Man, it feels good to be back home after 2.5-weeks grand tour of the Western Pacific island nations. It was a remarkable trip onboard the famous United Island Hopper and other airplanes, totaling 16 flights criss-crossing four countries and five distinct islands.
As expected, Guam was a mini version of Honolulu, however much less popular with tourists. Most of the tourists were also Japanese, with not too many Americans to be found. I guess the 7-hour flight from Honolulu just ain't worth it for most, however I found especially the southern end of the island beautiful and drove the ring road twice in our convertible - because why not?
Our next destination, Saipan, in the Northern Mariana Islands turned out to be a positive surprise. If possible, there were even more Japanese tourist in there, as apparently one doesn't need an US visa to enter Saipan, although it is technically part of United States.
There are big changes ahead for Saipan, though, as there is a brand new billion-dollar Chinese mega casino under construction. It is perhaps the most ridiculous and out-of-place building I have ever seen. Saipan is not a very developed island, so a huge golden marmor castle in the French style looks absolutely tacky and plain horrible.
Palau was our furthest point to the southwest and man, that chain of islands is epic! Our three days of kayaking and snorkling in the warm and crystal-clear waters were the most amazing time we have ever had! The amount of fish at famous divings sites such as Big Drop Off and German Channel were absolutely mindblowing. Swimming with giant mantas and massive schools of fish was an unforgettable experience. Palau is definitely a must-do before their beautiful coral reefs are still as pristine as they are.
From Palau we boarded the legendary Island Hopper service, making two stops in Pohnpei (Micronesia) and Majuro (Marshall Islands). Island Hopper is like a local bus, providing service to remote Micronesian islands. It would be horrible to do all the 6 consecutive flights in one go, so I was very happy with our stops in Pohnpei and Majuro. Pohnpei was also an interesting place, as the whole island is covered in thick jungle. It is one of the wettest places on Earth and we had a bit of every kind of weather during our 4-night stay in there.
Our last stop was 3 days on Marshall Island, which is actually an chain of small islands on an edge of an atoll. We didn't stay in Majuro, but took a boat to a private island some 40 minutes from the capital. There, really far from everything, we enjoyed one of the most memorable two nights being pampered with amazing food, perfect private beach and the clearest night skies imaginable.
After spending few weeks in the tropics, it will take some time to get used to the temperatures back in Burnaby, but at the same time it is also so nice not to be sweating all the time and not having to deal with nasty insects everywhere you go. It also looks like that the local mountains have been getting some nice dusting, so we will likely be skiing in just a couple of days, which right now feels surreal.
Happy new year everyone!
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