Nostalgia 2: Living in Mannheim

Yesterday's post got me a little misty-eyed, recalling the "ruins" of the US Army bases in Mannheim where I used to live and work. So today I thought I'd write a little more about what it was like living there.

I was stationed in Mannheim from January 1998 through September 2001. I had come straight out of college, so this was my first real job, and my first time away from home. Unlike many of my colleagues, I elected to live on post (officers, senior enlisted, and enlisted folks with family had the choice of living on post or living on the economy and getting a housing allowance for it), which kept me in closer proximity to everything you might need, especially work!

The military base at Mannheim was one of the larger ones in Germany. It was spread out over several barracks (Kaserne) throughout various parts of the city, and constituted a microcosm of sorts. You could conceivably be stationed in Germany for years and never once interact with a German, learn the language, eat the food... You were surrounded by fellow Americans and everything you needed was on post: the PX for general shopping needs, the commissary for groceries, a theater, bowling alley, schools for your children (from elementary through high school), a university, a library, barbershop, a Burger King (LOL) and various nightclub-type spots-- including one featuring weekly karaoke! :-)

Of course, most people didn't limit themselves to on-post activities (I really don't know why you'd want to!) Unlike most military bases in the US, we didn't have distinct Officer's, NCO and Enlisted Clubs. Most of us were busy hitting up the local bars in downtown Mannheim (most memorably, O'Reilly's Irish Pub, where my hair once caught on fire!). And I rarely shopped on post-- at the time, the dollar was so strong that it was cheaper to shop on the local economy. Not to mention you had a bigger, better variety of goods, especially groceries!

One of the things I remember with the most fondness was the close relationships between the American troops and the local Germans. Many of our civilian employees were local nationals. Several of my soldiers had German families. And every year, in Benjamin Franklin Village, literally right across the street from my apartment, we held an annual German-American Volksfest, where Germans and Americans alike gathered together in giant beer tents to eat, drink, and make merry. It was kid-friendly, too-- lots of carnival rides and games outside the beer tent.

 

It goes without saying that living in the heart of Europe made it amazingly convenient to travel to neighboring countries. From cruising the river Seine in Paris to ferrying across the channel to the UK, from skiing in the Swiss Alps to sunning yourself on Spanish beaches, from venturing through the red-light district in Amsterdam to visiting World War I historical sights in Belgium, it was all easily accessible.

I don't think I fully appreciated how fortunate I was to be able to live there, while I was actually there. Since I'd never lived on my own before, I really didn't have anything to compare it to. Looking back, I wish I'd made more use of travel opportunities and learning the language. But I'm glad I got the chance to experience living there, to meet the many people I did, and to be very small part of the history of Americans in Germany. For many of us who were stationed here, it is indeed our "second home".

I'm posting every day in October as part of the 31-Day Writing Challenge. Click here to read more about it and to see the rest of my posts this month!