Well that depends....

Frequently we get asked if anything is DIFFERENT now on Guam, or if everything is exactly the same as when we left 4 years ago. To that question, the answer can only be: "it depends....."

Well, the sky is still a vibrant blue when it is not raining.

And thankfully you can still see the ocean when driving down the main road, Marine Corps Drive, while heading North and South.

But.... there is a lot of new construction underway to hold the estimated 30,000 new Marines and dependents that will move on island over the next few years.

However, there are still the friendly campaign "wavers" who stand on every street corner for months before the elections waving pompoms, clapping and drawing attention to their candidate of choice or more likely family member, since it is a small island. And we still find the billboards littering every inch of the roadways begging for our vote for Governor and Senators. (We voted today for Calvo and Tenorio for Gov/Lt. Gov. If by some strange turn of events Gutierrez and Aguon win, Steve is determined this time to put old Carl in jail for his theft of government funds.)

Another unfortunate new change is that the traffic has increased dramatically.
Yes, I can take a photo while driving because, well, I am not driving, but sitting in congestive traffic. Besides the highest speed limit is 35 mph. (Italian women can smoke, talk on the phone and shift gears while going much faster than that.)
Many side roads have construction underway and this makes Marine Dr. a nightmare most days. I spend a lot of time on the roads taxing kids to sports and activities and this bumper to bumper gets old. (But again as irritating as this is, it will never be as bad as traffic in Italy!)

We were hoping to see all renewable energy solar panels when we returned, but the Piti Power plant is still up and running with the nasty brown haze above it. But the good news is that the brown haze means there is power on island.
Years ago it wasn't uncommon to have days and nights without power.
Well, I came home a few days ago to find that there was no power. Currently we live on the 11th floor.
So, as in years passed, when there was no power after earthquakes, typhoons, or brown tree snakes shorting out power lines, I hoofed my way up stairs.
Living here always makes me grateful for the small things--like power and water and elevators.

We still have a few beggars in wheelchairs that ask for money for medicine or expensive treatments off island. The Asians living here are very hardworking and would never ask for handouts. And the Chamorros are very tight knit families and always share everything they have with each other, so it is either emergencies or drugs that make them go to the community. (In Italy the gypsies and beggars are everywhere, so it is nice not to have to deal with their panhandling here.)

Am I happy living here? I could answer "it depends..." Many people from the mainland I talk to say "it depends" on any given day if they are happy here. But for me, while there are many things I miss about Rome, I still think "Guam is Good", and I love living here with all the good and bad, the same and the different all rolled into one.