…And no, I don’t mean my tween’s know-it-all attitude!
We just arrived overseas. Literally. Last Saturday, we were in the States. Sunday, we arrived at our new duty station.
And already we’re hearing so many conflicting views on where to live (granted, it started before we got here, but I’m even more aware of it now that we’re here). The area we are in now is broken up into four different “bases.” And everyone seems to have an opinion on which is the preferred one to live on or, alternatively, that living off-base is the best option. Granted, many don’t have a choice in the matter. You either get offered base housing or you don’t. If offered housing, you’re probably not going to be given much choice on which base it’s located.
But still, everyone has an opinion:
- This is the best place to live because you’re closest to downtown and it’s quiet. There are no working units over here. It’s mainly residential and schools!
- This is the best place to live because it’s close to all the services you’ll need.
- Living off base is great! The kids will pick up the language so much faster!
Truly, I don’t think it really matters. We’re trying to approach it with a positive attitude and with the idea that whatever we end up – on-base or off-base – we'll be fine and we’ll make it work. Before our arrival, my mindset was that we’d prefer base housing but if we ended up off-base that’d be great, too. I’d been online and had been researching off-base housing and, quite frankly, there are some nice places being offered!
Despite the jet lag and the close living quarters of hotel living for a family of four, I continue to try and keep and upbeat attitude about our new adventure. Regardless of where we end up living, at the end of the day we are blessed to be given the opportunity to live overseas and to experience another culture. It’s a gift that not everyone gets and we have to remember to make the most of it.
And so, this weekend, before we have our car or a place to live, we’re going to start this adventure off on the right foot – we’re going on a tour!
