THURSDAY, DECEMBER 26TH THROUGH FRIDAY, DECEMBER 27TH – TRAVELING TO SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA EN ROUTE TO GUAM FOR THE GARY SINISE FOUNDATION VARIETY TOUR:
With a 5:15 am flight departure, I had to leave for the airport at 3 am. If I had gone to bed, it would have meant getting up at 1 am, so I just stayed up all night. This is the Annual New Year’s Eve Improv Comedy show with Special Guest Matt Scannell (from Vertical Horizon). We will be the very first entertainment group to perform at all 3 bases in Guam in one visit – Camp Blaz Marine Base, Naval Base Guam and Andersen Air Base.
I landed Atlanta on time and had less than an hour to run into the Lounge. I was so tired and sleepy that by the time we boarded, I just wanted to sleep. For the first time, I wore my Gary Sinise Foundation shirt on the flight. The flight attendants commented on it and then the pilot came out and talked to me. He must have spent 10 minutes with me raving about all the wonderful things Gary and his Foundation do to support the military and first responders. I could not agree more!
I managed to stay awake for the meal and then slept for several hours. We only had WiFi while over the USA and then lost it for the remainder of the flight. It was a 16 hour flight and brutal without WiFi. The pilot said he had no idea why Delta’s marketing department made such a mistake. Delta is switching out all their WiFi servers/satellites and in the process, did not keep the old ones up until the new ones could be functional. Delta doesn’t tell passengers this until the last minute when they send out an email advising that you won’t have WiFi on your flight. I’ve switched to American and United for flights next year because I just can’t afford the inconvenience. Several people that I talked to today on the flight said they were switching in 2025 as well.
While over the USA, Delta offers free WiFi via T-Mobile and also free if you have a Delta Frequent Flyer Account. I have both but when I logged in, there was no mention of either of these offers. I paid the $15 and am going to send it to Delta for reimbursement. Especially since I only had service for a couple of hours.
I have Dave Price flying out of JFK and Michael Hitchcock, Jordan Black, Colleen Smith, and Stephanie Courtney flying out of LAX. Their flights were being delayed by over an hour because they were supposed to fly over Russia. Evidently, Russia shot down a commercial jet over Christmas and the USA is no longer taking the risk of flying over Russian Air Space. Smart move! Since I was out of Atlanta, I wasn’t scheduled to fly over Russia so my flight departed on time.
The Delta plane is one of the newer models and really nice…except the seat is very narrow and the space for your feet barely allows you to place your feet side by side. We landed on time and both my bags arrived. Immigration and Customs was easy. Since I had now landed 2 hours before the group, I decided to go to the hotel and get everyone checked in and come back and meet them. We are staying at the Ibis Hotel next to the airport since we have an early morning flight out to Guam tomorrow. There is a shuttle but it only runs every 30 minutes so I took a taxi which only cost $3.00!
There was a long line of people waiting to check in and they all had airline vouchers. Evidently, flights were cancelled or connections were missed because of the whole Russian Missile incident. It’s a nice hotel and they gave us all rooms next to each other on the 8th floor. I went back to the airport and Dave and the LAX passengers arrived within 5 minutes of each other.
Did I mention it is FREEZING in Seoul? It was around 14 degrees tonight. We met in the hotel restaurant where there was a really nice buffet. I think Michael and I are the only two who ate because the others just wanted to get some sleep.
Closing out for today and going to sleep as well. I will need to get up at 4 am for the 6 am lobby call!
Jude
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 28TH – TRAVEL FROM SEOUL TO GUAM:
Short report today! We met in the lobby at 6 am and were supposed to have 4 taxis waiting for us. Only 3 showed up so we had to wait for the 4th. It was FREEZING cold this morning! Check in was relatively easy but so glad to didn’t change our departure time from 6 am to 7 am like we discussed.
We cleared Passport Control and Security but then part of the group split off and didn’t wait for the others and we got separated. The Lounge that the check in agent told us to go to was the wrong one and we ultimately ended up in separate lounges.
