Sharing Paradise

 

Last week we were blessed with one final visitor to share this island adventure with. After much prodding over Christmas break, we convinced our friend Annie to come out from Houston. Annie went to high school with both of us and, after running a zillion marathons and biking between major US cities, is one of the most active Muggles we know. We had a hunch that she would love Guam as much as we do, and we didn't want the opportunity to pass without getting to show her our slice of paradise. What do you know, she actually took us up on the idea and flew out over 4th of July week. We had an absolute blast showing her around! Here's the Annie on Guam photo shoot that ensued throughout the week:

 Peeking in the bunkers at the WWII landing site in Agat

 Defending herself against mad cow disease

 Enjoying the gorgeous views

 Not afraid to get her hands dirty, Annie experienced what I mean when I say that we earn our showers around here!

 She discovered the underwater world we so love

 Got to hike to Spanish Steps (which has been closed during several of our last visitors' trips!)

 I loved Annie's observation about the beaches... that what makes them so amazing (in addition to how beautiful they are), is that we are the only ones there!! The above picture was taken at picturesque Tarague Beach.

 Finally Nick was able to join us for the Fourth of July festivities... we snorkeled the massive coral heads behind the Apra Harbor breakwater.

 And we kayaked out to Anae Island, one of my favorite spots only accessible by boat.

 

Everyone make fun of Annie's Grandpa socks! (oh, and I called Stacey and Clinton to see if you could be on the next episode...)

Checking out the sights around Anae Island (or "Annie Island" as I called it for the day!)

A memorable July 4th for so many reasons!

 ....The main one being that we sank our kayak! Check out that lovely hole! Our hunch is we must have scraped a weak spot on the bottom with some of the sharp coral in the shallow area around the island. Nick swam the sunken kayak back to the island and Tim & Annie towed me back so we could figure out Plan B. With only one kayak (now) and four people, the guys insisted Annie and I take the kayak while they swam the mile back to the mainland. Luckily the guys in our crew are very good swimmers!

 The next day we opted for some less action-packed adventures. I took Annie to our church so she could see the gorgeous mural my sister painted. Having seen pictures on the blog, she said it was even more impressive to see in person :)

 We went shopping, went to lunch, and then went cave exploring in Pagat Caves.

 Friday made for an absolutely perfect beach day at Gun Beach.

 Followed by the tough girls hike to the top of Mt. LamLam, arguably the world's highest mountain.

 Big smiles at the top

 And gorgeous sunset views

 A few last activities... we played tennis, hit golf balls, and took Annie to see the plane wreck near the old runway behind our house.

And in the early hours of Annie's last day, we went paddle boarding at Gab Gab.  We saw lots of turtles and two black tip reef sharks, in addition to a beautiful sunrise before taking our friend to the airport to start her long journey home.

Of course I LOVED showing the best and most beautiful parts of Guam to our friend and sharing this awesome experience with her. But even more than that, my favorite part of her visit was getting to catch up... to really catch up. Amid our beach sitting and muddy hiking (and kayak sinking!), we found ourselves deep in conversations about real things that matter to us... about friends and family, joy and sadness, heartache and triumph. We have both been through a host of new life experiences these past two years, experiences that our quick dinners and coffee dates on my stopovers in Houston haven't completely covered. But with a whole week to ourselves and few distractions of everyday life, we had the beautiful gift of each others' time and presence to make up for years apart. Guam simply provided the gorgeous scenery for my friend and I to get properly caught up.

Once again our house has that eerie and familiar quiet that has each time accompanied the day after taking special visitors to the airport. The stack of beach towels have been washed and put away. The guest room is ready again for whoever (if anyone) comes next. Annie's visit is over, and yet our shared experience here will be tucked in the folds of our memories for years to come.

Thanks for coming out, Annie! As much as I'm going to miss it here, spending time with a good friend from back home is making me excited about heading that way here shortly. See you in ten weeks (gasp!).

PS... Good luck with the jet lag!