I wish someone would do something with the airline schedules in this part of the world. Last week I flew to the atoll of Tarawa ("Tah-RAW-ah") in Kiribati ("KIR-uh-biss") via Fiji. The flight times varied between 4:30 and 8:30 a.m., and since you have to get to the airport at least 2 hours early…well, you get the picture. Oh well, there’s not much to see when you’re flying over water, and the movies were really bad, so you can catch up on sleep while flying.
To get to Tarawa you fly 3 hours directly north from Auckland, stay the night in Fiji and take another early morning flight to Tarawa, located an additional 3 hours north of Fiji. Tarawa is right on the equator, so most people think it’s really hot and humid. I thought it was just like Kansas City in August. Since I missed summer in KC, I guess this was my summer.
Staying over in Fiji was pretty neat. It is a volcanic nation of many islands. I flew into Nadi, which is the primary international airport and where most of the resorts or the connections to the other island resorts are located.
As I was going through customs the inspector asked me if I was bringing in any food. I admitted I had some chocolate in my backpack. He said chocolate could not be brought it. I replied that he should tell that to the folks in the duty free shop. He laughed and said he was just kidding. First time I’ve run across a customs inspector with a sense of humor.
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| Beach where I spent part of the afternoon |
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| Proof Bob was in Fiji (Really!) |
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| Sugar Cane Load |
I also came across a very ornate Hindu Temple, so took a photo of it as it was so unique.
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| Hindu Temple in Nadi |
On to Tarawa on another early morning flight. I noticed when we flew in we passed over the runway, then came around again and landed. I later learned that is what they do to let people know there’s a plane coming in, since the natives tend to congregate on the concrete in the early morning hours. While I don’t think any people have been hit, apparently a dog was run over at some point. Landing was also an adventure. I think the pilot was formerly assigned to an aircraft carrier. I kept thinking we’d be brought to an abrupt halt when our hook grabbed the retaining cable. Maybe he was just in a hurry because he’d run out of donuts in the cabin.
Kiribati immigration was an interesting experience. The returning i-Kiribati bring in many bags, actually huge coolers sealed with plastic wrap. The customs inspectors make them open everything, I guess to make sure they aren’t bringing in stuff like cigarettes to resell, so the lines move very slowly. When I went through immigration the inspector asked what I was doing in the country. I told him I was on business for my Church, he asked me which one and I told him the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He wrote “LDS” on my customs card and circled it. I wondered why, but wasn’t about to ask questions at that point. As I approached the customs point, they looked at my card, apparently saw the LDS notation and waved me through with no further ado.
There was a terrible WWII battle fought on Tarawa to capture a Japanese airfield. The battle was very costly in US lives due to the fact the Navy landed our Marines at low tide and the landing craft got hung up on the reef, exposing our troops to withering fire as they waded through chest deep water. We took the island after a 3 day battle. Many of the Japanese bunkers and guns are still there. I didn’t have my camera when I was in the battle area, but will take pictures when I return in a few weeks.
Tarawa is an atoll, 9 feet high at its apex. It’s also very narrow. There is a road that runs the length of half of the island and it is an easy baseball toss to the ocean in either direction from the road.
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| Highest Point on Kiribati. That's ocean in the immediate background. |
In the event of a tsunami warning people head for the roof of any substantial building they can find.
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| Family Dwellings along the Lagoon |
While in Tarawa I met with the Kiribati Minister of Finance and the Secretary of Finance to discuss a pending issue with the Church’s Perpetual Education Fund. The meeting went well and we will hopefully have everything in place shortly.
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| Minister of Finance Natan Teewe, Bob, Finance Secretary Atantora Beiatau |
I also met with the Secretary of Health for the signing of an agreement under which the Church will provide wheelchairs for the Kiribati government to distribute to disabled citizens. We also discussed a number of other humanitarian projects which are in the works.
The parliament building is constructed entirely on reclaimed land. It was designed to look like a canoe from above.
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| Kiribati Parliament |
I also had time for a little R&R since there is only 1 flight a week in and out of Tarawa. Fortunately the Service Center Manager is an avid fisherman. We went out in his boat and caught tuna. By the way, they don’t use rods and reels. You throw in you bait or lure and if something hits it, you pull it in by hand. It was really fun. In case you think this is only a fish story, here’s a photo of me and my fish, which we ate that night.
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| Bob with Tuna Catch |
Tarawa has beautiful sunsets!
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| Spectacular Tarawa Sunset |
Since Tarawa is so hot, most of the non-natives spend most of their time in air-conditioned cars to get around the island. Since the weather seemed like a home summer to me, I would go walking up and down the road for an hour or so, then turn around and walk back. I could tell it was an anomaly to have a non-native walking around like that and was likely the source of some interesting comments in the native tongue. One little girl, obviously a lot braver than her compatriots, eyed me for a while, then kind of snuck up and touched me, then ran off. It was really pretty cute. I have to say everyone was very friendly and at no time did I ever feel the least bit uncomfortable
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