The flight boarded on time and our seats were definitely not what everyone had requested but the flight was already full when we booked our seats months ago. Everyone from Korea seems to go to Guam for New Year’s Eve! I had warned the group that I had never had food that was “edible” when prepared in Korea for flights departing on Korean Airlines. That has not changed unfortunately. The flight attendants are so sweet but their food is just terrible! I had also warned them that none of the movies were good. Again, still true. And, with no WiFi, once I finished watching the one I had downloaded, I was bored. So I went to sleep for an hour!
We landed on time and Patrick from the Marine base was there to meet us. Patrick is great and goes out of his way to make sure we are taken care of. We’re staying at the Hyatt again and once again, check in was a nightmare. Most of the people on our flight seemed to be staying at the Hyatt so the line was long. When I finally made it to the desk, it took the lady checking us in over 30 minutes just to give me 3 of the 7 rooms I needed. Patrick introduced me to the Manager and she had someone help with checking us in.
Everyone wanted to eat at 4:30 so we reserved a table in the lobby/bar area. But, only “bar” food was available until 5:30 and then not much more was offered. The restaurant was booked solid so eating there wasn’t an option. We had our “meeting” for the Improv group to go over their show and Dave and I to go over his emceeing. Matt was excused because he already knows his part of the show. A band started playing in the area where we were sitting so it was almost impossible to hear each other speak.
Several of the group walked down to the mall. I was going to get a Macha Latte in the little bakery in the hotel lobby but they were out of Macha. I walked down to the mall and ran into the others. The mall is all designer and very high end shops. I did find a little coffee shop inside the mall and they had my Macha.
It is unbearably hot and humid here (especially after leaving the freezing cold of Korea. I think Jordan was going to the beach – which is beautiful.
Once back in my room, I had issues reaching the front desk and figuring out what channels are on the TV. I finally got so frustrated, I just gave up and will deal with it tomorrow.
This group is really great. It’s Stephanie’s first tour with us (by the way, Stephania is “Flo” from the Progressive Insurance Commercials among her many other credits). The Immigration officials recognized her today when we arrived in Guam and she had to take photos with them. It’s going to be a really great tour with lots of laughs and great music for the men and women serving at the Marine, Navy and Air Force base in Guam.
We don’t have any commitments tomorrow until we go to the base for the performance. Lobby call is 2:30 pm so I’m going to go for a jog tomorrow morning. First show is at Camp Blaz Marine Base – my first visit to that base!
Jude
FIRST PERFORMANCE FOR GSF VARIETY TOUR AT CAMP BLAZ MARINE BASE, GUAM:
Was able to get in a 3 mile jog this morning. It was 87 degrees at 8:00 am and humid. But, unlike when I ran here this past November, I didn’t get a mile and a half from the hotel and get caught in a downpour. There was a breeze which made the jog more bearable, too.
I stopped and got a “Tofu Omelet” at Kracked Egg next to the hotel, showered and then had a couple of hours to work. The group went down to the beach this morning to enjoy some rare “down time”.
We departed for Camp Blaz at 2 pm and Patrick gave us a driving tour of the base. The base has been there for decades but only recently “re-opened” and being built up for the Marines. There are Air Force, Navy and Army all working there as well.
We arrived at the venue a little earlier than expected for our sound check. This is the first time I’ve worked with this production company and they have been excellent. They had everything set up and waiting for us to sound check. Sound check went quickly with no hiccups but it took us a while to go through all the various details for each entertainer.
As soon as sound check ended, a Colonel and his wife came by to welcome the group. They were so nice! Shortly thereafter, the Sgt. Major and his wife also came by to say thank you. They gave everyone a coin and I gave them a GSF cap. They ate dinner and stayed for the show, sitting in the very first row.
We kicked off the show with a “video” intro of the entertainers followed by Dave coming on stage and performing. Then we played the Gary Sinise Foundation info video followed by a personal video message from Gary to Camp Blaz. The comedians were on first and since there were children in attendance, they kept it clean and still delivered a great show. Matt followed with an awesome acoustic set of his hits which included having the audience sing along at one point. After Matt’s performance, Dave went on stage and told the audience that the music they had heard as they walked in and during their meal was composed by Gary’s son Mac. We showed a slide with Mac’s album and information on where it can be purchased as well as info on Mac’s YouTube channel. This is such a wonderful way to memorialize Mac and make his music known around the world. We presented Patrick with the double LP in recognition for all his hard work in bringing in the show.
