In November '97, Will, Danny and I spent a weekend in Saipan with Roxanne and her family.  We weren't prepared to do any scuba diving, so we just drove around to see all the sights.  Saipan was a Japanese stronghold during World War II (WWII) and there were many interesting historical sights.  In fact, Guam and all the islands of Micronesia abound in historical sights since they are located in the middle of the Pacific Theatre of WWII.  I admit that when I first moved to Guam, I wasn't really interested in WWII, especially the war in the Pacific, but you just can't help getting into it when remnants of the war are all around you.  Saipan was very significant to the Japanese because they had a large settlement on the island long before the war and it became a base of operations for the Japanese during the war.  When the U.S. invaded Saipan, rather than surrender, hundreds of Japanese civilians (including women and children) as well as the military, leaped to their deaths at Suicide Cliff.  There wasn't much else to do in Saipan since the Asian economic crisis drastically reduced the influx of tourists to the island so we had a relaxing visit in this beautiful, tropical island.

    In January '98, Will and I spent a weekend in Rota while Roxanne looked in on Danny at home.  Rota is a sleepy little island paradise, another island in the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM).  It has one paved road that runs along the west coast and connects to a mostly single-lane, coral road running along the east coast of the island.  We had a relaxing time driving around the island, stopping at historical landmarks, strolling along the beautiful beaches, and eating at Figueroas bar and cafe.  We also managed to do some boonie stomping and found some fantastic caves.  There was a fiesta in town one night but we didn't join in because we were still new to the islands and we thought it was a private party.

    In March, Will and I went to Bali for a sort of pre-anniversary trip.  Little Grandma and Grandpa were visiting Guam at the time so they were able to watch out for Danny while we went on our trip.  I love everything about Bali: the beautiful sceneries, the extremely friendly and artistic people, the wonderful culture, the fabulous food, and the fantastic prices.  Will and I spent six days there and we could easily have spent six more.  We went river rafting, hiking through rice fields and mountains, we visited temples (and Bali has temples o' plenty), attended a truly amazing dance performance, and, of course, we shopped till we dropped.  I could go on and on about it (and I usually do) but suffice it to say, Bali was one of the best destinations I've ever visited.  I highly recommend it to anyone and if you're planning on traveling to Bali, let me know, because there are some things that I need you to pick up for me...

    In May, Will and I spent a weekend in Tinian, another island of the FSM.  Tinian has two features that distinguishes it from the other islands of Micronesia:  it was the island that deployed the Enola Gay, the aircraft that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima in 1945;  Tinian is also the only island in Micronesia with a gambling casino.  The Tinian Dynasty Hotel and Casino had its "Soft Opening" (an initial opening to test operations, staff and facilities before its Grand Opening) in May which was the reason Will and I chose to visit the island at that time.  There was also a fiesta going on the weekend of our visit.  Unfortunately, because of the soft opening and the fiesta, there weren't any rental cars available on the island that weekend.  We were able to play in the casino (although not very many of the hotel facilities were operational at the time), go trekking around the beaches and countryside in the area around the hotel, and hang out at the fiesta.  But we weren't able to visit the historical sites on the island.  Tinian is a beautiful little island and the Hotel/Casino has a lot of potential.

    In June, Will, Danny and I traveled to San Diego to attend Will Jr.'s high school graduation.  It was a fun but brief visit with family and friends and since Will Jr.'s cousin, James, was graduating from a different high school at the same time, it was extremely hectic for everyone.  The graduation celebration was still underway when Will, Danny and I had to take off to catch a flight to Hawaii.  We were going via military flights and we were going to be joined in Hawaii by Will Jr. and Big Grandma and Grandpa (who were flying on commercial flights).  We didn't do very much in Hawaii, we've all been there before, but it was a nice relaxing time, and we were all looking forward to just lazing around the beach.  After a week in Hawaii, we all headed for Tokyo.  Tokyo is such a fascinating and exciting place.  We spent almost a whole day at the history museum.  And the shopping districts were out of this world.  The boys loved Electric City (where every conceivable electronic gadget is sold) and Big Grandma and I loved the restaurant supply district (where you can buy all those plastic foodstuffs).  Even though we wanted to explore more of Japan (we really wanted to climb Mt. Fuji---at least I did), after a week of sightseeing in Tokyo we were exhausted!  Will Jr. went back to San Diego and the rest of us headed to Guam.  Big Grandma and Grandpa visited us in Guam for a week then returned home to San Diego.

    Late July had Will and I taking a jaunt to Cairns, Australia.  We had a wonderful time shopping, sightseeing and eating.  The Aussies are so friendly, they really go out of their way to help you if you need it and generally to make you feel welcome.  We visited the cultural center for a local aboriginal tribe and it was a very interesting and enjoyable visit.  Will learned how to play a didjeridoo (a weird sounding aboriginal musical instrument) so of course we had to buy one.  We even tried a live-aboard dive trip in the Great Barrier Reef where we spent two days and one night on a big sailboat.  I snorkelled and Will went scuba diving to his heart's content.  We were only able to spend five days in Cairns so we didn't have time to do everything.  We want to go back!

    In early September, Will's ship made a liberty visit in Hong Kong and I joined a group of family members who met the ship there.  Will and I had both been to Hong Kong before but we still had a great time.  We did some things we had done before; the city tour, Victoria Peak, and shopped at the markets.  And we did some new things; toured the New Territories that bordered Mainland China, did a harbor cruise and had dinner at the Jumbo Floating Restaurant.  Hong Kong is not for everybody, but we learned a lot and had a great time.

    The last trip we had for the year was in October when we visited Palau.  The Republic of Palau is a group of islands in the South Pacific that is one of the world's premier diving destinations.  If you ever see "The Living Sea" (a really cool marine life film usually shown at IMAX theatres), you'll see that Palau is one of the stars of the show.  Will thinks that heaven is in the "Blue Corner" because of the number and different types of fish and sharks that he saw while he was diving there.  One day we were taken to an island that was uninhabited by humans.  We spent the day frolicking in the pristine, white-sand beach, snorkelling in the reef and around the tiny rock islands in the vicinity, and just having an idyllic time.  We also spent half a day snorkeling at "Jellyfish Lake", a saltwater lake on one of the islands that has thousands of non-stinging jellyfish.  What a unique experience!  Palau and the Rock Islands are the most beautiful, unspoiled, group of islands I've ever seen.  Will wants to do a week-long, live-aboard dive trip in Palau and he needs a partner if anyone is interested...

    Because of his ship's sailing schedule, Will was able to visit more of Japan than the rest of the family.  The ship also went to Korea twice since he's been on board and I wasn't able to join him on either of those trips.  He has plenty of stories to tell of his travels but I think he needs to put them in his own "Sea Stories" section.  As soon as Will Jr. turned 18 years old, he went to Japan to visit his dad for a week.  He loves Japan and had a good time traveling on his own and making his way around when his dad was working.

    Will's ship is supposed to go to Darwin, Australia but I'm not planning on meeting the ship there even though I've never been to Darwin.  We're going to get ready to move out of Guam in a few months and I'm hoping to visit Korea and Singapore before we leave since I haven't visited those destinations.  I just need to find a travel partner...