4 Years in Italy

TJDukit

I.Y.A.A.Y.A.S.
Location
Clearfield
Well my 2 years in Korea thread kinda flopped. That was a result of my wife and I not really enjoying it there so we didn't really do a whole lot that was worthy of posting about our non adventures. There are lots of reasons behind that but I won't get into all that.

We'll start off with what was a decent start to our adventure here. We got on the plane from Osan Air Base in Korea which took off at about noon on 29 December. One short stop Japan and we arrived in Seattle at about noon on 29 December. That flight is the worst form of time travel. We stayed in Seattle for 3 days visiting my parents who had driven up from Oregon. I have no pictures of the trip we took to the zoo because I had to do a factory reset on my phone once we arrived here in Italy.

From Seattle we flew to Amsterdam where we missed our flight to Venice which would have put us on base here in Aviano early in the afternoon. Instead we spent nearly 10 hours in the terminal in Amsterdam waiting on the next flight to Venice. Luckily I was able to get good enough internet there to get a hold of my boss here and they were able to send two cars out at 11 at night on 2 January to pick us all up. After all that we finally arrived to our billeting room shortly after 1AM on the 3rd.

That wasn't the worst long trip I've had but it was up there. After all that it was well worth it.

Dealing with the in processing procedures required by this base and the Italian government has been a serious pain but it's almost over.

We started house hunting almost right away and after looking at only 4 houses we found what will be as close to our dream house in Italy as we can get.

It's a 2 story farm house with a huge attic located about 25 minutes away from my work.









Then landlord works the property daily. Trees in the back are for firewood he sells. Three goats, a few chickens and some ducks and a small garden.


Huge attic


Really cool room in the basement where I will be spending most of my time.


The landlords father made wine before he passed. These haven't been used in who knows how long.
 

TJDukit

I.Y.A.A.Y.A.S.
Location
Clearfield
Along the lines of taking forever to get in processed here. It took me nearly two weeks to get my drivers license which I needed before I could even purchase a car. I passed my test with minimal studying and picked up my license on Tuesday of this week. By Thursday my wife had found a new friend that let us borrow a car and I started my car shopping.

I've known for a while pretty much what I wanted. Whatever I got would have to be manual, rear wheel drive, euro spec for ease of getting parts and most of all it had to be something I could look at sitting in the driveway and feel the need wash it and take care of it.

I drove around to about 10 dealerships and nothing really popped out as something I'd actually like to own. Then Thursday night I found it. The guy selling it had one person in front of me to look at it Friday afternoon. After he finally showed up and I took it for a quick drive I was sold but still had to wait for the first person to confirm whether or not he would take it.

After a couple hours I was told the car was mine and we made a deal. We still have to transfer money and do all the other stuff next week but I will be the new owner of a 1997 BMW 318i







The car was owned by an older higher ranking individual that says he took good care of it and at first glance it was apparent he didn't treat it like a beater. I took it for a drive and everything about the car felt solid. The clutch, steering, tires, suspension all felt like new. No clunking, clicking or odd noises. 3000 dollars was the agreed price which seems more than fair since this same car would cost 3400-4000 on the economy here. I'll get some better pictures once I take possession next week. I'm really looking forward to driving this thing up in the mountain roads here and having a blast.
 

Kevin B.

Not often wrong. Never quite right.
Moderator
Location
Stinkwater
A farmhouse! I'm super jealous.

I'm also jealous that you're in Italy. I want lots of pictures of castles and cathedrals.
 

Greg

I run a tight ship... wreck
Admin
I'd hardly say your Korea thread flopped, I loved seeing the updates and pictures from your travels!

Italy looks awesome, congrats on the BMW! My friends that have owned them really loved how they drove and were built.

Can you travel out of the country, like say for the weekend... up North?
 

TJDukit

I.Y.A.A.Y.A.S.
Location
Clearfield
I'd hardly say your Korea thread flopped, I loved seeing the updates and pictures from your travels!

Italy looks awesome, congrats on the BMW! My friends that have owned them really loved how they drove and were built.

Can you travel out of the country, like say for the weekend... up North?
We are allowed to travel to almost any country in Europe without restriction and without taking leave. Weekend trips to Austria, Croatia, Slovania, France, Germany and Switzerland are really easy. A little more planning for the further countries will be a good idea.

