Guam Day 2 - A little history and V-day

I am a day behind on this post, between jet lag and just getting used to things I am finding I hit the hay early ~8pm. This post is retroactive and posted on 2/15. 

2/14/2022 - Happy Valentines day to each of you. I am finding V-day on Guam is similar to the mainland: flowers, v-day candy, and lots of men running to the grocery store last min for cards. This was evident as Joan and I went to the grocery store and saw swath of islanders carrying around red, white, and pink, V-day paraphernalia. Love is in the Air, at least until tomorrow when those flowers are half priced. ;)

I started my first official work day on Guam, and when I say work, what I really mean is exploring and figuring out what it means to be an islander not on a 9 - 5 position. My first stop was to find some sunglasses at a place Joan recommended, Southern Mountain Gear. The store is really neat, they import high quality running, climbing and hiking gear from the mainland, with the intention of getting more islanders outdoors. They even have.a running club that meets on Tuesdays each week, maybe a way to meet new people in the coming days.

After I picked up a pair of Goodr sunglasses (a fairly new brand, good price and very stylish) to protect my eyes, I was all set to start heading south to the War in the Pacific memorials. There are 3 or 4 areas of land / museums set out by the National Park Service to commemerate the events here on Guam, all quite impressive. The first stop was Asan Bay beach, this spot was one of two locations where the US Marines came a shore for their island hopping mission. Standing on the shoreline, I got a sense of just how difficult this mission was, boating in at sea level, being shot at from the high ground and forcing yourself ashore just to try and take the beach head. This was a really dark set of days here on Guam, my understanding was 50k troops were killed in taking back the island from the Japanese. I sat there in silence for a few moments just listening to the waves crash and the relative silence around me. We have a lot to be thankful was my takeaway for the day. 

My next stop was a short one, the War in the Pacific museum is only open on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, so a post for the future. I will add though, the front face of the museum starts with by showing off a two man Japanese sub, about 200ft long. Really looking forward to experiencing this museum.

I decided to turn back and head home a different way by taking Highway 6 instead of marine corp drive (highway 1). This brought me to an overlook of Asan Bay with more history and a granite memorial capturing all the names of the soldiers and Chamorro that passed during the War. Once again in awe, and to see the beach from a different higher location gave the view point of what the Japanese saw. Im realizing on this trip that I have an interest in history, more so that I ever knew.

At this point it was 4pm in the day and I decided to head back home and see how Joan was coming along at work. I got back and she was excited to see me as well as hear about the adventures of the day. I relaxed a bit while she finished up and then we made dinner here at the tiny house. A great day 2, so much more to tell in coming posts.