Chamorro Village is a night market with music, food, animals and local vendors. During the day there are a few restaurants open, but only on Wednesday evenings does the real fun take place. I’ve heard that it’s also open on Friday evenings but every time I’ve tried to go on a Friday, it hasn’t been opened. Recently it has been extremely overcrowded, which hasn’t really made my experience too fun. It’s so crowded and hard to walk, there’s no place to sit and eat and you have to wait in line to do/see anything. Aside from that, it’s a nice place to go maybe once a month and enjoy the music and food!

Locally owned businesses serve food, drinks, sell crafts and souvenirs. You can ride a carabao, drink from a coconut, watch traditional Polynesian dancers, dance the Chamorro cha-cha and hold coconut crabs, snakes and monitor lizards! My dad would LOVE this place because he loves dancing.  Every time I’ve gone to watch the band play, there has been an older man dressed similar to Elvis. He usually wears a red shirt that says, “Thank you Elvis” written in sloppy writing on his back. He and his dancing partner are quite popular with the tourists and very fun to watch dancing.

I go for the food honestly! It’s delicious! I always get a few BBQ chicken sticks, red rice and a rice ball or two. Also, the fruit slushy drinks are AMAZING and the flavored popcorn is good too. The last time I went I tried something called a Latiya (pronounced Lateeza), which is a cake with pudding on top sprinkled with cinnamon. It’s very, very good!! As I mentioned it is crowded so I just go to whichever food stand has the shortest line. This week I decided to see why so many people wait in the LONG line for food. Sometimes the line is so long it wraps around the building. Anyway, I ordered the Fiesta Plate (in Spanish that means Party Plate) which is the standard Chamorro food plate. This was enough for Peter and I to share. It came with red rice, BBQ chicken on a stick, BBQ pork on a stick, pancit, some fried shrimp thing and fina’ denne. I soon realized why the lines are long and why people don’t mind waiting. The food tastes SO much better! Better pieces of meat, better tasting and all for the same price. So just wait in line and you will be happy!

I don’t know about the rest of the world, but Guamanians really love their choreographed dances. At any party, including Chamorro Village, you will here The Cupid Shuffle, Wobble or any other song that has a dance to go with it. People of ALL ages know the dances. Most of these I had no idea came with dance routines ha! One of my favorite things to do is watch the dancers old and young!

If you visit:

Bring cash!

Most souvenirs are overpriced like the swimsuit coverups and some of the jewelry. 

It's in Agana near the baseball field

YOU MUST EAT EVERYTHING!

What kind of Guamanian blogger would I be if I didn’t write about Two Lover’s Point? A very popular  tourist attraction, the story behind Two Lover’s Point is Guam’s own version of Romeo & Juliet. It’s a story about two young lovers whose parents try to keep them apart, so at an attempt to stay together for eternity, they jump off the cliff at Two Lover’s Point. The story is romantically crazy and looking out over the cliff, where the lovers were supposed to have jumped from, gives me chills!

I’ve been to this park a few times, but I never actually went up to the viewpoint. There is an entrance fee of $3, or $2 if you have a local I.D.  Finally, we  decided to go up to the viewpoint! We chose a clear day, just before sunset. As you walk around the park and up to the viewpoint, there are HUNDREDS of locks attached to the fences and some parts of the rock that the viewpoint sits on. There was a large group of tourists waiting for the sunset when we arrived. I’ve never been disappointed with a sunset on Guam. I think we have the most beautiful sunsets I’ve ever seen! Even though I live here, they still put me in awe and make me thankful for having the opportunity to experience this life!As we watched the sun go down, it was very dramatic and wonderful. “Another day down,” Peter and I always say as we say goodbye to another day on Guam and welcome another day of us being together.

As I was looking out over toward the sunset, I noticed to the left there is a chapel right on the cliff and below that, a CAVE! I think we are planning on exploring this cave sometime…

The park closes at 7:00pm, so on our way out we found a good place to attach our lock to. It is a tradition to put a lock on the fence with a message to your loved one. I’m sure someday we’ll come back to check on our lock.

Finally, we rang the bell for love and headed out.

But not before we stopped to look down this HUGE natural hole. I have no idea what’s up with these, but throughout Guam there are various sizes of these holes. I’ve asked the park person what is it and what caused it and he had no clue what I was talking about. I’m not sure if it is connected to the cave, but it seemed to be. Anyway, that’s a mystery I will hopefully have solved soon!

