    
Michael F. Kenny
Member
Username: Mikek
Post Number: 9
Registered: 06-2003
Posted From: 24.30.143.162
| | Posted on Thursday, April 15, 2010 - 04:07 pm: | |
From the balmy sun-drenched beaches of San Diego to the frozen tundra that is called Gander, Newfoundland is a bit of a jolt – those “Newfies” are freezing their keesters off. Our C-17 landed for just over an hour in Gander – which seemed longer since I was vainly trying to find a source of heat. Even getting back on a cold C-17 seemed a relief. After an uneventful 8-hour flight from Gander, we landed at Ramstein, Germany at “zero-dark-thirty” on 20 March.
Ramstein Passenger Terminal from USA Phone: 011-49-6371-46-4440. Fax: 011-49-6371-47-2364. www.ramstein.af.mil (AMC Pax Terminal travel info)
E-mail: Spacea@ramstein.af.mil
We speedily processed through customs…careful to discard any meat or dairy products (which meant all of our sandwiches & snacks) in keeping with German regulations. We then walked out of the terminal to the new KMCC (Kaiserslautern Military Community Center). The link: http://www.ramstein.af.mil/kmcc.asp.
Phone: 011-49-6371-45-4920 (Central Reservations)
There has been a lot said & written on this board about the (relatively) new KMCC. It is a showplace. Think Hale Koa without the grass skirts and ocean views and substitute lederhosen & beer steins. The SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement) in Germany prohibits retirees from using the Exchange or Commissary. However, KMCC is more than the Exchange or Commissary. It consists of the Air Force Inn, various restaurants and stores, a food court, movie theater, Hofbrauhaus and a number of merchants selling German wines and European crafts – none of which are restricted by SOFA. The Inn also has its own MWR / ITT office with day / multi-day tours to all of Europe and which retirees can utilize. The KMCC complex is a substantial shopping mall that has quickly become the focal point for German-based families to spend weekend time. For Space A travelers - KMCC is in very close proximity to the air terminal – front doors are a short walk to lodging (about a football field from door to door).
After learning in Charleston that we had made the Ramstein flight, I called KMCC and made a room reservation with credit card confirmation. Unfortunately, our departure time from Charleston slipped. What had originally been an anticipated 2230 arrival time at Ramstein, turned out to be the following morning. We were unable to use our initial reservation (for which we were charged) but it helped to get us a “second” night at Ramstein. To get to our week in Ireland, I had booked tickets through Ryan Air out of Frankfurt-Hahn airport in Germany – about an hour & 30-minute taxi ride away. (We could have also flown Space A to Rota, Spain & taken Ryan Air from Cadiz to Dublin. However, Ryan Air tickets for that option were much more expensive.) To get from Ramstein to Frankfurt-Hahn, I talked with the USO office at Ramstein. I was informed the shuttle bus which had formerly run between Ramstein and Frankfurt-Hahn had been cancelled the previous month. The USO, however, provided assistance in researching transportation alternatives.
USO Ramstein is located on the 2nd floor of the Air Terminal, Gebaude 3333, Flugplatz Ramstein. Center Manager: J.T. “Chris” Christian. Phone DSN: 480-6326. Commercial from the US: 011-49-6371-42623. Fax: 011-49-6371-42626.
The best & most convenient method to Frankfurt-Hahn turned out to be a taxi. “Road Runner Taxi” is a 24-hour service, 7 days a week. It provides both on-base and off-base transportation. The Ramstein number is: 06371-976140. The Toll Free number is 0800-8294826. The one-way cost from Ramstein to Frankfurt-Hahn was 95 Euros ($129) – a price that we paid again 8 days later on the return from Frankfurt-Hahn to Ramstein.
Since we had a 0710 flight from Frankfurt-Hahn to Dublin, we stayed overnight at the B&B Hotel, literally on airport property directly across the street from the terminal. I pre-booked that room from the states at a cost of 56 Euros ($76) for the night.
B&B Hotel, Bldg 619 Frankfurt-Hahn Airport. Phone from U.S.: 011-49-6543 8180-0
Fax: 011-49-6543/8180 555. Web site: www.hotelbb.de
The hotel was clean and adequate with small rooms but the location for early morning flights from Frankfurt-Hahn was unbeatable.
On Monday 22 March, we boarded Ryan Air for the 2-hour flight to Dublin – land of leprechauns and my ancestors (probably a redundant comment there). We spent the next week with a Budget Rental Car driving on the “wrong side” of what the Irish laughingly call roads. The pre-booked rate was 89.29 Euros ($121). Rather than bore you with non-Space A details, we stayed at a B&B in Malahide, a castle in County Cavan and a hotel outside Dublin for the 8 days we were in Ireland. |
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