Homecoming Chapter One: Kyrgyzstan

So, here we are. By now I'm sure unless you've been living under a log you know that Greg is finally, finally back. He arrived home on Monday around noon, and life has been a hectic whirlwind of emotions, new beginnings (especially with Caroline), and getting back to "normal" (in quotations because in the USMC what is normal for most people is actually a rare couple months out of every year).

It is such a relief to have Greg home, and it's unbelievable how much chaos really happened between Camp Leatherneck (big base in Afghanistan which is the first and last place in country where Marines go) and Germany. In a nutshell (and you can ask me for details later, because those are hilarious), Greg was stuck in Kyrgyzstan because of the coup. Since the US had not yet recognized the new government, no one really knew what was going on, and there were worries of the unrest getting even more out of control. Manas Transit Center (where Greg was) is an Air Force base. And what did the people stationed there decide to do in the event of an attack on base? Send the Marines, who just got out of Afghanistan! The same plan also applied to the small Army Special Forces unit that happened to be on their way home as well. The whole thing sounded like a ridiculous plan, but frankly a smart one, given the people/resources available. Obviously nothing happened, but the whole thing was pretty funny in retrospect.

On Sunday, Hillary Clinton called up the new leader of Kyrgyzstan to say that the US recognized the new government. This opened the airspace quite literally, and allowed Greg and the rest of the crew to get out. They had previously been told that no flights were going to be let out of the airport for at least another 24 hours, so everyone was spread across base, when all of a sudden they found out they were leaving in 45 minutes. Again, total chaos. But the important thing is they got on a plane in what was the middle of Saturday night California time. I found this out right when I woke up Sunday morning (hence my "I feel good about today" post), but I didn't want to jump for joy only to be delayed yet again. But this third time was a charm, and once I heard they were in Germany, I knew the chances were pretty good that they would make it to California.

So there's a rough overview of how they finally got home. Chapter 2 has the actual homecoming so read on.....