Soldier's Wife, Crazy Life

Stationed Overseas

What To Expect At MCAS Iwakuni, Japan

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Happy to have this guest post by Kelly on MCAS Iwakuni in Japan. Please visit my Duty station guest post page for posts on other locations or more information about how you can write a guest post about where you have been stationed.

Living at Iwakuni, Japan

Finding out your family has orders overseas can be intimidating but if you’re one of the lucky ones that has orders to MCAS Iwakuni, you’ll soon fall in love with this tiny but growing base. There is plenty on base to remind you of home but fun and adventure begins as soon as you exit the gates.

MCAS Iwakuni

While it is small, MCAS Iwakuni offers quite a bit. At Crossroads Mall there is Subway, Pizza Hut, KFC, Burger King, Taco Bell, Baskin Robbins, and Crossroads Café. Currently the Post Office, Commissary, and Sakura Theater are in the process of being moved to larger buildings to accommodate the base’s growing population. There is a bunch of construction going on to building new homes and renovating some of the older homes and towers. There are three types of housing for families: row homes (three story 3 or 4 bedrooms), town homes (two story 2 or 3 bedrooms), and tower apartments (2 or 3 bedrooms). One of the things I can’t seem to get over is how beautiful it is here. The Nishiki River runs past the Sea Wall and a great place to watch to sun set behind the mountains. The Sea Wall runs around most of the base. It is as wide as a small road and paved. A great place to go walking, running, or bike riding. It runs past the Ironworks Gym. The gym is decent sized and offers a variety of fun classes to keep you in shape. The indoor pool is located at Ironworks. There is an outdoor pool with a waterslide located across the street from Crossroads Mall and the Library. The Library just reopened in January after a renovation that included installing a 3D printer that is free to use.

MCAS Iwakuni

Off base there are many options for food, fun, and adventure. There are many restaurants within walking distance. You can try okonomiyaki (savory pancake), yakitori (food on a stick), shabu shabu (cook your food in flavored broths), yakuniku (cook your food on a grill in front of you), and a variety of ramen shops without having to go more than ten minutes from base. While you are and about, it’s highly recommended to go see Kintaikyo Bridge. It is a beautiful stone and wooden bridge built in the 1600’s. It is beautiful on it’s own but stunning when the Nishiki River is lined with cherry blossom trees in full bloom. Just past the Kintaikyo Bridge is Kikko Park where you can find many fountains and statues. You can ride a gondola from Kikko Park to Iwakuni Castle. Iwakuni Castle has been turned into a museum about Iwakuni City. The view from the top of the castle is breathtaking. If you wish to see more of Japan it’s easy to hop on a plane or train or even the bullet train to explore Hiroshima, Kyoto, Osaka, Miyajima Island or even Tokyo. Recently MCAS Iwakuni made the news when President Obama visited the base on his way to see the Atomic Bomb Dome in Hiroshima.

Don’t let being in a foreign land intimidate you.  Don’t just stay on base. Actually go out and experience all that Japan has to offer. The memories you’ll make will last a lifetime. Don’t worry about the language barrier. The Google Translate app has helped us get around that. The Nationals are some of the nicest people I have met. Most of the time when we ask directions to a place they will actually walk us to the destination even if it’s a few blocks away. Either way be open to adventure and enjoy your time in Japan.

 

MCAS IwakuniKelly Stillwagon is originally from Chapel Hill, North Carolina. She currently lives in Iwakuni, Japan with her handsome husband, Jeremy. She is the owner of Barking Fabulous Dog Treats, and a blogger for I Do and Adieu. Kelly is also a paranormal investigator with over 10 years of experience. In her free time she loves to read, penpal, bake, paint, and veg out with Netflix with her kittens, Katniss Everpurr and Bagheera.

Social Media Links: Facebook page for “I Do And Adieu”- https://www.facebook.com/idoandadieu Instagram page for Kelly Stillwagon and I Do And Adieu- https://www.instagram.com/stillkelz/

Bloom Where You Are Stationed

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Bloom Where You Are Stationed“I hate it here.”

