There is a site here that is for the wives of the soldiers here on this post. Many of them are on there way here in a few months, and are really unsure how all this works. So, I will sum up how it works NOW rather than when you arrive to the island like in 2008, when there was not so many budget cuts and such!!
You really can not do much until you have your orders. Then all the fun begins! You can schedule your transportation, hotels, dates and get you a hotel here on the island. You also can go ahead and get your plane tickets and animals taken care of. I would not advise putting all this money into the animal before you have orders. Many people have had their orders pulled and you don't get that money back.
The first thing you should do is to the Island Palm Communities website and get your name on the housing list if you plan to live on post. KEEP IN MIND that they do not count your time till you have left your last duty station, no matter how early you get on the list.
They come and pack your things and you take your leave and BLAH BLAH BLAH. HAVE ALL YOUR IMPORTANT PAPERS ON YOU. They do you no good when they can not be delivered to you for months. You need things like all:
Birth certs
Social Sec. Cards
Marriage license
Medical records
Dental records
Vet records
Car title
Registraration
AND YOUR ORDERS!
When you get your orders, it is a good idea to call the Inn at Schofield Barracks and book your room. They are full all year long and it is right on post. It is not the best hotel ever, and if you are traveling with pets, they will have to be boarded. However this is the place you have to check first before you can book anywhere else. Its best to just have the reservation and hope for the best. It is better than having to drive 1.5 hours in the morning for your husband to get to work. The benefit to staying off post, is the view is probably better, some places are ocean front, and your husband doesn't have to do PT this way. Also, you may have heard that you don't have to pay until your TLA kicks in, which is true for some places off post, but you have to pay up front with the Inn. It does sort of suck, but when your husband has to work, and since you have to turn in your TLA papers every 10 days at housing and finance, its convenient. You also have the Commissary and the PX right behind you and within walking distance. This helps offset the island price of things, as the Commissary on post is about the same as the ones on the mainland.
After you get here, get your life established. It is not Easy! As i said before we will have spent 52 days in this hotel by the time we finally leave next week. MAKE SURE YOUR HUSBAND SIGNS IN AT THE AIRPORT. That is a really important step. Have a ride to wherever you are going. Have yourself as together as possible, and don't forget how many bags you have to pick up when you get there.
People say that life is really relaxed here, and to be honest it is. The speed limits are slower. I think the fastest one is 60. Traffic can get really bad depending on what time of day you are traveling and where you are going to. All in all the first few months are great. enjoy them, make friends, see things, and be ready for your house, that is the most excited I have been was knowing when I was finally going to be able to move in LOL!!!! Quick tip, keep and umbrella in your car all the time! It rains when you least think it will.!!!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment