Trips Home
Most flights from Guam to Washington D.C. cost around $1,800, regardless of season, and take around 17 hours to complete. As a result, my trips home have been limited. But I try to make the most of them by spending as much time as possible with my friends and family (and my horse, whom I would argue fits into the “family” category).
The other man in my life: Meep Meep, my retired racehorse.
While I’d like to be able to do only that when I come home, I also have to reserve time for wedding planning. Menu samplings, cake tastings, dress fittings, venue walk-throughs, hair and makeup trials, and other planning elements can be hard to do when the bride and groom are absent, so we fit in what we can when we’re back in town.
Dhruv and I have come to learn that an ideal trip back to the States should be at least two weeks. With long flights, major jet lag, and busy schedules, we really need at least that long to make sure the trip is both enjoyable and productive.
Shipping
A lot of places won’t ship to Guam. And when they do, it can take anywhere from a couple of weeks to a couple of months for the item to arrive. Likewise, sending things from Guam back to the States isn’t much better. I’ve had two packages lost in the mail since I moved here, and several fragile items have been broken in transit.
That’s why we chose to go with Maryland-based paper company Little Bit Heart for our save-the-dates and invitations. They handled everything on their end, including mailing out our notices so they didn’t have to travel all the way from Guam to reach their destination.
Taking a leap of faith at Tarzan Falls.
Because shopping is limited here on Guam, I ordered my bridal accessories online and had them shipped to me. Knowing that everything takes a little longer to get here, I started ordering items six months ahead of the wedding.
Etsy has been my most valuable resource for online wedding shopping. I like the idea of buying handmade items from small businesses, and many of the vendors on Etsy will work with you on special shipping requests. I ordered my veil, clutch, and flowers for my hair from vendors on Etsy, and I’ll likely buy my bridesmaids’ gifts from there too. Dhruv wanted everything to be a surprise, so I’m keeping the photos under wraps until the big day.
Next, I had to pick my shoes. I found shoes that I liked from DSW, which unfortunately will not ship to Guam under normal circumstances. Lucky for me, they will ship to APO/FPO addresses, which are military installations. Since Dhruv is in the Navy, we have access to an FPO address here. It’s great to have that option, but there’s a catch: it typically takes over a month for most APO/FPO shipments to arrive. According to the tracking number, my shoes are currently floating around somewhere in California. Hopefully they get here on time!
Tan Lines
Ok, this one isn’t so much an issue, but it is something I’ve had to keep in mind. Don’t get me wrong; you will never hear me complain about the fact that nearly every day in Guam is a beach day. It stays warm and sunny here pretty much year-round, so while family and friends back home were busy digging their cars out of snow banks this winter, we were out paddle boarding.
But there’s one downside to living on a tropical island: sun exposure. Sun damage is a major concern here, so I try to wear SPF 50 sunscreen all the time. But despite my best efforts, I still have crazy tan lines from sports bras, sunglasses, watches, flip-flops, and bathing suits.
This is how you get tan lines.
Hopefully by the time our wedding rolls around, I’ll have gotten rid of the most obvious tan lines at least. But you know what? If they’re still there, I know I’ll look back at our wedding photos one day and smile, because those tan lines will remind me of the time we lived on a tiny, faraway, tropical island.
Living on Guam might present a few unique challenges when it comes to planning a wedding back home, but in the end, it’s definitely worth it. Now if you’ll excuse me, my paddleboard awaits!
