Valley of the Latte 2022

The Valley of the Latte is an extraordinary cultural tourist experience.  We went first in March and then again in December of 2022. The visit in March was sunny and dry while December was very wet. The tour begins on a riverboat going up the Talofofo and Ugum Rivers.  We got to see a monitor lizard on a palm tree and lots of fish.  One of the guides made us some fun spillers and fish out of palm fronds.  The guides are very silly and the boys really enjoy hearing their stories.  We get dropped off at the site of an original village with real latte stones.  The latte stones were the foundation pillars for the fancy houses so in the event of flooding the house wouldn't be swept out to the ocean.  We were shown how the coconut was husked and also how the meat was pulled out.  The coconut tree is called the tree of life because every part of the tree is used for either food or building materials. There are also some goats and pigs.  The most exciting part for the boys is the carabao ride.  We also get a delicious lunch of red rice, barbeque, tea, and cake.  And also a demonstration of how the Chamorro would start fires using the coconut husk as kindling.  The tour ends with the boat ride back to the mouth of the river.  We learned that coconut palm trees grow a new palm frond every three months so counting each exterior leaf scar is how the age can be calculated.  The beach outlet of the river is a natural black sand beach. It is a fantastic tourist destination but makes for a fun day outing.