Guam can be such a fun place!

One thing we have grown to appreciate here is that in spite of the "busy-ness" of ministry, there are so many great places to go and things to see and do here that cost nothing but a short drive and a bit of energy output! Here are a few of Melody's favorite outings from recent weeks!


Hiking up the beach from Tanguisson about a mile is a great outing - over the sand, climbing up, over, and around lava flows that meet the sea, and seeing the beauty all along the way was a fun outing that we went on with our PIBC community group! About 16 of us hiked a little over a mile to an area called Shark's Hole and then about a quarter mile into the jungle for a swim in Lost Pond. Unfortunately, my camera failed halfwa1y though the hike so I only have a couple of shots taken along the way . . . but they are beautiful!



Another fun and rather arduous hike is to Pagat Caves near the campus. It is about a mile+ hike through the jungle and down steep terrain at the same time.



Joyce, Melissa, Mary Lou, Daisy and I decided to go past the cave when Joyce told us there was a path that would take us on to the cliffs on the east shore of the island. Along the way, Joyce pointed out some ruins from an ancient Chamorro village: deteriorating latte stones (foundation pillars), and even a few old grinding rocks. Here I am using the grinding stone.




A bit farther on, we emerged into tall floral vines that nearly obliterated the path, but we forged on through. We were rewarded with a broad view of the ocean, and soon came to the edge of the cliffs where there were beautiful lava rock formations and cliffs.




Part of them formed a lovely natural "bridge," and Joyce, Melissa, and I went on ahead while Daisy and Mary Lou waited on safer ground. Here is a shot of us all - Daisy is a bit hard to spot - that yellow hat in the back may be about all you can see, but we were trying to use my camera on timer, and this was the best shot we got! :-)

It is really difficult to capture the amazing beauty and splendor of this spot on film, as well as the height and angle of the cliffs, but the three of us had fun climbing around and taking pictures of each other, the rocks, and the beautiful coastline. Following are some of my best photos.
This one is looking north, up the coast:







And this one to the right is looking south, down the coast. It's amazing how the angle of the late afternoon sun affects the color of the sea and sky in each direction!


This last one was taken by Joyce (standing on the rocks a bit above me) as I sat near the edge of the cliff - the wind was blowing wonderfully cool, and we even got hit by a bit of sea spray as the incoming waves crashed against the rocks not so far below us.






After our rock climbing, we hiked back through the jungle to the original goal of our "boonie stomp": Pagat Caves. This area is a deep cave with an underground pool to swim in. It's a bit slippery getting down into the mouth of the cave!


We had to light candles right after entering the mouth of the cave and wade through water that eventually came up to our chests. Holding our gear (packs with water, cameras, Ziploc bags with matches and candles) high overhead, we waded the approximate 1/10 mile underground to where the cave opened up higher and wider.

We put our gear up on the rock formations and enjoyed a very nice swim, "cooling off" from our hike. Below is a picture of Joyce at the more shallow end of the pool in the cave; in the middle, it is about 8-10 feet deep or more.


Returning to the cars parked up on the road is the toughest part of this hike! First you have to hike up and out of the cave (very slippery and soaking wet, I might add - but cool!), and then you have to hike/climb up the mile to the cars! Though taxing, we all felt it had been worth it! The beauty and diversity of God's creation never ceases to amaze me!





One last 'favorite' place that Erin, Tim, some students and I all got to enjoy recently is Ipau Beach in Tamuning, a beach that is in the midst of the tourist district. It is a lovely, natural setting, neatly placed between two major hotels.


The park represents a bit of what Guam "used to" be like before the resorts developed. Many of us on staff at PIBC have named this our favorite snorkeling beach because of the number and variety of fish we can see.

We had fun snorkeling, snacking, and just relaxing with the students. A few of them posed in the water for this shot below to the right, just before they played a bit of water-volleyball! :-)
These are all students helping PIBC out over their Christmas break in a variety of ways . . . but they have been "off" (as have we) since Christmas Eve. We all get back to "work" on January 5th in official capacity.






It was such fun to be able to have some "down time" this past week - and we've had several chances since the semester ended to have fun like this with the students that are here on island for the Christmas break.



In a few days I'll add a post with some more of our "R&R" with staff and students, as well as Christmas and New Year's pictures.

Hafa Adai, and Happy New Year from Guam, where (as I post this) it is January 1, 2009, even though it's still New Year's Eve in the 50 States! May God bless us all with a renewed vision of His plan and purpose for all of our lives as we trust in Him!
Melody and Tim Plaxton
Liebenzell Missionaries serving at
Pacific Islands Bible College, Guam