Tarawa and beyond!
Tarawa, Kiribati
Anyone who is really interested can research Kiribati on Wikipedia. I, personally, had never even heard of the country even though it's the biggest country in the world (if you include ocean area in your calculations).
The capital city reminded me of Cuba - the 3rd world country I'm most familiar with - full of poverty, pigs, and palm trees. Small ramskackle dwellings of brick, sometimes, but also chipboard, or corrugated metal, oil cans flattened out, tarps, chicken wire, or even palm thatch, with dirt yards, garbage everywhere, kids in tatty shorts playing happily with old tires or sticks, clean laundry hanging out to dry, chickens running about...
On the other hand there were significant differences from Cuba too; for one, as it's on an atoll not an island almost no produce grows, for another, there are none of the beautiful old buildings, remnants of a once affluent culture, and, also, there are NO tourists. We were the only sailboat in the harbour (amongst many WW2 wrecks and a very eclectic assortment of old or even completely rusted out fishing boats, ferries, and barges) and the only white people on shore (teenagers ask to take selfies with us we're such an oddity). But everyone is super friendly, small kids and old folk wave enthusiastically as we pass by and anyone with an excuse, such as a cashier, strikes up a conversation.
The stores, which look like they come from a 50's movie set, sell the oddest assortment of goods from around the world, though nothing, unfortunately, that's on our list. Carrots are 16.75/kg. There will be no fresh fruit or veg for the next leg.
One day we take the bus to the end of the road (1 1/2 hours, $1.60) and then a wee outrigger ferry across to the next motu (500 m, 50 cents) and then walk a path for another hour and a half. We are, literally and metaphorically, on the other side of Tarawa. Here there are no vehicles, no shops, no overcrowding... houses, made completely of natural materials, are sprinkled sparsely along the jungle path and one gets the impression that their diet is almost exclusively fish and coconut. It was a long hot walk, and we never did find the snorkeling spot we had been told about, but it was oh so interesting that we could only be glad we'd gone.
South of Tarawa
1. Equator crossing
There was NO wind so we motored from Maiana atoll all the way to Nonouti, a short leg which included crossing the equator. It is a tradition to have one's head shaved prior to the crossing but only 2 of the 12 of us choose to do so. However we all joined in the main saloon for communal humming and throat singing before supper and then had a special feast (lots of fresh caught sushimi, rice, fried fish, hot canned veg salad, peach crumble and ice cream) which we shared, sitting on the floor together, in total silence, the only exception being toasts that anyone could make at anytime and which everyone repeated. There was an artistic interlude between the main course and dessert, in this case a fantastic bit of improv theater, and after dinner everyone gave a speach (anything other than a lecture or an anecdote). Following these festivities we shared whatever alcohol we happened to have left and sat and chatted until 10 pm when we turned the engine off, threw a rope out behind, and jumped naked into the dark water, hooting and hollering, to be pulled by the drifting boat across from the northern hemisphere into the southern one. So much fun.
2. Nonouti Atoll
There are 4 new people who joined Infinity in Tarawa; 2 men and 2 women, each in a different decade of their lives, and each from a different continent (an Argentinian, an Australian, an American, and an Austrian) but they all have in common that they are keen divers. So the first thing we did at Nonouti was go for a dive.
The next morning we went to land. We were received very warmly by the locals we met and invited to stay for a feast and dancing demonstration that evening only to have the police show up and declare our paperwork (which Clem had spent 3 whole long hot tedious days procuring in Tarawa) insufficient. So we left, disappointed at missing out on what would have been a super cultural event, and went and did another awesome dive instead.
Reefs are dying off in many parts of the world, huge swaths of the Great Barrier Reef have recently become bleached, but not here at Nonouti. Here the reef is healthy. In a 45 minute dive in crystal clear water we saw uncountable kinds and colours of coral, tens of thousands of fish (including a pair of clown triggerfish), giant clams, and so much more... I had Sebastian, my pseudo-son, as my diving buddy. I love him. He's 22 and has a very healthy inner child that notices, points out, and actively enjoys everything. At one point we 'flew' arms spread wide through an endless school of tiny iridescent blue fish and when a 20 foot shark was circling curious and I clung to him he flashed me the "OK?" symbol and then laughed when I responded "OK!" but didn't immediately let go.
