Colchuck Lake, WashingtonGreetings from Guam!
Here is another late post about our activities in 2015 & 2016.
In April, 2015 I traveled to a conference in Chicago, and had a few hours to explore the town of Narita, Japan on the way there. I was fortunate to find some cherry blossoms and fresh strawberries while exploring the Narita temple grounds, and then also got to relax in a Japanese hot spring (Onsen) before catching my next flight. On the way back to Guam I had another stop in Japan, and spent a night in a capsule hotel in Tokyo. In the morning I took a train about an hour north and went skiing before returning to the airport for my flight to Guam.
In May we experienced our first storm called Typhoon Dolphin, although it was not a very strong one so there was no major damage. We have had a lot of close storms, including a number of Typhoon days off work and school, but this was the first one to actually hit Guam since we have been here.
In June we visited friends and family in the Northwest, and also got to do some hiking while there. We then attended the General Conference Session of Seventh-day Adventists in San
Pewitt Family Antonio, Texas in July, where I helped at the Clinic recruiting booth. From Texas we drove to Colorado for a family gathering, and then we flew to Vancouver, Canada where we boarded a 7 day cruise to Alaska with my parents and sister.
The Alaska cruise was lots of fun with plenty of good food, activities for the kids and awesome scenery and wildlife along the way. We had stops in Ketchikan, Juneau and Skagway, where we rented a car and drove to Whitehorse, Yukon Territories, Canada. The drive was very scenic, and we even spotted some bears along the way. The last part of the cruise was through Glacier Bay with amazing up-close views of the ice. Wildlife sightings included whales, bears, seals, and more. Our cruise ended in Seward, where we visited the Sea Life Center while my dad picked 
GC Sessionup the motorhome we had reserved from Anchorage.
We spent our first night in a campground near Seward, and then explored Whittier and the Portage Valley the next day. We camped just off a small mountain road surrounded by wild berries for our second night. The following day we watched the bore tide, and then drove through Anchorage and up to the McKinley gateway town of Talkeetna for another night in a campground. We spent our fourth night on the side of a remote gravel road, hoping for views of Mt. McKinley, and we were not disappointed. A little before sunset the clouds cleared and we had awesome views, and then could still see the 
Bentonsmountain for a bit in the morning before the clouds rolled in again. Our last night was spent in Anchorage, but our flights were not until evening so we took one last drive into the mountains before returning the vehicle and starting our long journey back to Guam.
A few days after we got home, Bethany started school at Guam Adventist Academy. She is very social, and loves her school friends, teachers and classes.
We had another fun Christmas in Guam for 2015, but this time my parents and sister came to visit, so we got to take them to many of the
Alaska fun holiday events.
In March of 2016 Brenda’s parents came to visit during Bethany’s spring break. We spent a few days at Leo Palace while they were here, which is an inland resort here in Guam. They have several pools, golf courses, bowling and various track & field facilities. Many athletes come from off island to train at this resort, especially during the winter months.
In April I attended a workshop in Hawaii and got to stop on the island of Kosrae for a short visit on the way there. I helped out with the computer lab at the Adventist school, and also did some exploring. The island hopper flight which goes between Guam & Hawaii with stops on the islands of Chuuk, Pohnpei, Kosrae, Kwajelein, and
First Day of School Majuro was a lot of fun in itself with many awesome views. I ended up taking this flight both to and from Hawaii.
In May Guam hosted the Festival of Pacific Arts and Culture (FestPac), which is a large gathering of people from across the Pacific. We enjoyed traditional dance performances, arts & crafts displays, theater performances, music, movies and much more during the event. It was awesome to learn more about so many different island cultures, and I especially enjoyed an early morning gathering for a traditional welcoming of arriving canoes, some of which sailed across the open ocean to reach Guam using traditional navigation techniques.
In July we visited friends and family in the Northwest again, starting in Oregon for the 4th of July weekend. Right after landing we started picking and eating blueberries, raspberries and other wonderful northwest fruit. In Portland we got to watch the fireworks show over the river on my aunt’s boat in downtown Portland, with the best view in town. We also took the girls to the science museum where we toured a 
Island Hopper View of Chuuk Lagoonsubmarine and had fun checking out the interactive exhibits. From Oregon we traveled to Washington State for quality time with Brenda’s family.