“We just got orders there and I am scared. I have only heard bad things.”

“I really don’t want to leave here and have to move there. It is the worst place we could go.”

“I really just want the next three years to pass quickly so we can move somewhere else.”

“This place is so boring. There is nothing to do here. I hate it.”

Have you heard people say things like that before? Maybe it was you? I am not going to lie. I was so ready to leave Germany after we had been there a few years. That was hard for me. Very hard. And it was Germany. A place many people would LOVE to go and who never want to leave.

It was the end of 2007. I was standing outside a bookstore with my Mother-in-law in California during our post-deployment vacation. “I don’t want to go back to Germany. I really really don’t” I told her. And I didn’t. I just wasn’t excited about going back. I knew another deployment was coming and didn’t want to be over there anymore. However, my husband still had a few years left before we would move back to the US.

I did what you have to do as a Military Spouse, I sucked it up and got on the airplane and we went back “home” to Germany.

 

A few months later, we moved to a different duty station in Germany. Our housing was a lot better. So much so that I cried happy tears when I walked into our new home. But still, I was missing the United States and just wanted to be back there. I didn’t want to still be in Germany. Then I bought a new camera. I started taking pictures every day and started really noticing where I was. From the trees to the flowers to the old buildings. I was in a magical land. I needed to take advantage of that.

Things being what they were, having two little kids, I wasn’t going to be able to travel every week or even all that often. But I could put them in the stroller and walk around my village. I could walk them around town and into the country a little bit. So that is what I did. One Sunday my husband had to work so I decided to take them for a long walk. It took us five hours there and back but that walk was amazing and one I will never forget. We passed by forests, rivers, fields, apple trees, sheep and old buildings. I still enjoy looking at the photos I took that day.

If you are feeling like you are hating your current duty station, maybe you should try to change things up.

Grab your camera, grab a friend or just go and explore. You never know what you might encounter. Remember that once you leave, you might never be able to return. Try to find the positives in where you live, even if they are well hidden. Of course, some places are easier to do this than others.

When you can bloom where you are stationed, you can have good experiences anywhere you go. You will learn how to find the positives in every situation and figure out creative ways to enjoy yourself even if you are not feeling too happy at first. If you are set to go to a duty station most people don’t like, see if you can talk to people who do like it there. Find out what they have to say and find things about that place to look forward to. Make a list of positives and get ready for your next adventure as a military spouse.

Have you ever lived somewhere you couldn’t stand? How did you figure out how to bloom where you are stationed?

Living in Hohenfels, Germany

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Happy to have this guest post by LeAnna on Hohenfels, Germany. Please visit my Duty station guest post page for posts on other locations or more information about how you can write a guest post about where you have been stationed.

Living in Hohenfels, GermanyHohen-Hells, Germany.  

Oops, I mean, Hohenfels; the Army Post in Nowheresville, Germany where the Commissary is often out of stock of the item you need most (like Pumpkin puree during Thanksgiving!), where it’s 30 minutes to the nearest big city and where you are thousands of miles away from family, friends and the nearest comforts of wandering aimlessly in a Target.

I suppose I can see the point of view of the people that have, not so affectionately, coined USAG Hohenfels as a “Hohen-Hells”. 

After all, the soldiers often work what seems like 24/7, there are the horrible rotation and exercise schedules, it has a small town community atmosphere where it feels like everyone is in everyone’s business and there are grey, dreary, rainy days that can last for months making you believe that the sun has permanently abandoned you.

Yeah, sure, this does sound like a miserable Army Post, doesn’t it??? So, who in their right mind would want to be stationed in a place like that!?

Well, me for one.  

Don’t get me wrong, my husband also has horrible rotation schedules, I miss Netflix and often dream of the conveniences of American life, like 24-hour Walmarts, just as much as the other members of the community here and yet, I often feel like I don’t ever want to leave Hohenfels.

