tears on our cheeks, absolutely miserable. But let me explain about church. Church ends up being our refuge. When you first walk in, every trainee is embracing the trainee next to him, swaying, singing along to songs. And they are belting out these songs! They are so happy to be there. As newbees, we don't understand, so we just stand there and wait while everyone else smiles, laughs, and relaxes. We get mocked a little by our frowns, as we are obviously new. It's funny, each week, everyone in that same week as you in training stands up and screams "Praise the Lord". 0 Weekers are just pathetic and the 8th Weekers are so loud and happy. Each week, you look forward to being one step closer to being that 8th Weeker in blues with their family. But church is a place to release. Everyone cries. Guys, girls, everyone. It sounds really strange, but you definitely understand when you are there. I went to Sunday School class a few times, but honestly, it's a recipe for disaster. You are already running on way too little sleep (you wake up at 0445 every morning) and they turn the lights down. It's WAY too easy to fall asleep (a cardinal sin no matter where you go). So, eventually I would stop going or attend the Muslim church. I know what you're thinking...but it was the best place ever! You could write letters, take naps, take your shoes off, and they brought CANDY. I will explain the deep craving for candy later. It is at church that we learn from the "older" trainees about Grilled Cheese Sunday. Grilled cheese sandwiches are served every Sunday but they don't tell you about it. You have to already know and you have to ask for it. This is a HUGE treat for us.

Week 1 begins and every morning starts with PT at 0500. You have to be ready and lined up at 5, so that means you have to be awake earlier than that to get ready. But you aren't supposed to be out of bed until 5, so you can see where you have to make the impossible happen. PT ended up being my favorite part of the day. It wasn't hard...I was expecting much worse. Mostly it was running, pushups, situps, pullups, etc. But I loved it. It was sort of relaxing.

Much like 0 Week, during Week 1 we have no idea what we are doing and I am severely hating life by being Dorm Chief. Now I'm doing pushups for EVERYTHING. In fact, I told some girls to do something and they didn't do it. So, my MTI makes ME do pushups and makes them point and laugh at me and say "ha ha, we aren't going to do what you say". They started to cry. It still makes me laugh! So stupid.

It is during Week 1 that we finally get to read our mail. All through 0 Week, mail had been pouring in, but we weren't allowed to read them. This is torture. It's your only tie to the outside world. Luckily my family and friends did an excellent job in writing me because I got mail everyday but one. Mail would be handed out during Airman's time. Airman's time is an hour, usually in the evening, when we discuss lessons learned, ask questions (as long as they aren't retarded and you use a reporting statement), and discuss upcoming events. There would be many a Airman's time where the stupid girls in my flight would battle it out and the claws would come out. It was because they were so stressed out, but it was still retarded. Anyway, mail is an amazing thing. People would seriously cry when they got mail. There is no way to communicate how important mail is to anyone in the military. But not all mail is good. Several girls got packages from family members that would have candy in it or something. The candy had to be thrown away or the MTI would share it amongst his pals at the Snake Pit. Unfortunately there wasn't a whole lot of time to write letters at first. Most of mine were written after lights out, blanket over my head, flashlight on.

We begin to learn customs and courtesies (which many pertain to officers), but the only problem is that Lackland is not full of officers roaming around to practice this stuff on (salutes, recognition, etc). In fact, we were still petrified about saluting when I left Lackland during tech school, which is where we finally figured it out.

I'm not really sure where we are going, but we are all lookin' rough.

Doing some medical in-processing. Notice the sneakers.

We also got our M-16s issued and a couple times we practice taking them apart and putting them back together, but most of the time they stayed underneath our beds and were really just a pain in the butt when it came to cleaning under there.

At the end of Week 1, my prayers were answered. I was fired from my Dorm Chief position because we failed a mock inspection (apparently dust in dustpans is not acceptable). I must have had the biggest grin on my face because my flight laughed at me for looking so relieved.

0 Week and Week 1 are by far the worst parts of BMT.

Boot Camp

Happy 4th of July everyone! I'm finally finished with Boot Camp and I'm in technical school at Lackland AFB for a few more weeks until I move on to another school. Boot Camp was hard! I don't care what anyone says. It wasn't the PT. It wasn't getting yelled at all the time. It was the stinkin' FEMALES. Living with 49 teenie-boppers is pure torture. I don't know how they got so dumb. Anyway, I'll post my BMT experience later when I have my photos. It was...an experience to say the least. But I graduated with honors and as a Thunderbolt (which is just a higher level of physical training...PT).

