Travel? Favourite countries?

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heyzeus
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Re: Travel? Favourite countries?

Post by heyzeus »

What was Cuba like at that point, Corky? And how did you find yourself there?

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CardsofSTL
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Re: Travel? Favourite countries?

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heyzeus wrote:What was Cuba like at that point, Corky? And how did you find yourself there?
He's obviously in the CIA

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Re: Travel? Favourite countries?

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heyzeus wrote:What was Cuba like at that point, Corky? And how did you find yourself there?
It is remiss of me to have not explained. It was the U.S. Naval Base, GITMO, for 18 months, my last 18 months in my 4 years with the Navy. After the revolution and after the gates were closed and Castro cut of the water supply to the base, mine fields and dogs and armed guards prevented any travel into Communist Cuba. I was tough back then, but not that tough. This was also after the Cuban missel crisis. The Navy built their own desaltation plant there to supply fresh water to the base. There were Cuban workers on the base who were allowed to pass back and forth through the gates each day, or so I was told. The base is quite different today but they still have to turn salt water from the bay into fresh
water for the base. Even though travel is now happening between the U.S. and Cuba to Havana etc., I really believe that the Naval Base still has the restrictions imposed ever since the gates were closed in the early 1960’s. It was a bit boring at times but we had excellent snorkeling (I had my own spear gun)
at the beaches and the lagoons which held schools of beautiful tropical fish. We also had horseback riding, a movie theater, golf and an enlisted men’s club. Beer was 20 cents a can and mixed drinks were 40 cents. On the weekends I would catch a destroyer that was going to Jamaica or Haiti for the weekend and return on Sunday evening. They were there from other ports for weeks of fleet training
and the Navy still uses the base for fleet training as it is the Navy’s only secure base in the Caribbean.
There is also an air station there. It will be there for ever, as far as I have heard. The prison camps are now very near where we used to swim off the beaches. (sorry about the big spaces)
Last edited by Corky on January 8 19, 1:16 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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CardsofSTL
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Re: Travel? Favourite countries?

Post by CardsofSTL »

Corky wrote:
heyzeus wrote:What was Cuba like at that point, Corky? And how did you find yourself there?
It is remiss of me to have not explained. It was the U.S. Naval Base, GITMO, for 18 months, my last 18 months in my 4 years with the Navy. After the revolution and after the gates were closed and Castro cut of the water supply to the base, mine fields and dogs and armed guards prevented any travel into Communist Cuba. I was tough back then, but not that tough. This was also after the Cuban missel crisis. The Navy built their own desaltation plant there to supply fresh water to the base. There were Cuban workers on the base who were allowed to pass back and forth through the gates each day, or so I was told. The base is quite different today but they still have to turn salt water from the bay into fresh
water for the base. Even though travel is now happening between the U.S. and Cuba to Havana etc., I really believe that the Naval Base still has the restrictions imposed ever since the gates were closed in the early 1960’s. It was a bit boring at times but we had excellent snorkeling (I had my own spear gun)
at the beaches and the lagoons which held schools of beautiful tropical fish. We also had horseback riding, a movie theater, golf and an enlisted men’s club. Beer was 20 cents a can and mixed drinks were 40 cents. On the weekends I would catch a destroyer that was going to Jamaica or Haiti for the weekend and return on Sunday evening. They were there from other ports for weeks of fleet training
and the Navy still uses the base for fleet training as it is the Navy’s only secure base in the Caribbean.
There is also an air station there. It will be there for ever, as far as I have heard. The prison camps are now very near where we used to swim off the beaches.
This is all code for CIA

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Re: Travel? Favourite countries?

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You will never know.

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heyzeus
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Re: Travel? Favourite countries?

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That's a cool story, thanks.

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lukethedrifter
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Re: Travel? Favourite countries?

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Portland to San Diego road trip. Solo. Camping, hiking, visiting GRBer, hanging with firefighter buddies. Only dilemma is mountains vs coast

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thrill
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Re: Travel? Favourite countries?

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Stick to the coast until Monterrey and then cut to the Sierras.

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Re: Travel? Favourite countries?

Post by lukethedrifter »

Left turn from SF to Yosemite. Hiking up to Clark Point today. Maybe Death Valley next. Who can say?

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Re: Travel? Favourite countries?

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lukethedrifter wrote:Left turn from SF to Yosemite. Hiking up to Clark Point today. Maybe Death Valley next. Who can say?
Needed another day at Yosemite. Hiked to Upper Yosemite overlook yesterday after hiking to Nevada Falls the day before. Damn I’m sore. This probably belongs in the getting old sucks thread.
Morro Bay this morning. Really nice little bay, looks like a small commercial fishing fleet, and a big ass rock/small mountain jutting out of the water.

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