In 2009 we spent Spring break in Austria visiting a friend of mine. She tooks us all over. The first place we went to a zoo. It was a lot of fun and it was great to see a different type of zoo then we were used to.
Stationed Overseas
Photography Around A German Village
It’s been 5 years since we moved back to the states but I have so many photos from my time in Germany that I really haven’t blogged about. Germany is where I got back into my photography. When we were in Germany we lived in Schweinfurt for about 2.5 years and a little village outside of Grafenwoher for almost 2 years. Erbendorf was a small village about 20 minutes from post. We lived in Government leased housing which means we our out in the “economy” but lived in Military housing. We didn’t have a gate around us and lived in a neighborhood with about 70 other American families. There were also a few German families that lived there too.
We could go out for a walk and within 5 minutes would be in a German village. It was nice because we really got a good sense of what living in Germany was like. But we also had access to the Army post where we would go to shop for American foods and products, got our mail, went to church and where of course my husband worked.
Sometimes I would get frustrated being there but it really was a lovely place. I went on so many walks and photo walks. These photos are from January/February 2009. We had a lot of snow!
Have you ever lived in Germany or Europe? What part???
Why You Have To Say Yes To A PCS To Germany
Why You Have To Say Yes To A PCS To Germany
Even though the Military is shutting down some Military installations in Germany, people are still PCSing to Germany. Sometimes they have a choice, sometimes they don’t. Sometimes the spouse thinks about staying in the US.
As someone who spent four years in Germany, I have to recommend that if you have the opportunity to go overseas, do it. I say this as someone who didn’t always enjoy being there, that missed the US a lot more than I should have, and who hated being so far away from everything.
It’s been years since we moved back to the states and because of that I can look back and see Germany for what it was. An experience. A sometimes really amazing one. A sometimes really frustrating one.
Being stationed in Germany was an experience I will always be thankful for.
So if I hear someone is trying to decide to go, I urge them to do so. Even though being there might get hard or be really frustrating at times. The experience is worth it, and living overseas will change your life forever.
You simply can’t find that type of Military community in the states. Well, maybe you can but the community when you are stationed overseas is unique. For one thing, very few of the people stationed where you are can go home for the weekend. Why? Because home is 2,000+ miles away. Because of this, you spend a lot of time there and not as much time away.
You have to stick together because you only have each other. If you can speak the language, that will make things easier but at the end of the day, your Military friends will be your main link to America and you will feel the need to bond a little more than you do in the US.
The travel opportunities are simply amazing.
From taking a day trip to a castle to planning a post-deployment vacation to some amazing city you never thought you would ever travel to in your lifetime. I had little babies and toddlers when I was there. My kids were only 3 and 5 when we moved back.
Traveling wasn’t easy but we did what we could. I took my two boys on a train to visit my friend in Austria, we went on a cruise to the Mediterranean, and I went on a few USO trips during my time there. And of course, there was Garmisch, one of my favorite places.
Another great thing about living in Germany is being around another culture. In some ways, Germans are a lot like us, in other ways they are completely different. Although this part of living there was frustrating at times, it really opened my mind to a different way of life and seeing the world.
For example, in the US, when you go out to eat, you are pretty much rushed out of the restaurant as soon as you eat your food. In Germany, you practically have to hunt your waitress down for your check when you need to go. Sitting, talking, and having a long time at a restaurant is expected. You are not rushed out in the same way.
With deployments, the time difference is only about 2-3 hours. That was hard for me when we had our first deployment in the US. Having just a few hours difference made life a lot easier.
You can also ship things to your deployed spouse for free. That was another thing that kinda stopped me in my tracks. “You mean I have to pay for that?” Being a little closer to the war zone has its benefits. If something were to happen and they had to go to Germany, you are already in the country.
There is also the whole beer and flowers thing. Beer everywhere. We even had a beer delivery truck.
The festivals are so much fun and are a great way to spend an afternoon or evening. They seem to be happening all the time too. And the flowers. I used to buy flowers all the time. They were so cheap. I miss that.
As you can see there are a lot of great things about being stationed in Germany. So if you have the chance, do it. You will be glad you did.
Have you ever been stationed in Germany? Have you ever been stationed overseas?
Bye To Schweinfurt, Germany
In March of 2006, my oldest son Daniel and I flew to Germany to join my husband at his first duty station. Daniel was just 18 months old and we had been waiting to join him for the past 4.5 months. It would have been longer but we decided to buy our own tickets and head over once the Command Sponsorship was done. They sent us our No fee passports about 6 weeks later.
