Issue 13: Road Trip Up North for Sun Soaking Fun ☀️
We carved out our weekend to go to the beach, farmers market and end the weekend horse riding 🐎
Hey there!
It’s your Week to Weekend gals here :) What a magical Mes CHamoru month so far! There are so many activities and events happening on island with several village festivals to look forward to in the month of April.
This week, we’re spending a relaxing weekend up north to have fun in the sun in Tanguisson beach, hitting up the farmer’s market for fresh produce, and ending it with horseback riding. We broke up our itinerary into two days and we’re only just skimming the surface!
We’re also doing a weekly giveaway in partnership with our friends at 76 Circle K! Enter to win a $50 Circle K Fuel & Merchandise Card + a Week to Weekend Tote Bag to fuel your week to weekend. Check out the details here.
If you are already subscribed to us, you get an extra entry 😉.
Esta later,
WW Team
Stroll With Us Through Yigu and Dedido
(Source: Guampedia, and Lina’la’: Portraits of Life at Litekyan)
Yigo (Yigu)
The northernmost point of our island is home to the largest village on Guam. It’s also where the ancient village of Litekyan, also known as Ritidian is located.
💭Did you know:
The name Yigo derives from the word “yugu,” referring to the frame placed over the neck of a carabao and harnessed to a cart.
Litekyan is one of the oldest inhabited sites in the Marianas, where life can be traced back 3,500 years.
The village also sits on top of the Northern Aquifer, which supplies 80% of the island’s water.
Dededo (Dedidu)
the second largest and most populous village on the island. It’s also home to the Dededo Skatepark, Micronesia Mall, and the Farmer’s Market.
💭Did you know:
While the origin of the village name is theorized, sources say it can be derived from the Spanish word “dedo” meaning finger, and pertains to the practice of measuring using fingers.
Before the war, the village of Dededo included the villages of Tamuning, Tumon, and Harmon.
The Farmers’ Cooperative Association of Guam (FCAG) is located in Dededo, where local farmers come together to sell their fresh produce and encourage environmental and agricultural sustainability.
🍍 Our Weekend Up North
This week we’re carving out some R&R and spending the weekend winding down and relaxing on the beach with a good book. A special shoutout to 76 Circle K for fueling our road trip and packing our picnic basket!
Saturday Afternoon
🧺 What’s in Our Picnic Basket?
We filled our picnic baskets with Circle K 76’s hot dog deals. For only $8.88, we got two Nathan’s Hotdogs, a large fountain drink, a bag of chips, and two cookies - plenty to feed two gals. Additional items we picked up were our faves they had in store - Mela Water (it tastes like fresh-squeezed watermelon juice but with no sugar!) and taro chips (a childhood fave!).
☀️ Beach Day & Light Hike to Tanguisson Beach
Tanguisson Beach is just a couple of miles ahead of Two Lover’s Point. Continue driving down the narrow windy road that stops below a cliff. You’ll see an eerie power plant right by the shore.
There’s more to explore past the mushroom rock formations, such as Shark Cove, Lost Pond, and the remnants of an ancient CHamoru village. However, access may be limited due to private property ownership.
✏️ Note: The waves are pretty rough and the corals are sharp. We highly suggest bringing life vests, booties, and snorkeling gear to appreciate the sea life right by the shore. We suggest only snorkeling when the waters are calm, as the currents can be rough and dangerous.
🛑 Warning: A kind reminder to not tamper with sacred latte sites and to respect one’s private property.
Off the Beaten Path….
On our way back, we met Mr. Noh, an elderly man camped alongside the rocky path covered by trees. He had his beach chair with empty containers of Jack-in-the-Box neatly stacked next to it and a radio playing in the back with Korean sports commentary. We watched as he gently swept and raked all the fallen leaves to the side, exposing the sandy platforms that looked like a well-manicured zen garden.
We asked Mr. Noh why he was cleaning and he gently replied, “When I clean, I feel good. It feels good.”
He frequents this spot often, so be sure to say hi to Mr. Noh if you bump into him.