You know those days you have when you want something sweet but you’re not sure what? Well here you go and you’re welcome.

One day my friend said to me, “Let’s go to Mt. Lam Lam for lunch.” Thinking she was talking about the actual mountain called Lam Lam that I hiked on Thanksgiving, I was thinking she was nuts. Then she started laughing, probably because of the confused look on my face, and said not the mountain the ice cream store! Relieved, I agreed. So let me just say that as you should know by now, Guam is expensive and to find a place that sells delicious treats at an affordable price is a miracle. My favorite treat is the GMH (Guam Memorial Hospital) which consists of your choice of ice cream, brownies (LOTS OF BROWNIES), hot fudge, nuts and sprinkles. It is incredibly sweet and all that goodness for only $3.00!! Wooohooo! You can also get their more famous snow cone with ice cream in the middle! Their prices range from $2-5 and everything is super duper good!

How to get there:

If you’re coming from the South, go North on Marine Corps Drive past Micronesia Mall and turn left across from Bank Pacific and Taco Bell. Veer left (not down the street to the skate park) go up to Santa Barbara church/school and it will be on the left hand side. Very small parking lot.

Guam’s skies at night are possibly the most beautiful skies I’ve ever seen. The bright stars caught my eye when I first arrived. For months, I followed Venus which was passing through the sky and would pass in front of the sun, something that won’t happen again for over a hundred years. We even built a special apparatus to help us look at the sun without damaging our eyes, hmm that didn’t work too well. I have never seen more shooting stars than I have in Guam, and boy do I need those wishes! I look up at the sky and wonder what those bright stars/planets are. I even see tons of satellites passing by quickly, wondering when they will pass my loved ones in Oregon.

As usual, I was reading the star lady’s column in the Marianas Variety newspaper. This time, she had some sad news. The planetarium, which she runs, would be closing in the spring time. Why? Because the University of Guam needed the space and didn’t see how it fit in with their curriculum. Understandable, but a bad decision. If you’ve ever been to UOG, it looks a bit depressing and run down. I had thought about going to graduate school until I saw the campus and lack of programs. The only thing that brought me to the campus was the planetarium. I’m sure this is how many people living on Guam are introduced to UOG, through the planetarium . When I heard the news, I decided it was time to take a trip to the planetarium. Apparently I wasn’t the only one who felt this way because the planetarium had reached full capacity (75 people) and there were more people who had to be turned away.

Pam Eastlick, often referred to as The Star Lady, was very stern when we walked in. It felt as though I was back in middle school. “Find a seat, but don’t sit in the aisle because I need to walk through! Turn off your phones! There’s no more room! Quiet down!” Th planetarium is a regular college-sized classroom with steps instead of seats. You have to lie down somehow on the steps to look up into the sky. Once she turned off the lights and started the prerecorded tape, the guide through outer space began. So much information to take but my questions had been answered. Every evening when I look up into the sky I see a bright start, which is actually the planet Jupiter. I also see a flashing star which is Sirius and it flashes because of the ocean water and humidity that makes it look like it’s flashing different colors from Guam. I also found Orion’s belt!

After that, The Star Lady met us outside where she answered our questions about the sky and pointed out planets and stars. There were so many children who genuinely seemed enthused and in awe by the sky and what they had just learned.

I hope that they don’t close the planetarium. I hope that they don’t move it and if they do that there is a plan in place to move it immediately and not put it off. What a travesty it would be for Guam to lose it’s planetarium. The closest planetarium is 1500 miles away! Few things in Guam are affordable, let alone free. So why would the University get rid of this planetarium? It brings students and non students to the campus and Guam’s skies are PERFECT star gazing skies.

Even if you haven’t been to Guam, please send a friendly email to  cmoore@uguam.uog.org and jmacapinlac@uguam.uog.org  and let them know that UOG NEEDS this planetarium

Thank you! Oh and please visit the planetarium if you are on Guam.

My birthday celebration began the night before my birthday with the bowling team! They surprised me with a cake so nice of them!

Peter had been planning my birthday for a few weeks and woke me up early on my birthday. I had a mountain of presents sent from my family! (Thank you <3)

After I tore through the gifts, he told me to get dressed for the beach and so I did. Of course I tried to persuade him to tell me what we were doing but that didn’t work.