I remember when we flew in. I didn’t know what to expect. I had never been to Europe before, I hadn’t even been out of the US unless you could mission trips to Mexico. We were tired and so ready to be back with Ben.
Ben met me at the airport and we took the train to Schweinfurt, our first duty station. I remember sitting there watching all the business people on their cell phones thinking, this is a lot like America. In some ways Germany is like America, in other ways it is completely different as I would soon learn.
We got back to our apartment which was a third floor stairwell apartment. We lived on Askren Manor which was the main housing area there. People also lived off post in government leased housing or in private housing. There was also a small section of housing on another part of the post.
The next day Ben had to work all day. I was suffering from jet lag and rather confused. I wanted to go exploring but I was a little scared to. I didn’t even know I could have walked to the Commissary. I felt silly about that.
Time passed. We got our household goods. We got our driver’s licences and Ben got orders for his first deployment. I also found out I was pregnant with Drew. I got pregnant the day we got there. This was right around the time that I started making some friends. Our FRG had a dinner a few weeks or maybe it was months before the deployment. I went and got to meet some of the other wives which was a very good thing. During the deployment we met for coffee on Mondays and did a lot of fun things together.
The deployment was long, 15 months. During that time I never left Schweinfurt other than going on a retreat to Garmich. I had Drew during the deployment and my family was able to come visit. My mom came for two months which was amazing. I got to experience two different hospitals. The first is where I gave birth to Drew and the second was where we spent almost a week when he came down with RSV at two months old.
Ben eventually came home and we spent a month in California with our families. I will always remember that trip and how nice that time was. We headed back to Germany the first week of January and I really didn’t want to go. I was kinda in a slump. I was annoyed that there was already talks of them deploying again. I didn’t like my apartment and I felt like if he did deploy then I would just go home.
But then one morning I woke up to the news that some of the brigade was moving to Grafenwoehr, two hours away. I told Ben I really want to go. We were able to. In May of 2008 we moved to a small village about 30 minutes from post called Erbendorf.
Anyway, Schweinfurt is now closed. The closing ceremony was last week. When I was there I remember hearing it would eventually happen but not for years and years. And now that time has come. It makes sense for the Army to close some of the posts in Germany. We don’t need them like we did in the past. So I get it. But it is weird to think that it will be closed and will be given back to the Germans. It is weird to think that little city will not have an US Army presence anymore. It is strange to think that if we ever go back and visit, it will be very different.
Although we moved to Graf and I was so happy about that, I will always have a place in my heart for Schweinfurt. It is where I learned to be an Army wife. It is where I figured out the Commissary, had our first experience with Military schools, found PWOC, made friends, figured out how to get through a deployment. It is where I learned about German culture, Euro and how my US life is just one way to live in this great big world of ours. It opened my eyes to things I never would have thought about before. It is also where I learned to be a Mom. Daniel was only 18 months old when we got there. In the two years that we were there he changed a lot. I think back to those years and Schweinfurt is a huge part of it.
Have you ever been to Schweinfurt? When were you there? Have yu ever visited Germany?
Living In Vicenza, Italy
Happy to have this guest post by Stephany on Vicenza, Italy. 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.
From the minute I stepped off the plane in Venice, Italy, I knew life would be a bittersweet combination of challenges and fun adventures. While I enjoy the beauty of Italy’s scenic mountains and greenery, I’ve learned that like any rose bush, Italy has its thorns too.
I had been to Venice a year ago with my husband and was surrounded by Italians who spoke English and were happy to serve American patrons. I naively thought the rest of Italy would welcome us with open arms until I moved here. A new army installation was opening shortly after I arrived (Caserma Del Din) and was violently protested by Italians who cut into the fence and forced their way in. Some Italians don’t want our troops here because they believe it will bring war onto their home front.
I also came to Italy with the preconceived notion that it would be cheap to travel all of Europe. My husband and I went to Rome and spent a little over $400 round-trip just for train fare. We spent close to a thousand total on food, lodging and travel. Needless to say, we haven’t ventured far since Rome. In addition, the cost of living is higher because the US dollar is equivalent to 0.70€.
The obvious solution would be to get a job so we have extra spending money for trips, however, this has proven to be difficult. The US has an agreement with Italy called the SOFA agreement which basically states US citizens can’t work in the Italian economy and 70% of jobs on post must go to Italian citizens.
However, there is a silver-lining to this proverbial thorn bush I call home. For starters, I live in northern Italy which is surrounded by beautiful mountains and it rains a bit which makes all the foliage green. Whenever it rains, the skies are clear the next day and every crevice and snowcap can be seen on the mountains. This is a treat for a Texas girl like myself who is from a drought-ridden city where the grass is brown and the ground is flat.
