Best of times, Worst of times (and why)

[Bullet]

OK, time to kick off a new thread. For all of you who have either served, followed a loved one, was a military brat, whatever: what was your FAVORITE 3 places to live / visit, what were your WORST places? And Why?

My Favorites:

1) Alaska. LOVED being stationed there (Elmendorf AFB, right next to Anchorage). Probably the best three years in my career. If you love outdoor activity, you can't beat the summers there. and the winters were pretty awesome too! Met some of my best friends there as well, fishing and camping buddies for life!

2) TDY to Germany, in the early fall = Ocktoberfest! Need I say more? Walked through a carnival to a HUUUUUGE Brauhaus, saw the Oxen roasting on a spit, an Oompah band on a stage, and servers with pitchers of some of the best tasting beer I've ever had! Me, teary eyed and smiling dumbly: "I'll take some of that, and some of that, and some of that." Me, three hours later, standing on top of my table, smiling even more dumbly, arms around my buds swaying to the Oompah music, and screaming some German beer drinking song I learned an hour ago at the top of my lungs: "Ein Frozen, Ein Frozen... Da, Da, Dum!!!!" Me, the next morning, "Did somebody get the name of that gorilla that beat me up and took all my money?"

3) Oxfordshire, England (RAF Upper Heyford). Loved the time there, so much to see, so much to do. The castles, the golf trip to St. Andrews, the fish and chips in an old newspaper, the potato pubs, the warm beer. Ah, memories! And the best part of living at this foreign country? They spoke English! (At least I thought they did, their accents made it hard to understand )

The Not-so-favorites:

1) Kwang Ju, Korea. 120 day deployment from h-e-double hockey sticks. The placed SMELLED (In the immortal words of Robert Duvall: "That smell! That someone-left-the-toilet-unflushed smell! Smells like.......Korea") The flying even stunk, except for that funny time near the DMZ ("Yankee-Air-Pirate! You turn south now, or be fired upon!"). Stuck on the base for the first two months because Kwang Ju is the home of all the Korean Universities with all the Anti-US protests. (Me: "Excuse me, which way to the shops?" Some Punk teen-age Korean kid: "Die, Imperialist pig! US Out Now!" Me: "Down that alley? Ok, thanks!" ) When you can actually say with enthusiasm, "Hey, we get to go to Kunsan AB this weekend!", you know you are living a nightmare!

2) Baghdad, Iraq. 5 months "in country" Why a non-favorite? Obvious reasons. My own private tour in Apocalypse Now...

3) Incirlik, Turkey. Three separate deployments. Nice enough base, some cool flying, and some great deals on brass and Persian rugs. But step 10 feet off the boulevard of shops next to the main gate, and the theme from "Midnight Express" starts running through your thoughts. ("You're supposed to go Right around the pole, not left! Left is bad!" Kids, ask your folks about that quote...)

OK, all those out there; Spill your beans. What are your favorites and Non-Favorites?

[jbrown]

I was in and out of most places I went to, and never really got to visit the local life that much, with a few exceptions.

I was based out of Pendleton for most of my time in the Corps, also out of 29 Palms for a while.

My favorite was NAS Alameda for obvious reasons, it's an island in the SF Bay. I went there from Pendleton, and went to Pendleton from there. When I got out, I settled back in the Bay Area.

I didn't care for 29 Palms much, it's a desert, what can I say. But, I did meet my wife there. She was a Corpsman and she treated an injury I had. About 1 1/2 years later we were married.

I liked Okinawa (Camp Hansen), but mainly because Kandena wasn't far away, and they had a pretty nice base. Hansen sucked, wasn't much to do outside of training. But at Kadena, there was good food, a movie theatre and a nice PX.

Pendleton was cool because we were so close to San Diego (my brother was on a sub based there, then later a company commander at NTC).

I absolutely hated Korea. Camp Muchuk. Showers were in a tent, with no heating and it was Korea, in other words cold, very cold. I still can't stand the cold after that. But, the bath houses in Seole were cool. For just a few bucks you get a bath, a massage, your boots spit shined and your camies cleaned and pressed. I once spent 38 days in the field with no shower and cold dry shaves... sure appreciated the bath houses after that.

I liked alot of other places also, but I would say NAS Alameda and NAB Coronado were my two favorites.

And I loved it when we were on ship. Great food, good rest, plenty of down time to get ready for what was coming.

JB

[LineInTheSand]

My favorite places to visit while working...


1. Souda Bay, Greece - outstanding clubs, great food, interesting mix of people

2. Portland, Maine - nice size city, great for walking the streets, and lobster is plentiful. Lots of history in the area.

3. Rota, Spain - nice small streets, great times there too

4. Nassau, Bahamas - Two words, Paradise Island. Atlantis is great. I met up with a couple of girls and a guy down there who invited me to hang out in the lazy river with them at Atlantis, hung out in all day, good time, especially in a patrol that involved a good deal of migrant ops. Once we left, we also have a SAR case for a guy who jumped overboard from a cruise ship.

5. Wilmington, NC - great city....perfect size

6. St. Pete, FL - Pro sports in the city.

7. Key West, FL - good for one or two port calls in a patrol before it got expensive and old...too many investigations from bad sailors to always be fun.


8. GTMO, Cuba - An enjoyable portcall, maybe ONCE in a patrol. I spent Christmas here, 100 degrees and all. We were able to have a pretty fun Christmas party and a nice gift exchange.


Now, I haven't covered ALL of the port calls. I love NYC and Boston. I like Kittery, ME/Portsmouth, NH. I'm not a huge fan of Port Angeles, WA, but I had a great time in San Diego, CA. I've been to Haiti, Germany, and Great Britain too, with work, and those places will triple in the next few years.

