If you are an animal lover, Guam is a tough place to visit. The island is overrun with dogs they call boonies. These animals are wild and are derived from the dogs that have been left by their owners who for whatever reason didn’t take them when they left the island. These boonies are everywhere. Sadly, the shelters can’t handle and they all need to be spayed or neutered. If I were a rich woman I would gather as many of these precious babies as I could each day and have them fixed and fed. Imagine a dog in the rainy season and the hot summer season searching for food and shelter their entire lives. It is totally heartbreaking.
Many of us would love to live on a tropical island but the prices! MY WORD! Thankfully, my family lives on base and can shop there on the base. Off base is expensive. Base also doesn’t have everything all the time so you learn to live frugally for sure. My daughter is a pro at this, as we all know the military doesn’t pay premium dollar for sure. She has been pinching for years so this is already a way of life for them. Two big kiwi at the off base store were $17.99 and strawberries $12.99 for 18 berries! Insane for sure. My food mommy brain was working overtime trying to figure out how the locals were able to feed their families at all.
A small two bedroom, one bath house for sale, $465,000! I would have to squeeze four families in for that price. But the problem would be where everyone would stand because it would be wall to wall people. No sitting allowed and definitely no furniture. A lot of the houses looked very poor and I understand why. No one could afford to have shelter AND eat. It was one or the other on that choice scale.
Everyone, and I mean, EVERYONE was so nice. Not just Taylor’s friends but everyone on the island. The cashier at Kmart, waiters and waitresses, vendors at the market, all were friendly and accommodating. Haifa Adai is how you are greeted routinely. Everyone smiles and are without a doubt on “island time”. Laid back, Jimmy Buffet style….lol. I was greeted with hugs from so many people. Many could learn lessons and incorporate this into daily living. There were absolutely ZERO political signs nor talk there. It was as if I had stepped into heaven for sure.
Think of the Ross at Hamilton Place. Multiply that footprint by five and that is the size of the smallest Ross there. (There are three) Deals like crazy and more crowded than a first of the month weekend at Walmart. The checkout line continuously moves but is at least 1/4 mile long. I am NOT exaggerating. It was intimidating. No less than 20 registers running and with every cashier a smile! I felt like I was in a time warp.
Each gas station we passed, gas was $5.09. Not a single variation regardless of the location on the island. We discussed where you decide to get gas as you don’t frequent the “lowest” priced station. They stay within their village and support their local store. Ahhhh, the lessons we could learn.
Our Mexican food here in the south is more Tex-Mex. Guam’s is more Spanish. It’s all good to me so no complaints there for sure. The chips aren’t put on the table like they are here. They are more of a side dish on your plate. They are also thicker and heartier than chips here. I did see one downfall….PEPSI! Thankfully, carbonated drinks are no longer a problem for me.
There is no such thing as personal space. Me, being a single female, I always try to be aware of my surroundings and listen for my inner voice. I was quite uncomfortable a few times and my anxiety would start to get me. Taylor explained that the majority of those not respecting space were Japanese and they are so closed in and packed tight over there they don’t understand the concept of personal space. There is little crime there. They keep their hands to themselves and don’t take things that don’t belong to them. Again, more lessons.
The Asian population has that wonderfully, beautiful porcelain skin because they stay completely covered head to toe at the beach. We coined a new term…..sweggins…These are leggings they swim in. Not to mention the long sleeve shirt, light jacket, and hat with a brim wide enough to cover their shoulders. They were all together as families there too. They didn’t helicopter over their children either. Taylor said it isn’t unusual for them to just walk off and if the kids don’t follow they just don’t. I watched this first hand at the market. It was crazy to watch. We are so suspect of everyone here and they are so community oriented. They don’t worry about people hurting them or their kids.
If you don’t know what Calamansi juice is or Taro look it up. These are my two new favorite things. Calamansi juice is soooooo good. I’ve always been picky about food and drink and I promised myself I would try anything my kids suggested. My kids know what disgusts me on that front so I trusted them. I would be a Calamansi drunk I’m afraid and would gain ten tons eating taro pancakes. I thought the pancakes were blueberry but knew they tasted different than blueberries. I’m glad I was wrong. They were better than blueberry and I say that apprehensively because ya’ll know I love me some blues.
Many of my photos were from beach days. The most awesome thing about those days was each beach was different. Different sand, different color water, different atmosphere, I have some great sand, awesome sea glass and beautiful shells I brought back….illegally, but here I am calling myself out. I was telling my daughter that as beautiful as the water was ,it reminded me of Key West but different. If ever anyone visits the Keys I’m sure they had the same reaction as I. The first statement I made to my mama was “I know where they got the term ‘sea foam green’”. In Guam it is “sea foam blue”. It is where the color palette changes from just barely not green and barely not blue but amazingly beautiful.
We also have a National Park there at Guam. That was news to me but probably not to the my history buffs. I really was glad to get to tour the War in The Pacific National Park. I learned about the history of the war there and how those men fought hard to ensure the Chamorro people continued to thrive. Had they been left under Japanese rule at that time, it would have been a culture sadly lost. Thankfully, history has evolved and Japan is now an ally. Knowing the USA is there in the region working together with the Chamorros they can rest assured their culture will remain.
I understand why my daughter never wants to leave. I wouldn’t want to leave either. The trip is brutal on the body and I’m thankful I was physically able. Emotionally, well, that’s always a question in my world. LOL Twenty hours is a long span and crossing every time zone is daunting but I would do it again next week if I could. I am more appreciative of FaceTime every day and don’t know how long distance mamas did it before technology. Those were some strong women!
If ever the opportunity arises to visit Guam, jump at the chance. If you need a travel agent to help you along the way, my daughter is the go to girl! Palau is the next Micronesian region I would like to visit as I hear it is even more beautiful. I don’t think that possible and I may never see it but there is a goal. Actually, let’s look at going to Japan, Philippines, Australia, Bali, Indonesia, Europe……. The possibilities are endless!