First stop, a quick breakfast and then a car ride to pick up my fruit basket that Peter surprised me with! It had tons of fruit covered in chocolate and vanilla with sprinkles. It was a very sweet (literally) surprise but I had to carry the basket around with me all day and most of it melted

Next, we were on the road again to the Agat marina! When I saw the boats waiting for their passengers I became so excited!

Are we going on one of these?

Peter said yes and that I would have my own private boat ride to dolphin watch!!!!!! I have wanted to see dolphins since I moved to Guam! This was really a dream come true!

So we hopped on the boat and headed out toward Coco’s Island to find some false killer whale dolphins! The ride was long but SO worth it! I FINALLY saw dolphins. They didn’t really come out of the water too much and their noses/mouths were rounded, not the typical looking dolphin I’ve seen on T.V. Nevertheless I was so happy!

After awhile we turned the boat around and headed back to the marina. That’s when the captain said, “Time for para sailing!” I clearly remember telling Peter that  I had no interest in ever para sailing before this. I was scared. Mostly scared of the water and the animals in the water. I didn’t want to do it, my hands began to sweat and I thought I was going to cry! Of course, they all encouraged me and said I’d be okay so I did it!!!

It was just as scary as I thought it would be…

Thankfully my captain was GREAT and he let me control how high I wanted to go. The wind in Guam isn’t constant, it’s more like huge gusts and then nothing. So this made the ride a little wild, especially for a first timer like me!

The captain also made sure to land me ON the boat and not in the  water! It was sure an adventure and something to cross off my bucket list! I would SO do it again as long as I landed on the boat. I don’t know why I have a fear of sea creatures and sea weed…yes it’s weird.

After that, Peter and I were both a little sea sick so we waited on another boat for our next tour!

This one included more dolphin watching, this time the dolphins were the cute ones that I wanted to see! They came so close to the boat and looked so happy. I even saw one of them do a back flip. I couldn’t believe my eyes. We found these dolphins down in the canal near Merizo and in between Coco’s Island! There was a huge dolphin pod and even little baby dolphins. It was magical and brought a tear to my eyes. I’m pretty sure if you’re lucky and you head down to Coco’s Island you could see dolphins too! They weren’t too far from the shore either, which surprised me.

I’m so thankful and happy that I was able to go on this trip. I will never forget my birthday!

After my final dolphin watching experience, we rode the boat to a part of the ocean that was good for snorkeling. It had tons of colorful fish. We stopped for about an hour and had some fun!

After my long but eventful day, we headed home to rest! Later that evening, Peter took me to Table 35 for my birthday dinner!

  Thank you sooo much for a wonderful  day and a birthday I’ll never forget!

Other than planning for the trip, I’ve been trying to get settled in my lovely new apartment! It is on the 3rd floor so it’s hotter and was a pain to bring all the boxes up, but it’s slowly becoming a home. We’ve put up pictures of our families, we bought a bed and Peter is building a vanity for me! We also have a swimming pool now which is very nice, even though we are still walking distance to the beach. Our landlord is so much more helpful than the last and he says we remind him of himself and his wife when they were first starting out.

I’m soooo happy about where we are in our lives <3

Since our last hike to Sella Bay, we decided to take a break and let our mosquito bites heal. Somehow I always end up with cuts and bruises, in addition to bug bites. I’m just about better, just in time for our trip! In the last couple of weeks we went to the Kool & the Gang concert, had drinks and listened to music at Outrigger hotel (very good place to go on a date), we went out for Mexican food at Caliente (my favorite place to eat Mexican food on Guam) and have been adjusting to a new work schedule that requires Peter to be up at 5am. We’ve also been trying to fight off the ants around our apartment. I don’t really want to use Raid in the kitchen and I know I heard there was a way to use vinegar (I think) to get rid of the ants, but I haven’t tried that yet. Guam life has been normal, except for the weather which has been a bit crazy. At the moment there is a tropical disturbance near us so it’s been dark and rainy all day.

Other than missing my family and friends, life is good and I have nothing to complain about.

Oh and in case you were wondering, we found a home for the little kitten!

