Guam: A Photo Journal

Guam Memories

Field Trip's home for just over a month,  Hagåtña harbor.  Guam is a U.S. island territory located in Micronesia.  "Where America's Day Begins!" Also the home of a U.S. Naval Base, Andersen Airforce Base, U.S. Coastguard Sector, and National Guard.  Every morning at 8:00 a.m. we would hear the national anthem being played over the loudspeakers.  

Food First.

Guam was not in our original cruising plan, but when the kids found out
they had a Taco Bell there, the 4,000 miles we had to sail to get there didn't seem so far!
Taco Bell was literally our first meal in Guam.  Tostadas, burritos, and tacos - oh my!

Mark and I enjoyed a dinner out alone at Lone Star Steakhouse!  MMMmmmm - meat and potatoes!  It felt a bit odd to be surrounded by Asian tourists in such a hometown American establishment, but the steaks were fantastic and there was even country music on the radio!

The other 'must have' meal out was strawberry crepes at Village Inn!  Yes, our time in Guam fattened us up!  It feels strange to look back at all these restaurant photos now for two reasons:  1) friends and family back in the states probably don't get so excited about eating at these places.  It's been a while since I've seen someone posting their latest Dorito Taco encounter on Instagram, like never, and 2) Now that everyone is on lockdown or under stay-at-home orders and having to cook every single meal, this just seems like torture!  Wish I could hop in my car and pick up dinner!

Being Tourists

The stunning design of the Guam museum had an eerie feeling to it when we walked by during the solar eclipse.  In Guam, the indigenous Chamorro people have lived here for over 4,000 years.  The lands were taken over and ruled by the Spanish from 1668-1898.  Probably why Guam has a Taco Bell.

Two Lovers Point - A lookout over the cliffs where two lovers from quarreling families (Romeo and Juliet in Guam?) leapt to their deaths after their families refused to allow them to be together.  This statue was destroyed in a typhoon, and lay in a scrapyard for years until a romantic Guam businessman searched for its remains and had it restored and re-erected as a symbol of his love for his wife.

Thousands of lovers have commemorated their love here with personalized hearts - ah, how sweet (or 'super cheesy' according to Michael).

I wasn't sure whether this should go in the food section or the tourist section.  This iconic restaurant/bar/beachside hangout/tourist attraction was a fun stop on our tour of the island.  Mark and Elizabeth played a game of 'pig' on the basketball court, we bought a few drink cozies in the souvenir shop, browsed the collection of washed up artifacts, but the BEST part of this trip for me??  The fried pickles.  I might have to go back to Guam for their fried pickles.  The best I've ever had (and yes, I've tasted lots of fried pickles).

Beachside game of Pig

Checking out a display at one of the many history museums on Guam.  Michael always wanted to see the 'old bullets' and try to figure out which gun they came from.

Capturing a selfie with Nana at Talofofo Falls.

Reminiscent of our days in the ski slopes of Colorado, we rode the gondola out to see the falls.  It was a creaky ride, causing us all to wonder when they had last serviced the gears!  Yikes!

Field Trip's Christmas Present - New Engines!  

Our entire reason for making the 4,000 mile trek to Guam was to install new engines (no, not Taco Bell!).  A Volvo emissions recall had been announced, requiring Volvo to replace our 10-year old engines for free!!  The guys at Coral Reef Marine had never done this kind of replacement before, so they had to build a custom trolley to lift the old engines out, get it to the deck where a crane could lift them off the boat, and bring the new engines in.  

It was quite the undertaking.  But the guys were extremely careful and thorough in their planning and execution.

Shiny new engine in the bilge!  Merry Christmas, Field Trip!

So strange to see our engine hours at zero again!

Field Trip also got new solar panels and...

a fresh shampoo and...

a full belly!!

Natural Surrounds

Secluded beach - all to ourselves!  And this was BEFORE Covid-19!!

Exploring the lush beauty of the Guam National Wildlife Refuge with Nana.  After all the boat work, it was time to enjoy some time in the great outdoors!

Symmetrical perfection

Watching all the butterflies flutter around us!  Unfortunately, the reason for so many butterflies is the absence  of bird life.  Guam is struggling to bring back the bird population after it has been decimated after the introduction of the Brown Treesnake during WWII.  A new strategy involves dropping mice that have been packed with acetaminophen (discovered to be poison to these snakes) into the forests from helicopters.

Blue-banded King Crow Butterfly

Gorgeous views!

Volunteering

The animal shelter in Guam, GAIN, quickly became Elizabeth's second home.  She signed up on their website to volunteer a few days a week while we were there, but would've gone every single day if she could've!

Michael made a few furry friends, too!

One day they were giving the cats treats and just decided to hop in the enclosure and get up close and personal!  This experience only heightened Elizabeth's obsession with rescue dogs, dog behavior, and dog training.
Does she need a dog of her own, or what??!!  Now, just to convince the captain...