In the Coast Guard, with U.S. ports, you will find some ports friendly to Coasties and some that are not. Generally, we stay away from the Squids, trouble can start when the sailors mix.

My favorite place to be stationed, based just on where I am, is Washington, DC. I'm a city guy and I enjoy all there is to do in the NCR.

[jbrown]

For you AF guys, I know I spelled Kadena wrong, I just realized it as I was reading LITS post.

[packermatt7]

Why the heck did I choose Air Force? You salt-dogs get all the warm, tropical bases

[tpg]

The best of times:

1. Okinawa – I spent close to eight years stationed in Okinawa. Loved every minute of it. My wife and I lived on the economy and loved to drive along the South China Sea. We have a ton of water colored paintings from an artist there. Plus the history here. Knowing that I walked some of the same ground that my Grandfather fought on…..well it brought home his sacrifices. We took trips out of Okinawa to destinations all over the Pacific. We went to New Zealand, Australia, Thailand….I also got to visit Iwo Jima once while stationed here as part of the 50th commemoration of the battle. Lots of good times.

2. MCRD Parris Island, SC- Most cannot believe that I would say that this is one of my favorites. But we loved the low country. It was this duty station that made me fall in love with Hilton Head Island and the surrounding areas. Savanna GA is a nice place to visit as well. But I really love to go to Daufuskie Island….. So much so that we have been thinking about selling our place on Hilton Head and buying a house on Daufuskie. I love the fishing, walking on the beach with my wife and kids….playing football in the surf with my kids…..

3. MCB Quantico- I was here twice. We liked it so much that we retired close to here. But then again that might have something to do with the fact that our family lives close by. Quantico just felt like home to us….still does.

The Bad:

1. Somalia. Hated that god forsaken place! I also hated the rules of engagement that we had to fight under. Plus in the afternoon those people would start to chew on that wacky weed and by nightfall they felt no pain and were willing to fight! Narrow streets, K-4 Traffic circle…..yuck! It is one of the sewers of the world…..

2. This is a tie….but I am putting it into one because of the area. Kuwait, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. I was here in 1990-1991 and again for various times from 1996-2006. I fought in and around Kuwait City, Fallujah (twice) and Ramadi just to name a few. Al Anbar is or was as bad as the press reported. I literally left a part of my body here…..

3. Hmmm, Korea. As already been said. Nasty……just did not like it…..


Best memory:

Getting pinned to CWO2 by my wife....Nothing like being a Marine Gunner.....

Worst Memory:

Being Re-deployed to Beirut after the Bombing of the Marine Barracks, it is a sight that I will never forget. Little did I know at the time the impact that sight would have on me personally and how that memory would impact the rest of my career. I could not help but to think how I had slept in that very building just a few short months before on a previous tour.

28 years, i have been to more places than I can count.....I have spent time at most USMC bases that have ground pounders.....That includes Lejeune, Pendleton, 29 Stumps, Bridgeport….I also have spent a few moments at a couple of Army bases for Training such as Ft Benning….but that was only 6 weeks.

[tpg]

Originally Posted by packermatt7

Why the heck did I choose Air Force? You salt-dogs get all the warm, tropical bases

Hmm, only you can answer that!

[tpg]

LIS....I hated Washington duty.....I could not wait to get out of Henderson Hall when I retired. But they have a nice PX

[Christcorp]

I'll just list most of them. At least the ones I cared anything about. Highest to lowest. Some of these were PCS (Permanent Change of Station); some were TDY (Temporary Duty); and some were visiting while at these other places.

1. CNA/Soesterberg AB, Netherlands - And I loved those F15's
2. Taura AB, Ecuador - I went because I speak Spanish. Spanish is different there
3. Estaca De Bares, Spain - In the Basque country on the Atlantic Ocean
4. Torrejon AB, Spain - My last permanent overseas assignment
5. Entire Germany TDY adventure - Bitburg, Rhein-Main, Ramstein, etc...
6. Entire England TDY adventure - Weathersfield, Lake, Milde, etc...
7. Howard AB, Panama - Nice weather. LOL!!!
8. Bergstrom AFB, Texas - The most neutral 4 years of my life. But I went TDY alot
9. F.E. Warren AFB, Wyoming - Retired from there; went back to sandbox; etc...
10. Kirtland AFB, New Mexico - Met my wife there. Worked R&D Sandia Laboratories
11. Keesler AFB, MS - What can I say; BILOXI Mississippi. It's close to New Orleans
12. The Sandbox; Saudi, Kuwait, UAE, Oman, etc... - However; Bahrain was OK
12. McConnell AFB, Kansas - Yes, I considered it lower than the desert getting shot at

These were just the ones I spent any significant time at. There were a lot of short temporary places in Georgia, Florida, Puerto Rico, California, Honduras, etc... that I spent TDY time and whatever. But it was short. There's also visiting places that I did also while in many of these places like; Scotland, Belgium, Greece, Luxembourg, Columbia, Mexico, Newfoundland, etc... but most of those were vacations and visits.

Remember; I am the eternal optimist. The glass is never half full or empty. It's just the right amount. They just happened to have the wrong glass. I make the most out of wherever I am. So I will say that I like some places MORE than others; but I won't say that I like a place LESS than another.

[LineInTheSand]

Ha, I like the area. The duty isn't bad. I have season tickets to the Capitals and partial package to the Nationals.


Remember, if you're seeing those tropical spots, it's probably because you're been dealing with angry, disgruntled Cubans, Haitians and Dominicans. Those interdictions happen at ALL hours.