Diving Turtle Wall/New Drop Off (by Eliz.)

Last weekend we went diving with Splash which operates out of Palau Pacific Resort. This dive shop has some of the most experienced Palauan divers on the island. They cater mainly to the Japanese, but American and European divers as well. We like diving with these guys since they really know the area. Here we are getting ready to dive with 6 other divers and 2 dive guides, Angelo and Sherlock.

Most dives in Palau are boat entry and multi-level dives. There are awesome things to see at 20 feet and awesome things to see at 80 feet and lower. Turtle wall was a very mellow dive but with incredibly huge sea turtles and a good number of sharks to see. There was only very mild current and the visibility was good. This is Mike’s finger and I believe, a hawksbill turtle (approx. 3 ft in diameter-the turtle, not the finger)…

Our second dive was at New Drop-Off with crazy strong current that had some shark action, but mainly large schools of barricuda, pyramid butterfly fish, and other fish that I don’t know that much about yet! Here’s part of our group using reef hooks while watching the big fish show…

We’ll see what happens on next week’s dive!

Sharks! (by Mike)

Every Saturday morning Liz and I go diving.

Because this is such a big part of what we do here, we would normally post a lot more about it. Unfortunately, the waterproof housing for our camera hasn’t come in the mail yet. So, we have to rely on the photos our friends take.

Palau is well known in the dive community as one of the best places in the world to dive. Every time we’re out we see lots of sharks, turtles, sometimes a manta ray or two, and bunches of big fish.

If you’ve never been diving before, I suggest you give it a try. It’s never too late to learn and it’s lots of fun!

Mike

Water slide! (by Mike)

We have our weekend routine worked out pretty well by now. Part of it includes our Sunday afternoon trip to the water slide. Right after lunch, Andy, Jackson, Liz and I get out of Millie’s hair for 2 to 3 hours and get some good old fashioned water sliding in behind a hotel in Airai state.

One of the things some of you may not know about me is that I, (Mike) am no rank amateur at water slides. Indeed, for two summers back in high school, I worked with my brothers at a water slide near Lake Texoma. Incidentally, that breach of my amateur status is why I’m not allowed to participate in the 2008 Olympic games. But I try to keep up with the sport while I’m here in Palau.

Here’s Elizabeth and Jackson coming down the slide. Because Liz is still new to the sport, she doesn’t know the tricks to generating speed. I, of course, am lightning quick (and I think Jackson enjoys a little speed!).

Andy’s School (by Eliz.)

We thought it would be great for Andy to start mixing it up with the local kids as soon as possible to help him get used to being in Palau. We found out about HeadStart here (funded through U.S. Dept of Education grants) and enrolled him in Medelaii hamlet in March. They provided a bus to and from the school, free breakfast and lunch, so of course we were all in (I was excited to ride the bus with him until he decided he could go by himself, much to my dismay).

Andy’s school-Medelaii HeadStart

Covered play area surrounded by classrooms.

Shoes are not allowed in the classroom.

Teacher Umi’s classroom

Matukr-one of Andy’s best buddies

Circle time with Teacher Umi

Andy’s classmate

Free play

Center time

The teachers and kids were very friendly and curious about us (they kept touching Andy’s hair!). The children are a mix of Palauan, Asian, Philippino, Indian, etc. (I thought they were all so beautiful). Andy fit right in, thankfully, and started getting in trouble as usual (“but he’s getting up, why can’t I?”). They eat family style for meals and sit on the floor, using the blue table in the middle of the classroom. He attended from March-May (they use the same school schedule here), and loved it!

The Capital (by Mike)

The Capital of Palau is in Melekeiok, but most of the citizens of Palau live 30 miles away in the former capital of Koror. Because it’s so hard to get back and forth, most government departments have two offices, a nice one in Melekeiok, (which doesn’t get used) and an old one in Koror.

The nice one in Melekeiok was built just a few years ago. The location was chosen to placate the local chiefs who were tired of paying rent to the chief of Koror. So before they would agree to the Constitution, they required the Capital to be moved from Koror to Melekeiok.

