In Between…
I really wish I’d keep this blog more active. Foremost to work as a diary to remind myself of thoughts and experiences, and perhaps to keep the odd person or two up to date. It’s not happening, but I really should look at a better integration of Twitter, Flickr, Facebook in particular, with this blog as a focal point. Anyway. Here are a couple of things that have happened since the last post in December:
First and foremost, I was deployed to Haiti as a member of @fire, following the earthquake. We went there as a USAR team. This will problably qualify as the most extreme experience of my life, in many respects. Im am glad and thankful I could be part of the relief effort.
This is our team ready to go at Munich airport.
Going to Haiti was like going to a black hole. We did not know what to expect. It was like a movie unfolding. This is the building where I finally realised we were there:
There are about 15 dead people in this picture, just only out of sight. It was smelly and hot. We were there for three intense days. The most stressful thing? Not the dead, or the destruction. Rather, for 10 days, not knowing what was about to happen for the next hour. We finally got home courtesy of the Belgian Air Force. (Picture Set)
Haiti was plus 30+ degrees Celsius. The week after that, I was in Warsaw, Poland. Minus 25 °C in the daytime, that is a temperature difference of almost 60 °C. We spent most of those two days indoors. It’s a shame, because I was really glad to finally be in that city – I’ll have to take a closer look another time.
Station 1, Warsaw.
Last week was all Heavy Rescue: first, three days with “grand master” Jimmy, of raddning.se, in Knivsta, north of Stockholm. Two days Bus Lift, and one day Truck extrication using a deformed, brand spanking new Scania truck. It was outside, cold, but it sure as hell beats any office job.
Finally, my very own Big Lift. This time, a situation to strike fear in the hearts of the participants :)
..and these are only the facts. Emotionally, it’s been a roller coaster ride, but that is boring. On with it.
Sets on Flickr: Haiti, Warsaw, Heavy Rescue Sweden, Big Lift
Storebæltsbroen: wow
Normally we use the ferry between Rostock and Gedser as it offers a direct route from Munich to our holiday home in Denmark. This time, we had to take the long route up through Jutland and Fyn. And, believe it or not, in the past month I’ve been over this bridge seven times. Well it’s well worth it in many senses, also because it is simply breathtaking.
Incidentally, with a clearance of 65 metres, it won’t fit the Queen Mary 2 (72 metres).
Tradition
In terms of tradition, my guess is that Bavaria could be seen as being similar to Scotland, at least when it comes to outfits. In any case, it’s a good pretext to get together and have a good time (and some beers too).
Off to Bad Schwartau and Back
A quick two-day trip took me to Bad Schwartau. Lovely to be so close to Denmark, particularly with the smell reminding me of home. I am convinced it has got to be the strongest of our senses. Here are a few pictures and even a video from the landing back in Munich. Sad?
I am also convinced that Hamburg S-Bahn (local rail) has the worst interior design of all trains. Who ever came up with this?
On and off
I guess I am sharing the same fate as many others, which is an information overload (as in generating) which results in intermittent failure in keeping the personal blog up to date. I wish I could have written more about the recent visit to the States, which started off in Lufthansa economy class. I sat next to some Swedish bloke who was so fat his stomach covered my multimedia control panel. What a nightmare.
Indianapolis was great, even summery. It’s just so completely different to Europe, I still can’t get over it. But since I ODed on chrome – the type attached to US engines – it was good to get out of town again last week and visit some friends down by the Autrian border.
Let’s see if I can get this rolling again. Must also engage in more photography.
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Welcome
Welcome to Irakli West's personal pages on the Web. I am Danish, live close to Munich in Germany, and run FWnetz, an online magazine and training resource for firefighters. In real life, I am Regional Manager Northern Europe for Paratech and currently training to become a specialist in Urban Search and Rescue as well as Heavy Rescue (it's fun, challenging and serves a good purpose)
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