Guam Vacation Day 2

Dear Friends, Family, & Readers:

            I am here to update you on our second day of vacation in Guam. Tuesday was the day we traversed the entire south end of the island.  The first thing we did was travel toward Inarajan pool. On our way to Inarajan we visited some of the WWII invasion beaches like Asan Beach.  Upon arriving at Inarajan we saw a little pool with a makeshift diving platform made out of concrete that was rusting and cracking. The waves from the ocean would hit the reef and trickle over into this pool.  There were lots of people there and many pavilions for grilling out and having a good time. Were there fish in this pool?  Yes, the fish eventually get swept over the side into the murky depths of Inarajan trapped until an unseasonably large surf forms on the ocean to provide an escape on a rough day. Videos of Kara and I jumping off of the platform can be seen on facebook for those of you who are friends with us.

            As we continued down the slow/winding road, we stopped at many scenic overlook areas. We had a great time just slowly making our way around the southern tip of Guam. We eventually made it to a seaside bar/grill called Jeff’s Pirates Cove and the museum that is attached to the restaurant. The restaurant had o.k. food, but I felt that it was overpriced for the portion size I received.  I ordered a fish sandwich foolishly expecting to see a large hoagie bun with a slab of fish at the center but instead got a dinner bun with two pieces of fish meat with lettuce on top…the bun was so small that the fish wouldn’t even stay inside the bun while I tried to eat (I almost thought the two pieces were more energetic fried than when they were alive).  I would go to Jeff’s Pirates Cove again if I were only wanting a beer and some chips.  It has some great touristy items in the gift shop and t-shirts, but I was not impressed by the service or food quality.  The other thing that was strange was that they ended their service 10 minutes early just so they could leave work on time.  I saw two poor Asian tourists pull up just as we were leaving, but they were out of luck.  We were also not allowed to go out the front door because the lady had locked it and she told us nonchalantly to go around back through a fenced gate on the side of the building…very poor service in my opinion.  What made Jeff’s Pirates Cove interesting was the museum.  Inside this super small (free $$ to enter) museum was the vast array of island trinkets.  There were glass bottles from Japan and America from the war, WWII ammo, tons of Japanese Glass Floats, and a rather detailed glass display case with many of the shells I’ve collected on Saipan with their known names and scientific classifications.  I would go to the museum rather than eat at the restaurant.

            Lastly, we went to Talofofo Falls.  There are several falls on Guam, but Talofofo is the touristy one. Upon arriving there were pigs in the parking lot wandering around and a complex that used to look really nice, but was falling apart.  We got a local discount for being from the Marianas and enjoyed our ride down on the Gondola system.  There are actually two falls at Talofofo and they are both beautiful.  The falls used to have a little train/monorail like the one we had ridden in Hawaii at the Dole Plantation, but it was extremely run down and probably didn’t work.  There was also a museum with poor depictions and some grammar mistakes.  Below Talofofo one could also see the cave where Sgt. Yokoi of Japan had been hiding for 28 years after the war.  He survived on the fruit, shrimp & eels (found in Talofofo river), and various other unsavory things, and by bathing frequently to avoid disease. 

            I hope you enjoy the pictures! Remember to click on them for a larger image.

Kara, hanging off the barrels of a Japanese Anti-Aircraft
Gun from WWII that was on display at one of the invasion
beaches southwest of Asan Beach.

Inarajan pool taken in such a way as to look beautiful.  To
right (outside the frame) is the jumping platform and
pavilions. I tried to get most of the people out of the picture.
The pool extends further to the right and is fairly deep.

This is Kara and I behind a beautiful scenic backdrop
along Guam's southern tip.  It was taken at the Guam Vietnam
Memorial Scenic Overlook.

Another beautiful view somewhere along the southeastern
side of Guam.

The big sign you see outside of Jeff's Pirates Cove.  For a
while we thought we'd missed the restaurant until we saw
this sign.

One of the pigs at Talofofo Falls parking lot trying to find
shade wherever possible.

Kara at Talofofo Falls (Fall 1)

Grant (me) at Talofofo Falls (Fall 1)

A rather graphic depiction of Japanese ritual suicide that
occurred at the falls during WWII.  Since the American's
were able to land tanks on the island, they had the upper hand.
The Japanese would rather die than be taken alive and dishonor
their country.