If you’re ever in Tumon and you’re craving something sweet, you should check out Godiva near Underwater World. I stopped by one evening with Peter and we ordered chocolates and drinks! I had an amazing white chocolate & raspberry drink while Peter had a chocolate drink. Mine was better of course! We also ordered an array of chocolates to bring home with us. It is a little pricey, but it’s worth a try. 

After an extremely unhealthy Burger King breakfast, we headed south to the viewpoint where the trail to Sella Bay begins. This trail is across the road from the trail to Mount Lam Lam. The hike to and from Sella Bay, in my opinion, was VERY easy. Peter said he thought it was harder than Mount Lam Lam and Ague Cove, but I completely disagree! This is a good hike for people of all ages. The ground is mostly red dirt/clay and a short patch of mud.

It is VERY easy to get lost on this hike. YOU MUST follow the pink (sometimes white or orange) flags placed on trees by previous hikers. This is important or you WILL get lost and possibly hurt. There are sudden drops hidden by tall grass and at any wrong step you could fall over the edge. I’m writing “trail” but actually there isn’t a trail at all. There are lots of spaces in the dirt that look like they could be trails, but aren’t. Again I stress the importance of following the flags.

The terrain and open space reminded me of the Owyhee desert in Eastern Oregon, where I spent my time hiking with my dad. Eventually we came to a small creek which we had to walk through to  continue on the trail. As we got closer to the bay, our surroundings turned into jungle until we reached a large area of mud. Due to the forest of palm trees, it was very dark and cool. The mud and shade also made the perfect breeding ground for the killer mosquitoes that attacked us. Finally Peter said, “Look you can see the bridge from here.” As I carefully dodged the fallen branches and coconuts, looking across the creek that now turned into a river pouring into the ocean, I saw it! The old Spanish bridge that MUST be at least a few hundred years old. Overgrown plants and moss covered the bridge and through the other side I could see the bay. It was so magical!

When we crossed the bridge we found a perfect spot to leave our things, undressed and splashed into the water! The waves were rough and the ocean floor wasn’t the nice soft sand we’re used to. We sat in the water for a bit and enjoyed the warmth compared to the cool water in the creek, then we continued exploring the beach. Unfortunately we got caught in one of those crazy, Guam rain storms that lasted for about 30 minutes. We were soaked! Peter used his machete to cut a few palms that gave us some cover from the rain and protected our gear. Once the rain stopped we packed up and headed back up. But before we left on the far end of the shore we saw a giant white bird. We tried to walk closer to it but it flew away. We were too far to see what it was but it was pretty big.

Despite the weather, I enjoyed myself. There are small pools of water that are home to baby fish and really interesting sea life that I’ve never seen before. There are tons of crabs, all sizes, everywhere! It’s a very secluded, quiet and clean beach. I hope to go back one day when the weather is nicer and maybe do some snorkelling

I hope you all had a wonderful Labor Day weekend! This is what I did on Monday to celebrate and enjoy my day off from work.

The past month Guam has been experiencing some heavy rain and thunderstorms so I haven’t been able to spend too much time outdoors. On Sunday the storm seemed to get worse with loud thunder and heavy rain again. I was hoping for some sun on Monday, but I had no idea what I would wake up to. When Monday arrived, the sun was shining through my blinds and it seemed as though the storm from the night before was just a dream…a bad dream.  Immediately I dressed for hiking and knew exactly where I wanted to go. I packed some snacks, lunch, camera and bug spray and hopped on the scooter. We drove to the village of Mangilao, down a dead end residential road, passed between two large cement boulders, through some bushes and parked in a very secluded parking lot. Here we began our journey down the 256 steps to Tagu’an Point (also known as 1000 steps).

Much like the rest of Guam, this park looked like there was a lot of effort put into it to make it accessible but then forgotten about. There is a large parking lot, steps, trails, benches and picnic tables. The only thing missing…a road that leads to the parking lot.

We headed down the trail, under mystical looking canopies of palm trees and various shrubs and bushes. The heat from the sun was blocked out by all the trees in the jungle. There were so many lizards and crabs and probably monitor lizards hiding around us. We hit the first set of stairs which then turned into a slippery pavement (thus the name of this blog post). We walked slowly because of the slippery pavement and the massive cobwebs surrounding the path. Finally, we reached the last set of stairs which had the best view of the ocean and jungle. The hike was roughly 1.25 miles and the only hard part was the heat/humidity.