The group took photos with everyone in line and gave each attendee an autographed photo card. One man in line told me he had retired from the Army after 23 years and served for the past 9 years as a civilian government contractor. He said this was the first show he has ever seen in all that time and he was blown away. Another young man said he saw Vertical Horizon when I took them to Bahrain earlier this year.
We were back at the hotel a few minutes before 9 pm….just in time for all the restaurants to be closed on a Sunday night. The group had eaten some really good “local” fried chicken that Patrick had brought for the green room but I did not have time to eat earlier. Definitely won’t hurt me to miss dinner especially given how late it is already.
My friends are hearing about the terrible airplane crash in Korea and I’m getting lots of messages check on me.
Lobby call in 10:15 and they perform at Guam Naval base.
Jude
MONDAY, DECEMBER 30TH – GSF MILITARY SUPPORT VARIETY SHOW PERFORMANCE AT GUAM NAVAL BASE:
Lobby call was at 10:15 am and it’s going to be a very full, inspiring day! Kimberly picked us up right on time. The vehicles we had approved were not provided because they only had one driver and needed two. We have a lot of bags and equipment (guitar, banners, etc.) and when the van seats go all the way to the back, there is nowhere to put those items. But, so many of their staff are on leave and we had to make it work. We did.
First stop was a visit to the Fire Department and I’m pretty sure these guys have never had a celebrity tour come to their facilities. They were awesome. We asked a ton of questions and even “timed” one of their guys putting on the uniform and equipment. He did it in 30 seconds which is outstanding. They pulled the fire truck out and hooked up the hose for us. The group took turns holding the hose and trying to knock over a cone. We took photos in front of the truck with them and then departed to Gab Gab Beach which is a famous beach located inside the gates of the base. We had pre-ordered Subway sandwiches. It was crazy hot and humid but a very strong breeze made it bearable. The beach is gorgeous. But the most exciting thing for me was watching Navy helicopters practice “rescue missions”. They would pick up individuals from the water and raise them into the chopper. It was unbelievable that they could accomplish their mission in the strong winds. But we were told that is the perfect time for them to practice some “worse case scenarios”. They continued these drills until the wind died down. Fortunately it was time for us to leave as well because it got hot pretty quickly with no breeze!
Next stop was the USS Frank Cable Submarine Tender. We were originally told we would be touring a submarine and then performing a couple of skits and songs for them because they would not be able to attend the show. Then word came back that we were not allowed on the Sub and would be touring and performing on the Tender. Either way, it was a cool visit! Justin (their JAG) was our host and took us to visit several different units on the ship. We ended the visit with a performance in their dining hall and over 100 people were waiting for us. What a great visit!
Next stop was a quick visit with Security Forces where we learned about what their daily lives are like in Guam. Took photos with them and encouraged them to attend the performance that night.
I remember the venue from my previous shows here. The Green Room is located a long way from the stage but is basically the only thing available. Sound check was quick and we had a few minutes to go to the base exchange.
By the time we arrived back at the venue, it was time for dinner. Dinner was once again provided by the Gary Sinise Foundation. Did I mention that dinner at all three shows is compliments of the Gary Sinise Foundation? Such a great “perk” for the men and women serving here. Tonight was “pasta” and it was excellent. We have paid for 100 meals but a lot more people than that showed up. I told the staff not to turn anyone away as long as their was food left. They ended up feeding 130 people. But we had approximately 200 at the show – including a couple of children – because a lot of the attendees had eaten prior to coming to the show. The XO – Phil and his wife Brittney – were in attendance and I took them back to meet the group just prior to the show beginning. I gave GSF caps today to the “top” people at the Fire Department, Security, and the tender. Also gave the XO one and then used the remaining caps for the staff who has worked so hard at these events. We bring 12 caps for each base and they are always a big hit.
The audience was so enthusiastic and that always makes for a better show. The sound was really good tonight and the comedians ran longer than we had scheduled but it was fine. Everyone stayed for Matt’s set and then stood in line for a photo with the group. We put smiles on so many faces tonight – including everyone in our group! A man came up to me and asked if we had time to come tour their submarine! LOL. I told him we had sincerely “tried” to do just that but were told it was a no go.
