And so it begins, like any journey it begins with a single step and then an aluminium tube hurtling through the air — going west to the beautiful waters of the Pacific.
Our merry band of travellers met at the Houston Intercontinental Airport to start our trip to the Republic of Fiji. Like almost any trip to the Pacific from Houston, our trip began with United Airlines; fortunately our flight was staffed by a large number of “ex-cons” or former Continental Employees which made it a pleasant flight rather than being trapped with a grumpy flight crew.
As we readied ourselves to be hurled into the sky, we were treated by none other than Captain Ron asking us to sit back and enjoy the ride. I wondered out loud if he was still wearing his eye patch. After an uneventful flight we landed at LAX ready for our baggage hike from the United Terminal to the International a Terminal. This was not altogether a light transfer since Ann and I had six checked bags and carry-ons too.
We are carrying children’s books and other donations for the Holy Cross School in Taveuni Fiji which is celebrating its 150 year anniversary while we are in Fiji. The books were donated by clients to give to the school. One special client donated a new laptop complete with reference software that does not require an internet connection. This was completely unexpected and is a special treat for this special school.
Bags checked, $300 poorer and we are ready for the next aluminum tube to deliver us to Fiji. Racing through the sky, we ate breakfast, dinner, snacks, watched movies (Veronica Mars for me), slept, wandered around, slept so,e more and then all if the sudden lights, and Fiji out the window. We are landing in Nadi. Forms filled out, lines snaked through, bags off the carrousel, more scanning, and the we are discussing our massive amounts of luggage with the customs agent. “Yes mam, scuba equipment and books for the Holy Cross school. No, they do not have much value because they are used. No, we have nothing else to declare (of course there were four bottles of Death’s Door Gin but that was within our allowance.
We finally broke free of the customs hall and then it was off to the domestic terminal for our transfer flight to Taviuni. You should have seen that poor agents face when we showed up with six bags and heavy carry-ons. Not to mention all of the other luggage our other guests had to transport. “We may not be able to get all of this on board; the weather is a little questionable and the pilot is carrying more fuel for the trip”. Hmmm more fuel or luggage interesting choice.
Somehow all of it made it on the plane and we are once again off in an aluminum tube. With turbos humming and blades spinning we are off to Taviuni.
As the island comes into view we are greater with lush green foliage and clear blue water. We pass over the resort with a beautiful sailboat anchored out front. After a beautiful landing we are once again moving massive amounts of luggage from the little counter to a truck and then we are off for a boat that will deliver us to the resort.
We are finally here!!
Travel
Ann Keibler Wins Award from Cayman Islands Department of Tourism for Adventure Travel
Oceanic Ventures is a full service travel company specializing in adventure and scuba diving travel. “we have contacts all over the world and know how to find the right destination and property for our clients. whether it is a backpacking, rafting type operation or a five star resort we can help you find the right fit.”
According the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism, “the ‘T’anks A Lot,’ programme offers monthly cash prizes (up to $365!) and a chance to win the ultimate grand prize: use of a Porsche Cayman for one year to dive operators that show outstanding support for the destination’s dive industry. Renowned as the birthplace of recreational diving, the Cayman Islands is home to 365 diverse dive experiences and is lauded as the Caribbean’s premier dive destination.
According to Cayman Islands Director of Tourism Shomari Scott, the ‘T’anks A Lot’ programme was conceptualized as a fun way to keep dive centres focused on the destination, while at the same time offering a chance to win an exceptional prize. “Diving in the Cayman Islands is an unforgettable and extraordinary experience and we wanted to find an equally unforgettable and extraordinary way to show our appreciation to dive operators who recommend our Islands to their valued clients. We feel that the chance to drive a Porsche Cayman for 365 days – which reflects our 365 dive sites – will certainly be memorable to the lucky winner and we encourage dive centres across the US to enter before the closing date of October 31st. Every confirmed booking equals one entry into the grand prize drawing which gives every dive centre whether big or small a chance to win the Porsche.”
Ann loves helping people and she is not afraid to tell anyone that she fully intends to be driving that Porsche next year!
Experiencing the Solomon Islands a Scuba Diving Trip Aboard the Bilikiki
Diving in the Solomon Islands – Guadalcanal
The morning finds is on our first diving location. Diving off the Bilikiki is done primarily off the “tinies,” aluminum boats with cylinder holes and a small ladder. Csaba (pronounced Chaba) was in charge of the first dive and after the briefing it was – this way to the South Pacific and Tinie 1, Tinie 1 as the crew moved the diving equipment from the deck to the tinie. The order was the same each day, diving equipment, cameras then divers. All you as a diver needed to do was to let the crew members know that you were ready, move your name tag from “on-board” to “diving” and then step aboard your waiting diving chariot.
The adventure continues…
Experiencing the Solomon Islands a Scuba Diving Trip Aboard the Bilikiki
Beginning in the Solomon’s
Evan, the shore based manager met us at the airport and like the crew on board the boat, Evan has been a part of the operation for a long time (I can attest that he was here in 2006 when we last visited the Bilikki.) Amazingly, all of our luggage arrived with us and we were promptly taken to the Kitana Medano Hotel to wait for our time to board. To capitalize on our available time, Ann had arranged for a tour of Honiara and some of the sights that made Guadalcanal such a memorable location in World War II. There is a beautiful tribute to the men who died in the Pacific defending our freedom and bringing it to others. This war memorial sits atop a hill above Henderson field and has multiple marble carvings highlighting the battles in this region of the Pacific. So many men died here that the locals are still finding mess kits and other personal items scattered throughout the jungle.
The ships scattered on the bottom of Iron Bottom Sound even now contain the remains of American, Australian, British and Japanese sailors. The majority of these wrecks lie well beyond the range of recreational scuba divers in over 240 feet of water.