As soon as we took the last step, the entire landscape changed. It almost looked like we were back in Oregon, with what looked like pine needles scattered all over the ground. There were some really interesting leafy, green plants that I wish I knew the name of (if you know the names of any of the plants in the pictures, please let me know). In the middle of the path there was this oddly-shaped tree stump, which formed a perfect seat. After the last “pine tree,” we reached the large coral formations and found a nice, flat spot to sit on. On good days like Monday, you’re able to snorkel and swim around on the ledges that formed along the shore. I don’t know how to explain it, but it really is amazing and I wonder how these platforms are made. The water is very shallow, but there isn’t a reef to break the waves so swimming can be dangerous.

After awhile the sun became unbearable and we ended our hike. Of course the hike back up the 256 steps was hard!

I’ve been craving beach time a lot lately, so we loaded up the car and drove on that beat up road to Ritidian Beach again. There was a giant, ominous cloud drifting over the island. Being optimistic, I thought it might just pass us without a threat to our beach day. Half way through the drive the rain poured and didn’t stop for about 1 ½ hours. We waited in the car until the humidity was so intense that we were drenched in sweat. So we ran, umbrella in hand, to a shelter outside. Then the thunder and lightening began and we thought it would be safer in the car! The thunder was so strong that it shook the car! The rain slowed and we couldn’t take the humidity in the car anymore so we took a walk on the beach. As usual, once the storm passed it turned out to be another beautiful day on Guam. During our walk on the beach, we gathered shells and then decided to jump in the warm water. Ritidian really is a beautiful beach. The sand is also different than any other beach I’ve visited on Guam. If you were curious about the weather in Guam, this is a perfect example of what the rainy season is like. I think it rained in one day what it would rain in one month back in Oregon. It will just pour down, seemingly out of nowhere, and then suddenly clear up and the sun will shine again. As you can imagine, the heat and rain combined make for a HUMID day!

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I’m very excited about this post because it has been the best outdoor excursion I’ve done since I’ve been in Guam. Peter and I decided to take a scooter trip around the island looking for this place called Ague Cove. We found the entrance, which is near the Naval Base in Dededo. Unfortunately, the property belongs to a family in Guam and they decided to close it off to the public! A few days later I was reading the newspaper and saw that the Guam Boonie Stomp group would be holding a boonie stomp to AGUE COVE in two weeks!!! What luck! The Guam Boonie Stompers are a group of people who gather on Saturday mornings around 9:oo to go on all sorts of hikes throughout Guam. The cost is $2 and you can find out more information about future hikes on their Facebook page. If you’re interested in going on a Boonie Stomp, I highly suggest it. This one was a clean up stomp so before we left we scoured the area for trash.

I’d cut out the advertisement in the newspaper about this hike. It said what we needed to bring (snorkel gear, swmsuits, lunch, hiking shoes…). Saturday morning came and we were off! There were about 55 hikers total who met at Chamorro Village in Hagatna. We paid our dues, got driving directions and met at the trail. Thankfully, the property owner gave permission to the Boonie Stompers and opened the road so we could hike that day.

The hike is about a 200ft. descent to the cove. There were red ribbons to guide the way through the thick jungle. The shade from the trees protected us from the heat and the humidity, on this day, was manageable. The hike down wasn’t bad at all, it might have taken about 20 minutes, the hike up was a different story! It is a very steep climb down so if you go on a day when it has been raining, you might have some issues with mud and sliding. When we reached the bottom it was like an oasis or a beautiful scene from a movie. Another unreal moment for me. The color of the water was beautiful, massive coral formations jutted out from the side of the hill we’d climbed down from and formed a perfect cliff to dive from. On the other side of the cove was a rope for swinging into the water. We wasted no time and began exploring the serene area.

When we were ready to swim the water was surprisingly cool and took some time for us to get used to. There are freshwater springs that mix with the ocean water; thus, the cool temperature. There were so many small, bright blue fish everywhere. Peter and I took turns jumping from the rope into the water. It was hard to see anything when we were snorkeling because it was a bit cloudy, probably due to all the people splashing around. We ventured out near the reef line where the waves crashed against some rocks and I spotted some really bright fish. Peter put the snorkel gear on, leaned his body across the rocks and stuck his head in the water. He looked really funny. When he popped back up he said, “That’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.” He couldn’t stop talking about the huge bright fish in that deep pool of water. We splashed around some more near the waves and headed back.

