Quick intro...7-level 1N4, TSgt select, currently at Fort Meade (been here almost 2 yrs). Found out today I got snagged for a 365 at Al Udeid, Qatar. With this short tour, I get a follow on of choice...

So, this is what my wife and I are thinking (we have 3 girls 6-10 also): Part of us wants to go to Germany or England. I have heard and read great things about it (travel opps, culture, etc). Negatives: won't get to visit family in Wisconsin much because of pricy air fares. I have heard PCSing overseas is a huge pain.

Also, there are a few bases we like CONUS: Offutt (we were there previously for 6 yrs and loved it...good place for a family), Colorado (Schriever, Peterson, Denver), Wright-Patt, Scott, and Elmendorf (we ThINK we would like Alaska...)

Any thoughts?


Also, any experience at Al Udeid would be appreciated. Thanks.

i don't like england and have told my husband that if we can help it not to come back (i'm a dual national and have been around lakenheath and mildenhall for 13 years, the area is going down the pan imo) also his career field screws you (he is sf) and i have friends who work other career fields and lakenheath in particular seems to be the worst for their job, from talking to them. you and others may experience it differently, but thought id give 2 sides to the coin.

also some areas around base, have high rates of crime targeting americans, and some areas really hate amercians and can get discriminatory just because your from the states, again not everyone experiences this, but again it really does happen and you should be aware of those areas if you choose to come here.

alot of people love it here however and choose to set up roots here, but i will say make sure you see more of england then the 3 hours from base. so much more traditional british and much more beautiful in terms of landscape.

now i will say england is nice because you can travel and there are some beautiful parts of the country,

and as a bias your kids would benefit from british school systems because from personal experience and 2nd hand experience they cover more then the american schools and the holiday system is quite nice for taking leave if everyone else wants time off during summer as their kids are out, where as our school holidays are broken down differently so it can sometimes be easier to take leave during british school holidays to go see family.

also we have like mainland europe, alot of history and "cultural" things to do ie theatre, arts, museums etc. so if you like that side of things you will love europe anywhere you go.

your an hour train ride from london which is cheaper then driving there and more convient.

mainland europe obviously your in the thick of it, you can drive anywhere and go anywhere, the obvious disadvantage there being that the futher you go from base the less english is spoken and written, and I know some
people have issues adjusting to that one.


my husband is originally from alaska, he would happily do 3-4 years there, but he said any longer and he would go a bit crazy. good hunting up there ive been told, and obviously winter sports.
he also said the base is nice, and has good facilities, but travelling in and out can be a bit hard and expensive at times (sister in law and her other half just pcsd up there and found this as well)

hope some of that helps somewhat and didnt scare you off esepically the uk, just wanted to give you an un-rose coloured glasses take on things in the uk.

We are at Lakenheath and are leaving kicking and screaming. We really enjoyed our time here. We also had a three year tour in Belgium, which we enjoyed. We would like to be stationed in Germany, but unfortunately, we have to return to the states.

With your 365, you can relocate your family for the year while you are gone. If they want to, you can relocate them to England. Not all OCONUS locations allow this, it is based on the SOFA, but England does. Germany does not allow this. Just something for you to know.

If your wife is the adventurous type, she can take space-a flights, which can really cut down on the cost of flying.

Spent three years in England I loved the heck out of it.

I spent three years in Germany and loved it. Lots of places to see and many things to do. Now, this was back in the early 1960's when the dollar went a lot further but I'm sure it's still a great tour.

If you have any desire whatsoever to go overseas, do it. I would not waste this chance to pick a good overseas assignment by picking one in the CONUS. If you go CONUS, you may end up having to do another remote in order to get one of those "choice" USAFE (or other) assignments.

Go. Go. Go.Europe is great, your kids will benefit from it immensely and you will love it (I am guessing...).

Go.

Edit- How do you get orders after 2 years on a a yard? Dang...I need a new job.

Thanks a lot of for the responses. I think we are really leaning towards trying to get to Europe: first Germany and UK as a second choice.

Johnny67-I got tagged Non-vol for the 365 to Qatar. My report NLT is in Feb, which is a few months after my 2 yrs here on station. If I hadn't got tagged for this, I would have been tagged for Korea soon, so I figure this is a blessing in disguise: more money in Qatar than Korea AND my zone C reenlistment falls within my year in Qatar....tax free. God is good and he does work in mysterious ways.

I will let you guys know what follow on I get when I find out. Thanks again.

Most people think of an assignment in terms of what it is like off duty. A lot of places the working conditions were so bad you did not get much off duty time, or your supervisor was a workaholic. I was at Lakenheath a long time ago I enjoyed England very much except the weather. However I had a supervisor who was known about every three Fridays of the month at 1645 announce that we would have a section work weekend.

I found out today I have an advance assignment following my 365 to Qatar to Ramstein. Apparently, I was supposed to find out within a few weeks of getting my TDY notice, but someone dropped the ball (surprise...). So, I simply called up the AFPC hotline a couple of days ago, told them my situation and that I still didn't have my advance assignment 2 months after the fact, and they opened a trouble ticket and I got an email saying I got Ramstein, which was the first choice on my list.

The wife is VERY excited and so am I. I should be there in the spring of 2011.

Thanks for the "push" towards Europe.

congratulations!! thats where we are, its good when you come closer to arriveing you can go onto ARHN.com and look at listing of rental properties in the area if you wish to live off base or submit your housing request 30 days in advance as the wait lists are crazy and I don't see it changing any time soon

rgbilyeu...thanks. Yes, we already know we want to live off base to experience the community more. we ideally want to live in a small town outside of base...somewhere in the countryside. I would be OK with a 30 minute or so commute, maybe a little more...40 minutes tops. what towns/villages would you suggest? Thanks ahead of time.

well we live 20 min from base (apparentally to everyone its far but its a straight shot drive and you have sembach 5 min away if you need anything like gas or food which we like). We live in winnweiler, less americans by far but its nice and quiet and haven't heard of any break ins or property being torn up like some villages. and we have a train station and shops all within the town itself which is nice and everyone is very friendly.

another place I have heard good things about its about 5 min closer to ramstein is otterberg, couple more americans and obviously a bit closer to things.

I like living out our way because you get more house for your money and while your landlord is probably going to speak less english then if you live near kasierslauten, I find living in a quieter less american neighbourhood to be better and more secure then living in the middle of everything (if that makes sense) less temptation for people to break into your house and your car.

landstuhl also looks like a nice little town, good amentieis and obviously close to the hospital and base if you need to be there in a hurry, but again it being close your going to have a harder time finding a good sized home for your money.

I would suggest staying towns or villages and away from kasierslauten itself, not heard good things about living there

Another thing to consider is winter commuting. The local city/town governments--at least when my family and I were there--did a good job of getting and keeping the roads cleared. DEFINITELY something to keep in mind when considering where you might want to live. Outside the towns is a different situation. Generally, to the south and west of Ramstein, you'll find the areas more hilly, roads less straight. If you choose to live at some places in Landstuhl--I lived in Landstuhl Sud (South) for about six months, then lived on the grounds of Landstuhl Army Hospital for the rest of my tour--you WILL have a mountain to deal with, both coming and going.

We really enjoyed living on Landstuhl. Fewer military there than on Ramstein AB, or any of the other military installations/communities around. There weren't very many amenities when I was there, but there was an entire village, and all kinds of shops and stores, at the foot of the mountain, literally minutes away.

Here's a heads-up for you: If your car quits anywhere in the vicinity of Ramstein AB, DO NOT leave it on the side of the road for any extended period, especially overnight. It WILL be vandalized.