U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Buddy Carr, from Spartanburg,

U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Buddy Carr, from Spartanburg, S.C., receives a hooded falcon at a Qatar general's beach home, April 20. The Qatar armed forces chief of staff invited over 400 service members to enjoy beach activities, water crafts, falcon exhibitions, camel rides, all-terrain vehicles and Arabic cuisine. "I held an eagle once at a circus once," said Carr. "But how many people can say they held a falcon in Qatar?" Carr was participating in the U.S. Central Command rest and recuperation pass program at Camp As Sayliyah, a U.S. military installation in Qatar. Since it's inception in 2004, the program has provided over 155,000 war fighters, serving in Southwest Asia, a brief respite from combat operations. "This is a once in a lifetime experience!" he said. "This whole trip has been awesome!"