It used to be a military camp and air station for the Americans in colonial times. They named it after the Secretary of State who called the Spanish-American war a splendid little war. In that war, the US defeated Spanish forces in Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Philippines. When I was growing up, my father liked to take us there for breakfast on special occasions. His favorite was a restaurant called The Nineteenth Tee, overlooking the golf course. He pointed out the clipped bermuda grass and the clean sidewalks, saying this was what made it look like "Little America." Later I realized the menu was just basic American cafeteria fare: burgers and fries, chipped beef on soggy toast, milk in cartons, apple pie. Now, it's what the city calls a multi-use development: forest watershed, chain stores, Starbucks, tourist cottages next to call centers where any of the agents of global corporations will put you on hold before taking your customer service call.
Purveyors of fine poetry since 2003.
