Soldiers marvel at palace, lament war

It is a hazy, still morning, an ideal day to go sightseeing.

“Rivera, start the Humvee. We are going for a ride,” Command Sgt. Maj. Chuck Medley shouts to his driver.

For a month, the armored-vehicle known as Pistol 7 has been a home-away-from-home for Medley and Spc. Sandy Rivera.

They have eaten, slept, cursed, laughed, reflected and feared for their lives in the sand-caked Humvee since the Army’s 3rd Military PoliceCompany crossed the berm from Kuwait into Iraq at the start of the war.

Now 500 miles and one flat tire later they are about to take a ride to Saddam Hussein’s airport palace, one of 46 the dictator is reputed to have owned.