The Boonie Stomp leader showed us the way to a small cave where there were old Chamorro drawings along the walls. We took photos and Peter tried to see if he could fit into a hole (of course!) then headed back down. There is a lot of sharp coral that we had to climb through. It’s very dangerous and painful if it cuts. After that, we packed up and climbed up the hill, which was a struggle for me! I want to go back again! I hope someday Ague Cove is reopened to the public; although, it was very clean and beautiful I think it might be better that it’s closed so that its beauty can be maintained.

There were even games, like the one Peter played where he had to choose a crab and make him get to the end of a maze by pushing him with a large leaf.

There were so many beautiful flowers for sale. I really like the colors of tropical flowers. I also watched a few of the cultural dance performances  Chamorro culture is VERY similar to that of Mexican culture, which makes sense because both have been heavily influenced by the Spanish.

It was a beautiful day and a lot of fun. We even made it in the local newspaper!

Even better than bananas…mangoes! The next festival I went to was the mango festival in Agat. This one seemed more organized and had a much larger attendance. They crowned the mango queen, had a mango competition and other entertainment. I had a rice ball and a pineapple slush drink, both were delicious. The sweet rice ball has a strange texture and is quite sticky. I also bought some coconut oil from a local vendor which smells incredibly good. Even better was the location of the festival. The sunset was amazing and breathtaking. Sometimes I forget where I am.

My favorite part about the carnival is the FOOD! One afternoon, I had a craving for Chamorro food so we went to the carnival where I had a plate full of BBQ chicken, salad, red rice & finadene, and an extra long fried lumpia. I also had a four season slush drink. Just writing about it makes me super hungry! I’m surprised Guamanians aren’t  obese because the food here is all fried and delicious! We also ate a large funnel cake smothered in chocolate sauce!! Are you hungry yet?

The games are fun; although, some are a bit expensive especially if you have small children who want to play over and over. A few attractions I found interesting were the Zorb and the paintball shooting range.  I didn’t try the Zorb, but it looked really fun. If I ever want to feel what a gerbil feels running on the wheel, I might try it. I did shoot at the paintball shooting range where I did pretty well and won a prize. I enjoy shooting and when I was in Oregon I’d shoot with a rifle, so this paintball thing was fun.

Overall the carnival is rather small, and if you’re comparing it to the carnivals/fairs in The States then you might be disappointed. I will probably go a few more times before it leaves. Weekends are the WORST time to go because of the crowds, but during the week it’s much better.

Liberation Day Video I uploaded a short video of the carnival on the weekend. This video was taken on a weekend so you can see all the people. You can also see that most of the rides are for kids and some of them look homemade or just put together unprofessionally. I really enjoyed the few times I went there and the food and music is superb!

(sorry for the poor quality, camera broke!)

Cocos Island Resort is a day resort that offers quiet beaches, water activities and lounging. The price for locals and military is $25 and includes the boat ride and buffet. All other people are expected to pay $45 for JUST the boat ride. I think that’s ridiculous! So, if you know someone with a military or local ID, bring them with you! We caught the 11:15 am boat and off we went!

As we approached Cocos Island all I could hear were TONS of birds. Due to the abundant Brown Tree Snake population, we don’t have too many birds on Guam. Seems as though they all fled to Cocos Island. If you’ve ever watched Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds, it reminded me a lot of that. We continued walking down the long bridge to the entrance.

Here, there’s a building where you can purchase tickets for the buffet, snack bar and usage of beach toys. You can’t pay for things with money, you must purchase tickets.

Since the buffet came with our ticket and it closed at 2:00pm, we made a beeline straight for it. The buffet was basic. Water or tea, salad, curry, rice, fried lumpia, fruits…not bad!

After lunch we took a walk to look at the birds and pool. We didn’t use the swimming pool, we snorkeled and swam in the beach instead. As I said before, there were many birds which caused the entire place to smell really bad! The humid air and bird smell combination was horrid! We had to be very careful because of the bird poop that was falling out of the sky. There were some really pretty white birds amongst all the black birds and quite a few Coco birds. In addition to the free flying birds, there were some tropical caged birds including a VERY loud peacock!

