The Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean make up a body of water that contains some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. It also contains some of the largest overseas shipping ports in North America. Tampa, New Orleans, Houston and Havana are all major seaports that provide overseas shipping companies departure and arrival points for cargoes of manufactured goods and agricultural products.

Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida and the eastern side of the Gulf of Mexico. Although not considered a major shipping port by international standards, Tampa has a large harbor and is the jump off point for much of the overseas shipping that happens in the Gulf of Mexico. It's just a few hours north of Miami and easily accessible for the cities of the eastern portion of the United States.

New Orleans, unlike Tampa, is a major international seaport and has been for centuries. Built by the French, this historic city has been the sight of many battles in both the War of 1812 and the Civil War for the control of internal and overseas shipping routes. Standing as it does at the mouth of the Mississippi River, New Orleans has strategic value to any company that chooses to base their overseas shipping business there. Unfortunately, the city is actually built below sea level so it is vulnerable to hurricanes that come through the Gulf. The city is still currently rebuilding from Hurricane Katrina.

Houston is not thought of as a seaport because it is located in Texas, which most people don't realize does have quite a bit of coastline. Although Houston stretches far inland it is a seaport and overseas shipping through the Gulf of Mexico is a common occurrence. It and its sister city of Galveston clear a tidy profit every year from the overseas shipping industry.

Havana was once a major export and import seaport that served a thriving country before the Castro regime took over. It is still one of the most beautiful harbors in the Gulf and home to a people that can remember when they were once the bright light of the Caribbean. Overseas shipping from Havana is limited now and their most famous export is the Cuban cigar.

These four seaports either are or were some of the busiest in the world at one point. Manufactured items, agricultural products and people come down the Mississippi River and into the Gulf of Mexico headed to destinations in the Caribbean, Mexico and around the world. Shipping lanes that were established centuries ago are still in use today and the ships that use them carry cargoes of treasures undreamed of when America was first discovered. They travel through the Yucatan Channel into the Caribbean and past another major seaport, Kingston, where the open waters of the Atlantic Ocean are just a stone's throw away. Just further south are the countries of Central America and the shores of Columbia, Venezuela and Brazil. The Gulf of Mexico, in many ways, is America's gateway to the rest of the world.