Stranded in Guam

When I last left off, Vince, Jared, Rachel, and I were aboard a late-night flight out of Chuuk, preparing ourselves for an unplanned day in Guam. It was 2:00 am by the time we finally landed in Guam, and our connecting flight to Palau had long since departed without us. The next flight to Palau wouldn’t leave until that evening, which meant that we had to find a place to stay for what was left of the morning, pick up the rental car Vince had booked at the last minute, and find a way to make the most out of the time we had in Guam.

Thankfully, the first item on that agenda turned out to be easy. Our delay was due to a staffing issue at the airline, which meant that United would provide us all with hotel and meal vouchers for the day. After deplaning, picking up our luggage, and going through customs and immigration, we went straight to United’s check in desk to collect our vouchers. Everyone was excited to find out that the hotel we’d be staying at was a five star with an ocean view; and United even booked us for two nights so we could leave our luggage in our rooms while we were out sightseeing. They also provided us with more food vouchers than we knew what to do with. These would be good at the hotel and later at the airport.

Then we made our way over to the Avis car rental desk where a shockingly energetic young man got us all set up with our car. He also provided a lot of tips of what to see and do on the island, and gave us a rough idea of where we could find our hotel. He handed us a set of keys, and we trudged wearily out into the parking lot to find our car.

Twenty minutes later, we finally pulled into the parking lot of the Rihga Royal, where Vince found a nice spot to park our RAV4-right behind a shiny, red Ferrari. The opulence of the hotel’s lobby was completely lost on me as we towed our bags up to the front desk, bone-tired, and feeling grubby from a long day spent in the Micronesian sun. I had a vague feeling of being out of place somewhere so clean and shiny, but I could hardly find it in myself to care. All I wanted at that moment was to fall into a plush bed and finally shut my eyes.

Once we were checked in, we took an elevator up to our room, and said goodnight to Rachel and Jared, agreeing to meet up for breakfast after a few hours of sleep. I barely registered how nice our room was when we went inside. It had a smart mirror in the bathroom, a Japanese toilet, and view over looking the hotel’s infinity pool and the ocean. But all I was interested in was the bed. We changed into pajamas, and snuggled up under the lavish comforter for some much-needed sleep, and I was out within a few minutes.

The next morning came all-too-soon. Technically it was still the same morning, but I told myself it was a different morning because after all, I had gotten at a good four hours of sleep. There was a notification on my phone from Sebastian, a new friend we had made a few days prior in the Marshall Islands. He and his husband, George, were already in Koror and he’d sent a couple of photos showing heavy rainfall. This definitely helped alleviate any disappointment I felt about missing out on a day in Palau. The weather looked too bad to do much anyway, and a glance out of our window revealed that we were going to enjoy blue skies and sunshine here in Guam.

Vince and I got ready for the day, then met up with Jared and Rachel to spend some of our meal vouchers at one of the Rihga Royal’s restaurants. In the light of day, and after a bit of sleep and a shower, I was more able to appreciate how nice the hotel was. In fact, it was by far the fanciest hotel I’ve ever stayed in, as we usually go for more budget-friendly accommodations. But with a fancy hotel, comes fancy prices, and we soon realized we didn’t have enough voucher money to pay for the buffet breakfast at the hotel’s main restaurant. Instead, we opted for a smaller cafe that served items à la carte.

We devoured some delightful pastries and fruit, then we headed out to the car to get started on our day of sightseeing. The drive to our first destination was a short one. Along the way, we all collectively freaked out when we passed by a K-Mart. These stores were a staple during our childhoods in the US, but most of them shut down years ago, so it was surprising to see one again after so many years. About fifteen minutes after that, we arrived at Two Lovers Point.

Two Lovers Point is one of the most iconic viewpoints in Guam. There is a legend regarding the site about a pair of ill-fated lovers who jumped to their deaths together rather than be separated by an arranged marriage that was being forced on the girl by her father. Now the cliffside at Two Lovers Point is dedicated to romantic love. Couples who were married in Guam can have their names listed on plaques along the top of the cliff, and a little gift shop sells love locks for couples to attach to viewing platform fences.

The four of us climbed up to the highest viewing platform and took couples pictures, which seemed almost obligatory at such a location.

Then we spent some time watching powerful, blue-green waves crash against the seashore far below us at the bottom of the cliff.

After spending several minutes transfixed by the sight of the waves, we tore ourselves away to visit the gift shop, then got back in the car to drive another twenty minutes to a trail that Vince had picked out while perusing the area on AllTrails. He couldn’t remember how long or how difficult the hike would be, but it was supposed to lead to a sea cave called Pagat Cave on a coastal cliff.

We parked at the trailhead and started hiking. At first the trail was relatively flat, which was nice because it was already excruciatingly hot outside. But eventually, the path started sloping downhill, leading over increasingly steep terrain. Rachel and Jared decided to turn around when the path got too steep. They told us to keep going, and we planned to meet back at the car after the hike.

Vince and I pressed onward, as the trail became even steeper. Shortly after we split up with Rachel and Jared, we came upon a section of path that was lined with static rope for hikers to hold onto while scrambling over tall rock steps. We took an offshoot to see a small inland cave, and got a little turned around in a thicket of hanging vines and leaves. What had looked like a continuation of the trail turned out to be a dead end, and when we tried to retrace our steps, it was like the little path we had been on was swallowed up by the forest. Before either of us could get too worried though, I opened up the Strava app on my phone. I’d been recording the hike, and we were able to use the app’s map to retrace our steps. As luck would have it, we encountered another hiker, Carlos, who had made the same mistake. We were able to get him and ourselves back to the actual trail within minutes, and the three of us continued down to the sea cave together.

