Blogs from Palau, Oceania - page 3

First, just a small note about my last entry on Tubbataha...I forgot to let you know that not only did I see a whaleshark, easily between 8 to 10 meters long cruising at 21 meters deep...but I had also two of the best night dives ever. Quite easy to understand when you see the amount of fish. But this time, you can imagine that in a single torch light, I had the chance to see at the same time a huge turtle, as well as 2 white tip sharks cruising just below the turtle...amazing! But let's go back to Palau... If you are a diver, you heard of Palau...if not, you may wondering where is this place. Easy, 3 hours (1035 miles), west of Manila. 20,000 people for this independant state...not much behind great Ahi Tuna ... read more

So I arranged a trip to palau. I was telling everyone I met. "I'm going to Palau". And they'd say "Cool... um... where's Palau?" and I'd say "Micronesia" and they'd say "Cool....um.... where's Micronesia?" - insert embarrassed tone and bashful expression here - And I'd say "Um....north". I didn't really, exactly know where it was either. Even now, after I've been there I have a little difficulty locating it on a world map. There. I admit it - insert embarrassed tone and bashful expression here. Worldly traveller indeed. But at least I don't think Micronesia is a fictional place made up on the movie Zoolander, like some people I've met. So why was I going to this place if I didn't even really know where it was? Well, I'd heard great things about it from a ... read more

Hello Everyone! I apologize for the lack of posting, the internet connection in Palau is super-spotty. So, on my last night in Palau, sitting on the beach, looking up at the Southern Cross, thinking about what an amazing, magical place this is. If you want to see the most pristine reefs, the most unusual wildlife, and eat the most unusual food, this is the place. The majority of this trip has been spent underwater seeing amazing sea life, including but not limited to: black tipped reef sharks, manta rays, crocodile fish, blennys, etc. I could go on and on, but unfortunately my digital camera doesnt work underwater so I have no photos! It was a REAL screwup on my part not to think about my faithful blog readers. Some of the highlights, if I had ... read more

Let me explain the title. What was unexpected was finding this huge, brand new, pseudo-classical building up on the top of a hill in the middle of nowhere on the main island of Koror in Palau. This is the new government building, which has been designed so inefficiently from an energy view point that it is costing the government tens of thousands of US dollars a month to maintain! That's money they don't have...nevermind...you can't tell people how to spend their country's money... Enjoy the photos... What was pretty close to a paradise on earth was our visit to the Rock islands on the Saturday after all the meetings and work were over. All that big blue, all those very, very green small islands popping up everywhere. And the empty white beaches. Again the photos say ... read more

sie ist klein, und sie ist gruen. sie hat magische anziehungskraft - das behaupten zumindest die palauaner, in eintraechtigem unisono mit den meisten anderen insulanern des westlichen pazifik, und verstauen sie liebevoll in eigens dafuer geflochtene basttaeschchen. die rede ist von der betelnuss, des palauaners lieblingsdroge. pazifischer alltag ist nicht denkbar ohne diese wundergabe der natur, die auch an anderen orten dieser welt treue anhaenger hat (betelnuss ist ja neben allerlei gewuerzen und zuckerzeug die hauptingredient des indischen pan). hier in palau wird die nuss der betelnusspalme halbiert und mit ein wenig pulverisiertem lime stone und gegebenfalls ein wenig tabak in ein “pepper leaf“ eingewickelt; waehrend dieser fast schon rituell anmutenden vorbereitung des naechsten “chew“ findet der aufmerksame beobachter auch schon die ersten anzeichen fortschreitender seligkeit ... read more