“A territory of the United States, in fact Guam is the commercial and tourist center of the Marianas Islands – of all Micronesia. The Chamorro people first settled in the Marianas circa 1500 B.C., Westerners arrived in 1521, when Magellan landed in Guam during his circumnavigation of the globe. Spain ruled the islands as a colony until the U.S. took control during the Spanish American War. The island was twice the scene of combat during World War II – first when the Japanese invaded in 1941 and again when American forces liberated the island in 1944. Guam’s strategic location led to the establishment of permanent American military facilities on the island.
Guam is the commercial hub of Micronesia, an island where resort hotels and shopping malls stand in contrast to sandy beaches, sleepy villages, and mountains covered in tropical rainforest.” – Princess Patter
We found two worlds in Guam. In the morning we toured the island and, although I found the tour somewhat sub par, the parts of the island that we drove through were gorgeous! Beautiful beaches and lush rain forest overlooked by a spectacular volcanic mountain range. So, I’ll describe the tour but look at the pictures both on this page and on the Gallery page.
We got off the boat and boarded a modern air conditioned coach. We were clearly in an industrial port. It turns out that U.S. law requires that all goods shipped to Guam be carried on U.S. ships. So, goods from Asia headed for Guam are shipped to California and reloaded on to a U.S. ship before heading on to Guam. So, this was indeed a busy industrial port.
Our first real stop on the tour was at War in the Pacific National Historic Park … a beach where American soldiers wadded ashore to liberate Guam during the second World War. The ground just above the beach was studded with Japanese gun emplacements and bunkers. This was, otherwise, a very picturesque beach. In the pictures you will note that the beach is surrounded by large jagged rocks. We were not given any explanation of these rocks but I suspect that they neither natural nor placed there as part of the Japanese defense. They appear to have been placed somewhat more recently probably to protect the shoreline from erosion.
Our next stop was at Humatak (or Umatak) Bay where Magellan was the first European to land on Guam on March 6, 1521. Despite that blot, it is very scenic bay.
Next we drove up to the remains of an old Spanish fort, Fort Soledad, which over looks Humatak Bay but, as soon as we arrived, rain began to pour. So, we only got a few pictures before we had to run back to the bus …
We then made an unscheduled stop at ‘Gef Pa’go, Chamorro Culture Village’. At first sight, the place looked closed but there were, in fact, demonstrations on how to open a coconut and make coconut oil and how to thatch a hut.
Our final stop of the tour was at ‘Jeff’s Pirates Cove’. This was mostly a tourist shop and Bar. However, it’s always good to see a hardworking, honest pirate …
After being dropped off at the boat, we headed for the big attraction of Guam … Kmart!