Anyone been on 31st MEU

[TAK]

Just wondering if anyone has been on the 31st. Is there anything you wish you had known before going, like places to go or how to act with certain armies/marines you worked with?

[Unit74]

I went on the fighting 13th.... But that prolly doesn't help you much.

Don't be a ship rat in ports. Go have fun. Avoid mess duty at all costs. Laundry detail is much better.

Bring a game console and eyes controlers. Play spades and dominos. Stay busy and hit the gym or do p90x.

I worked with the Kuwaities....they were bafoons. the australians were cool and real laid back .

[Changalang]

Avoid mess duty at all costs
spades

no, seriously.

Avoid mess duty at all costs
spades

lol

[Reilandlaw]

Did a couple trips with the 31st MEU - although it's been what seems like forever (95/96 and 97/98). I'm sure a LOT has changed since then. When you hit port, get the heck off the ship. If at all possible, try not to just hit the usual military-frequented places (bars/clubs). Try to get out and experience the culture. That's my regret, I didn't do that enough.

If you're a nicotine user, either take a TON with you, or have someone that will ship you cartons every so often - the ship store will run out, and not only will you have plenty, but you'll suddenly have lots of friends.

Are you Navy or Marine Corps? If USMC be prepared to either sleep a lot or work out a lot. Any idea what ship you'll be on?

Bill

Oh yeah - and spades

[TAK]

Yea Ive been on ship before so I know the deal with ship/port life I always like to know about who I'll be working with before and if anyone has tips for them, I'm in the USMC.

[Clownpuncher]

The thirtyworst. If nothing else, it will be an experience.

Learn spades and unless you are ships company or the air wing, take supplements because you will be spending alot of time in the gym.

[Clownpuncher]

Dang double post. It won't be that bad. If you are lucky you'll hit Thailand. If you're real lucky you'll hit the PI.

[steelrain82]

i was supposed to go but they gave it to 2/3 and sent us to iraq instead. this was back in 04

[BoJackUSMC]

ewwww 31st MEU, not that great.. Do whatever it takes to stay out of mess duty because it sucks. Stay away from mess duty!!!!!!

[rooster85]

Like previously stated, the 31st is supposed to be the thirty worst. Ive never had the luxury of doing a float, just fly overs but as long as you have more fun that you usually would, hitting up the ports should be fun. Enjoy.

[The Soup Nazi]

Avoid mess duty at all costs
spades

no, seriously.

Avoid mess duty at all costs
spades

lol

The truth.

Anyways, I was on the 31st for a year from 2009-2010, bounced between the Harpers Ferry, the Tortuga, the Denver, and the Essex. Mess Duty and Combat Cargo are the absolute worst assignments, Master at Arms augment being the most preferable if you do get tagged to support the Navy.

Always take advantage of libo ports and explore. Walking Street is cool and all, but I took the time to pet tigers and ride elephants in Thailand. Singapore and Australia were the absolute best. Aside from that, if you learn some Tagalog, Mandarin, and Siamese, you'll be able to build rapport with locals and have a better experience overall. Always socialize with local militaries, you never know when they can hook you up with some decent chow when you've been stuck with MREs or ship trays. If you can manage a small laptop and hard drive, it'll help defeat boredom during the weeks you're underway. Bring a couple of padlocks with you and make a beeline for a locker in your berthing so your seabags/ilbe pack won't walk away.

[TAK]

Luckily I don't have to worry about mess duty/ships crew/combat cargo but yes those would be pretty terrible. Especially mess duty always smelling like food, although they always had the hookup with cookies and cake after the chow hall was closed.

[Mickael81]

The "Dirty First". I hope you get the real MEU experience and not a straight shot to hell in Afghanistan.

-Drink
-Laugh
-Wrap
-Bone
-Pray
-Pass your Check Up at BAS
"
Enjoy it. You never know what could happen once you get to your primary destination.

[SgtMerc]

Did 15th MEU and 31st MEU, but for the 31st we were shorebased in Okinawa. They didn't have room for us at Hansen, so we got to shack up with the Air Force at Kadena.

Advice:

Wrap it if you tap it

Don't get married while deployed, no matter how in love you think you are

Don't mail your souvenirs back to girlfriends. They WILL keep your mementos when you break up

If you're lucky enough to get Australia, Absinthe is legal there, and if your command wants to burn you, they can "forget" to tell you it'll cause you to pop

Don't spend the whole time drinking. Sure, drinking in foreign countries is fun, but would you rather be the guy who says "i spent the whole time looking for Hard Rock Cafes and Planet Hollywoods" or be the guy who says "check out these pictures of me feeding a tiger by hand! This was right after the cockfight. Drinking snake blood is not as bad as it sounds."

Take pictures! If you can snag a digicam and a stack of flash cards, you'll have good memories

don't let people take pictures of you making out with the thai transexuals (Poor Cpl Young)

ETA: Don't spend all your money on amazon.com and booze, or right when you get back. You get deployed, you can come back with 10 grand, easily.

[hsiehjohn]

Did a float with the 31st about 20 years ago. Bunch of dirty jarheads. There was a group of them sitting next to each other watching porn and jerking off out in the open. That's when you know you have too much time on your hands.