I ran across these images while scanning Greenland photos and just had to put them on the blog. The contrast is nice. These images of me and my friends lounging in the Indian Ocean may give you some idea why I chose to spend a year in Diego Garcia after my 17 months in Greenland.
UPDATE: Google Earth does not seem to know about Diego Garcia, but I do. The resolution of the satellite imagery in the middle of the Indian Ocean is very poor, but this Google placemark does at least give you a sense of the location of this remote U.S. military base.
One more thing. I found this eerie recording of last year’s 9.3 earthquake. (3.2 megabyte mp3 file.) It was “captured by underwater microphones located in Diego Garcia, more than 1,700 miles from the epicenter.” Listening to it with headphones sent a chill up my spine. Additional info about the recording can be found at the Columbia University web site.
Auhaha… skinny dude!
A side note on a comment I read on your blog:
Diego Garcia is an island in the Indian Ocean (British Indian Ocean Territory.)
You can use Google Earth to see it. Just enter
“Diego Garcia, Indian Ocean” in GE (without the quotes) and it will offer surprisingly clear aerial views…including the prison where they keep the Iraqis in order to not overload Guantanamo Bay in Cuba which the public has been deemed “too aware of”. Since virtually nobody knows about Diego Garcia – and it is also a storage place for B-1 Bombers – it is a “safehouse” for Middle East goings on between the U.S. and British military (the latter the owners, the former is the lessee).
Zoom in closely on the airport (west side of the island) and you’ll plainly see the bombers, and if you have “Geographic Web” turned on, you’ll find actual pictures (blue dots). The north end of the Island is, apparently, where American staff/employees/military live. To the right of the airport is the quonset hut “prison”.
Across the lagoon Southeast from the airport and down a bit, is a point. Above that point and you’ll see all the trees planted in rows. That is the last of the island’s Copra Plantations, which is what the entire island was before it became a British Territory. Some 3,000 natives were “removed” to nearby islands when the British claimed the territory, thereby setting up a situation where most of its residents are American or British military. Convenient, eh?
Cheers,
Jan
Were you on there as part of the miltary??? my partner has just been based there for 12months wonder wat life was like for you on island.
I so wish i was allowed to join him there or visit but as am not miltary i dnt have that chance.
nat
No, I was a civilian contractor. For me, life was mostly good on Diego, but life on a tiny island has its drawbacks. It’s frustrating to be in such a unique and beautiful environment and not be able to share it with close friends. I slept about 100 feet from the Indian Ocean – went to sleep each night to the sound of waves gently rolling up the sandy beach. It was like paradise in many ways! I wanted so badly to share the experience with my friends and family back in the states. Still, it was worth it. A unique experience.