Sunday Morning & Afternoon
🥥 Dededo Farmers Market
The Farmers Cooperative Associate of Guam is located in Dededo and continues to serve as a community gathering place where local farmers can sell fresh produce. The Saturday and Sunday Farmers Market is a popular place to stock up on the week’s supply of fresh veggies and indulge in some sweet, refreshing treats like fresh coconut juice.
We got a bag of tomatoes, a bag of green beans, one large cucumber, and a stalk of lemongrass for less than $10!
💭 Did you know that within the last 40 years, Guam farmers have gone from providing up to 40% - 60% of the island's produce needs to less than 10%.
Upon entering, our eyes were instantly mesmerized by the tables lined with soursop fruits, donne’ saplings, and pineapple plants.
Luvin Guam serves fresh fruit coconut juice, smoothies, and coconut sashimi. Yes, vegan CHe’lus, we said it - SASHIMI soaked in soy sauce and wasabi.
The fresh produce and smoothies come from the laborious hands of Mr. Joaquin Naputi, a farmer and retired Deputy Director of the Guam Department of Agriculture. Mr. Naputi believes that if every household plants ten of every fruit/vegetable bearing tree, we “can get Guam growing again” and return back to our sustainable levels.
What we also found amazing about Mr. Naputi’s farm is that there is no watering system 🤯 To date, his farm proudly has 500 soursop trees, 200 coconut trees, and 300 avocado trees (of the 300, only 15 that are fruit bearing).
What’s in season in the upcoming months?
🥑 Avocados March and April
🍍 Pineapples in May
Soursop all year-round
👀 BOLO: Mr. Naputi will be giving away 200 pineapple plants FOR FREE at this year’s banana festival as part of his belief for households to harvest their own produce.
🏇 Comfort at the Horse Ranch
We ended the day with horseback riding at Rock n’ Rail Horse Ranch, a horse ranch tucked away in the backroads of Yigo, which has existed for over 40 years!
We were greeted with a wooden sign nailed to a tree and were instantly surrounded by lush greenery, two wooden-penned arenas, and stables that house the gentle giants.
Meet the two leading ladies of the show, Corazon and Sienna.
Before taking us to the arena for our ride, the handlers taught us how to groom them.
💭Did you know:
Horseback riding is considered to be a moderate exercise that helps burn calories, strengthens your core, and improves balance and posture.
Interaction with horses is said to have psychological benefits. According to one study, 80% of surveyed participants noticed a positive change in their mood after riding.
Local Legend: Puntan Dos Amantes
(Source: Puntan Dos Amantes and CHamoru Legends: A Gathering of Stories)
The local legend of Puntan Dos Amantes, also known as the Legend of the Two Lovers, is the story of a beautiful girl and a young warrior. The girl was a daughter of a wealthy Spanish aristocrat and the granddaughter of a great Chamorro chief, and was arranged to marry a powerful Spanish captain.
The young girl was distraught upon learning this and ran away to the north, where she stumbled across a gentle young CHamoru warrior. They fell in love and when the girl’s father learned of the two lovers, he demanded that she marry the Spanish captain immediately.
The girl’s father and the Spanish soldiers proceeded to chase the lovers to the edge of the Tumon Bay cliff. The lovers tied their long hair in a knot and then leaped into the waters below.
Today, that cliff is known as Puntan Dos Amantes or the Two Lovers Point.
Despite their desire to shelter her, the family could not protect the girl from something with a pull more powerful than safety and security: the youthful innocence of a heart in love… They were confident in love’s ability to protect them. They met with each other under the cover of night, holding hands with precious minutes to spare, making desperate pledges of love.” -CHamoru Legends: A Gathering of Stories
Although we’re familiar with the sadness associated with this popular legend, it’s a story about hope, acceptance, and long-lasting love that has withstood through time.
Until Next Week!
Stay tuned for road trip to the heart of our island ❤️
You might have noticed that we did not include our regular “Events” section in this newsletter, but not to worry! You can check out this month’s events here. 😉
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