[mrzh808]

After living in Hawaii for the past 7 years, my new husband is whisking me off from paradise to good ol Nebraska. He's in the Air Force, and we'll be stationed in Offut for the next couple years. Honestly, when he first told me the news, I was like ,"NEBRASKA?! WTF?! hell NO! I dont even know where that is?!?" ..lol..sad but true. I mean I knew it was in the middle of the country, but I didnt know EXACTLY where. And like many people who are ignorant about the state, first thing that came to mind was straight country land full of corn fields and yes..rednecks. I didnt know anything about Nebraska, so I couldnt help but stereotype. Since we're gonna be spending the next couple years of our lives in Nebraska, I stopped being bitter about it and told myself to embrace the experience. So I decided to do my research and looked for things to look forward to. It really opened my eyes though cuz Nebraska isnt ALL that I expected it to be. And from reading the forums, I've read the good, the bad and everything else in between.

So my normal casual dress here in Hawaii is shorts and a tank top- YEAR round. I obviously need a whole new wardrobe, since that's not gonna be happening in Nebraska. At least if it snows during the winter, I'll be able to have my first white Christmas..? And at least cost of living is ridiculously lower in Nebraska. In Hawaii, $1000/mo rent would only be able to get you a studio, a small 1 bedroom at the most. In Nebraska, you'd be able to get a nice, decent sized 2 bedroom apartment with all the amenities. And eventhough I'll miss the beautiful beaches like crazy, at least we'll get to have roadtrips and not be stuck on an island. And at least there's a lot of companies that call Omaha their home, so hopefully finding a job won't be too bad. So I've learned some stuff. And Nebraska doesnt as bad as I expected.

I am curious about one thing, though. I'm Filipino and Spanish. Ive read a lot about other minorities- African Americans, Asians(Chinese, Japanese,Viet, Korean, etc), and Mexicans living in Nebraska, at least more of the Omaha area. But I never read anything about filipinos/ mixed pacific islanders living here. Do we even exist in the area? lol..It's definitely gonna be different because in Hawaii, believe it or not, Caucasians are the minority. i was a military brat, and growing up, I've also lived in California, which is also a cultural melting pot, and in Japan, which on the military base, also had many different races. I'm just so used to being surrounded with so many different types of people, and I don't know if that'll be the case in Nebraska. I mean, its not an issue, but I'm just curious, since im Filipino/Spanish am I gonna stick out like a sore thumb? And yes, i know racism exists everywhere, but like almost every minority whos not familiar with the place, thats also an area of concern for me.

Okay, so i didnt expect to write this much. But any input on any of the topics, especially the race part, will be greatly appreciated! =)..

btw..we're supposed to be on post in Nebraska by the end of December, so we'll probably be there late November to early Dec. Just in time for the cold weather and snow...

[2Adam29]

Welcome to Omaha!

I'm not aware of any strong presence of pacific islanders in Omaha. I'm sure I am good friends with someone fitting that discription, but it isn't really a big deal. The people I know tend to disreguard race and look at the person. Now, keep in mind if you dress like a hawiian gangster, chances are you're gonna have a hard time fitting in, but otherwise you should have no trouble. Omaha being such a large city, we are pretty welcoming. If you want to be surrounded by all races, stick to the center of the city, from 72nd east. Both downtown and midtown are diverse, downtown moreso. But don't live in west O unless you don't mind nothing but white people. Or north O for black people, or south O for hispanic/latino people.

[DTO Luv]

Welcome to Omaha. My brothers fiance's family is from Hawaii originally and they've moved around in the Air Force too. They all like it here and have decided not to go back to Hawaii.

If you're in Offut especially you'll be around people from all over the world. Omaha itself is more diverse in the eastern parts of the city.

[kdbrich]

Hope you enjoy Omaha/Bellevue.

No..we don't have a huge population of Filipinos. But we've got decent diversity. You'll find we're a pretty easy-going type of people.

If you're a football fan, you'll find we love our college football team (Hawaii had a pretty good year last year, too).

[Go Ne]

The houses around Offutt are really nice and so is the economy, and some school districts are better than others but they are all good.

[Dave1215]

Coming in with the military, I would recommend that you also look at Papillion as a place to live... it still has the military influence so is very accepting of ethnicity - won't be an issue. Less than 10 miles to the base to a very easy commute... homes in all price ranges... clean, lots of parks for the kids, most of the ammenties you need from a shopping perspective...

[OmahaDad]

Creighton University has a large contingent of Hawaiian natives going to school in Omaha. In fact, Hawaii is the 8th largest state for number of students going to Creighton.

Here is an article on the Hawaiian connection if you'd like to read it. Page 24.

http://www.creightonmagazine.org/fil.../CUmag_W00.pdf

Good luck in Omaha!

[mrzh808]

Thanks for all the info and the replies! Looks like we're heading there earlier than planned- the 1st week of November. We have our dog, Daisy, thats coming along with us, and apparently a lot of airlines don't ship animals when its below 45 degrees. And thats where my next question comes in- is it usually that cold in November already? Is it usually snowing around that time as well? If thats the case, we're gonna have to figure something out..

[DTO Luv]

It will be cooler but most likely not snowing.

[kdbrich]

It's hard to say. I've seen people mowing lawns in short-sleeved shirts in early December...but 10 years ago in October we got 14 inches of snow.

Chances are it's not going to be bitter cold, but it can get chilly.