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“Amazing location, good value and friendly staff.” — B. Smith

“Our Home in Guam.” — Xi Liao

“Great service!” — Edward McGinnis

For over a decade, every spring/summer break has been spent running up and down the hallways of my grandfather’s hotel in Guam. I feel that our Guam Reef & Olive Spa Resort, located in the city of Tumon, is not just a tourist destination; rather, it is a cross-section of the world at large. Each of our guests/hotel rooms have been a window to far off hamlets, cultures and belief systems.

Specifically, certain room numbers hold special meaning. Room 115: Dr. Chang’s go-to destination when he vacations with his family. I would hide in the breakfast cart and jump out and scare his son, my best friend, Bohai.

As someone who is not Chinese, Dr. Chang and his family helped me appreciate their definition of family, culture, and values. Bohai and I only saw each other two to three weeks out of the year and thus we had a lot of catching up and pranking to do.

Then there was Room 315: Mrs. Marilla, an Argentinian painter and teacher, who did live session portraitures. I loved carrying her bags upstairs, helping organize her paint sets and learning about Argentina, South America and the artistic/creative process. Often times, my mom would try to drag me out from Mrs. Marilla’s hotel room.

Room 401: Mr. Abeson, a Nigerian businessman, who traveled to Guam in order to meet with Korean, Japanese and Chinese investors. Inevitably, I would hang around his table and all of his meetings would end with his potential clients asking who I was. His response, “He’s my security.”

Looking back on my time as a front desk-assistant, bellhop, and nuisance, I am glad, especially in this current political climate, that I grew-up roaming the hallways of my grandfather’s hotel. Even though I consider myself ethnically South Korean, culturally American/Guamanian; in reality, I am still that precocious little kid who asks way too many questions and views every individual not just as a guest but as a surrogate parent, mentor and friend.