That’s because I CHOOSE to see the positives.  I CHOOSE to realize how fortunate I am to be living in Europe!  I love Hohenfels, for all its faults and flaws, but more importantly for the endless positives it provides and everything that it has given back to me during this very brief period in my life.

The Beauty of Hohenfels and Bavaria

Close your eyes and think of Germany.  What do you see?  

  • Men holding beer steins the size of your head while wearing Liederhosen?

Check

Living in Hohenfels, Germany

  • Pretzels so big you can fit your arm through the loops?

Yup

  • So many Scnitzel varieties that you could eat a new one every day and still try a new one tomorrow?

Uum, do you need to even ask that!?

  • Cobblestoned streets lining the alleys of pastel painted houses so quaint and unique?

Photoshop and Filters not needed here!

Living in Hohenfels, Germany

No, these are not stereotypes of Germany…this is real life in beautiful Bavaria, where beer truly does run freely and fest season provides endless hours of polka music.

And not to mention the actual, physical beauty of Bavaria.  Spring time is like an artists’ dream come true when the canola fields bloom against the patchwork greens of the farm fields as the hills roll in the distance.  

Living in Hohenfels, Germany

Winter is like a picture out of a fairytale book as the soft, white snow drifts down on the castles and Christmas markets.

Living in Hohenfels, Germany

Summer hikes in the Alps or up a castle can leave you breathless, not because of the altitude or physical exertion but because you’ve rarely seen something so beautiful.

Living in Hohenfels, Germany

Sure, I never leave the apartment without an umbrella, but when you look past the clouds and when the sun does pop its head out, there is often nothing more stunningly beautiful than Bavaria.

The Community

The USAG Hohenfels Community:

What small town doesn’t have its nosy neighbors?  If you’ve ever lived in a location where stop lights aren’t needed, you know that you can’t often can’t even change your shirt without the whole world knowing about it.

But honestly, it has been the small community at the Hohenfels Army Garrison that I actually really do love.  For every person that complains about the Busy-Bodies, there are just as many, if not more, that say that they have made some of the best friends of their lives at this duty station.  And it’s clear to see how and why. 

Living in Hohenfels, Germany

Because there aren’t a ton of us here, that means we need to band together.  On winter evenings when black ice is making it dangerous on those steep hills, countless strangers get in their American trucks and SUVs and help out anyone stranded on a snowy incline.  If you are walking out of the mailroom with a box too large to handle, it’s only a matter of seconds before someone steps in to lend you a helping hand.  On the all too common rainy days, it’s not uncommon to see someone stop for a random soldier or spouse walking on Post to see if they need a lift.  It’s this small town feel that makes us feel like we have a tight knit community that sticks together in rain or shine (literally!)

The German and Off- Post Community:

No, not all foreigners love Americans (I know, shocker, right!?) but the German community, for the most part, is amazingly welcoming despite our loud, obnoxious talking in public, our giant SUVs and, what seems to be our inability to learn THEIR language. 

The German/American Kontact Club welcomes locals, ex-pats and military alike.  The schools and sports clubs on the economy almost always accepts any American child looking to learn more German and integrate more into the local culture.  The local farmers market Egg Man loves teaching me a new Bayerisch word every week as I purchase his farm-fresh eggs.

Living in these small Bavarian towns sprinkled around Post is like stepping back 50 years in the US.  You can leave your doors unlocked without fear of intruders.  You can send your small children down to the Backerei on their own for pastries without fear of abductors.  A fellow spouse put living in this idyllic setting so eloquently that I couldn’t have said it more beautifully, “I feel so safe in this little Bavarian Bubble and yet the world has never been more accessible.”  Which brings me to…

Travel

I don’t think it’s a hard concept to consider that the travel opportunities living in Europe are something most people only get to dream of.  Yet, many people choose to stay near the comforts of Post instead of taking advantage of all the amazing things this foreign world has to offer.

I get it, we have horribly bad work schedules here.  Kids’ school breaks don’t always align with the rotation exercises.  Rain forecasts dampen the mood to get out and explore.  The fear of what the world is becoming keeps many people from packing their bags.

