Guam

I’m in Guam. Have been for about a week and I have 3 days left (Be back Thursday for an afternoon beer at Mom and Pops). I got Karl some beef bouillon cubes. Almost got him a carton of beef stock but just knew it would burst sometime and all my clothes would smell of it. Not a bad thing, but either my wife would force me to wash them or my dog would chew them to shreds.

I remember someone else requesting something, deodorant for AJ, perhaps. I have been asked to render odor assistance twice and both times the requests have been very specific: Brand X, clear, screw-up not push-up, fragrance-free or Herbal Sausage and Active Mango with sans serif font on the labeling. Obviously, I didn’t remember the specs, so if the deodoree will kindly re-submit the request, I will try to comply. Anyone else needing something please feel free to ask.

Guam has no sales tax. Most everything is brought in from off island so prices tend to be a bit higher than what I remember back home. There are some things that are cheaper though, for example, beer. A 12-pack of Bud is $9.90. A 36-pack is $26. Restaurant prices ( chains, hotels and name restaurants ) scare the bejeezus outta me. Maybe it’s just seeing the prices in US dollars instead on Taiwanese NT. But I must do a double, nay… a triple take when I seen a plate of spaghetti with marinara sauce and a roll for $17. Anyway, I am able to watch the USA network until the wee hours armed with beer, pepperoni and Cheetos for a pittance until it’s time for the breakfast buffet at 7:00 (I like the Burn Notice and Monk, not so much the Law and Order).

I strongly recommend Guam. My beach rating for Guam is high. Most have very good sand and they are open to all. Hotels have beachfront locations but the beaches are open to the public. The weather fluctuates from 77-86 year round and there is much less humidity than Taiwan or Houston. They locals are very hospitable and will invite you to join them for lunch or supper. Also, there are 8 flights a day from Japan – Taiwan has 2 a week – and while it may not be local, Bread, there is plenty of talent. Especially now, which is winter vacation for students in Japan.

So, I’m sitting at the Outrigger, drinking a beer from OK Mart. It’s okay here to BYOB as long as you don’t drink on the beach or inside the hotel. But most hotels have patios, beach-front decks and pools ( though some pools don’t allow poolside drinking) to drink, catch the sun, read and relax. Fixin’ to go swimming. Send requests soon. Oh yeah, the picture above is from poolside at the second hotel we stayed at. They do allow poolside frosty adult beverages.