On 22 Dec, I accompanied the Group Commander, Colonel Mark Andersen, on a trip to one of the Russian bases here in Bosnia to participate in a traditional Russian "banya". These saunas are a Russian tradition and, for the Russians stationed here, a treasured part of their culture.
We arrived at the camp after a 45 minute drive winding into the mountains that act as a natural border between Bosnia and the Former Republic of Yugoslavia. About 40km away, Uglevik houses a Russian medical unit as well as engineers. While the scenery was beautiful, the route to the camp was littered with the remains of destroyed houses. Though some of the houses along the route had been rebuilt, many were missing portions of walls which had been struck by mortar rounds and served as an eerie reminder of the war here.
Hidden at the back of their compound, the Russians had built an incredible 3-room bathhouse. Upon entering the first room, we were greeted with a table full of russian food (thank God, no boiled herring!). This room also served as the changing room. The second room was a bit larger and included a sitting area and an open shower. The third room was the sauna itself. We got out of our clothes and put on sheets provided to us by our hosts. At almoust 200 Fahrenheit, the heat in the sauna was overwhelming. After splashing water and beer on the hot rocks, we were engulfed in steam. For the Russians, the process of doing a "banya" is almost an art, and we endured five trips into the sauna in a period of about 2 hours. The process included trips outside for snow rubdowns, splashes of near-freezing water, beatings with birch branches and at one point, we were lathered up with a sticky mixture of honey and salt. The commander insisted that I leave my digital camera in the car for fear that pictures would end up on the internet... I know, pretty paranoid. (I am now pursuing photos taken by the Russians there. If I find them, the commander's fears will be realized!)
The holidays in Bosnia have now come and gone. The unit here had a lot of activities planned which helped keep us busy. A Christmas movie night, bingo, a Pie-in-the-Face Fundraiser, and some Karaoke. On New Year's Eve, we had a Casino Night that was a huge success. But, as always, there is no replacing spending this time of year with friends and family.
I worked another Russian IL-76 flight on 28 Dec. They only requested 2 hours on the ground and, much to my surprise, made it off the ground as scheduled. I still marvel at the manner they offload their cargo and the way they smoke and drink on the plane... The big items at the PX for the crew this time: coffee. I think that between the 8 crewmembers, they bought about 50 pounds of coffee.
Take care all... and don't forget to write!
Mult-iNational Division North (MND-N)
401 EABG/Liaison
Operation Joint Forge
APO AE 09789
