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Russia
 

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Special Forces Reunion

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       As an Expat, I work in various countries for various individuals or work directly for the Host country's government. There are many advantages to the lifestyle I have chosen namely the experience of living among indigenous groups in a given county and tasting a small part of their way-of-life; a special flavor never acquired from sitting in a University class room. Nothing can be more exciting and rewarding! To awaken to Winter's first snow in the Bavarian Alps, to hear the plethora of jungle sounds in the Amazon or those deep within the jungles of South East Asia, to deal with the heat of Africa's Sahara Desert (155F), to have dinner beneath the stars on the Donau River in Budapest, to drink camel's milk beneath a Bedouin’s tent in the Arabian Desert, to cruise the Nile or visit the Great Pyramids of Giza, to hear the Imon call Sallah in Istanbul, to swim in warm equatorial waters of the Indian Ocean or to shiver in the Mediterranean off the coast of Spain, to experience Bangkok   . . . . the city that knows no sleep . . . to sample Amsterdam's "wide-open" style of life, to have lunch mid-way up the Eiffel Tower, to camp at the foot of Mt. Kilimanjaro or to stand at the base of the Matterhorn or climb to ancient Inca Ruins at Machu Picchu, to drink cold spring water from deep blue pools and rest under the shade of Date Palms at an Oasis near Algeria’s border, to hear the clicking of bamboo sticks as vendors walk the streets of Saigon announcing their acquisition of fresh boiled rice, to stand in the cool night air near Burma’s mountainous border at Mae Hong Son, Thailand and see the speckled brilliance of enormous flashes lighting the night sky and only seconds later feeling deep somatic quakes, hear thunderous rumble from explosions and tremble knowing well that young soldiers are dying, and to watch children swim in canals near Cu Chi, their bodies naked, their skin golden brown . . . all of this I have witnessed and experienced   . . . and much more too. 
     I have clinically dealt with regional exotic diseases and abnormalities otherwise rarely seen but often dreamed of by my practicing counterparts in America . . . these they find only in textbooks. From this standpoint alone my knowledge of Dentistry and treatment modality has increased enormously. While working in Third World countries I have often times, out of necessity, treated ballistic facial wounds from projectiles as well as treated patients with exotic diseases requiring special case handling. My "baptism" to ballistic wounds came just after Desert Storm as I, while serving as Chief of Dental Surgery at KKMC in Saudi Arabia, treated many Iraqi POWs. Additionally, I have treated under harsh and primitive conditions; though quality was seriously challenged the smiles and appreciation  from those I helped made up for the difference . . . and I made Life more bearable for the grateful; a rare, priceless gratitude seldom experienced by the practitioner in Developed Countries!
     Professional Services and personal experiences, however, have not waned with one or two countries; rather, they span 6 Continents and many borders. I have treated in Mexico, Vietnam, Thailand, Germany, Bosnia, Cambodia, Laos, Tunisia, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, the Americas, and Croatia. In addition to the countries mentioned I have "logged several hours" in United Arab Emirates, Oman, Yemen, the Peruvian Amazon, Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Egypt, United Kingdom, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Slovakia, Hungary, Switzerland, Austria, Spain, France, Italy, Holland, Luxembourg, Philippine Islands, Algeria, Libya, Qatar, Belgium, Aruba, Guam, Bahamas, Poland, Turkey, Liechtenstein, Burma, Israel, Canada, Korea, Denmark, Canary Islands, Congo, Ivory Coast, and Russia.
     Life as an Expat, however, has a built in factor of adversity and sometimes danger. Adversity to some may mean dealing with the lack of Cable TV or a swimming pool; we, as Expats, describe adversity far more stringently. Adverse could mean long periods without clean drinking water or electric power. Adversity could mean cross-border raids on our compound. Adversity could mean being charged with a crime in a country where you have no rights. Adversity could mean treating patients in a tent or under a tree with marginal equipment. Language barriers too pose a serious problem and the Expat quickly adapts and learns basic language skill to negotiate hurtles in various Host countries. Gastrointestinal disturbances and fever also shadow an Expat when first arriving in a new country; this soon becomes an expected and accepted inconvenience . . . it comes with the territory. However, that which may be perceived as "ordinary" could in fact indicate more serious problems, e.g., amebic dysentery, worms, malaria, Giardia, Cholera, Typhoid, Typhus, Yellow Fever, or meningitis most of which I have experienced. While at our highly classified compound in Saudi, the chlorinating system failed and many occupants on the compound suffered a violent case of amebic dysentery resulting in hospitalization for most of us. I also contracted malaria and Tuberculosis at KKMC. 
     Although the previously mentioned are real dangers, the Expat’s definition of danger conjures different thoughts and stirs deeper concerns of a more immediate nature. To be personally targeted because of Nationality in a foreign country or terrorist attacks in public areas and kidnappings are far from imagined dangers. They are real! While sitting in London-Heathrow International Air Terminal, London England, in 1994, waiting for my connecting flight to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, I found myself crawling under chairs after four (4) IRA mortars exploded in the concourse where I was waiting. On 5 SEP 95, Cruise Missiles struck the town of Bi Hac, Bosnia sending us for cover. In 1996, while I was in Mombassa, Kenya civil unrest led to a massacre of nearly 100 people; they were hacked to death where I had been standing no more than 20 minutes earlier.  While in Bombalulu, the US struck Iraq and I was detained by Immigration officials for 24 hours. In 1997, several days after leaving Cairo, Egypt a terrorist group attacked a bus filled with Deutsch tourist at the Egyptian Museum, where I had been with my Egyptian friend, Essam Ismail AlHussainy, killing most. In 1995, while my father, Harold H. Wingo, Sr., and I were in Czech Republic, several gypsies accosted my father. Inaccessible and from a distance, I watched as he fought them away with his umbrella. 
     For the most part, however, if one would practice "active observation" and not frequent known areas of terrorist activity ones chances are better of not being "hit" or "marked for later termination". With all the "Warts & Wrinkles" associated with an Expat’s lifestyle, the benefits outweigh adversities.
     My Photo Page and Surgery Page will change from time to time and I hope you take time to visit these pages frequently.

Dr. Harold H. Wingo
Schweinfurt, Deutschland 

Dr. Harold H. Wingo