File this one under "things we didn't expect to do in Africa"

Last month we got to go on a tour of an active duty naval destroyer. The USS Forrest Sherman made port in Dar es Salaam. We were told this was the first time a US military ship had docked here--which seems sort of impossible--but it sounds cool, so what the heck. The Embassy invited Americans and Tanzanians who were affiliated with the Embassy for a tour. It took Bob and I about 2 seconds to say yes. Well actually Bob said yes for me, since he had to work. With three kids and especially two boys aged 6 and nearly 9 how could we not go? There were three tours scheduled. We decided to take the latest one in the afternoon so that the kids could have a chance to come home from school and do their homework first. Apparently everyone else decided to do the same thing because there were so many parents with kids that there wasn't enough room in the vans. But we all squeezed in and some folks took their personal cars and we were off to the bandari (that's the port for all of you who are rusty on your Swahili).

The ship was even cooler than I had hoped. The kids weren't quite sure what to expect--and since Ben had given up his swimming playdate to go--I had my fingers crossed that this wouldn't be a bust. They were not disappointed. We got to see the deck of the ship with the 5 inch cannon, the bridge, and the command center.

When we went to the bridge they let the kids sit in the captain's chair.

Ben thought it was awesome.

Josh did too.

We'd never been on a naval ship before so all of this was new to us. And a lot of it was just like what you imagine or see in the movies. There were lots of ladders to various levels and oval shaped doors with the funky wheel you turn to open and close them. OK, maybe schlepping Josie up and down all those ladders wasn't the funnest thing to do but at least I got in a work-out. The best part was the command center. (But you'll have to take our word on that; we couldn't take pictures there-sorry). It was a dark, air conditioned room with different stations where they can monitor radar, launch missiles, and do all that other stuff you see in spy movies.

So of course the experience got me thinking: it's ironic that we had to come all the way to Africa to get a new perspective on, and first-hand exposure to, the US military. We don't have family or friends who are in the service so we've never given it much thought. But here many people are either current or former military and lots of people have gone or are considering going to Iraq. They go for all sorts of reasons: because they think it's the right thing to do, because the money is good, because it can help them to get a better job in the future. All valid reasons.

So I guess the take home message here is that I’ve learned to appreciate all the things that our military folks do and the sacrifices that they and their families make. I may not agree with everything but I’m grateful for what they do.