Gitmo Travelogue, Gitmo Observations

Other than Camp America, I can't figure out why this base exists anymore, really. It has fuel for airplanes and ships. Why do they come here? Because there's fuel. Why is there fuel here? Because the ships & planes come here. OK, that minimizes it a bit, there is a fair amount of drug interdiction that originates from here, due to its proximity to the islands. But now that the Cold War is over, its purpose has changed a bunch,especially since we're not worried about the Cubans and/or Soviets invading anymore.

The logistics to keep this base running are amazing. Fresh food comes in via airplane and bulk stuff comes in via barge from the mainland (there's a joke that goes "It's on the barge" anytime you want something that the Exchange/Commissary doesn't have). Everything the base needs (power, sewer, water) is handled here, since we can't use Cuban resources (in fact, the shutting off of water service by the Cubans to Gitmo was one of the final acts leading up to the "gate" being closed to Cuba). The desalination plant that Gitmo has was actually an existing plant from California that was brought out in the early 60s. Trash is taken off by barge (though some is dumped on base at a dump or burned). Some power is generated using huge windmills like you might see at Palm Springs.

Civilians really run this base - the Filipinos and Jamaicans do all of the real work on this base, like running food service, the fire department, landscaping, etc. etc. Lots of contractors here, too, that handle buildings, road maint, vehicle maintenance, etc.

There are Marines here, that keep the security of the base on the line between Gitmo and Cuba, but I didn't really see them around the base (then again, there aren't that many). The Coast Guard is here, since they do the drug interdiction, the Navy (duh), the Army (they're in charge of Camp America) and the Air Force (not quite sure what they do).

Of course, everyone lives on base, the Jamaicans live in one part, the Puerto Rican National Guard (they're security for Camp America) live in another and there's lots of family housing. The Puerto Ricans even raise the ire of the detainees on occasion because they have huge cookouts on the weekend at a small park and blast their music and it makes the detainees cranky.

As I mentioned earlier, there are lots of deserted (and repurposed) buildings. For example, the "Tiki Bar" is an outdoor bar that's built on top of a filled in swimming pool. I'm sure that there are lots of other repurposed buildings, but I didn't have the wherewithal to figure them out, tho I figure if I was living here, doing research on the history of the base itself would be one of the things I'd do to keep myself occupied.

Since Gitmo is so large, it's a good thing Noreen has her Geo Tracker (see pic, taken in front of an old steel light house) to get around. There are buses that go everywhere, but it's nice to have a car.