A friend who co-owns a tour company on Tinian offered to take me back to Saipan by boat, something that I have always wanted to do. I have this photo of Grandpa riding a boat around Tinian on a reconnaissance mission during World War II:
The expression on his face doesn't reveal how incredible the ride is across the open sea (by the way, my friend was able to identify exactly where Grandpa was - the spot visible in the background is called "Drop Coke" because the soldiers apparently dumped a bunch of coca cola bottles there after the war and now scuba divers can go there to see them). My videos provide a little more insight... This was truly one of the most exhilarating experiences of my life. It was frightening, but in an exciting and adventurous way.
After we passed the point of Tinian, the waves got much bigger - too big for me to hold the camera (and my beer). Sometimes the boat landed in such a way that the salt water drenched my face.
I felt so alive.