I stressed and worried about joining this boat. But I love it. Also, I hadn't realized how much SCUBA diving was part of its agenda. I likely would have said, three months ago, that I wasn't fussed by diving, that I would always be just as happy to snorkel. But ever since Clem practically threw me in the water at Bikar six weeks ago I've become hooked. Part of it all, both being on the boat and diving, is the whole community thing, being in a team, working and playing together, dependant on and responsible for one another. Yup, I love it.
And then, since the police had denied us permission to land again, the local villagers came to us instead. They showed up in small motorboats laden with large bowls and plates of local delacasies (fresh papaya, deep-fried breadfruit, taro, stuffed crabs, sweet coconut bread, grilled worms...), huge bags full of coconuts, and fresh flower leis for all the women. They brought endless smiles, endless questions, and, after eating altogether, everyone danced into the wee hours of the morning. Unbelievable.
Onotoa
As we wend our way south the days and weeks start to slide into one another. Each day is a plethora of activities. The first day at Onotoa I kayak and snorkel in the morning and go ashore in the afternoon to be part of the official team meeting the local authorities asking for permission to anchor (which includes a 20 minute motorcycle ride from the village we were close to to the main town).
It is all good. As well as the family there are 8 of us on board, always someone to do something with, yet the boat is big enough that we can each also find a quiet spot when we like - we each have our own cabin and the deck is big enough to have lots of nooks and crannies as well as the hammocks.
The second day a group of 40 dolphins came to see the tender as we head out to dive so we jump in the water and snorkel with them (Wow!) and then we go on to do a drift dive along a wall with countless millions of little fish and octapi, eels, and lion fish hiding in all the little cracks (again Wow!).
EACH atoll is amazing.
Tarawa, Kiribati
Anyone who is really interested can research Kiribati on Wikipedia. I, personally, had never even heard of the country even though it's the biggest country in the world (if you include ocean area in your calculations).
The capital city reminded me of Cuba - the 3rd world country I'm most familiar with - full of poverty, pigs, and palm trees. Small ramskackle dwellings of brick, sometimes, but also chipboard, or corrugated metal, oil cans flattened out, tarps, chicken wire, or even palm thatch, with dirt yards, garbage everywhere, kids in tatty shorts playing happily with old tires or sticks, clean laundry hanging out to dry, chickens running about...
On the other hand there were significant differences from Cuba too; for one, as it's on an atoll not an island almost no produce grows, for another, there are none of the beautiful old buildings, remnants of a once affluent culture, and, also, there are NO tourists. We were the only sailboat in the harbour (amongst many WW2 wrecks and a very eclectic assortment of old or even completely rusted out fishing boats, ferries, and barges) and the only white people on shore (teenagers ask to take selfies with us we're such an oddity). But everyone is super friendly, small kids and old folk wave enthusiastically as we pass by and anyone with an excuse, such as a cashier, strikes up a conversation.
The stores, which look like they come from a 50's movie set, sell the oddest assortment of goods from around the world, though nothing, unfortunately, that's on our list. Carrots are 16.75/kg. There will be no fresh fruit or veg for the next leg.
One day we take the bus to the end of the road (1 1/2 hours, $1.60) and then a wee outrigger ferry across to the next motu (500 m, 50 cents) and then walk a path for another hour and a half. We are, literally and metaphorically, on the other side of Tarawa. Here there are no vehicles, no shops, no overcrowding... houses, made completely of natural materials, are sprinkled sparsely along the jungle path and one gets the impression that their diet is almost exclusively fish and coconut. It was a long hot walk, and we never did find the snorkeling spot we had been told about, but it was oh so interesting that we could only be glad we'd gone.