But you know what all of these are? EXCUSES! Yes, valid excuses, but excuses none the less.

This is exactly the reason why I teach people in my book, “So You Got Stationed Overseas”  how to overcome those problems, take a positive outlook instead of a “woah is me” attitude, gain the confidence needed to explore a new location and learn to make every minute count of their short PCS abroad!

In the first four years of living in Germany, we were able to visit over 40 new countries, learn about cultures first hand I’d only heard or read about previously and made memories that I will cherish for the rest of my life!!!

Living in Hohenfels, Germany

Not getting out, not traveling while stationed abroad, as scary as it might seem at first, would be doing yourself, your family (and your photo book) a HUGE disservice! 

Living in Hohenfels, Germany

So, is it really a “Hohen-Hell?” here? Maybe.  I suppose it could be pretty miserable here if you choose to dwell on the negatives.   But what city, town or military installation doesn’t have areas to improve on?

Instead, I want to see at as a “Hohen-FULLS”.  Because USAG Hohenfels is actually so FULL of amazing people, full of beauty, full of adventure and travel and full of opportunities that can only come with living abroad and a unique community such as ours.

In fact, forget all the nicknames.  I’ll just simply call it “Home.”

About the Author

LeAnna Brown currently doesn’t know what she wants to be when she grows up, so to delay major life decisions, her and her husband, Andy, have decided to move to Europe and travel the world via Travel Hacking.  After almost 40 countries down in four years and only a few thousand dollars spent a year on travel, they have learned to penny pinch their way to a bare minimalist lifestyle to help them see and appreciate the world.  You can learn how to travel for next to nothing as well at EconomicalExcursionists.com or get your daily dose of travel tips, advice and motivation by “Liking” them on Facebook or following the EconomicalExcursionists on twitter @EconExcursion.

 

When Moving Back To The United States From Overseas Is Hard

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We have been back from Germany a little over six years now. It was quite the change to go from a small village in Germany to Clarksville, Tennessee and the USA. I was so ready to be back in the states after four years. I think I kissed the ground when I got off the plane. I was home.

When moving back to the US from overseas is hard

Being stationed overseas is a dream for a lot of people. A chance to see another part of the world, to explore and to open up to other ways of living. The military can send a family that has never been out of the midwest and allow them the chance of a lifetime. But hardly anyone can stay overseas forever. I have some friends that have been able to stay for five-ten years but most people do come back to the states and have to figure out American life again.

That first week back was like living in a dream. Nothing seemed real. Nothing was familiar. Everything was confusing and it took some time to get used to living back in the United States. I think it took about two years before I stopped asking if a certain place accepted a credit card. “Yes Julie, most places do.”

This can be a challenging time. Some people are able to bounce back rather quickly and others have difficulty doing so. If you are getting ready for a move back home from an overseas location, this is what you might experience:

The Culture

When you live overseas you learn to live in another culture. Even if you live on post and don’t explore as much as you should. It is still all around you. You get used to the slower pace, the way the people are, the things they value. You become a part of it as well. Then you move back and you realize how different it can really be. There is a thing called “reverse culture shock.” This is when you come back from another culture and have trouble getting used to the culture you were raised in. You can also struggle with missing certain things so much that you think they are better than they really are. Once you get home and have them again, there is a bit of a let down because you were expecting something a lot better.

pcs to germany

The Military Community

The military community overseas is very different from the military community stateside. Overseas is more tight-knit. It has to be. People are not going home on the weekends. It is hard to have a life outside of the military. You have to depend on the military for a lot of things like your mail, American food and even education for your children. If you live off-post in the states you don’t have to depend on the military for as much. If there is a deployment, the community really bands together to get through it. It is different in the states. When you move back you will feel that loss and it can be a hard one. You no longer have your community. The one that helped get you through your struggles, the one you had fun with and explored another country with, the one who understood what it was like to be so far from home. That is hard to get over and hard to get back into military life without as tight of a community.