We were back at the hotel by 10 pm and lobby call isn’t until 3 pm tomorrow because not a lot of people are on base working on NYE. But they still anticipate a good attendance at the performance at Andersen Air Base tomorrow night.
Jude
DECEMBER 31ST, 2024 – HAPPY NEW YEAR’S EVE FROM ANDERSEN AIR FORCE BASE, GUAM AND THE GARY SINISE FOUNDATION MILITARY APPRECIATION VARIETY SHOW:
Was wonderful to have time to go to the gym today for a very long workout. Then even had time to work for 2 hours before the 10:00 am lobby call. It was about a 20 minute drive from the hotel to the base. Did I mention that the speed limit on Guam is 35 mph? Of course, everyone breaks the speed limit!!!
The show is at the Country Club (same place Chapel Hart performed) and it is so beautifully decorated! Seating is all tables and chairs tonight and dinner is once again provided by The Gary Sinise Foundation. This time it was a taco/nacho bar with red velvet cupcakes for dessert. The base had planned on 120 people but they far surpassed that number just for the dinner.
The group did a quick soundcheck and then we went over to the Base Exchange for some “retail therapy”. They found several items they were looking for and I purchased a gift for someone. Matt, Jordan and I got Subway sandwiches to go so we could eat them after we got back to the hotel tonight after the show. We will toast with a Subway Sandwich instead of champagne. LOL.
There were LOTS of leadership attending the show tonight and we brought them to the Green Room to meet our group just prior to the show beginning. Show started right on time and I’m guessing approximately 200 people were in attendance. Will get the exact count tomorrow.
It was a fantastic last show and just as fantastic an audience. So many laughs and smiles for all those attending. There were also lots of children in the audience who really seemed to enjoy the show. I think everyone in the audience stayed for the Meet and Greet, but it moved quickly and we were back at the hotel by around 10:30. The fireworks are going to take place right outside our balconies and should be awesome.
We all gathered in Stephanie’s room and talked about how awesome it is that the Gary Sinise Foundation sponsored this tour to Guam. After being here, they realize just how remote this island is. Even though it is part of the USA territories, it is “lost in the 50’s” here and hard on the men and women serving and their families. Also so expensive for anyone to visit them or for them to fly back to the USA mainland. This was most definitely the right place to bring some holiday cheer this yar.
We all told our New Year’s Resolutions and at around 11:30 pm, everyone was jet lagged and just wanted to get some sleep. So we said our goodnights and headed for our respective rooms. There was an excellent view of the fireworks from my balcony and they lasted for more than 10 minutes! I made myself stay awake until midnight so I could video them and send to my family. But, it wasn’t “easy”!
Patrick is taking us sightseeing all day tomorrow and we have to be in the lobby by 10:30 am. Tomorrow we have to go back through Seoul for one night on the way home – again because flights back to the USA were completely full on any routing today and crazy expensive the rest of the week unless we make the stopover. The worst part is we have to depart to the airport on January 2nd at 3:45 am, fly on Philippine Airlines to Manila, have a 7 hour layover, and then fly to Seoul to spend the night and fly home on the 3rd. Everyone was willing to do this to make the tour possible which is why I love working with these folks! THEY LOVE OUR U.S. MILITARY!
Happy New Year from Guam!
Jude
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 1ST – DAY OFF FOR SIGHTSEEING IN GUAM – HAPPY NEW YEAR:
It is rare to have a day completely “off” and also have beautiful weather. We departed the hotel at 10:30 am and the first stop was to walk to the “I Love Guam” sign near the hotel and take our annual “Happy New Year” photo. Next stop was back to the Naval Base for Stephanie to try and purchase the shirt she wanted to give her relative. Patrick drove us around the island stopping at various “landmarks” for us to take photos. He is an EXCELLENT tour guide and knows so much about the history of the island. Late in the afternoon, we went to a famous restaurant right on the water called “Jeff’s Pirate Cove”. We had lunch there and then drove to the “Donkey Store” which is known as Don Quixote in other countries. Everyone was amazed at the sheer magnitude of items for purchase. It is a WalMart times 100. Last stop of the day was at Kmart – the ONLY one left in the USA! We purchased “I Love Guam K-Mart” t-shirts as souvenirs. FYI – trivia for you – the most famous stores on Guam are “Ross” and there are 3 of them! Strange!!!
