Saipan Street Market

Do you want to see one of our oldest traditions in Saipan?  Brian and I have been going to Saipan's street market ever since the first week we came to Saipan, almost two years ago.  Sometimes we get a little sick of the food and stop going for a month or two, but we always come back. 

A bunch of local restaurants set up tents every Thursday night and sell food, smoothies, and island desserts.  Other vendors sell clothing and jewelry.  Street market is really popular for the locals and tourists alike.

 Street Market has recently moved to a new place in Garapan, and now it is shaded by the gorgeous, blooming flame trees.  When the bright orange blooms fall to the ground and sit in piles around the trees, Brian says it looks like the trees are bleeding. :)

 Laura and I at the market

 Some of the most popular foods at the street market are bbq'ed skewers, pearl shakes, and Asian cuisine.  Brian's favorite stand is Poons, which serves Chinese food.   

Laura, Josiah, Jennifer, and Brian 

The Bird

It's almost our anniversary!!  I love him.

 On Saturday, we took a hike to Bird Island.  I think I've been to this island about 8 times in the past two years but it's awesome every time.  On Saturday it was living up to it's name, and had a ton of birds swooping around it- so cool to watch.

 Love these two!

 Brian and I with Bird Island in the background

Thanks so much for the pictures, Aly and Nate!! :)

Forbidden Island rocks

Forbidden Island is one of our very favorite hiking destinations in Saipan.  A couple of weekends ago, a group of us took a trip out there and spent the morning exploring and swimming.  Our friends Amy and Matt had family visiting and we all wanted to show them the gorgeous island.  

Here's some pics of our trip, although a lot of them were taken by our friends Kara and Grant, who have an awesome blog about life in Saipan here.  Check it out!

 The hiking trail down to Forbidden is pretty steep and can be really slippery if it has rained recently.  Taking it slow is best because then you can see the amazing view as you go down.

We always take lots of pictures on the hike down :)

At some points, ropes are in place to help you get down the tricky parts.

 Once you're down to the beach, there are tons of cool rock formations to climb and cliffs to explore.

 Love this picture of us girls even though i'm cheesing it.

 We found an "I Love You" shoe

2012 Xterra Saipan

It's hard to believe that it's already been a year since last years Xterra race.  This year was a special year because Guam and the Philippines are now also hosting Xterra Championship races in back-to-back-to-back weekends.  This lured in a fantastic group of pro's and international athletes to compete in what some say is the toughest and most beautiful Xterra courses.  This was my second time to race Xterra Saipan and I was hoping to improve my time from last year.  I changed some things up with my training and strategy, and ended up improving my performance.  

The race starts on the same beach where WWII Marines launched their attack in 1944.   The waters were a little rough and current was strong.  Nearly 80 competitors begin their swim.

This was my favorite section of the bike course, riding down the backside of Wireless Ridge.

With over 3000ft of climbing on the bike and nearly 1000ft on the trail run the race proved to be tough.

This is me finishing up the last section of the bike course.  In the background you can see me and Rachel's little red and white house.

Although I improved my run time from last year, I was cramping a lot and wasn't really happy with my run. I can definitely learn from this race to improve next time.

Rachel and friends volunteered at the transition area.

Some great people and amazing athletes.

I improved by almost 19 minutes from last year, click above to see a larger print of my results.

Me and Rach

Atulai "Big Eyed Scad"

Every morning for the past few weeks the locals have been gathering at the same place near edge of the reef of Lau Lau Bay.  Just before sunrise, with their throwing nets in hand, they are ready to catch some fish.  I had heard that there was a great ball of Atulai fish that had gathered in the Bay and that some of the net fishermen were pulling in almost 100 pounds of them a day.  Typically, the Atulai spend most of their time in deep waters, but almost every year they migrate in great numbers into some of the island's shallow waters. So with speargun and underwater camera in hand, my friends and I went to see what everyone was talking about.  

Gone Fishing.

 

Labor Day!!!  Today I went out to Lau Lau Bay to spearfish with some friends.  This will be my sixth attempt at catching a fish.  After my first five attempts I have been unsuccessful at catching anything.  Early this morning I loaded up the scooter and headed out. 

In order to get to the better fishing spots it's usually best to cross over the reef into deeper water.  I usually always get to see eagle rays, sharks, or turtles so even if I don't catch anything it's still a pretty rad experience. 

Today I hit my first fish!   

Rachel and I are eating Parrot fish tonight!!!