Spending Money

In most places overseas you don’t have as many choices. When I visited California in 2009, I stopped at a grocery store on the way home from the airport. I needed to buy some diapers. I stood in that aisle for about 20 minutes because I had the hardest time with all the choices. Back in Germany, there were only a couple choices for diapers. In the grocery store I was in, there were, at least, ten, maybe more. I couldn’t even wrap my mind around what I was looking at. In the states, you have a lot more choices from where to shop to where to eat. It can feel so overwhelming and it is easy to overspend. You also lose your COLA which is your cost of living allowance that you get while stationed overseas. This can be hard for some families. They say not to depend on that money when you are getting it but most people do anyway.

Feeling too Busy

A lot of overseas living is much slower paced than in the states. Where we were in Bavaria most places were closed on Sundays and they had a lot of holidays. You were not even allowed to wash your car on Sundays. When we moved back to the states life felt so busy. There was always so much more going on. Some of that I think was because my son didn’t start Kindergarten until after we moved back but I think the other part was just how much more relaxed things can be in other places. This can take some time to get used to as well because it is just a different way to live your life. In Germany, if go out to eat you have to hunt down your server when you are ready to pay. In the states, most places want to rush you out as soon as they can. It is all very different.

stationed in germany

Coming back to the states from an overseas tour is going to be complicated. Give yourself some time to adjust. Try to remember that you will find your place even if it takes a while. We have been back for six years and although I miss parts of my time in Germany, I feel used to the US now. It took a while but we got to that point. I am used to living here again. And you will get there too.

Have you struggled coming back from an overseas tour? What was the hardest part for you?

So You Got Stationed Overseas: Why you NEED to make TRAVEL a part of your short PCS abroad

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Thanks so much to LeAnna Brown for this guest post!

stationed overseas

Living in Europe for the past five years as a contractor with the US Army, I have had what most people would call a “Dream Life.”  I’ve learned to budget travel and travel hack, so we get to travel extensively and all over the world, not just Europe!  I’ve danced on the tables at Oktoberfest, I’ve climbed all 1710 step of the Eiffel Tower and I’ve cliff dived into the blue ocean in Croatia, to name a few adventures.

I started shopping at the local grocery store the first week I moved to Germany and I’ve taken advantage of just about every 4-Day Weekend we’ve had to go somewhere new.  So, I’ve learned a thing or two about living life abroad while being stationed overseas.  

However, I found that there were SO many military members, spouses and families that were sitting on Post not ever leaving…and then complaining that life was horrible here in Europe and that they couldn’t wait to move back to the States!

This not only made me sad that they were not seeing the Europe that I was, but was also infuriating me that so many people only DREAM of getting to visit Europe and yet some people that got assigned here were dismissing that opportunity completely.

But then I started to find out WHY some of these people weren’t getting out and exploring

Some were too nervous about buying the wrong items at the store.

Others didn’t like not being able to communicate with the locals.

Many didn’t think that they could afford to travel or site see.

stationed overseas

About the Book: So You Got Stationed Overseas: Why you NEED to make TRAVEL a part of your short PCS abroad

So, I took ALL the experience of the 40 countries and 90 new cities I had seen over the past five years, and combined it with stories from local spouses that I collected through research to create the ultimate How- To book for anyone facing an upcoming PCS to Europe, or those already living there! 

I help the person stepping off the plane learn to get acquainted with life abroad by slowly dipping your toes into the local culture but giving exact tips and advice on how to do so, like navigating the local grocery stores.

I encourage all the nay-sayers with excuses to drop them out of the plane as you cross the ocean.  Therefore, I PROVE how to budget for travel, how to adjust for military schedules and more in order to get out and site-see. But not only do I prove this, I include a workbook with guides that help you do the same.

I then drop resource after resource for people living in Europe looking for ways to budget travel or even those wanting to LEARN how to plan a trip!

