Celebrating Burns Night, Afghan style
Updated on 26 January 2008
"Let's get controversial: bagpipes." - Alex Thomson blogs from Lashkar Gar, Afghanistan on how the British troops welcomed Burns Night.
I know, I know, a lot of people (Sassenachs perhaps) hate 'em. But I really love the sound of the pipes, no instrument comes close when it gets to stirring the blood. So as soon as the deafening whupping of rotor blades faded and our Lynx helicopter disappeared - there they were - bagpipes.
The sound was coming from somwhere behind the row of containers which mark out the helicopter landing site at the British forces bases in Lashkar Gah.
It was a rehearsal for Burns Night of course. Not that Robbie Burns is usually celebrated around the Helmand River - but these days of war and occupation things are rather different.
We were instantly offered the chance of filming the haggis being piped into the mess tent for supper that night - presumably with the address and the entire works.
"Well," I mused, "I'm not totally clear how that fits into analysis of the British purpose here but hey! Why not?"
So we made arrangements. RV 18.45 local outside mess tent for filming Haggis, piping thereof.
Sadly though it was not to be. Certainly they piped in the wonderful dish and tucked in too. But it turned out that our piper, heard but unseen, would have to stay that way. He's Special Forces. Special Pipe Squadron? So his ID must remain hidden.
Personally I think we should have filmed it and then blobbed out his face - there's something so wonderfully incongruous about that collision of culture and Operational Security - but I just couldn't quite get that across.
So you see - the army here sure does march on its feet. Haggis last night. Extremely full English breakfast this morning. Roast beef and Yorkshire Puds for dinner - goodness knows what they'll pile out for tea tonight. But pile it they will with at least five or more choices for main course and a galaxy of pudding options to follow.
Normally of course you'd work it off leaping around with troops all day long and that's certainly true when the weather's hot. But this is January, clear at the moment but well below zero and frosty by night, cold and brisk by day.
Mind you - way down south here in the desert it is balmy compared with the northern fridge of Kabul.
