Diver's Paradise

Monday 1 May – Sunday 7 May 2000

As we stood waiting for our baggage to come through at Koror airport, we were in no doubt that we had hit the diving Mecca of the world.  We were surrounded by hundreds of Japanese tourists who, having travelled with nothing but dive equipment, were obviously here for one reason and one reason only.  Having said that, it was primarily the opportunity to see some of the 1,500 species of reef fish and 700 different types of coral and anemones that had brought us here too … although the guidebooks do try to stress that there is a lot more to Palau above the waves.

Although Palauans were said to retain many of their traditional ways beneath a veneer of Western consumerism, we obviously didn't look hard enough.  Certainly we saw nothing resembling traditional dress and as we drove from the airport to the center of Koror, the main town, the western influences were evident everywhere:  modern office buildings, large tourist hotels, big supermarkets and many, many restaurants, a large proportion of which seemed to cater to Asian holiday-makers.

After a short walk around town the next morning and a massive American breakfast at the Rock Island Café, we phoned around to arrange some diving.  Independent travellers, we soon discovered, were somewhat of an anomaly in this part of the world; most people arrived on pre-booked package tours with all diving included.  In addition, this was a Japanese national holiday so any dive shop specializing in Japanese dive guides was booked out.  But lady luck was on our side; not only did we find an excellent and well run dive shop called Sam’s Dive Tours, but also started out with one of the most knowledgeable and experienced dive guides either of us had ever had, Ethan.

With an ever-expanding waistline and continuous reminders that pregnant women really couldn’t dive, Pippa was once again relegated to circling the surface with a snorkel while Eric descended into the depths and had the time of his scuba life discovering species after species of new marine life.  Having said that, some of the vertical drop offs were so spectacular that even the snorkeling was superb in certain places and in addition, the boat ride out to the dive sites gave us such an incredible view of the Rock Islands that it was worth tagging along just for that. 

The Rock Islands, 200 rounded knobs of limestone, are totally covered in green jungle growth and are scattered across a 30 kilometre (20 mile) stretch of water south of Koror.  The bases of the islands are narrower than the tops having been eroded by water, giving them a mushroom-like appearance.  Seeing how spectacular they were up close, we decided to hire a kayak and take a couple of days to paddle around them, stopping off to camp overnight somewhere we could find a beach.  Ethan had heartily recommended it but warned that if the water was rough, it would make hard going; not something we were worried about on day one as we sat under clear blue skies and scorching heat.

By day two, the rain clouds had gathered and the wind had picked up speed.  Diving was still do-able but snorkeling became more difficult and kayaking around the rock islands was definitely out.  And so, Eric chalked up yet more dives and with them, more tropical fish spotting.  The Ngemelis Wall (also known as the 'Big Drop Off') is widely considered the world’s best wall dive.  Starting in water just knee deep, the wall drops vertically nearly 300 metres (1,000 feet) into the deep blue ocean.  There are some spectacular corals which are steadily growing back after suffering severely during El Nino a few years back.  But if corals and drop offs were not your thing, there was always the Blue Corner, Palau’s most storied dive, known for its sheer abundance of underwater life.  Large numbers of sharks gather here in the strong tidal currents as well as schools of barracuda and other fish.  Despite almost being swept away by the current, Pippa was determined to partake in the shark experience so alone with her fins and snorkels, she circled about Eric and the other divers praying that the alarming number of sharks patrolling the area didn’t fancy a bite of fat-tummied white woman.

We spent four days in total diving the key sites around Palau.  On the other two very rough and rainy days, we caught up with postcard writing and ventured out to find somewhere else other than the Rock Island Café to eat (once Eric finds a place serving good quality pizza, there’s no stopping him).  After just a week, we were heading back to the airport to catch a flight to Guam where we would connect on the Solomon Islands.  We were joined once again by hoards of Japanese tourists toting top-of-the-range dive kit. 

Somewhat ashamed that we had not really delved at all into Palauan art or culture during our stay, we perused the souvenir shop in the departure terminal and decided that despite what the guidebooks said about Palau having one of the richest artistic traditions in Micronesia, there was nothing we felt inclined to take home with us.  Even the traditional Palauan storyboards, Palau’s most unique art form and a smaller version of the carved legends that were used to decorate the beams and gables of men’s meeting houses, looked tacky and uninspiring.

And so we prepared to leave Micronesia and the North Pacific, heading onward to uncover some of the many island groups around the South Pacific.  But first, we had an eight-hour stop-over in Guam and, keen to meet up again with Judy (our traveling companion in Fais), we prepared ourselves for a whirlwind sight-seeing tour of this tiny US territory.

Guam

Monday 8 May 2000

Without doubt, Guam is the metropolis of Micronesia.  It’s the region’s largest island and is not unlike a mini Hawaii with traffic jams, large shopping centres (complete with a massive K-Marts), a university, huge resort hotels and potable tap water.  But as we were soon to discover, it also has tropical forests, a mountainous interior, beautiful sandy beaches and sleepy coastal villages.

None of this was apparent at the ridiculous hour of the morning our plane landed; and in the pitch black of pre-dawn, we took a taxi to a nearby airport hotel to get in a few hours sleep before meeting up with Judy.  She was keen to make the most of the eight hours we had and so we set off on a tour of the island, picking up some pastries and drinks en route to enjoy as we circumnavigated the island.

The capital city, Agana, has been the centre of Guam since the Spanish period and there are certainly several remnants of the Spanish colonial rule still remaining.  As we drove south, we began to enter the most scenic part of the island, full of historic sites and beautiful vistas.  We stopped briefly in one of the tranquil villages to meet the chief, a friend of Judy’s, and learn more about the history of Guam and the traditions of its native people.  Sadly, we had too little time to enjoy everything Guam has to offer but it was wonderful to see Judy again and look through the photos she had taken in Fais and remind ourselves what a great time we had had there.

After a brief check up at the hospital, and a visit to K-Mart, as much for the novelty as to purchase some much-needed insect repellent, we were heading once again for the airport and a long flight to Fiji, bound for the Solomon Islands.

Sources:  Many of the above photos are courtesy of Sam's Dive Tours.