The capital buildings sit alone on a hill. There are no houses or businesses surrounding it. It’s just three big buildings in a pasture on a hill. The high cost of keeping these buildings cool is a touchy subject around here, as is the look of the building (people either view it as a matter of national pride, or they think it looks like a gaudy version of the U.S. capital – and way more than what a nation of 16,000 people need.) You make the call.

Happy Father’s Day! (by Eliz.)

Just going to take a brief interlude to enter an all-family related post since it is Father’s Day (which they celebrate here). Well, I guess dad can have 1 day to himself (but that’s it, then get back to work!). The boys surprised Michael with some homemade cards, and here they are proudly showing off their “masterpieces” as Andy calls them. We had a great day together!

Just wanted to throw in another pic of the boys of course, and would like to wish my dad a happy Father’s Day-miss you!

 

The 11th Year Anniversary (by Michael)

This weekend (June 14-15) was a special occasion for liz and I because we were celebrating our 11th year anniversary on Saturday, and father’s day on Sunday.

We started our celebration Friday night when we went to a place called “The Taj” for some excellent Indian pizza, (huh?? Indian’s make pizza??). Then we went to spend the night at the Palau Pacific Resort, sans the kids.

Our room at the PPR was nice. Our room was on the 2nd floor, and our back balcony view was of the fish pond, behind the resort:

We got up in the morning and had a breakfast buffet:

After that, we went for a dive back at Ulong Channel (we promise to get diving pictures up-still no case for the camera), which was a really good time. All-in-all it was a fun Friday and Saturday, and Liz and I appreciate Millie for watching the kids for us while we lived it up.

The Karate Kid (by Mike)

One of the great things about living in Palau is the super cheap cost of labor, (unless of course you happen to be that labor). Anyway, because of this we are afforded a few luxuries that we wouldn’t ordinarily have. For example, we have a sweet lady who comes around to clean our house, make our beds, and do the dishes etc. Here she is bringing up breakfast for Liz and the gang, (No, she doesn’t bring breakfast every day! It was a special occasion.)

But besides the domestic helper, other services are cheap as well. One of the ones I, (Michael) like the most is that it makes the cost of Karate lessons really cheap! So my good son Andrew has been taking Karate lessons every other day with his own private instructor. At first we had him one-on-one with his instructor, but now we have him in with one or two other students, which is a better setup all the way around because he has someone to practice with. It’s a really good deal for us, and Andy likes it too.

Religion in Palau (Millie)

Palau is a place of many and varied peoples. The church in Palau has been affected by the invasions of many countries-Spain, Germany, Japan and the United States. The indigenous religion is Modekngei. The word means “together”, “coming as one” or “going back to the beginning of time”. The native Palauans take pride that Modekngei existed before white men came to Palau.

There are many gods and strong ties to magic, legend, myths, and ancestor worship. The ancient Palauan religion is still very commonly observed. Other religions listed in the phone book are: Roman Catholic, Seventh Day Adventists, Latter Day Saints, Church of Jesus Christ, Emmaus (evangelical), Assembly of God, Palau Baptist, Chinese Christian, Korea Presbyterian, Jehovah’s Witness and Bahai.

There is a small mission church across the road from us that I attend which is pictured below. This structure is also known as a bai or summer house, built without nails or screws. The pastor and his wife are graduates of Bob Jones University. The mission board is Biblical Missions. The music and Bible readings are in Palauan, yet the preaching is in English.

Additional seating on the left under the green awning.

Orchids are found everywhere in Palau.

Shoes must be removed before entering the sanctuary.

Clam Farm Field Trip (Eliz)

We were invited on a little field trip to a local clam farm by the Rehmus family, Americans living here who have 3 young boys (more boys!). Everyone had a great time looking at grouper, different varieties of sea turtles,  alligators, and, of course, clams. Some marine research through the local community college takes place here from what I understand. But I think mainly this facility breeds clams to release into the ocean to enhance its natural clam population, which can take from 3-5 years to mature on its own (clams, who knew?).

Side view of farm with clam-filled water troughs.

Fritz and Andy learning about grouper.

Fritz, Jackson, Andy and Will checking out alligators.

Andy and Fritz with the large clams.

Midsized clams held in a trough for maturing.

Jackson standing watch over the large clam shells.