This isn’t your typical PCS checklist book and it isn’t your Rick Steves Travel Planning guide either.  It is a resource for you, the military member facing that overwhelming OCONUS PCS! 

And, as if helping active duty service members isn’t enough, 5% of the books proceeds also is donated towards the Wounded Warrior Project!

You Can Order The Book on Amazon HERE. 

Know someone who is PCSing to Europe? Share this invaluable resource with them so that they can take advantage of their time abroad!

Are you facing an OCONUS PCS?  What fears or questions do you have? Sometimes it is just a matter of getting them answered before you can have the time of your life!

stationed overseasAbout the Author

LeAnna Brown currently helps fellow travelers learn how to travel on a tight budget and Travel Hack through her blog EconomicalExcursionists.com.  After almost 40 countries down in four years and only a few thousand dollars spent a year on travel, they have learned to penny pinch their way to a bare minimalist lifestyle to help them see and appreciate the world. 

You can get daily dosages of travel tips and motivation by “Liking” Economical Excrusionists on Facebook or follow her on twitter @EconExcursion.

Other articles written by LeAnna that may interest you:

Travel Hacking for Beginners: http://www.economicalexcursionists.com/travel-hacking-beginners-guide/

15 Ways to Pinch Pennies for Future Travel: http://www.economicalexcursionists.com/save-for-a-vacation/#.VdB0ivmqqko

If you would like to learn more about traveling for FREE through Travel Hacking (using points for free flights and hotels), check out the Free E-Course offered by the Economical Excursionist. 

Amsterdam & The Netherlands

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Amsterdam

While we were overseas we were able to do a little bit of traveling. I am glad we were able to do this.  In May of 2008 I took a USO tour with some friends to visit Amsterdam & The Netherlands. It was a two-day tour but you were supposed to sleep on the bus. I think I was one of the only ones that couldn’t do that but it was still worth it, even though I never got to sleep.

Amsterdam

We were able to go to a cheese farm, a place they made wooden shoes, the Keukenhof where we got to see all of the tulips and beautiful flowers, we took a canal right around Amsterdam and visited a diamond shop. We also had exactly one hour of free time where a friend of mind was able to see the Anne Frank house. The rest of us didn’t think we had enough time to do the tour, although we did get to see the outside. I wish I had been a little more adventurous and done it even if it meant getting on the bus five minutes before we were supposed to be there.

Amsterdam

The USO is a great way to travel if you don’t want to plan the trip yourself. It is good for traveling alone, with your spouse or your friend. You sign up on post, pay the fee and then go where you need to go the day the trip starts. They have day trips, overnight trips and even week-long ones. You can also meet new people on these trips which is a lot of fun. If I didn’t have children when I was in Germany I would have gone on as many trips as I could afford to do but that just wasn’t possible.

Amsterdam

 

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I thought Amsterdam was amazing. I want to go back with my husband and spend a week there. In some ways it reminded me of what New York City would be like, although I have never been there myself. In other ways it reminded me a bit of San Fransisco. It was just big and amazing. Very different from Bavaria and maybe that was why it stood out to me so much. I was used to the German countryside and not a big city.

Amsterdam

I loved looking at the tulips at the Keukenhof.  They were simply amazing and thinking back to that reminds me to look for tulip festivals in the states. I know they probably won’t compare but they would be great to see too.

Amsterdam

When we were in the canal on the boat, I thought it was amazing to think of living on one of those house boats. What a different life that would be from my own. To be that close to water and to have to depend on it. To have a bike and no car. It feels like a different world and I find it fascinating.

That is what I like the most about traveling. Seeing first hand out other people live in different parts of the world. Understanding that my normal is not everyone’s normal and that is a good thing.

Amsterdam

The only part of the trip I would have skipped was the diamond factory. It really wasn’t interesting and they kept us there longer then they normally would have. A diamond went missing and they had to figure out what happened before we could leave.  I wish we could have spent that time in the city, walking around, visiting the Anne Frank house or doing something else more interesting.

Amsterdam

 

3eee

 

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Have you ever been to Amsterdam? What did you think? Have you been on a USO tour?

