Leavin' on a Jet Plane...(Part 2)

We made it!

But as we were driving to the West Pac in our sponsors car, we heard the news of the quake and tsunami that hit Tokyo. We were lucky enough to have left Tokyo about 5 hours before it hit, and the only affect on the island was a small tsunami that didn't do any damage. Please continue to pray for those affected, and those trying to rescue people.

First off, let me start by saying that our flight path and experience was completely different from our friends who PCSed here a few months ago, so please know that yours might be different too, but here is how our's went down:

We left Seattle at 215am and landed at Yokota AFB about 10 hours later. There, we got off the plane and went inside the passenger service center for 2 hours. Inside there were phone booths, although I don't know how much it would cost to call home, not many people were trying to. They had a charging station, restrooms, and a single restaurant. They also had a very small exchange counter where you could purchase snacks and a few travel needs. If you left the seating area to go get food, you had to go through security to come back in, but it was easy and quick. No yen was needed here, as we were on base. They did tell us that the next stop would be Iwakuni and that the layover would be 2 hours and we would NOT deplane, so you might want to plan accordingly and purchase some snacks and drink from the vending machines before getting back on the plane.

It took us another hour to get to Iwakuni, where they said we'd have the 2 hour layover. We were actually there for only about an hour. From there, we flew another 2 hours and finally landed at Kadena AFB on Okinawa at 2:30pm, local time.

The process from here was much easier then I had anticipated. We deplaned and went through customs, which was basically just getting our passports stamped. Once again, make sure you have your passport!!! We then got our luggage (we waited at the claim for about 45 minutes before ours came out!) and found our sponsor. Luckily ours was a Marine that David was friends with years ago at Camp Lejeune so we found him right away. If you don't know your sponsor there are people there to help you. We loaded up in the Marine's car and came here to the Westpac to check it.

All in all, it was so much easier and smoother then I thought it would be. After talking to my friend who came here on a commercial flight, I can safely say that the AMC flight was much more hassle free. And we didn't need yen until we got here, so I'd get some just in case, but it's not a huge issue if you don't get any in Seattle. I'll make a post about the Westpac and the first few days of being on the island later. Until then, take care!

Leavin' on a Jet Plane...(Part 1)

Yep, we are FINALLY on our way to Okinawa. Only two months late, but what PCS isn't complete without some sort of set back. It's 1:20am and I'm writing this from a bench in SeaTac airport. Our plane boards in just less then an hour. So far, the trip from Northwest Florida to Seattle, WA has gone very smoothly. (Knock on wood!) We were able to fly from New Orleans to SeaTac on Monday and site see around the Seattle area for the last two days. I have several pictures that I'll share in another post. I'm hoping to have time next week while waiting on a house to update more.
But now we're here, and in less 18 hours we'll be in Okinawa. It seems surreal. We found out about this PCS over 7 months ago, but that fact that we're down to mere hours is a bit overwhelming. Here's a little about how the entire process works:

When you arrive, you'll check in at AMC counter (Air Mobility Command). It was on the 4th floor and very easy to find, just follow all the young men with buzz cuts and seabags! As far as luggage goes, we had a slight ordeal, but nothing major. You're allowed 2 checked bags and 1 carry on each. The checked bags can be up to 70 pounds, but anything from 71-100 pounds will cost you an extra $112. Anything over 100 pounds isn't allowed at all. Unfortunately David's seabag was 96 pounds, but the wonderful lady at the counter let us rearrange some bags and get them all under the allowed weight. At this point make sure you have your orders, military ID, and passport. As I was researching I'd heard conflicting things. Some say passports aren't necessary unless you plan to travel off the island while there, and others say they are. They did ask for mine, so I was glad I forked over the $150 to get one. You'll get a sheet of paperwork to fill out with the service member and dependents name, social, date of birth, and rank. I should also add that David had a garment bag that they let him carry on in addiction to his backpack.

Once the bags were checked, we went through security, which was exactly like any other security screening at the airport. After that we went on the search for yen. But wouldn't you know the exchange hours are 5am-5pm. There may be other currency exchanges in SeaTac, but we never did find one. I suggest getting yen as soon as possible, since know we'll have to wait until we arrive in Okinawa to get any. My friend who just got there said she didn't "need" any yen, but it's convenient to have for the layover.

I'm still not sure where we're sitting on the plane or even how long the flight will be. (I'll update that in the second post.)

So...that's about it until we get one plane. Next time you hear from me I'll be an Okinawa resident!