Our next stop was in Tennessee to visit friends, and I also spent some time upgrading webcasting equipment at our church there. We had a busy, but fun time reconnecting with many friends and coworkers.
From Tennessee we traveled to Maryland for time with my family. Side trips in Maryland this year included visits to Smithsonian Museums in DC, the National Zoo, Fort McHenry (a first for me), and sailing on the Chesapeake Bay.
FestPac Canoe Welcoming CeremonyWhile Brenda and Bethany traveled back to Guam in time for Bethany to start school, Abigail stayed with my parents for another week and I attended a conference in Atlanta. Abigail and I were glad to be reunited with Brenda and Bethany back in Guam after a week apart.
At the end of September I had another workshop in Hawaii, and was able to stop in Majuro and Pohnpei on the way back this time. I again helped out with the computers at the Adventist schools on these islands. Majuro was very interesting because it is so long and narrow. The school in Delap sits right on the beach, so they have a lot of trouble with rust due to the salt spray getting on everything. 
Fort Soledad, GuamThe ocean view from the school is very peaceful though. I also visited another Adventist school in the town of Laura, which is on the other end of Majuro. The drive to Laura takes about an hour, and you can easily see the ocean on both sides of the road most of the way there. Delap is densely populated, so pretty much every bit of land is occupied by buildings and people.
Nan Madol, PohnpeiPohnpei is a much larger island, with mountains and streams in the interior. They also have some very interesting ruins of an ancient city called Nan Madol. The city was built right on the reef using very large stones, and nobody knows for sure how they did it. It takes a couple of hours to drive around the island, and the views along the way are stunning.
In December we traveled to the island of Hokkaido, Japan for some winter weather with my parents. Upon arrival we picked up our all-wheel drive rental car and stopped at a large outlet mall for some lunch. It was a big transition from tropical weather to walking between stores on snowy sidewalks. After a little exploring we found the “food forest” (food court) and managed to order some vegetarian rice, noodle soup and
Lake Toya, Japan french fries. After lunch we stopped at a grocery store to stock up on food before driving several hours to the cabin we had booked for the week. The drive to the cabin was scenic and snowy, and it was a little tricky to find our way for the last part in the dark. The last section of road to the cabin was not ploughed, but we still managed to make it up the steep hill so that we could unload right at the cabin.
In the morning we awoke to stunning views of a winter wonderland and Lake Toya, which is in a large volcanic crater. During our stay we did lots of sledding, built snowmen, made snow angels and watched the snow fall, all right at the cabin. Our cabin didn’t have indoor running water during winter, but we refilled containers with spring water just outside the door. We had the equipment 
Mt. Yotei, Japanto heat water for bathing, but ended up renting a private onsen (hot spring) in town every other day instead. The onsen included a changing/dressing area with sinks & counters, two Japanese style sit down showers, an indoor soaking pool and an outdoor soaking pool. The onsen was very relaxing, and we even had some snow flurries during one of our visits.
While in Japan we visited Rusutsu Ski Resort where Brenda and I got a chance to go snow skiing while the girls played in the snow and took advantage of unlimited free carousel rides with my parents. We also took several outings to a large hilltop resort called The Windsor Hotel to enjoy the views and frequent the French bakery. For Christmas Day we drove over a stunning snowy mountain pass to a geothermal area called Hell Valley in the 
Hot Springs, Noribetsu, JapanNoribetsu area. We first went on a snowy hike to a natural footbath where the river water was warm enough for wading, and then had an eclectic lunch of seaweed tea, rice balls, pancakes, pumpkin soup, cold soba noodles, string cheese and eggs. After lunch we visited a few more geothermal features before heading off to our onsen appointment. For our last evening in Japan we visited an ice cream parlor for some local treats.
Back in Guam my sister Sarah joined us for a more traditional Christmas celebration, with lots of good food and fun times around the Christmas tree. After the holidays we got back into our usual routine of work, school and other activities and we continued to have fun and stay busy helping with Pathfinders and other ministries in our local church.
Until next time,
Andrew