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Ten U.S. Marines are training in Sanatornaya and standing guard at the American Consulate in Vladivostok. But what does being a Marine have to do with Microsoft Word?

As Gunnery Sgt. Randy Lubisher conducts his lesson, he has his Marines’ absolute attention. Except this lesson is about Microsoft Word.

He tells them about saving documents and cutting and pasting text. They nod attentively, as if he were relaying defense tactics in a bunker under fire or plans for a crucial midnight attack. Another Marine adds a suggestion about erasing files. The group sternly acknowledges this bit of advice. Finally, Lubisher ends the lesson, and sends his men to the showers.

Everything about these Marines is just as you’d expect. From Lubisher’s perfect drill instructor voice to the tight discipline to the closely shaved heads, the 10 men are straight out of the TV commercials, the leaflets, the movies. In excellent physical condition, they seem to relish running for six or seven miles in the icy outskirts of Vladivostok. Once every other day. Nothing special, they’ll assure you.

But since when did Marines gather for classes on Microsoft Word? It’s a telling indication that for these United States Marines, the problem may be different, but the way a Marine approaches the situation is always the same.

So it’s no matter that they’ve taken up residence in the home of Russia’s once mighty Pacific Fleet. No big deal that they’re only a few hours’ drive from a nuclear submarine factory and the plant where the Black Shark attack helicopter is made. Was it perhaps a little frightening that the city was closed even to other Russians citizens until 1991? Nothing but journalistic fancy.

“It’s not strange, nor is it unique,” said Lubisher. “They’re a democracy just like we are. The unusual thing was that Vladivostok didn’t have Marines.”

The city’s Marines were supposed to be here when the American consulate opened in 1992. But the US government wasn’t ready to fund the posting.

As of Jan 17, however, Vladivostok got its detachment. The men based here are Marine Security Guards, a division that protects United States diplomatic and consular officials and government property in foreign countries. More than 1,000 Marines are stationed at 121 consular offices around the world. Vladivostok’s detachment is part of Company C, whose headquarters is in Bangkok, Thailand.

The Marines are only classified as military personnel while on United States government property. Though they have stocks of weapons and ammunition secured at the consulate, their job has little to do with standard military service.

“We don’t represent the military while we’re here,” Lubisher said. “We work for the State Department.”

Their appearance here also shows that the United States Consulate is on par with embassies and consulates around the world, said American Consul General Jane Miller Floyd. “The Marine Security Guards make me feel more permanent and formal as a diplomatic establishment,” she said.

“I welcome the addition of these fine representatives of the U.S. Marine Corps to Vladivostok. They add to the professional well being of the consulate community.”

The Marines’ most important duty is 24-hour protection of the consulate. They rotate on eight-hour shifts of guard duty, or “standing post.” One Marine remains in “Post One,” a booth protected behind bulletproof glass, while the other patrols the building. They arm themselves only with nightsticks.

When they aren’t standing post, their primary work is collateral duty. Sgt. Matthew Neal is an infantryman back home. While stationed in Twenty-Nine Palms, California, he ran through training exercises and defense tactics. In Vladivostok, he’s in charge of keeping the bar stocked.

And his only complaint he states in true Marine fashion. “It’s just a little harder to get things here than anywhere else,” he said.

Other Marines cover administrative duties or monitor supplies. Sgt. Sanderson Lenzey trained in the Marine Corps to operate heavy machinery like bucket loaders and cranes. His duty here, however, is publications, noting changes in directives and making sure that the other Marines are up on the latest orders from the Corps.

While not doing collateral duty, the Marines work out and study. The men, from ages 20 to 35, take correspondence courses on anything from “Marine nutrition” to refrigerator repair. They can enroll in college courses, and are expected to study world history and current affairs.

Though they live in a refurbished section of the Vlad Inn, near the Sanatornaya train stop, the Marines also come into the city and frequent nightclubs like Crazy and Stels. It’s an environment they all say they enjoy. “People have been really friendly to us,” Neal said. “And the women are gorgeous.”

Outside the consulate, they’re American citizens, not American soldiers, and are treated just like any other American, Lubisher said.

But going back to their residence, a sealed-off hall in the Vlad Inn, it is clear that the Marines are not just like any other Americans. The surroundings are plush compared to Russian standards. They have a wing sealed off in the building, and each Marine has his own bathroom and television.

Their lounge is filled with couches and a Marine Flag decorates the wall above an enormous television and stereo system. Nearby a refrigerator is packed with bottles of Coke and Sprite. No guests are allowed in the Marines’ individual rooms, and all visitors to the common area must be signed into a logbook. They even have an early morning curfew.

The biggest distinction between these Marines and their civilian counterparts, however, is the atmosphere the Marines foster with one another. They are proud to be opening a new post here, Lubisher said. But most of all, they are proud to represent in Vladivostok what they call the finest fighting force in the world.

“I’ve had a thousand people tell me, ‘I would have been a Marine, but...’” Lubisher said. “Well, I am a Marine.”