GUAM Journal entries for Guam are at the bottom of the page.

One of 4 landings on the way to Guam courtesy of Continental Micronesia	It doesn't take a genius to figure out we're coming in way too fast to land
Airport crew checking the landing gear after a rough landing in Pohnpei	Tina, our MWR contact in Guam, trying to see over the steering wheel
	There we met a CD vender named Hans who later that evening got us on a radio show with a DJ named Jahson
Went to the Chamorro Village in Tumon Bay during our 1st day there, a day off
Leaving the Chamorro Festival, day 1	Overlooking Tumon Bay, where we went out later that evening
We surprise visited Jahson at his reggae show. He's been spinning Jah Works since 1995	the radio station in Guam
Jahson's reggae plates	Derrick's turn to be sick on the trip
Scott gets up with "Kaya" band at a local club	Red, checking for cockroaches and ants
	plaque commemorating the B52 and the pilots who flew them in an 11 bombing mission over Vietnam in 1972
Retired B52 bomber and Anderson AFB, flew sorties over Vietnam
B1's at Anderson	Wally, our driver for the day, at Anderson
This guy's hair wasn't regulation, so they had a shaving ceremony in the middle of the dancefloor...their version of a good time.	Red at Top of the Mar
these two brothers we're diggin the music and weren't afraid to show it	Group shot at Top of the Mar
one of Guam's highlights, the Mongolian dinner we had	We met Lori in Greenland a year and a half ago, now she's stationed in Guam
check out them spoons!	For added entertainment, Shock dubs up our guest percussionist
we're melting...	Scott volunteers for the dunking booth
Scott heckling Bass

Guam | September 5th, 2004 | Shocka

The travel to Guam started off a bit hairy and kind of set the tone for the whole trip. The flight was to make 3 stops on the way—this we were told. What we weren’t told was that some of the runways were so short and beat up that at least one near death experience was not only probable, it was inevitable. For us, that came during the second landing on the island of Pohnpei. Anyone with a window seat was treated to what felt like an eternity flying 50 feet above the Pacific with no land in sight. Then just as the relief of seeing a runway set in, the plane slammed down as it had been dropped by a crane and shook vigorously while we heard all the carry ons slide forward. In this case there was no need for the warning about being careful when opening the overhead bins because we knew that not only had articles shifted during landing, they had gone elsewhere. Obviously I lived to tell the tale and even survived the third landing when finally the fourth brought us to our final destination in Guam by late evening.

Being only 7 degrees above the equator, Guam is a tad bit warm. Guam is warm in the morning, in the evenings, and downright hot during the day. They accommodated us on the Naval Base there in what (I’m not complaining just being matter of fact) was rather out-dated officer’s lodge and gave us the first two days off. Unfortunately, taxis are amazingly expensive so we decided to rent a minivan to see some of the sights. The minivan came fully equipped with all the amenities--AC, power steering, a CD player, tinted windows, two sliding side doors, along with the unexpected bonus package of roachs and ants. The last two options could have been done without and caused a few of the more squeamish members of the band to have a good freak out ( I won’t mention any names). Everytime we parked for a minute and got back in, there were our little insect buddies chillin’ on all the seats.

The first day off was a blast. All of us including the ants and roaches went to a street festival in the heart of the Tumon Bay, Guam. It was there we met a reggae vendor named Hans who told us he knew a DJ named Jahson who’d been giving us airplay down there for years. Hans said he’d take us over to the University of Guam public radio station where Jahson happened to have his weekly radio show airing that night, and from there, to a live reggae club to hear a local crew named The Kaya Band. Jahson was really cool to us playing a couple of our tracks while we were there and even invited us over to his house for little session after he finished his show.

The next day we had our first show which proved to be quite a test of patience and perseverance for all of us. First Bass and Red had to drop off the roaches and ants back off at Budget Rent-a-Car then we headed over to beautiful Anderson Air Force Base. They had us playing in a great room, served us great food, had really nice people, but no one would dance. That’s definitely something more foreign than Guam to all of us in Jah Works. Regardless of how many or few are in the crowd, we always expect to get someone on the dance floor, but at Anderson Air Force Base we were fighting an uphill battle. It would be a hugely important lesson for all of us to learn early in the trip to Guam because the shows there would prove to be up and down---we weren’t gonna get the Kwajalein vibe every night.

The next night’s show was better at a place overlooking Tumon Bay called, Top of the Mar. There were some military folks but what made the night was the unexpected attendance of Jahson, the entire Kaya Band, Hans, and all of their friends. The Kaya Band brought all of us t-shirts with their logo “420247365”---you figure it out. We played early and then those guys had another show starting at midnite, so a lot of the guys went to check them out and had another great night out. I thought better and stayed in as our final show in Guam was scheduled for a noon start meaning we’d have to be up and moving by 8:30 am.

For our grand finale they’d schedule an afternoon show/cookout for all the families on the base. Now earlier I mentioned that being only seven degrees above the equator, Guam tends to be a little on the warm side meteorologically speaking. Well, Guam at noon is downright scorching. The sun literally feels like it’s a hundred feet off the ground and looms over you like a solar grim reaper. Now bringing a bunch of guys in from a temperate Maryland and sticking them in the equatorial sunshine of September 1st is at the peril of more than one of us catching a heat stroke. The morning started when Big D had a run in with some more of Guam’s wildlife (probably contracted by the ants and roaches) and was stung twice by wasps while looking for a power source. Then after finally setting up and sweating out about a gallon of loose water weight, it was time to start. Rain threatened on and off, but our “no quit” attitude got us through with minimal casualties aside from the occasional dizzy spell. Scotty took a turn in the dunking booth to cool off and Pang, without even paying his dollar I might add, immediately ran over and hit the arm for Scotty’s first dunk of the day. I’m pretty sure there will be pics posted on the website. It was some much needed comic relief to get our minds off the heat. After packing up all the gear, we were given the rest of the afternoon off to do laundry and pack for our 3qm pick-up for the airport---next stop Korea. As for Guam—hot—VERY HOT, especially at noon. But many thanks to Hans, Jahson, and especially our new friends from The Kaya Band for all the vibes that we will never forget.

Guam | September 5, 2004 | Scott

I think the highlight of MY time on Guam was meeting the guys in Kaya and Irie Vibes, the two bands native to the island. These guys were wicked, man, playing their own style of reggae music and pushing the reggae vibes HARD. I went to see both bands perform a few times, and every time we went out, they had me get up and sing some songs with them. I think that last night we saw Kaya, the night I lost my ATM card, incidentally, I must've sang about ten Marley songs in an endless medley. We hit "So Much Trouble" and that really rocked me, "Pimper's Paradise" and even some Black Uhuru tunes, "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner" especially. Nuff Respect to all the brothers in Kaya and Irie Vibes, man. They reminded me of why I got into reggae music so long ago, helped to keep my vibes very, VERY high, indeed, and treated me to some of the best times I had on this trip. Keep up the good works, my Bredren, and if you ever find my ATM card, buy a round for the crew!!! A special thanks to Miss Tina with MWR for taking us out that last night on Guam, she stayed up way too late for her own good in an effort to show us a good time, and it was a raging success. Thanks so much, Lady!

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