So what's it like to live on Guantanamo Bay?

Of course, for most people, the mere mention of GTMO brings to mind all sorts of terrible images of barbed wire, detention facilities and all the worst kinds of people.  And while I’ll let you form your own opinions about that particular piece of GTMO, I am here to tell you about the other part, where families live, kids go to school and life carries on as usual. To maintain and run the detainment facility on the island, there must be a group of workers and service members here full time. And those people have families who also live here full time.  To support the needs of the base’s full time residents, GTMO has plenty of amenities. I’ve discussed some of the one’s I am more familiar with at length below:

The NEX (Navy Exchange) is like a Super Walmart but a lot less super. Either way, it is the one-stop shop for all base residents for anything from marinara sauce to diamond jewelry.

We have an outdoor movie theater, the Downtown Lyceum, which shows current movies for free every night. So far, I’ve embraced my younger side and seen How to Train Your Dragon 2. I’m still waiting for The Fault in Our Stars to make its way over, though!

For those sportier folk, there is also a bowling alley, golf course, Frisbee golf course, mini golf, plenty of sports fields and a 24/7 gym that holds free fitness classes open to all base residents. I try and go to at least one class every weekday. My favorite is the cardio kickboxing class, even though I feel really silly doing it (does ANYONE look cool punching and kicking the air?)

Because of our location, GTMO is a great place to indulge in every kind of water sport you can imagine. I’ve already gone boating twice and snorkeling once. You can also get Scuba certified on the cheap here, and you can try your hand at stand up paddle boarding, kayaking and fishing. The beaches here, while not quite white sand, are also worth a weekend trip. Ferry Landing beach and Cable Beach have cabanas to escape the brutal Cuban heat, while Windmill Beach has lounges to lay out on (a must since the beaches here are mostly rock. Girl Scout Beach and Glass Beach are great for exploring as you can find some incredible shells and pieces of sea glass there!

Just a lazy day out boating at Hospital Cay

Some green sea glass from Glass Beach! 

And after a long day hitting up the base activities, GTMO offers a variety of restaurants and fast food joints to energize you for the next round. There’s a McDonald’s, Subway, Taco Bell, Caribbean Coffee and Cream which sells ice cream and Starbucks coffee, The Jerk House (open for dinner) serving up homemade Jamaican food, The Windjammer has some more traditional American food offerings, and The Cuban Club, which seems to be a favorite of many, dishes out traditional Cuban fare with a twist (try the spaghetti!). There are also the galleys, standard on military installations, which offer buffet style food for low prices. To finish off the night, there are a couple of bar/club type joints like O’Kelly’s (supposedly the first Irish pub on communist soil) and the Tiki Bar.

Chicken meal from the Jerk House! YUM. 

While there IS plenty to do, without the ability to leave base, you can imagine how claustrophobic GTMO eventually becomes. Sometimes I feel like I’ve been plopped into a small Midwestern college town where everyone knows each other and I am the new girl.  I can’t go to the NEX without seeing a familiar face, which can be both a curse and a blessing (do I really want my boss to look into my shopping cart and see only panty liners and spaghetti squash??). But this close-knittedness certainly has it’s perks, too. Kids can run around the island at their leisure, cars remain unlocked (where, really, could anyone drive away with it?) and people aren’t afraid to start up conversations with strangers, or even give a pedestrian they don’t know a ride home.  I’ve talked to quite a few residents who have “GTMO glasses” now – they see the States as crime-ridden danger zone that makes GTMO look like an all the more appealing place to settle down. While I don’t think I would ever adopt this viewpoint, it is interesting to witness what a few years in an almost fictionalized small town can do to your opinion of home.  Still the newbie, though, I am convinced of something else – GTMO is stuck in the 80s! Stay tuned for next post where I’ll tell you why (slow internet, home phones, GTMO beaters, oh my!).

Thanks for reading,

Hayley