As we were leaving Pirate’s Cove, both Colleen and I received phone calls from Philippine Airlines. But we didn’t know that was who it was from because it was a 1-800 number and only showed as “iflypal” on caller ID. I called them back and asked if there was a problem with our flights. They assured me that there was no problem and everything was as originally booked.
We were back at the hotel by around 6:30 pm and have to be ready to depart the hotel go to the airport to fly to Seoul at 3:30 am. I walked down to the ABC store and got a couple of souvenirs for the family and then stopped at the front desk to pay the bill and get a receipt. Several of the group had left their credit cards on file with the hotel and charged some items to their rooms. The desk clerk would not let me close out my account for room and tax only until they came down and paid for the incidentals – even though they had left a credit card with them for specifically that purpose!
I went back to the room and checked emails before taking my shower and hoping to get at least 4 hours of sleep. Only, I had an email from Philippine Airlines telling me there had been an aircraft change on the flight from Manila to Seoul and I was being moved from the business class seat I had purchased to coach class. You can imagine how well I took that! I checked with all the others in the group to see if they had received similar emails and they had not. Didn’t make sense because when there is an aircraft change, if my seat location changed, then everyone’s should have changed.
I called Philippine Airlines and after getting disconnected 4 times, finally spoke with someone. That’s when the fun began. She insisted that the “new” aircraft did not have a business class section and that’s why I was in coach. When I explained that I had purchased 7 business class seats and none of the others were changed, she had to “elevate” me to the next level by placing me on hold for about 10 minutes. She came back on and tried to tell me that everyone had been moved to coach class. None of us had been able to check in for our flights on the website or Philippine Airlines App so I couldn’t look at our seats. Long story short, I was on the phone with her for 4 hours and resolved absolutely nothing other than finally being able to check everyone in. The seat assignments for everyone but Matt were all in coach but he was still in business – which is impossible if there is no business class section. I knew Philippine Airlines was lying to me because the coach class section started with row 21! By the time I finally gave up, it was time to shower, pack and leave for the airport. Zero sleep tonight! Not exactly the ending I had hoped for a “Happy New Year”. But, focusing on the positive, the tour could not have gone any better and the smiles we brought all the men and women is worth all the other stress!
Jude
THURSDAY, JANUARY 2ND, — TRAVEL FROM GUAM TO MANILA TO SEOUL:
Upon arriving at the airport, we got a really nice lady to help check us in. She was able to sort out most of the problem and assured me that everything would be corrected by the time we arrived in Manila.
Philippine Airlines also seems to be lost in the 60’s. Of course, there is no Wifi and the seats are definitely decades old. For entertainment, they bring business class passengers small iPads and ear buds! Fortunately, I was so tired, I slept most of the 4 hour journey.
Surprisingly enough all the problems I had spent hours working on the night before with Philippine Airlines were sorted out.
We have a 6 ½ hour layover in the Manila Airport and then another “lovely” Philippine Airlines flight to Seoul.
The time passed slowly in the Lounge for everyone but me. I worked nonstop except for going into the gate area to buy some souvenirs for the family. Not a lot of “gift” choices there though.
The aircraft for the flight to Seoul is much “newer” inside than the one we had from Guam to Manila.
I had eaten in the lounge, so the minute we took off, I reclined the seat and slept until time to land. Boy did I need those few hours of rest. Most of the others ate the meal and then slept.
We landed on time and all our bags made it. We went out into the brutal freezing cold to get taxis to the same hotel where we stayed previously. Dave and I shared one and the driver was really rude. When we were here last week, it was only a 5 minute drive. Tonight, the driver got on the freeway and I was freaking out until I realized that previously we landed at Terminal 2 and tonight we came in at Terminal 1. It’s a much longer ride. I started getting text messages from group in other taxis and explained the situation to them.
