Some Shopping Options on Guam

Macy's at the Mall of Micronesia

by Pa Rock
Globetrotter


Here are just a few stores on Guam.  Macy's is the anchor store for the Mall of Micronesia.  The Base Exchange at Andersen Air Force Base is quite small compared to the one on Kadena Air Base.  The two little markets are typical of Guamanian mini-marts.  Anything the shopper wants or needs can probably be found somewhere on Guam!

Another entrance.  The day was beautiful!

Base Exchange at Andersen Air Force Base.
The cars on the sidewalk are part of the Military New Car
Sales Program

Kathy's Mini-Mart - where we stopped for gas

Another market with plenty of advertising!

Micronesian Nights

by Pa Rock

Dancers encouraging the audience to clap along with
their music

Globetrotter


We stayed at the Hilton Hotel on Tumon Bay.  The night after our drive around the island, I went out onto large patio by the bay to do some blogging and have dinner.  Surprisingly and pleasurably, there was an island dance show for entertainment.  I snapped just a few pictures.

It was a beautiful night.

Telling a story in dance

More of the dance

And still more

A palm in the moonlight.   The lights in
the distance are across Tumon Bay.

Jeff's Pirate Cove

A great place to buy pirate paraphernalia!

by Pa Rock
Globetrotter


Our final stop on the drive around Guam was at Jeff's Pirate Cove. a large commercial activity run by a man (Jeff) who wears an eye-patch.  Jeff's has a cafe, gift shop, beach access, a place where youngsters can play putt-putt golf, and (on this occasion) a live band.  Things were rockin' at Jeff's Pirate Cove!

After leaving Jeff's, we headed back to the hotel.

The band getting tuned up

Dining outdoors by the sea

Little kids puttering around at golf

The indoor dining area

Plenty of ways to pose

Part of Jeff's ambiance!

The Beach at Inarajan

He flies through the air...

by Pa Rock
Globetrotter


As Valerie and I continued our drive around the southern coast of Guam, we came to the beach at Inarajan, an idyllic spot that we had discovered during our first visit to the small island over Thanksgiving.  This holiday weekend, Memorial Day, was warmer, and consequently there were  more people making use of the beach.

Valerie immediately discovered a mangy and obviously mistreated one-eyed dog, and being the softie for animals that she is, she marched across the street to the Inarajan Market and bought the poor mongrel a bag of dried dog food which she and several G.I.'s began to feed to the skittish creature.

This kid was an amazing diver!

One of the things that I enjoyed at the beach that afternoon was watching some Chamorro kids who were jumping and diving from a cement platform into the blue waters below.  I managed to get two good shots of one young man, somewhere around the age of fourteen, as he showed off his diving abilities.

The day continued to be sunny and pleasant.

A peaceful afternoon

The market at Inarajan

The stray eats the food that Valerie provided

A young G.I. tries to get close to the dog

This young lady kept buzzing the beach on her motorbike

Fort Nuestra de la Soledad

Welcome to Fort Soledad!

by Pa Rock
Globetrotter


After leaving Big John and Bessie to tend to the smaller tourists, we walked on up the hill to the remains of Fort Soledad, an old Spanish outpost overlooking the blue Pacific.  Not much remains of the old fort, just a low wall or two, a couple of enclosures for guards, and three cannons pointing out to sea.  While there is not much left of the fort, the views across the bay and out to sea were magnificent.

Enjoy the day, as we did!

A Catholic church across the bay

A stone walk winding through the grounds of the fort

A brief history of Fort Soledad

One of the few structures remaining
at the fort

Cannons stand ready to defend the fort

A view back from the cannons

Insignia on one of the cannons

A basement or cellar

A section of the fort's foundation

Valerie walking the wall

Another view of the bay

A room with a view!

Big John and Bessie

Pa Rock, Big John, and Bessie

by Pa Rock
Cowboy


We pulled off of the highway to visit what remains of an old Spanish fort that we had missed on our first tour of Guam.  The fort sits on a promontory that hangs out over the Pacific Ocean, but the grounds also include a large, open park that leads up to the fort.   Many locals and a few Americans were at the park enjoying the holiday weekend.

Valerie goes for a little ride

One local Chamorro gentleman, Big John, was at the park with four water buffaloes, three adults and a calf.  He was entertaining on-lookers by letting them sit on his main bovine, Bessie.  Some of the buffalo riders were quite young, while others weren't.

As we arrived at the park and got out of our borrowed car, Valerie set off in a beeline for the water buffaloes and I followed dutifully behind.  As we neared Big John, she began to ask quite loudly, "Can he sit on it?"  Meaning me.  "Can he sit on it?"

Get me off of this water buffalo!

Although I was more than adequately reluctant, Big John easily got me onto his critter.  After leading me around for awhile, it was Valerie's turn.   Her sense of humor quickly faded as she got seated on Bessie.  Later Big John showed Valerie how to feed Bessie mangoes - mouth-to-mouth!

Okinawa just doesn't have this level of culture!

Guess which one dropped the mango!

Okay, how do you start her up?

Water buffalo calf

Another water buffalo - without the nose ring

Giddyup!

The Hills of Southern Guam

by Pa Rock
Globe Trotter


The continuation of the trip south during our first full day back on Guam took us through several rain downpours, though most were brief in duration.  The rain did make the greenery of southern Guam look all that much greener, however, and I focused my camera inland to capture the beauty of the hills of southern Guam.  It was a very  pleasant afternoon for a ride through the rural countryside.

A house in the distance

A bit of a bloom

Rotting mangoes

A recently deceased frog on the pavement

The road goes on

A country lane

Large cross marking the sight of the first Catholic Church
in Guam