Trip to Trier

Published June 1, 2009
By Senior Airman Kali L. Gradishar
52nd Fighter Wing Public Affairs

SPANGDAHLEM AIR BASE, Germany -- A permanent change of station can start months before the actual move to the new location. It takes time to get everything arranged - from household goods to shipping a vehicle, from arranging transportation to packing for a few days of travel.

Then, once the hoopla of setting up your PCS is over and checking into a flight or hotel is all there is to worry about, the new stressors of settling into the new base strike.

"How am I going to get around for in-processing? What if I forgot something essential for getting by in temporary lodging? Where am I going to live? What if my neighbors don't speak English or I end up with a ruthless landlord? How do I get my driver's license?"

The questions are abundant and the answers aren't always straight forward.

But during the Combat Intro, which every Airman attends when in-processing to Spangdahlem Air Base, there is one day where you can relax. Nearly every Friday during the time of year when a lot of people are in- and out-processing the base - otherwise known as PCS season - the Airman and Family Readiness Center here sponsors a trip to Trier to acclimate newcomers to the region. During the off season, the trip is offered less often.

"We try to offer the trip every Friday during the PCS season," said Beverly Pineiro, A&FRC supervisory community readiness consultant. "Those who PCS in have priority for the first few weeks after they arrive, but we really never have to turn anyone away."

The trip is available to an array of people - Airmen and their families, those who have access to the base, family members or friends who are visiting Airmen, and "pretty much anyone who has a base pass," said Mrs. Pineiro.

The trip to Trier is much more than just a field trip. Airmen and their families and friends get the chance to meet new people who are also settling themselves and their families into the base, trying to find a place to live, and getting acclimated to the time zone and new environment. Taking this trip can be a chance to start making new connections. It's also a tremendous opportunity to learn about the area from history and travel destinations, to restaurant etiquette and means of transportation around the Eifel and beyond.

What to expect from the Trip to Trier: Starting at the Airmen and Family Readiness Center, participants board the bus head to a train station. Aboard the bus, Easter - not the holiday, she told the group - Sarnecki, began her hours-long discussion about life around Spangdahlem Air Base. Mrs. Sarnecki, a cultural instructor and provider of the Intro to Germany class upon arrival at Spangdahlem AB, enchanted the newest of Germany's inhabitants with an abundance of facts and figures about the local area.

While we live on a "French-designed, German-financed, and American-run base," noted Mrs. Sarnecki, it is possible to never run out of new things to do during an entire tour in the Eifel region.