| When flying via government air
you will be greeted by the helpful folks from Family Services Center at
the terminal on Kadena AFB. |
As the Yen rate increases, your
COLA amount decreases, so the better the dollar does against the
Yen the less COLA you will see in your pay. If you want to see your
current  COLA
RATE, click the link. |
| If you need to rent a car, AAFES
rents them at a cost of about $36.00 per day... but you'll need a
SOFA license. |
| Kinser Elementary School starts
at 0800 until 1430 each day except for Weds, that day ends at 1315. |
| There is a full Car Care Center
at Camp Foster to get your vehicle repaired if necessary. |
| The exchange carries very few high
end computers products for the power user, but they are getting better. |
| The internet is available through
MWR Konnect for a price of $22.50 per month. With that $22.50 you
are only able to have 80 hours of online time for the month. Each
additional hour cost you $2.00. It's the only game in town if you
don't want to pay for the 10 yen per minute it cost to dial off base.
Read more within. |
| You must be 18 years old to drive
out in town on Okinawa. At 16 years old, you can get your drivers
permit to drive on base if you wish to let you kids do this. You
might want to check out the AUTO
INSURANCE LINK before
you decide to let them drive and find out what it's going to cost your
first. |
| Converting dollars to yen can be
done at the Community Bank or any of the Clubs on base for a small fee.. |
| The Yen rate changes often, but
does not necessarily affect the cost of off base products or housing.
You will need to pay for all your expenses in Yen vice dollars if you live
or purchase products in town most of the time. So when the Yen goes
down against the dollar, the Yen cost more.... when it goes up, you get
more for your dollars but pay the same Yen for say your rent. If
you want to see your current OHA rate, check out this link:
OVERSEAS HOUSING ALLOWANCES |
| When you get your vehicle on Okinawa,
series 54/58/59 plates are no longer issued. Now they use 77/78 plates. |
| Getting a new ID card is simple
now, you simply go to Pass and ID, with no paperwork and get a new one.
Active duty or dependent... pretty cool stuff finally. |
| The main Okinawa vehicle registration
is located on Camp Foster, behind the Bowling Alley. |
| Mailing a letter to the U.S. take
about 5-8 days depending how far East it needs to go in the states. |
| Every family moving to Okinawa
will need to have a PO Box at the Post Office. |
| We all wish there was at Taco Bell
on Okinawa, finally we have one at Kadean in the Food Court.
Camp Foster and Camp Kinser are suppose to get one also, so stand by! |
| There are McDonald's out in town
if you want to eat at them. |
| There are medical and dental services
on nearly every camp/base. For more info, check out the MED/DEC
INFO. |
| Anthony's Pizza will deliver to
your quarters. |
| For the old timers who have been
here before, remember searching for glass floats? They're still here,
but hard to find anymore since plastic is now used. |
| We brought our full size freezer...
and glad we did! You can buy one here, but why? |
| Cigarettes costs more then
$1.70 per pack and somewhere around $18.00 per carton. |
| There is only one furniture store
on any of the bases, and it's located at Camp Lester. |
| If you have children that ride
the Bus, you can look forward to standing bus monitor at least 4 days per
child per year. |
| The youth centers provides several
trips and outings for the children at a very low cost. |
| There is no "teen center" on Camp
Kinser at this time. |
| The youth center cost $12.00 per
year and closes at 1800 daily. |
| Child care rates vary depending
on your rank. There is no discount for additional children.
There is a charge table within this web site at the following link with
a bunch more information, so check it out:
CHILD DEVELOPMENT CENTER. |
| When driving out in town you may
be taking your life in your own hands. When the light turns "green,"
wait to make sure the road is clear before you proceed across. |
| You must have ID Card and be 12
years old to use the gym and equipment without supervision. |
| You can get a SOFA driver's license
at the Camp Foster Base Safety Office. If your under 26 years old,
you want to make sure you have a state side license before your arrive,
it makes life a bit easier for you. If you want to start studying
the signs check out the INTERNATIONAL
SIGN LINK. |
| Probably the two best commissaries
on Okinawa are located at Camp Foster and Kadena AFB. If your
interested in some example food prices, check out this link: FOOD
PRICES. There is normally a good selection
of fruits and vegetables in the commissaries. |
| The largest exchange is located
at Kadena AFB, but Camp Foster is looking pretty good these days. |
| You must be 10 years old and have
passed a swimming test to be at the pool without your parents supervising.
You will also need to have an ID card to get in. |
| Children ages 15 and up can apply
to become a lifeguard for the summer. You must complete a Red Cross
Course and the Life Guard Course. The cost is about $30.00.
My son was making $7.00 per hour starting so it is a great deal for your
teenagers want to consider it. |
| Washers and dryers are provided
for each family unit on Okinawa - nice ones at that! |
| You might want to bring carpets.
The selection is basically blue, beige or green unless you hit it right.
The curtains available in the exchange don't necessarily fit housing.
Look in this site for measurements of the various windows.
For the Towers and Multiplexes, go to the
Floor plans and waiting
periods for housing link and look at the measurements.
You will see the windows sizes. Remember, you can TMO your carpets
without effecting your weight limitations. |
| You cannot have an animal in the
Towers, so you need to pay attention to this if you plan on moving into
quarters soon after arriving. In the multiplexes and
single family housing you can have animals but they take longer to get
into. |
| Nice looking clothes for girls
in sizes 10 to 16 are hard to find in the exchange. |
| School books are all furnished
by the school... regardless of the grade of the child. |
| School supplies are available in
the exchanges in sufficient quantity to take care of the school requirements
about a month before school starts. |
| The school buses cost nothing to
have the kids taken to and from school. If you staying at Kuwae
Lodge our initially out in town, the bus will pick your kids up and drop
them off daily. This is a great help! |
| The towers and multiplexes have
lots of storage space if you use it wisely. |
|
| The gyms have the latest workout
equipment. |
| Don't be looking for traditional
malls as you know them in the United States.... they are not here. |
| School starts for pretty much every
child on 31 August each year. |
| School ends on or about 13 June
of each year. |