Technical school is like military and college combined. My classes are hard though. There's a ton of info to memorize, but I'm so excited to get to my job. I can't wait to get my wings (less than 2% of the AF have them). If I don't flunk out, I should be home in October. I can't wait!

It's Finally Here!

Last July, I started talking to an Air Force Reserves recruiter. It was funny, a bunch of people all sort of suggested the military at the same time and originally I thought, "Me? I don't think so." But the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. So after a bunch of paperwork, I went to MEPS in October in SLC. MEPS is where they make sure you're not a gimp so you can join the military. It's like a really big physical, complete with pee tests, reading aloud, blood tests, hearing tests, vision tests, etc. After MEPS, there was a very LONG process of getting a flight physical, interviews, more paperwork, etc. On December 7, 2009, I enlisted. I have been waiting since that day to go to boot camp.

It has arrived.

Since I'm in the Reserves, I won't get shipped off to some random city. I already know my job, where I'll be stationed, etc. I also get to keep my current job (and still get paid while I'm not there!). I'm so lucky because I'll be working with some awesome people (I already know my commanding officers and stuff) and I'm absolutely stoked for the training and the job I'll have. There's a huge need for my field, so there's a lot of room for growth (in the military and in the civilian world). I can't say what it is, only that I think it's cool and I'm so proud to be able to be a part of it.

For all those people who were interviewed by the FBI because of me-thank you. I appreciate your help. For everyone that encouraged me and stuck with me through my freak-out moments (like for the advice on that cat-chewed poop bag Amanda!), thanks for calming me down. And a special thank you to Dan and Tino for running and doing push ups with me, even when I hated you for it.

I've been worrying and stressing about this moment for so long that now that it's here, I'm just really excited. I leave for San Antonio, TX on Tuesday, April 20th.

Family, you knew it was coming...I have mailed each of you write-your-favorite-airman kits. Please write! Anyone else that wants to write, it will be posted on my FB page at some point. I would love if you wrote and I promise to try to write anyone that writes me (except Michael who plans on sending embarrassing packages that will get me into trouble with the drill instructors).

This was not a decision made easily, but it feels like the right one. Boot camp is 8 1/2 weeks long and then I'll be in technical training for at least another 6 months. So, I'll be gone for a while; so no blogging until I'm allowed to use a computer again. :)

Trying to get ahead of the game with some M-16 practice.

Cave Tubing

Also at Jaguar Paw there was a place you could cave tube (complimentary of Karen, again). I'd seen pictures of other peoples' cave tubing experience and I was really looking forward to it. It was really fun! The water was really low so it was slow, but the cave was interesting and the rest of the river was really calm and quiet. I had a blast!
First, we had lunch (can't get enough of those rice and beans!) at this really pretty place right in between the zip line and the cave tubing trail.
Once the food was situation was taken care of (which was also gratis con Karen), we grabbed our tubes and our sexy construction worker helmets and headed down the trail. Now, this was a pretty long hike because you have to get to the starting point of the river (well, where WE were starting, anyway). I was loving the hike. I probably liked the hike as much as the tubing. Who doesn't love a romp through the jungle?!? I love all the plants and things.
We also checked out some smaller caves on the way. Our guides, Sam and Carlos, showed us different rock formations and told us stories (some true...some not so true).
A true story is that the local people believe demons and things live in caves and are afraid of them. For that reason, many of the caves went unexplored until around the 70's and 80's. Carlos actually does cave search and rescue, so he was able to provide lots of information about the area and it's exploration.
Finally we got to the start and we all linked together (the cave is pitch black without your light, so it's to make sure we don't get lost).

Kenyah, Edna, Me and Karen ready to start our cave tubing adventure.

The cave is huge! It took about 20 minutes to get through and then we floated down the river for about another 20 minutes until it was over. It was a perfect day and it was so pretty out there! I loved it!

Coming out of the cave. Yeah, yeah, I know I'm lookin' rough.