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Moms with Sailors in Sicily, Italy
Information
Do you have a sailor currently stationed at Sicily, Italy. Let's get acquainted.
Members: 41
Latest Activity: Oct 24, 2018
Discussion Forum
This group does not have any discussions yet.
Comment Wall
Comment
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Comment by jboysmom on July 12, 2012 at 12:29pm
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How does phones work in Italy? Will my son use his AT &T cell phone? Do they offer an international plan for cell phones? Or will he get a land line? Will there be charges on our cell phones when we get a call from them overseas? Is there charges for texts from Italy?
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Comment by AJ (Katie's Mom) on July 12, 2012 at 10:43am
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Jboys...Our daughter lives on one base and works at the other so a car is necessary for her as the locals controll the transportation between bases and are not dependable. Also with the gas/transprotation strikes that pop up every now and then add to the uncertainty. She bought an 'island beater' rather than have her car shipped over. Katie says driving is okay as long as you don't drive right into the towns and find parking before you get into town.
ALSO, make sure your son reads his orders over several times as all the information he will need is included. Housing and transportation is a big issue.
There are day/weekend trips, a very good way to get to know the island.
Yes, the PX has just about everything they could possibly need, and don't forget the coupons which are good for 6 months after their expiration date.
We communicate through e-mail, text and phone, skype, although skype is hard sometimes as we both get homesick.
Packages take 6-7 days from the east coast and she gets and e-mail when one arrives.
If you have any other questions, throw them out there as we all have had different experiences.
Good luck to him and his family on their move.
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Comment by MomByHeart on July 12, 2012 at 2:06am
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Jboys...just remembered that when they want to go on trips they rent a car and that seems to work well. Also there is public transportation off base.
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Driving in Sicily is quite a challenge...narrow, packed streets, crazy drivers and sign posts that will have 10 or more names on them; my sailor says you have to go through the roundabouts several times in order to read all the signs and find out where you are going. He had a car for a while, but got rid of it since the driving is so crazy; sounds like most military don't have cars, but he lives on base so that helps.
We usually communicate through fb and email but have done skype. He works 12 hrs days so I usually chat with him in the late morning Pacific time when he's not too tired. On base they can use Magic Jack and can get a phone and call the states for free. He has done this several times. The funny thing is that it automatically disconnects after and hour and a half. Then he has to call back...it took us a while to figure out what was happening on that.
He says the barracks are crowded, but he is single so I don't know what family housing is like. He says the PX and commissary are pretty good. It takes about 10 days for a pkg or letter to get to him.
We have not been to Italy. He is not actually my son, although I am happy to claim him and remind him I am his self-appointed mother :)
That's about all I can think of for now. If you have more questions, ask away.
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Thank you, Loraine for the information. Have you made a trip to Italy? How long will your son be there as a corpsman? Does he have a car there or is it something they can do without? How do you communicate with him - email, Skype, phone calls, snail mail or something else? Sorry so many questions, but none of my family has ever been overseas and we are all wondering how things will be for the next 4 years.
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Aj...That is pretty cool. He is not actually my son, he is a very close family friend who I consider a son. He is the reason I am on N4M. I try to be careful and not get too much into his business since I am just a self-appointed mom :) But we love him to pieces and are very proud of him.
Jboysmom...Italy has been nice for my sailor. He has been there about 16 mos. and works as a corpsman in the clinic. They do lots of short day trips around the island and he was able to go to Rome over Christmas. It's a wonderful way to see Europe and I'm sure will be fun for your son and his family. The 9 hr. time difference takes some getting used to, but it is certainly do-able and better than some. Welcome!
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My son just found out today that he will be going to Sigonella, Italy for the next 4 years of his shore duty. He's an AS and has been on the USS Wasp for the past 3 years.
I know I have been spoiled having him here in the states where we could drivie to visit him, his wife and their 1 yr. old daughter about every 3 months. We live in Kentucky and he's been in Norfolk, VA so it's only about a 11 hour drive. But now he will be in Italy! I'm still in shock, but I'm sure I'll get to where I'm happy for him to get to travel the world with his family.
I loved all the support I got from N4Moms while he was in boot camp and I'm very close to the Ky Navy Moms group. I was very excited to find this group tonight when I got on N4Moms. I welcome any advice or information any of you can provide.
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Hi Loraine, How about that, I described him from his picture and she knew exactly who I was talking about. Now he is the second sailor from this group.
I have fb and many of my 'friends' are the friends of our kids which is comforting if there is ever a problem - I can at least be in contact with someone near them. And so the same with this group. You're right it seems the more people we talk to the smaller the world gets.
We are planning to visit with Katie in September for 2 weeks. I am excited about the trip, we will be in northern Italy for 1 week and then to the island for a week.
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Hi AJ...I have been trying to message you, but I can't get my messaging to "send" for some reason. Yes, Katie is right about my sailor's last name, so they must know each other. Small Navy world!
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Hi Loraine, Katie is IT, pleasantly on a watch floor. However she says she has corpsman friends, maybe they know each other.
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