We all arrived within minutes of each other and I got everyone checked in quickly. A couple of the group went straight to their rooms, while a few decided to take a taxi back to the airport and eat dinner. I ate at the hotel and then worked until around 1 am.
Jude
FRIDAY, JANUARY 3RD – FLYING HOME:
Dave changed his flight back to NY and isn’t leaving until 7:25 pm tonight. He had the hotel store his bag and went into Seoul for a day of sightseeing. All the LAX passengers depart at 2:30 pm and I depart at 5:50 pm. I’m going to depart the hotel with them at noon and just hang out at the airport lounge until time to fly home. I can get just as much work done there as I can in my room.
Unfortunately, I was not able to check my two bags when we arrived at the airport. The ticket counter doesn’t open until 3 hours prior to flight time. I thought that might be the case so I just took them with me and found a great restaurant that served Korean food. I ordered the Bulgogi – MY FAVORITE Korean food. But they were “sold out” of the Bulgogi with a bowl of rice so I had to order the Bulgogi “set”. The set consisted of the Bulgogi and a bowl of cold rice noodles with super spicey sauce and topped with a half a boiled egg and some type of “pickles”. So, then I ordered a bowl of rice on the side and I was set with the meal I wanted that was sold out. LOL. It was amazingly good food for an airport restaurant. I’ll have to remember this place.
By the time I finished eating, I was able to check my bags, go through security and passport control and spend about 2 hours in the Korean Air Lounge. The flight boarded on time and of course, there was no WiFi until the last 3 hours of the flight. I had dinner, watched a movie and slept until 4 hours before landing. We landed on time in Atlanta and I had a lot of text messages from the LAX group saying they had arrived safely.
I had a long layover in Atlanta but I just missed getting on an earlier flight. If Delta had sent my luggage our first (since it was marked PRIORITY), then I could have made the flight. At least I was able to work for about 3 ½ hours. The flight to Nashville departed and Lindsey was there to pick me up even though it was after 9 pm. Good to be home and feeling grateful about what a wonderful tour it was.
Things I learned on this trip to Guam that I had not learned on previous visits:
· The most popular store is Ross. There are 3 of them.
· The only K-Mart in the world is located in Guam.
· The reason Ross and K-Mart are so popular is because everyone wants something “American”. The tourists (predominantly from China, Korea, and Japan) get off the plane and rush to Ross and K-Mart to shop.
· The speed limit is 35 miles per hour EVERYWHERE on the island. There are so many foreigners who are driving without their drivers licenses that they set the speed limit really low to cut back on accidents.
· There are lots of stray dogs known as “boonie” dogs. We saw several and they all look well-fed.
· There are thousands of Guam citizens who gave their lives for our country fighting alongside U.S. troops in many wars.
· Guam citizens are not allowed to vote in U.S. Elections. Guam has an elected Governor and one Representative in Congress. That Representative is not allowed to vote in the final passage of Legislation. They are allowed to send delegates to the National Presidential Conventions but have no Electoral Votes.
· They say “Hafa Adai” as their “greeting” which basically translates as “What’s Up”.
Many people hear the word “Guam” and think of a tropical island – which is true. But, everything is basically “lost in the 50’s and 60’s” and it definitely takes some time to adjust. Because it is a tremendously long and expensive flight back to mainland USA, the military in Guam can rarely afford to travel back to spend the holidays with loved ones. Everyone was so thankful for our visit and it was heart-warming to see the smiles, hear the laughter, watch the children dancing and be able to talk with the military and their families attending the shows.
Jordan, Michael, Matt and Dave have entertained the military in war zones for decades and Colleen has entertained the service personnel in SWA. This was Stephanie’s first tour supporting the military. All of the entertainers got a new perspective on a “hardship” tour and came away with a new appreciation for the men, women and families serving so far away from home. Thank you, General Shoemaker, for suggesting that Guam should be the number one choice for where the tour should go for our annual NYE tour.
Thank you Gary and the Gary Sinise Foundation for making this visit possible. Thank you to all the entertainers willing to give up their holidays to make the holidays a little “merrier” for the people we met. And most of all, thank you to the men, women and children serving in Guam and defending the freedom of the United States of America.
Jude
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