A Wedding in the island...

One of my dear and close friends in Saipan has gotten married last January 18, 2008. I flew from Philippines for this special occasion mainly to attend the wedding, but also to see friends and relatives, and also to see the island itself.

I guess I should start from the beginning: My trip to Saipan last December 29, 2007. Unlike most of the flights I've had in my 6-year stay in Saipan, and going to Philippines once in a while for a short vacation - my flight this time is in the middle of the day, so I finally got a real treat in seeing many wonderful cloud formations. :) I took a lot of photos in the duration of the flight (about 3 hours) up to the actual touchdown. I like window seat, and close to the wing of the plane so that I can observe what's going on during takeoff, and touchdown.

Fast-forward to the actual wedding:

The wedding was a beach wedding, held at Saipan Grand Hotel. The ceremony started at 5pm with the march of the entourage, and finally of the bride. It was a simple, solemn occasion and the scenery all added to the beauty of the whole event. The sun started to set as the ceremony ended - so it was just right for photo-taking!

Photos taken during the ceremony:

Photos taking after the ceremony:

A wedding is not complete without the food...

Cafe at the Park

Cafe at the Park is a place where you can have good food and quality service. It is located near American Memorial Park in Garapan - hence the name. Here I share with you some photos taken when we had dinner here last September 8, 2006.

First, we had a "Crispy Seafood Roll" - it's Tempura-like, with mixed seafood (fish meat, shrimp) with Tomato, Cabbage (glazed with vinegar) as side dish. I somehow forgot to take note about the other side dish this seafood roll came with. Sorry about that. :) But - you definitely won't feel sorry after having this as a sort of appetizer. It's really good. :)

In this photo you see "Loco Moco" - its a rice topped with burger patty, egg, and creamy butter sauce. My friend told me that this is really popular in Hawaii. He let me have a taste, and it's really good! :)

I ordered Baby Back Ribs (with Rice) and Minestrone Soup, another friend had Teriyaki Short Ribs (with Mashed Potatoes). Like what I said earlier, their food here is really great - I can't find anything to complain about (not that I complain a lot. ;) :D). I particularly liked the vegetable side dish I had. It perfectly balances the sweet-tangy taste of the back rib's sauce.

Lastly, here are some photos I took of the place:

Inactivity

Wow... it's really been a long time since I've updated this blog! :blush:

I was actually afraid that my account got discontinued after not logging/going here for a long time. It's good to know that its not - and that my Blog still exists. :D

For now, I've changed the template of this blog from "No. 565" to "Rounded Corners 4". I think this new template style suits this blog very well.

Will post new update here soon. Ciao! :)

some tourist spots in Saipan

A family friend visited us here in the island of Saipan, and I was tagged along today as the photographer. :D I really don't mind for I love taking pictures ever since I had bought my first camera out of the cash gift my dear Lola (Grandmother) gave me for my Elementary graduation. I was able to take some beautiful shots, and I want to share them with you here in my blog.

First Stop: Banadero Cave (The Last Command Post)
This is a natural limestone cave fortress. This very cave is the "Last Command Post" for the Japanese army in WWII. There are still tanks, cannons, guns and other war relics in the area. Peace memorials have been set up here for the soldiers who gave their lives during WWII.

Notice the cave just above the artillery? Up there, you'll see this passage way that leads to the inner cave.

Second Stop: Suicide Cliff
Just above the Okinawa Peace Memorial is Suicide cliff where hundreds of Soldiers jumped to their deaths rather than surrender. Here I share with you two shots I took:

Third Stop: Bird Island
This is probably one of my favorite tourist spots here in Saipan. :) Maybe it's the rock amidst the waters with the waves gently breaking around it. Either way, this is a sanctuary for the migrating birds, hence the name.




Final Stop: Hotel Nikko
Okay, this is not a tourist spot. :D Hotel Nikko is one of the hotels here in Saipan. In my personal opinion though, this is the nicest and biggest/tallest hotel in the island. What's more, they have their own botanical garden and a mini zoo (mostly birds) and a fish pond with a wide selection of tropical fishes, and baby sharks too! This is the very reason we had to stop by here. :)

Those colorful Scarlet Macaws were loud. And as we were leaving the area, they got louder as if asking us to stay. :D :D The man-made water falls there complements the paradise-like surrounding. And finally, this Moluccan Cockatoo is lovely. She's the only one that looked at the camera. And her pose is just so nice, isn't it? Now, don't ask me how I know it's a "she" ;)

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to take photos of those tropical fishes. My cousin and I are planning to go back just to do that, hopefully armed with extra digicam battery, and if sky is the limit: a brand new digicam. :D

Information Sources:
Marianas Visitors Authority
Pacificwrecks.com