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mbryson

.......a few dollars more
Supporting Member
Good stuff! My grandfather served in the infantry in Italy in WWII (west coast, I think). I'd love to know more about where he served and such. The information I have gotten a hold of isn't really concrete according to the little that he would divulge about his experiences. I'm anxious to see what you're able to share even if you're not in his same area. Italy should be REALLY interesting if for nothing else to just look for Roman influences and such.
 

Greg

I run a tight ship... wreck
Admin
We are allowed to travel to almost any country in Europe without restriction and without taking leave. Weekend trips to Austria, Croatia, Slovania, France, Germany and Switzerland are really easy. A little more planning for the further countries will be a good idea.

That's awesome, I'm very jealous now! One of my coworkers visited Italy in 2015, they drove up to Switzerland and he said the drive wasn't incredibly long.

I want to go to Austria and visit the KTM factory... :greg:
 

TJDukit

I.Y.A.A.Y.A.S.
Location
Clearfield
I'm really looking foward to sharing this with you guys. A lot more than I was about Korea. I love European history and can't wait to see as much of that as I can. It's amazing how much happier my wife and I are already and we're still living in a hotel.

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TurboMinivan

Still plays with cars
Location
Lehi, UT
Aviano? Damn, you are way up there. The closest I ever got to you was when I spent time in the Forli/Cesena/Rimini area. Of course, this means I also visited (the independent republic of) San Marino, which I highly recommend if you've got some free time and like castles. In a country full of history, San Marino is nonetheless a very bright spot and well worth a trip IMO.

Italy is a neat place. The people tend to be extremely friendly. One benefit for you being up north is that they speak very clearly, much more so than in the south. Italian is such a beautiful language.
 

nnnnnate

Well-Known Member
Supporting Member
Location
WVC, UT
We did a big trip in Italy a few years ago and enjoyed it a lot. Assisi was probably our favorite place. It's just a small town in the country with a huge monastery that was really pretty. We tended to like the little places a lot more than the big tourist-y places. Oh, and the gelato was pretty great anywhere.

What is your job in the military?
 

TJDukit

I.Y.A.A.Y.A.S.
Location
Clearfield
We did a big trip in Italy a few years ago and enjoyed it a lot. Assisi was probably our favorite place. It's just a small town in the country with a huge monastery that was really pretty. We tended to like the little places a lot more than the big tourist-y places. Oh, and the gelato was pretty great anywhere.

What is your job in the military?
I'm Ammo. Build bombs and work on missiles. I was actually assigned as the shop chief of the missile shop here so now I'm just in charge of people.

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benjy

Rarely wrenches
Supporting Member
Location
Moab
My parents spent a few years based in Sigonella in the early 80s. They always talked about that time as some of their favorite years. Enjoy your time there, and post lots of pics!
 

TJDukit

I.Y.A.A.Y.A.S.
Location
Clearfield
And the car is officially mine. I've been driving around a loaner Citreon C2 with a silly computer controlled manual transmission. I really hated driving that stupid car.

This BMW on the other hand is going to be a lot of fun to drive. I swear when I'm driving it, it feels like I would imagine it feeling 20 years ago driving it new. Everything about the car has been well taken car of. I'll say it again, no clunks, squeaks or odd noises and the interior is in great shape other than a slightly saggy headliner and the door lining is a little saggy as well. He also showed me receipts for oil changes and maintenance for the past 4 years which was a huge plus to see.
 

TJDukit

I.Y.A.A.Y.A.S.
Location
Clearfield
First serious observation.

When we did our licensing we were told the roads were really slick when it rains. Apparently this is due to the extra oil they use in the asphalt here. They weren't kidding, the first time it rained since I got the car and I had that little 4 banger sideways three times on my 20 minute drive home.

Hopefully if it's not raining this weekend we'll actually get out and explore some and get some pictures.
 

rholbrook

Well-Known Member
Location
Kaysville, Ut
My 3 kids ages 16, 23 and 26 will be in Itally in April. I am sending them on an adventure. They will be visiting Florence, Cinque Terre, Venice and Rome. They are excited
 

rholbrook

Well-Known Member
Location
Kaysville, Ut
What--no Pisa? They'd practically need to go out of their way to miss it!
Yeah, Dont know. I am letting them plan the trip but I am making them visit certain countries but letting them decide what they are doing in each country. My middle son is staying an extra week but my youngest has to get back because he can't miss that much school.
 
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