Guam and Saipan

Surprise Hard Rock Cafe Straight Ahead

Before arriving at each port, Kimberely our Cruise Director does a “Port Talk” giving us ideas about navigating independently and what to see and do as well as some history and interesting facts about the port. It was interesting to learn that Guam only gets 5 cruise ships a year.

Since we did not have a tour booked for Guam, we took advantage of the free shuttle bus from the ship to the downtown area. As we approached our destination, the largest building was the Hard Rock Cafe. Steve was ecstatic. Guess where we spent the majority of our time? Yup, the Hard Rock Cafe. Steve got a pin and we ended up having lunch along with quite a few of our shipmates. It turned out to be a popular spot.

After lunch, we did walk around a bit. We were very surprised to see so many high-end stores i.e. Cartier, Coach, Tag Hauer Watches, Prada, and Hermes.

Once docked, getting to our land destination often requires riding a bus. Here are a few pictures taken from the bus ride into downtown.

Visiting Saipan

Zuiderdam’s First Visit

Turns out this was Holland America’s Zuiderdam’s, first time docking in Saipan. Local dignitaries came aboard to welcome the Captain and his staff. They had a ceremony and received a plaque. This is customary when it is a ship’s first visit to a port.

Surprise Performance

We were settled back in our cabin after touring the island when we heard an announcement that the Saipan Awaodori Team was going to perform on the dock. We immediately went back to the dock to watch the group. What a fantastic performance. The dancers ranged in age from 5 years old to 17 years old. They put on quite a show for us. As you look at the pictures, imagine the sounds of the drums and the lyrics sung by the dancers. Photos can’t do justice to the performance,

Saipan’s Southern Highlights

At most ports, we book a tour rather than venture out on our own. The advantage of a tour is that you learn about the history and culture of the area. On this tour, our first stop was “The Japanese Jail”. The jail has not been used since the battle of Saipan began. While still in operation prior to the battle, 2 American pilots were prisoners in the jail. Both died during the pre-invasion bombardment. They were buried in the Hongan-ji cemetery located next to the jail.

Local legend says that Amelia Earhart was also held in the jail, but it is only a legend. One of many that exists regarding Earhart’s journey around the world.

Today the site is overgrown but enough of the jail structure exists to make it worthwhile to visit,

Battle of Saipan

Our tour guide told us the story of the bloody battle on Mount Tapotchau in the center of Saipan. The Marines named it Purple Heart Ridge and Death Valley. One Japanese soldier, Captain Saskae Oba, hid in the Saipan caves for 18 months. He was aptly named “the fox” as he evaded capture for so long. Once captured, he returned to Japan and became a successful businessman.

We saw the area where the Japanese stored their munitions. They located the munitions near their airfield. The munitions storage bunker was heavily fortified with concrete to protect it from exploding when hit by the bombs. Once the area was captured by the Americans, they repaired the bunkers and expanded the runways to handle the large B29 bombers. Today there are still remnants of decaying tanks and machine guns.

The area is adjacent to the current airport.

We also went to the American Memorial Park. It is run by the US National Park Service. Saipan is a US territory. The park is dedicated to the courage and sacrifice of the US servicemen, Chamorro, and Carolinian civilians who were killed on Saipan. Chamorro people are the indigenous people of Guam. The Carolinian people are the indigenous people of Micronesia.

We went to beautiful beaches where the marines landed. Today they are places for families to have picnics and do water sports. The only remnants of war seen on the beach is an old tank where they have snorkeling tours.