 

 

 

 

When Being Stationed Overseas is Hard

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When Being Stationed Overseas is HardWhen Being Stationed Overseas is Hard

It’s been 5.5 years since we have returned to the US from Germany. We were over there for four years. In some ways, it seems like a lifetime ago. I look at all the photos from that time and they warm my heart. I think about how simple life was then. How beautiful everything was. How much I got to see. It is easy to forget that our time there wasn’t always easy, especially since my husband was deployed twice for a total of 2 years and 3 months.

I tell people that if they ever get the opportunity to go overseas, they should. Being overseas is an amazing experience and you never know if you will ever get the overseas option again. You might not and this could be your only chance.

What to Expect When You Are Stationed Overseas

It is important to know what to expect when you get over there and how sometimes being overseas can be hard. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go, it just means that you should be aware that when you are over there isn’t necessarily going to be 100% wonderful all of the time. If you think being overseas is going to be like that, you might get really disappointed when life doesn’t work out that way.

Living overseas can be difficult because you will start to miss certain things about the US. You will miss your family and might not be able to see them for the years you are over there. Yes, for some people being overseas means going years without being able to see your family. Not everyone can afford to visit home and not everyone has family that can come visit. You can sometimes feel like you are stuck in a Military world and it can be difficult to take a break from that. You might have small children that are hard to travel with and a spouse who is always gone.

I think being away from family can be the hardest part about living overseas. You can’t go home for the weekend. You can’t even go home for a week. If you go home, it is going to be a huge trip.

Missing Your Home Country

When we were in Germany I started to miss a lot of the restaurants and stores I loved that were in the states. Although there are a lot of great opportunities for new food experiences overseas, sometimes you want something you are used to having on a regular basis. There is a Chilli’s at Ramstein and ended up being closed when we were there. Thinking about that right now with one just 5 minutes away makes me laugh but I was pretty bummed out at the time. The PX will have American food. Ours had Taco Bell, Popeye’s, Burger King, Pizza Hut and a Subway. I told myself I would never eat from those places again once I moved back but that didn’t last too long.

The Military Community Overseas

When you are overseas you are going to have access to the Military community in a way you don’t in the US. I never really understood that until we got to Fort Campbell. In Germany, we had to depend on the post for a lot of things. Our mail, all our healthcare, any American items we needed, etc. The Military post was “home” in a place that wasn’t home. The military installation was a little break from having to be the outsider. Because of this, the Military community is a lot closer than it is in the United States. This was even truer when we were at Schweinfurt because there were only about 3,000 soldiers who were stationed there.

Embracing Overseas

When being overseas is hard, try to remember the bigger picture. Yes, you will miss things about the United States. You will miss your family and all of that can be so difficult. But if you are able to get out and explore, even in your Germany city you will start to see the benefits of being stationed overseas. If you can truly embrace being overseas you will make memories that will last you a lifetime even when being stationed overseas is hard.

 

Have you felt like this when you were overseas? What did you do about it?

 

 

 

On Living in Wiesbaden, Germany

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On Living in Wiesbaden, Germany

Happy to have this guest post by Rebecca on Wiesbaden, Germany. Please visit my Duty station guest post page for posts on other locations or more information about how you can write a guest post about where you have been stationed. 

I had the privilege of living in Wiesbaden, Germany from January 2008 through December 2010. This was my first experience living overseas and it was an adventure! Back in those days, military and their family flew on commercial flights, which landed us in Frankfurt. We were then bussed to an inprocessing center and then finally bussed to Wiesbaden Army Airfield. At that point we were escorted to a downtown hotel and I could, finally, sleep.

On Living in Wiesbaden, Germany

Now, families fly into Ramstein Air Force Base, about 90 minutes from Wiesbaden and they are housed in a nice, new hotel, conveniently located close to the commissary, PX, and housing. While it is nice that families with school-aged kids are close enough for their children to walk to school immediately upon arrival, we really enjoyed the hotel that was downtown. It gave us an opportunity to explore, walk around our new city, and, upon our departure, visit the Christmas Market each evening.