I squinted my eyes when we stepped out of the forest and onto a bare, sun-baked sea cliff. Pagat Cave stood in front of us, a dramatic arch spanning across teal waves.

The water in the cave looked so inviting, but with Jared and Rachel waiting on us back at the car, we didn’t want to take the time to swim. Instead, I hopped around the rocky cliff, taking in the scenery while Vince flew his drone to get a birds-eye-view of the cave.

We allowed ourselves about ten minutes before we had to start the harrowing journey uphill. Waving goodbye to Carlos, we began the climb, quickly becoming exhausted from exerting so much energy in the midday heat. Even Vince was lagging, which is abnormal for him. I, on the other hand, am always melodramatic about hot weather, so it was business as usual for me.

I kept telling myself to put one foot in front of the other as I heaved myself upward, using the static ropes for assistance. Even after the steepest section of the trail, we still had a long ways to go and we plodded upwards, taking breaks in the shadiest spots we could find. Both of us were dizzy from the heat, and every time we stopped, I didn’t want to start back up again. When the trail finally leveled off, I felt like a pair of weights had been removed from my legs. Suddenly I could walk at a normal pace again, and soon we were back at the car.

Sure that Rachel and Jared must have been waiting on us for hours, I looked at the time on my phone. The miserable climb, which had felt like an unceasing purgatory, had taken less than twenty minutes. I let out an erratic laugh as we nearly collapsed against the blazing hot car. A cool gust of air conditioning hit my face when I wrenched open the passenger side door and practically fell inside. Thank goodness the others were already inside, blasting the AC, because I wasn’t sure I could have waited for the car to cool down without passing out.

Vince and I pulled our doors shut behind us, and the four of us just sat there for several minutes, panting as we recovered from the hike. Once we’d regained some energy, we all agreed that it was time to find a gas station and buy the coldest drinks we could find. Google maps revealed that we weren’t far from a Mobil, so we drove a little ways down the road and then pulled over when we came to the station. Vince parked at a pump to refill the tank, then he and Jared got out of the car.

I leaned out of my door and said, “Vince let me know when you’re going inside, I’ll go in and pick out a drink when you do.” I’m not sure what he heard, but he said ok. A few minutes later, I looked up and realized and both of the guys had gone into the station without telling me and Rachel. We quickly got out of the car, and I locked the door before we went to join our husbands inside.

I was just grabbing a pineapple Aloha juice out of a fridge when Vince approached me and asked, “You didn’t lock the car, did you?”

I stared at him. He stared back at me. I cursed. He ran outside.

There was no point in following him. I had already deduced what he would soon realize. We were locked out of our rental car, and stranded in Mobil in Guam.

Vince was frantic when he stormed back into the gas station. I wasn’t outwardly panicking, but I pursed my lips into a tight line as I silently tried to come to grips with the fact that I had just locked us out of our car. My immediate thought was We have to call Avis. Vince was in panic mode, but after he’d settled into accepting the situation, I asked if he had the number for the Avis desk at the airport. He did, and we were able to get a hold of them and explain our situation. They said they would send someone out with a spare key.

We all sighed in relief, reassured that Avis was going to save us. Now all we had to do was wait. We passed the time by finally gulping down our cold drinks, and eating some snacks. Then when we got really bored, we started playing hopscotch on some old Covid social distance tape that was still stuck to the floor.

Forty minutes later, we all rejoiced when an Avis employee pulled into the gas station. This was it, we were finally going to get to go back to the hotel for a swim in the infinity pool (the only thing any of us wanted to do after that hot hike)! But our celebration was premature. The employee had a spare key alright, but it wasn’t for our car. The four of us let out a collective sigh, preparing ourselves for another long wait in the Mobil.

I was ready to head back inside when Vince, ever the gentleman, asked the Avis employee if he’d be willing to drop me, Rachel, and Jared off at the hotel on his way back to the office. That didn’t sit quite right with me, but Vince insisted I get in the car, so I gave him a big hug and an even bigger “thank you” before following the others into the vehicle.

Twenty minutes later, we were back at the Rihga Royal, finally enjoying the refreshing water of the infinity pool.

We swam until Vince finally made his triumphant reappearance, the ordeal with the keys finally resolved. He had just enough time to join us in the pool before we all had to go back to our rooms and pack up what little stuff we’d taken out of our bags. Our unintentional day in Guam was coming to an end, and although we’d encountered some hiccups along the way, we all agreed we were glad we’d had the chance to visit instead of just passing through on our originally scheduled layover. Guam was a very beautiful island, and it was cool to get to see another US overseas territory (Previously Puerto Rico was the only territory I’d visited).

That evening we finally boarded our long awaited flight to Koror, Palau. This was the portion of the trip that I was most excited for. Palau has been a dream destination for me for years, and one that I never really thought I’d get the opportunity to visit. I was more than a little excited as our plane flew closer and closer to Palau. I couldn’t wait to be there, and I hoped with all of my heart that it would live up to the expectations I’d built up for it in my mind!