I have always wanted to visit Guam after hearing that my father served there in the Navy Seabees during World War II. Little did I realize the extent of the battles on Guam. Fortunately for my father, the battles were over by the time he arrived in Guam a few months after the battles ended.
Guam is a very patriotic US territory. Much of the island is occupied with US Military installations and historic sites from the war. It is the western most point of US soil, where the sun rises first (due to the time zones), and when you arrive you feel like you’re in a Florida tourist spot. To me, coming from the Philippines, the people looked Filipino but speaking American English (no accent). Certainly a strange feeling…
My take on a little history first. Guam was acquired by the US after the Spanish-American War in 1898, the same way the Philippines became a US territory. But unlike the Philippines, Guam seems to enjoy being a part of the US even though as a territory it does not have all the rights as a US citizen. Yes, Guamaneans are US citizens, but they cannot vote in the federal elections. They have one representative in Congress, but that representative cannot vote.
Hopefully they will vote to become a state soon.
My dad arrived in Guam as a Navy Seabee on March 18, 1945, just months after the Marines fought the battle of Guam, which started on July 21, 1944, to liberate the US territory. Here are some pictures my family has of his time in Guam…
For Day 2, I had searched the internet maps of the island and found a spot that looked interesting, but I didn’t tell Naida where we were going, only that it would take a while to get there. The drive was eye-opening for sure – Guam is a beautiful island!