Housing in Wiesbaden was 90% stairwell apartments. We lived in a new two-bedroom, one bathroom third floor walk-up. Contrary to the stories my mother-in-law shared about her Berlin apartment building, we had government provided washers and dryers in each apartment, so I did not have to descend to the basement to do laundry.

On Living in Wiesbaden, Germany

I loved our apartment. I loved that we were on the 3rd floor and heard no one above us. I loved that there were only 3 families in the stairwell and no one ever walked past our door or came up to the 3rd floor unless they were coming to visit us. I loved our neighbors. This was the apartment where our house because a home. Where we bought our bedroom set, first couch, and more importantly, where we brought our children home for the first time.

I was pregnant when we arrived in Germany, and when we left, I had two kids. In Wiesbaden, all prenatal care is handled by off-post, civilian providers. I had excellent care and delivered both of my children at St. Joseph’s Hospital, just a mile or so from housing. For everything else we saw providers on post and had no problems with any of the medical care. My children used the CDCs on post, both for full time care and hourly care and we were always impressed with the quality of the providers there.

As seems to be our luck, there was a lot of construction going on during our time. Improvements were made to housing, the commissary, the PX and that resulted in some frustrating times. However, those improvements have been well received. Wiesbaden has grown tremendously in the past few years, and with all those people, these changes were necessary. I just wish we’d been able to enjoy them.

On Living in Wiesbaden, Germany

We were, incorrectly, told we would not need a car in Germany. Wrong! We ended up purchasing one there, that we shipped back with us. And we bought a second car, for my husband to use to get back and forth to work. Most people buy and sell the second car around PCS season, so it is easy to find something affordable and quick. You absolutely need at least one car, as most housing is not on the airfield.

We travelled as much as we could. With four deployments, one long TDY, and a high op-tempo, my husband didn’t have the time to travel. With two pregnancies resulting in two kids under 2, I didn’t have the energy. And with the exchange rate not in our favor, we had to budget accordingly. I was strongly encouraged by friends to save the COLA for travels and to not get used to living off of it. This was, and continues to be, good advice.

I did a lot of day trips with the Spouses’ Club, and we became very familiar with both Wiesbaden and Mainz, the university town across the river. We weren’t afraid to get out and explore. I got my license quickly after arriving and drove around a lot. It’s not as intimidating as some think. We really enjoyed the local scene and felt at home in the town.

We took a few bigger trips; Koln, Berlin, Portugal, Italy, and Munich. Berlin we did by train, which was so much fun. That trip was arranged for us by the travel agency on post. We drove to Koln for an overnight. We flew to Portugal for a four-day weekend and explored as much as possible. We took a longer trip to Nuremburg and Munich when family came to town. There were tons of USO trips, both day and weekend available, but with two little ones, we just couldn’t imagine those long days being fun. We did venture to Garmisch for a marriage retreat and I was so grateful to see Bavaria that summer.

Europe, like any duty station, is what you make of it. We did the most we could with the time and finances and kids. We made some of the best friends we could ever have. We grew into a fantastic family there. And we’d love to go back. We know it would be different, but we also know what fun we will have. I hope, that if Europe is ever an option for you, you embrace it head on.

 

mountainsRebecca Alwine has been a military spouse for over 8 years, traveling the world and learning about herself. She’s discovered she enjoys running, loves lifting weights, is a voracious reader, and actually enjoys most of the menial tasks of motherhood. She is an avid volunteer, most recently as President of the Fort Huachuca Community Spouses’ Club and has worked as a career counselor for transitioning service members. She has a Masters in Emergency Management from American Military University and a Bachelor of Arts in Geography from the University of Mary Washington. Her writing has been published both in AUSA’s ARMY Magazine, Military Spouse Magazine, on Many Kind Regards, and multiple digital magazines and blogs. You can follow her on Twitter and on Facebook.