Our day began where it ended — in the Carolines Resort. We were fortunately able to find a gas station that was open near midnight. Things are often closed here you see. It was about a thirty minute drive to the airport from the Carolines. We were able to drop the car off “after hours,” using a key drop. I presume it’s always after hours here, however. Furthermore, I saw a charge on my account that was for a hardware store. I was prepared to flag it to Chase, but then saw it was for the exact same amount as the rental car. I don’t fully understand how business is done here.
In any event, we were checking in for our flight to Guam when guess who makes an appearance? That’s right — freakin’ Brad. We tried to avoid eye contact and retreated behind our surgical masks. He had talked a big game the other day on how he was going to get business class all the way to Hawai’i. Spoiler alert: he didn’t. Everywhere we went, he was cutting across our path like a psychopath who felt the need to “win” at getting to things first. Nicole got some good sleep on the less than two hour flight. I did a bit of head bobbing myself. We arrived in Guam at 430am. How does that flight time help anyone? We groggily exited the plane and went through customs. Brad cut us off at global entry. We cut him off at the actual customs desk because he attempted to make up his own line. Take that, Brad. Hopefully that is our last encounter with Brad.
We had a three hour layover in Guam. Shockingly, the airport was much busier than when we were here last. Everything was open (except the United club, which could have actually helped us). People were ordering pizza from Dominos. Burger King was also open and had a line. Do people function on some other kind of made up time zone here on Guam? The flight to Saipan was short — blocked for 45 minutes, but only took about 27. We touched down firmly and aggressively and soon found ourselves the only aircraft parked at the terminal. “Customs,” if you can call it that, went relatively fast and we were in our rental car shortly thereafter.
It was about a 25 minute drive to the Crowne Plaza. It was now maybe 845am, but luckily we were able to check-in. We have had excellent luck with such matters on this trip. We promptly showered and took a nap. We awoke again around noon. None of this jet lag and fatigue would have been a problem if United just scheduled their flights with human beings in mind. We got some snacks and drinks in the lobby to form a “lunch” and then walked around the nearby Micro Beach, as it is called.
Now I wasn’t expecting Saipan to be ugly by any means, but it exceeded my expectations. The colors of the water and surrounding vegetation is quite vibrant and beautiful. We made a short loop back to the Crowne Plaza, where the back side faces a gorgeous beach and the front side looks like a has-been hotel in Daytona Beach. It has (and is) undergoing various upgrades and what has been renovated contrasts greatly with what . . .hasn’t.
After spending some time relaxing outside, we drove up the coast to the extreme northern part of the island. During the waning stages of the Battle for Saipan during World War Two, American forces had pushed the Japanese defenders up against the sea to the north. Cut off from resupply, the Japanese outlook was grim. However, rather than surrender to the advancing Americans, the majority of the Japanese chose to commit suicide by jumping off the nearby cliffs. The first we stopped off at was called “Banzai Cliff,” and we could see the cliffs plunge into very violent seas and rocks below.
The Japanese also convinced a significant portion of the local civilian population that the American soldiers were barbaric and likely to torture and imprison anyone they came across. While this hyperbole was obviously untrue, it proved believable enough that more than a thousand civilians met the same fate as the Japanese defenders. Near a site now known as the “Last Command Post,” cliffs tower high above the landscape. These became known as “Suicide Cliff.” It was all a little eerie, particularly because Nicole and I keep finding ourselves as the only people exploring these parts. We were walking in and out of abandoned bunkers wondering what the chaos had looked like back in the day.
We drove back to our hotel to watch the sunset and grab some dinner before crashing hard after a night/day of fitful sleep. Tomorrow we will further explore Saipan. I have only known one other person in my life who has been to Saipan — my grandpa who was serving in the Coast Guard during the invasion. But as I now find myself getting cozy in a large, manicured resort like the Crowne Plaza, it is clear that this wasn’t quite what grandpa experienced.
passports & pepto bismol 