Our tour also encompassed Henderson field (we landed here), the river near Red Beach, and a stop at the statue of Sir Jacob Vouza, the Solomon Islander who alerted the allies to the advancing Japanese troops despite being tortured, stabbed and left for dead. He survived, was Knighted by the Queen of England and even renamed his village to California so he could tell his friends in America that he was in California.
As our tour ended, our diving adventure was about to begin. Csaba, on of the on-board boat managers met us at the hotel and transported us to the Honiara Yacht Club – a stuffy name for a simple location with small boats and a nice bar. Here we joined our luggage which had already been loaded by the crew. We were met by Daniela, the lively Venezuelan on-board manager. She is also married to Csaba and no, he is not from Venezuela but rather hails from Hungry and Eastern Europe.
The first day on a live aboard is always busy with everyone scurrying around trying to assemble their dive equipment which is scattered around various bags necessitated by the airline luggage rules. Only after everything is reassembled, tested and stored is there time to relax.
It was soon after dinner that the boat set sail for the beginning of our ten-day cruise through the Solomon Islands.
The adventure continues…
Traveling – Talking to Strangers
This morning I was reading a blog post by Richard Branson entitled “Do Talk to Strangers.” It seems his son went to Hawaii to go surfing but returned home when no-one would talk to him. I found that to be a sad commentary on life. I am basically a shy person, so initiating conversations with strangers can be difficult. If people are not open to the conversation then it makes it even harder.
One of the wonderful things about traveling is the interactions with people, especially the people who live and work in the places we are visiting. These conversations open a window into a whole new world and the daily life of the people in those places we visit. On a recent trip to Arizona, we met some very talented artists who invited us into their homes and work areas. Not only did we learn about their art, we caught a glimpse into their life on the reservation, their religious beliefs and their families.
I love traveling with Ann, because she loves to interact with people and she is not shy about it. Children seem to come out of the woodwork to say hello to her and their parents tend to follow. She meets people everywhere and at times these complete strangers become lifelong friends. Her ability to talk to anyone makes travel fun and different. You just never know who she will meet. For instance, she met group of nuns in Ecuador who knew some of her elementary school teachers in Scottsdale. On another trip to Fiji, she was invited to go down to the river with a group of local village ladies to cool off and gossip. I am envious of her ability to always say hello and start a conversation with a stranger.
As many of you know, her conversations can lead to wonderful opportunities. Our school project where we carry school supplies to the places we visit started with a conversation with some of the local staff at one of the dive resorts. There is no reason we cannot emulate her openness to a conversation. Of course we have to be careful, but for an adult, rarely is a simple conversation a risk. It is sad that we ask our children to “not talk to strangers” because some “strangers” have a lot of information and stories that are interesting and fun. But, this warning should not apply to adults.
Don’t miss out on the stories and adventurers that people have to tell. Say hello to people you meet. Practice talking to people at home so you will feel more comfortable in foreign countries. At least be open to a conversation with a stranger; your life will be enriched.
At The Office – Scuba Travel & the Art of the Layover
My least favorite part of travel is actually traveling. I’ve never been fond of airplanes, undressing for seemingly dazed TSA agents, airport food, the fluorescent indistinguishability of different airports around the world. I’ve always thought that when one is an airport, one could very well be anywhere in the world. They all have evenly spaced Starbucks, bookstores with the same publications, Cinnabon, and garbled announcements about a gate change or lost elderly person or some such thing. So, needless to say, I wasn’t thrilled to find myself facing the possibility of six long hours of contemplating how my wonderful dive vacation is over and the imminent return of my daily routine in the Puerto Rico airport on the way home from St. Croix.
Fortunately for me, the Oceanic Ventures trip leaders had something planned. I felt an overwhelming surge of relief when David Morris causally announced “we’re going into town, who’s coming?” Of course I was going to tour Old San Juan. Luckily enough, Donna, John, Yuliya, Deeba, and Kendall all decided to join David and I.
We left our bags with Eric, and hopped into Israel’s cab. He dropped us off at Castillo San Felipe del Morro, an old Spanish Fort dating back to the 15th Century. Castillo San Felipe del Morro is a grand site, the surrounding brick walls are enormous, the grassy expanse on the pathway in seemed to stretch straight out into the sea. After the obligatory group photo–thanks, Yuliya!–we started out tour of the Fort. We walked through barracks living quarters, holding cells–apparently, according to the sign, one does not want to strike a white person in the 15th century. We went up to the top levels and took in the view of Old San Juan and of the sea we had been diving in only the day before. After our curiosity had been sated, and a few more photos snapped, we took the tram to the second fort, Castillo San Cristobal. This is where, according to David, Kiera Knightley takes a dive into the sea in the first Pirates of the Caribbean film. After seeing that spot we took a brief at stroll over the grounds.
It was about this time that group hunger directed us to the Parrot Club, which was closed. A happy accident, though, as the tapas bar we were directed to was delicious. I had a bacon chorizo burger with garlic aioli that easily makes my top ten burgers list, not an easy feat. After lunch, David had another idea up his sleeve. He took us down to Cruzan House where we learned what “proof” really means and sampled some delicious frozen drinks.
With only a bit more time before Israel came to pick us up, we toured the side streets off the town square in Old San Juan. Donna took photos, John and Kendall toured around, Yuliya and Deeba walked into peculiar looking antique shop while David and I set off on a quest for a quest for a Panama hat–aka “my rum drinking hat”–though, to no avail.
When Israel returned to the town square it was with heavy hearts that we boarded the cab for the return to the airport, Houston, and home. But I’m very glad to have gotten to tour Old San Juan with some very good friends on such a fine day.
