Tim Hortons in Kandahar, Afghanistan : An insider's view

[Dion]

Very well written and worth the read.

When she wrote this essay, she was a month away from returning home.

My alarm goes off just before 5 a.m. I pull on my bathrobe, pad down the hallway and open the plywood door to a gravel road and a line of large rounded tents surrounded by concrete highway dividers. The sun is already up, and hundreds of birds havecongregated in the few trees to bid the morning welcome with their cheerful chatter. It is almost cool, but the promise of 50-degree heat hangs in the air.

I walk over sand and gravel to the shower trailer. This early in the morning I have the place to myself, which doesn't happen often. The trailer is ripe with the smells of chlorine and disinfectant, and I hurry back to my tent where I'm living for six months and change into my uniform. I put on sand-coloured pants and a shirt, my name tag and a desert camouflage hat. As I arrive at work, there's already a lineup, so I hustle in the side door. My coworkers are bustling about, making coffee and stocking cups. I grab a hairnet, put it on under my cap and take my place as the doors open.

Not an average job.

This is no ordinary Tim Hortons. I work the Kandahar military base in Afghanistan.

The store is roughly in the middle of the base. In the centre is a large sand-and-gravel field where the Americans play football and the Brits play cricket. There's a ball hockey rink right outside our store where we watch the Canadian troops play enthusiastic games of hockey in the sweltering heat. Other food outlets and stores line two sides of the boardwalk in the sand.

http://boards.fool.com/MessagePrint.asp?mid=27381124

[T@T]

Awesome read.

"I look up and see the same familiar
constellations that hang over the sky in my hometown of Thunder Bay,
Ont., and I know I'll be back there before long.

I rest easy knowing that my home is where roadside bombings and
landmines are unheard of. I have a huge appreciation for Canada – I
always did – but this experience is magnifying it."

A pilot buddy of mine went there on contract work for 6 weeks.upon his return I asked how was it? He said: I'm never leaving Canada again!

[icarus]

I hope it's better than the Tim Horton's in Picadilly Circus, otherwise... those poor soldiers.

[STeeLy]

Originally Posted by icarus

I hope it's better than the Tim Horton's in Picadilly Circus, otherwise... those poor soldiers.

\
There's a Tim Horton's in Picadilly Circus?

[icarus]

Originally Posted by STeeLy

There's a Tim Horton's in Picadilly Circus?

Yes, well it is embedded in a Spar convenience store but sells Tim Horton's doughnuts and coffee... of greatly compromised quality.

[GoinAllTheWay]

I think spending time over there would be a huge reality check for many people. Our complaints must seem very minor to people who live or spent time in that part of the world.

[mykalberta]

I wonder if they also dont stock cherry timbits at that location as well

[Jayems]

How exactly does one get recruited to work at Timmys in a war zone?

... maybe I should read the article.

edit: makes sense, I guess. Still, if I were to voluntarily go there, I'd want to be armed with a gun and not a cappuccino machine.

[Frank the Tank]

In my life experiences I have found that I just need to travel to appreciate Canada. I don't have to go to a warzone to not want to leave. Just stray off the beaten path wherever you are and you'll see how bad some places really can be.

[ok, ok,....I get it]

Originally Posted by Jayems

How exactly does one get recruited to work at Timmys in a war zone?

... maybe I should read the article.

edit: makes sense, I guess. Still, if I were to voluntarily go there, I'd want to be armed with a gun and not a cappuccino machine.

guns are heavy....better to get yourself a rifle.

I think it is great that things like Timmies are overseas, all our tour had was KD sent by friends, free beer from the dutch sigs, and cheap canadian beer

[ken0042]

Originally Posted by GoinAllTheWay

I think spending time over there would be a huge reality check for many people. Our complaints must seem very minor to people who live or spent time in that part of the world.

My dad's friend was over in Bosnia a while back. Shortly after he came back he and his wife went grocery shopping, and he had to leave the store- he just couldn't handle seeing his wife scrutinizing the quality of bread when compared to the horrors he had seen over there.

[JackJackJackJackJackJack]

is this tim hortons resterarunt a coffe time pass?

[Ducay]

Originally Posted by JackJackJackJackJackJack

is this tim hortons resterarunt a coffe time pass?

Get out
Now


e: One does not make a mockery of the holy temple of our savior, Sir Timothy of Horton