[ Hafa Adai!

My SO and I spent Christmas on Guam: "Where America's day begins". It was a
nice 86f/30c down there, where it's 31f/0c up here in Tokyo :( Today is going
to be especially cold.

The flight from Tokyo to Guam is only 4 hours, and our's was awful. The pilot
said he'd keep the seatbelt sign on for the first 30 minutes after takeoff due
to turbulence, but it was actually on for over 90 minutes, and there was some
turbulence I'd never felt before, like being jolted side to side. It was a very
rough flight and I will remember it for a long time to come, because I have a
very bad fear of flying.

It's not something I go around telling everyone because it's embarassing, quite
frankly. Who's afraid of flying? I've never met anyone else. Folks here with
Gopher blogs are open and honest with their mental wellness however, so I
thought I'd do the same. I've had aerophobia for many decades now and it's only
gotten worse over the past few years. I've resigned myself to the fact that I
will never get over it.

We got in to Guam at around midnight, in heavy rain, and we then had to find
our rental car. They "upgraded" me (without asking) to an SUV, and I dislike
big cars. It was just real fun driving at night, in the rain, in a truck, on
the side of the road I'm not used to, while not being able to see the center
dividing line. There weren't many street lights, either. But hey, what's a
little adventure while on vacation?

The speed limit on Guam is 35 mph. Not everyone obeyed it, but I found it
relaxing to drive around the island in the end. We drove past Asan Beach, down
to the old Spanish fort in Humatak, and we took photos of Bear Rock. We also
went to Talo'fo'fo Falls, but it was closed due to flooding. It was a real
shame since I've always wanted to see Yokoi's Cave (Shoichi Yokoi's story is
fascinating.) We also drove north to Ritidian Point, but the area was closed
because of the holidays. We went to the Micronesia Mall and Pay-Less but they
were very crowded.

I once saw someone refer to Guam as "The trailer park of the Pacific" which I'd
say shows that person's lack of intelligence and deportment. The island looks
run down in a lot of places, with peeling paint and dirty building fascades
here and there, but to me that's part of the charm (and good luck keeping up
any property in that salty, humid Pacific air.) This was my 5th or 6th time on
the island, and it has never disappointed. The people there are have always
been nice and friendly.

It was weird listening to Bing Crosby and other classic Christmas music while
wearing sunscreen and flipflops, but it sure beat the fake Christmas that Japan
has. And we still have vacation left! I love coming back from one vacation and
starting another.

Happy holidays!!