The dream trip is ended, and on this lazy Friday I am suffering from jet lag, but, for those who asked and for the sake of my journal, here's a recap:
Early am of February 9th, I was at the Portland airport, waiting to board the plane for Hawaii. On the Portland to Hawaii leg, I sat with a young father and his four-year old. The loving father of four was particularly tender with his little boy. On the Hawaii to Guam leg, I sat with a 20 something Guamanian girl and a little Guamanian seven year old who clued me in on life in Guam.
Ethan tells me he loves Plumeria Street where they live in Guam!! Well he should. Plumeria Street teems with kids, bikes, trikes, a few dogs, busy traffic, and a guard to keep all in order.
I certainly felt my mother's presence as I took in the beauty and aroma of the many beautiful blooming plants in Guam. These are, I believe, coleus in Marie's front lawn.
If you squint at the far left corner of the brown wall, you'll see a big cluster of green bananas!!
This hill is behind Marie's apartment, and I had the experience of climbing it a couple of times, chasing Ivan!!
Unlike the many varieties of palm trees we saw in California, these trees in Marie's backyard sport coconuts!
This was my greeting in Marie's dining room. "Hafa Adai," pronounced Half-a-day, is the welcome greeting in Guam. The joke is that mainlanders aren't sure if it's a greeting or a warning of how long one will be able to work in the hot sun of Guam. I had told Ethan to remind me to take a picture of this blackboard before I left, and, if you'll look closely in the bottom left hand corner, you'll see that he did just that!
Since there are so many Japanese tourists in Guam, most stores had bilingual signs.
I never could get a picture that really captured the color of the water in the bays and inlets in Guam. I think the color of the water is what gave birth to the term "aquamarine."
I read several accounts of the latte stones of Guam. Historians aren't sure of their use, but they are found all over the island. There are also many, many replicas as well. It is believed that the original stones were used as foundations for the Guamanian homes.
The history of Guam is greatly tied in with the affairs of the US during WWII; that's why it is a US possession today. Many bombing raids were launched from Guam to Japan and later to Viet nam. I'm not sure if Guam was ever bombed, but I assume so. This house looked like it had been bombed to me.
This picture was in the the area of Talafofo Falls. We drove all around a beautiful scenic area of Guam on a Sunday afternoon. Around the area of Talafofo Falls is a cave where a Japanese soldier by the name of Yokoi Soichi lived for 27 years. Soichi and two companions refused to surrender to the Americans and hid in the cave. Although the two companions died, Soichi kept himself alive and hidden until 1972!! He later became a popular television personality and advocate of frugal living, dying in 1997.
The buzz word in Guam is "boonie." Whenever someone wants to get rid of a car, he merely pushes it off to the side of the road and allows the jungle to swallow it. There are "boonie" dogs left abandoned by their owners who have been re-assigned to the mainland. "Boonie" homes were the saddest sight. Although the island is known as a resort island with huge resorts, casinos, massage parlors, girls who "look white," etc., there is great poverty as well. Some Guamanians live in "boonie houses that are plywood shacks, cardboard boxes, etc. I saw one "boonie" home which was an ancient rusted out boxcar with a brand new SUV parked in the driveway.
The main purpose of my visit was to visit with Marie's family, and I got in on several fun events. February is birthday month for Ben, Connor, and Ivan. There was also a special day for Girl Scouts for Harmony. I enjoyed so much all my time with the kids.
On my final day in Guam, we visited an open air market called the Chamarrow Village. What fun. We had been trying to spot an old man who walks his caribou along the main road in Guam every day, but never did spot him. However, we found this guy in the village. Connor really wanted me to try chicken on a stick. So, I did. I tried to get a picture of the imaginative hair do of the guy cooking our chicken. You can barely see him in the background.
Coconuts
Journey's over. Back in the Portland airport grinning for my sweetheart's too revealing camera. Wonderful time. Wonderful memories. Love You All, Mom
Early am of February 9th, I was at the Portland airport, waiting to board the plane for Hawaii. On the Portland to Hawaii leg, I sat with a young father and his four-year old. The loving father of four was particularly tender with his little boy. On the Hawaii to Guam leg, I sat with a 20 something Guamanian girl and a little Guamanian seven year old who clued me in on life in Guam.
Ethan tells me he loves Plumeria Street where they live in Guam!! Well he should. Plumeria Street teems with kids, bikes, trikes, a few dogs, busy traffic, and a guard to keep all in order.
I certainly felt my mother's presence as I took in the beauty and aroma of the many beautiful blooming plants in Guam. These are, I believe, coleus in Marie's front lawn.
If you squint at the far left corner of the brown wall, you'll see a big cluster of green bananas!!
This hill is behind Marie's apartment, and I had the experience of climbing it a couple of times, chasing Ivan!!
Unlike the many varieties of palm trees we saw in California, these trees in Marie's backyard sport coconuts!
This was my greeting in Marie's dining room. "Hafa Adai," pronounced Half-a-day, is the welcome greeting in Guam. The joke is that mainlanders aren't sure if it's a greeting or a warning of how long one will be able to work in the hot sun of Guam. I had told Ethan to remind me to take a picture of this blackboard before I left, and, if you'll look closely in the bottom left hand corner, you'll see that he did just that! 
Since there are so many Japanese tourists in Guam, most stores had bilingual signs.
I never could get a picture that really captured the color of the water in the bays and inlets in Guam. I think the color of the water is what gave birth to the term "aquamarine."
I read several accounts of the latte stones of Guam. Historians aren't sure of their use, but they are found all over the island. There are also many, many replicas as well. It is believed that the original stones were used as foundations for the Guamanian homes.
The history of Guam is greatly tied in with the affairs of the US during WWII; that's why it is a US possession today. Many bombing raids were launched from Guam to Japan and later to Viet nam. I'm not sure if Guam was ever bombed, but I assume so. This house looked like it had been bombed to me.
This picture was in the the area of Talafofo Falls. We drove all around a beautiful scenic area of Guam on a Sunday afternoon. Around the area of Talafofo Falls is a cave where a Japanese soldier by the name of Yokoi Soichi lived for 27 years. Soichi and two companions refused to surrender to the Americans and hid in the cave. Although the two companions died, Soichi kept himself alive and hidden until 1972!! He later became a popular television personality and advocate of frugal living, dying in 1997.
The buzz word in Guam is "boonie." Whenever someone wants to get rid of a car, he merely pushes it off to the side of the road and allows the jungle to swallow it. There are "boonie" dogs left abandoned by their owners who have been re-assigned to the mainland. "Boonie" homes were the saddest sight. Although the island is known as a resort island with huge resorts, casinos, massage parlors, girls who "look white," etc., there is great poverty as well. Some Guamanians live in "boonie houses that are plywood shacks, cardboard boxes, etc. I saw one "boonie" home which was an ancient rusted out boxcar with a brand new SUV parked in the driveway.
The main purpose of my visit was to visit with Marie's family, and I got in on several fun events. February is birthday month for Ben, Connor, and Ivan. There was also a special day for Girl Scouts for Harmony. I enjoyed so much all my time with the kids.
Coconuts
Journey's over. Back in the Portland airport grinning for my sweetheart's too revealing camera. Wonderful time. Wonderful memories. Love You All, Mom
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