South of Tarawa
1. Equator crossing
There was NO wind so we motored from Maiana atoll all the way to Nonouti, a short leg which included crossing the equator. It is a tradition to have one's head shaved prior to the crossing but only 2 of the 12 of us choose to do so. However we all joined in the main saloon for communal humming and throat singing before supper and then had a special feast (lots of fresh caught sushimi, rice, fried fish, hot canned veg salad, peach crumble and ice cream) which we shared, sitting on the floor together, in total silence, the only exception being toasts that anyone could make at anytime and which everyone repeated. There was an artistic interlude between the main course and dessert, in this case a fantastic bit of improv theater, and after dinner everyone gave a speach (anything other than a lecture or an anecdote). Following these festivities we shared whatever alcohol we happened to have left and sat and chatted until 10 pm when we turned the engine off, threw a rope out behind, and jumped naked into the dark water, hooting and hollering, to be pulled by the drifting boat across from the northern hemisphere into the southern one. So much fun.
2. Nonouti Atoll
There are 4 new people who joined Infinity in Tarawa; 2 men and 2 women, each in a different decade of their lives, and each from a different continent (an Argentinian, an Australian, an American, and an Austrian) but they all have in common that they are keen divers. So the first thing we did at Nonouti was go for a dive.
The next morning we went to land. We were received very warmly by the locals we met and invited to stay for a feast and dancing demonstration that evening only to have the police show up and declare our paperwork (which Clem had spent 3 whole long hot tedious days procuring in Tarawa) insufficient. So we left, disappointed at missing out on what would have been a super cultural event, and went and did another awesome dive instead.
Reefs are dying off in many parts of the world, huge swaths of the Great Barrier Reef have recently become bleached, but not here at Nonouti. Here the reef is healthy. In a 45 minute dive in crystal clear water we saw uncountable kinds and colours of coral, tens of thousands of fish (including a pair of clown triggerfish), giant clams, and so much more... I had Sebastian, my pseudo-son, as my diving buddy. I love him. He's 22 and has a very healthy inner child that notices, points out, and actively enjoys everything. At one point we 'flew' arms spread wide through an endless school of tiny iridescent blue fish and when a 20 foot shark was circling curious and I clung to him he flashed me the "OK?" symbol and then laughed when I responded "OK!" but didn't immediately let go.
I stressed and worried about joining this boat. But I love it. Also, I hadn't realized how much SCUBA diving was part of its agenda. I likely would have said, three months ago, that I wasn't fussed by diving, that I would always be just as happy to snorkel. But ever since Clem practically threw me in the water at Bikar six weeks ago I've become hooked. Part of it all, both being on the boat and diving, is the whole community thing, being in a team, working and playing together, dependant on and responsible for one another. Yup, I love it.
And then, since the police had denied us permission to land again, the local villagers came to us instead. They showed up in small motorboats laden with large bowls and plates of local delacasies (fresh papaya, deep-fried breadfruit, taro, stuffed crabs, sweet coconut bread, grilled worms...), huge bags full of coconuts, and fresh flower leis for all the women. They brought endless smiles, endless questions, and, after eating altogether, everyone danced into the wee hours of the morning. Unbelievable.
Onotoa
As we wend our way south the days and weeks start to slide into one another. Each day is a plethora of activities. The first day at Onotoa I kayak and snorkel in the morning and go ashore in the afternoon to be part of the official team meeting the local authorities asking for permission to anchor (which includes a 20 minute motorcycle ride from the village we were close to to the main town).
It is all good. As well as the family there are 8 of us on board, always someone to do something with, yet the boat is big enough that we can each also find a quiet spot when we like - we each have our own cabin and the deck is big enough to have lots of nooks and crannies as well as the hammocks.
The second day a group of 40 dolphins came to see the tender as we head out to dive so we jump in the water and snorkel with them (Wow!) and then we go on to do a drift dive along a wall with countless millions of little fish and octapi, eels, and lion fish hiding in all the little cracks (again Wow!).
EACH atoll is amazing.