While snorkeling, we saw a few Balati (sea cucumbers), possibly the biggest one I’ve ever seen, and a large needlefish (which I call a sword fish in the video). I was so scared when I saw the needlefish because it was the largest one I’ve ever seen and it was swimming very close to us. They usually swim near the surface of the water and in the past I’ve only seen small ones that would swim away quickly when I moved. But THIS needlefish just gave us the side eye and did not swim away. I think this is a really good place for snorkeling and probably diving. I also read that there’s an old sunken Spanish ship just off the island!

The downside to Cocos Island Resort is that it looks a bit run down and if the ridiculously priced ticket isn’t enough, visitors are expected to pay for using the umbrellas, CHAIRS and pretty much every single thing. I think some of the basic things like beach chairs and umbrellas should have been free. So we found a dirty table and used that instead. Thank goodness we brought our own snorkel gear or we’d have to pay $20 per person!

As we were putting our stuff away and getting ready for our walk, I noticed something small and fluffy sitting on a broken tree stump. It was this cute little baby bird! I have no idea where it came from or what it was doing there, but Peter fell in love with it and so did I! We made sure not to touch it and just left it where it was.

After our swim, we took a walk down a trail to the other side of the island where the waves crashed close to us because there wasn’t a reef to break the waves. We continued on the trail and got stuck in a sudden downpour of rain. It was so beautiful and I loved how the rain and birds sounded together. We hid under a large tree until we decided to just run for it and headed back to the resort! While we were drying off we played a couple games of dominoes and decided to call it a day.

But before we left…

We just had to see the little bird who was drenched after the rain!

In addition to the bridge there’s a mermaid statue next to it that represents one of Guam’s many legends. The story of the Sirena (Mermaid) is that she was once a young girl who loved to be near or in the water. One day her mother was looking for her but couldn’t find her. The mother knew that the daughter was down by the river and in a usual motherly way, she cursed her daughter and said she might as well be a fish. Not knowing that her curse had come true, the mother never saw her daughter again because the daughter turned into a half girl half fish creature. Some people have said that they have seen her in the river.

After visiting the San Antonio Bridge and seeing all the pretty tropical flowers and learning a little more about Guam’s history, I walked to the park next to the large cathedral. The Plaza de España has many histories to it. First the Spanish built structures and after WWII, when the Americans took over, much of it was destroyed. Only a few structures are left. As you can see in the pictures there is a small white structure with the typical Spanish red roof. This was known as the Chocolate House, which is where the Spanish would have their afternoon cup of hot chocolate. Within this structure were two Spanish plaques that I couldn’t believe were just left out in the open! I was both in awe and disappointed with the park. It always makes me sad when historical things are forgotten and left to rot. I can see so much potential in this park if only it was better taken care of. I just hope that someone steps up and tries to salvage what’s left of this magnificent park before it’s too late!

This is a nice place to visit in the late afternoon-evening because it can be very hot outside and you might get to catch the sun setting across the ocean. Both parks are within walking distance of each other and provide a lot of good information regarding Guam’s history. A Must See!

Here are the pictures of my near death experience (just kidding of course). I don’t understand why Peter looks refreshed and didn’t even break out into a sweat??

Anyway, if you’re in Tumon, Osaka Mart rents bikes for $7.00 for 6 hours. Check it out! Osaka Mart is also home to the cat on a leash

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To get to the rest of the park, we had to cross a suspension bridge which led to the top of the falls and the museum. Don’t expect to be moved by a wealth of knowledge, the museum looked like it was put together by a middle school student for a class project. It did have air conditioning, which was much needed after the walk through the jungle. I found the “Legend of Chamorro” to be nice and further into the jungle was the story of Yokoi Shoichi, the Japanese soldier from WW2 who hid in the jungle for 28 years!

If you’re not too impressed with waterfalls or you’ve already seen beautiful waterfalls, I’d say skip this adventure. The cable car ride was worth it to me because of the view.

Finally, we ended the day visiting another small park called “Love Land,” which we thought was just going to be a park full of pretty flowers. It wasn’t until AFTER I’d walked through it did I realize why all the signs said, “19 and older only.”  To our surprise “Love Land” turned out to be a pornographic statue park! Oddly, “Love Land” was randomly placed right next to a children’s theme park.