While I mentioned earlier that traveling can be expensive, there are plenty of places close by to see. Verona, Venice, Asiago (yes, this is where the cheese asiago comes from), and Pisa (you know, the leaning tower) are all within an hour or two away. I went to Verona to see the house of Juliet and even wrote her a letter! I’ve been to Venice a handful of times and I’m going to Milan in a few days! There is so much to see; wineries are everywhere, olive oil factories let you harvest olives and give a tour, and so much more. Surprisingly, there are wives here who are unhappy and it’s because they never get out and explore this beautiful country.
Along with traveling, I’ve enjoyed the food (maybe a little too much!) Italians are all about enjoying their meals and it’s taught me a few things. Unlike fast-paced Americans, Italians believe in enjoying meals and it’s not something to be rushed – it’s a marathon not a race. Dinner is served in courses and enjoyed in a large group of family and friends over several hours of delicious food and conversation. After dinner, it’s customary to drink coffee or even liquor as a digestive. I hope to adopt this belief of enjoying food slowly instead of shoveling it in my mouth long after we move.
My advice to any families PCSing to Vicenza, Italy is to 1) get involved in the military community (FRG, soldiers’ theater, community club, volunteer, etc) and/or make friends. It can get lonely here if you don’t get out of the house and I believe this is why lots of wives are unhappy here. 2) Come with an open mind. It’s a different culture here and it’s a different way of life, driving in Italy is very different (in place of traffic lights, there are traffic circles aka roundabouts), some restrooms are simply a hole in the ground (called a squatty potty because you have to squat to pee). 3) Lower enlisted are only allowed one POV, so make friends with other families so your husband can carpool and you can have a car when you need one. It’s tough having only one car out here but taxes are high if you have two cars and it’s not feasible unless you or your husband are higher enlisted and can afford it.
Stephany is currently living with her husband Travis in Vicenza, Italy. She has a passion for writing and a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Texas, hook ‘em horns! When she’s not writing, she’s out walking her dog or spending time at home with her husband. She loves doing arts and crafts, making salt scrubs, bath fizzies, care packages, and sewing pillows.
5 Myths about being stationed in Germany
My new post is up at Militaryfamily.com 🙂
5 Myths about being stationed in Germany…check it out 🙂
After Two years and Three Months What Do I Really Miss About Germany
It has been 2 years and 3 months since we got on an airplane and left Germany after being stationed over there. A lot of people come back from Germany missing it like crazy. They don’t enjoy being in the US and want to go back. We were not like that. We were so ready to not live in Germany anymore. We were so ready to be back in the US. We were so happy to have that chapter close in our lives.
Well now it has been a while. It can be common to miss certain things about places you didn’t fully enjoy after time passes. With Germany, I can’t stay I really miss it but there are things I do miss about it. Sometimes when I am talking to others who have been there or about my experiences in Germany something pops into my head and I realize I miss it. There are a lot of things I really love about the US but here are a few things I miss about our four years in Germany.
1) The close-knit Military community. There is just something about it you can’t find in the US. You are all in a foreign country together. You have to make friends and you spend a lot of time together. Not that I don’t here but it is just different there. I bet you know what I mean if you have ever been stationed there.
2) Their pools. Germans have awesome pools. The one I remember the most was in Schweinfurt. It was a huge complex with the coolest children’s pool I have ever seen. Lots of fun!
3) Their baked goods. There is a German bakery in town that has yummy German baked goods but it isn’t too easy to get to. It is more like a treat. In Germany these types of places are everywhere.
4) Walking. I miss how easy it is to walk everywhere there and how so many people do it. Here it is not easy to walk anywhere. Frustrates me.
5) Sunsets. I am not sure if it is because there are so many more grey days in Germany (which I do not miss at all) but Germany seemed to have such nice sunsets when it wasn’t grey. I remember I could look out the window of our apartment into the sunset…so pretty.
There are other little things I miss like the flowers or the trips we went on. As nice as those things were I am not sure I would want to be stationed there again. Ask me again in a couple of years 🙂
Have you been stationed overseas? Where? Do you miss it? What do you miss?
German Christmas Markets
If you are ever stationed in Germany you will get the chance to visit at least one German Christmas market. Most of the towns have them even if they are small. While we were over in Germany we got to visit quite a few of them. We never were able to make it to the big one in Nuremberg.
Have you ever been to a German Christmas Market?
Erbendorf
Schweinfurt