Pohnpei is a Micronesian paradise.  It has a barrier reef encircling the island that, in calm weather, keeps the lagoon as flat as glass.

I know what you are thinking.  I’m skipping a few parts.  How did I all of a sudden go from Kwajalein to Pohnpei?  Well, that’s easy.  By airplane. (rim shot)

Ok ok ok.  After arriving on Kwajalein on October 8th, I spent the next 12 days relaxing, enjoying Spencer’s company, and eating Burger King, Subway, and Spencer’s home-cooked meals.  There was also snorkeling, bike riding, TV watching, beach combing and swimming in the lagoon and ocean.  There are nurse sharks that live at the docks and follow the fishing boats in, hoping for scraps.  There are huge rectangular pools cut in to the rock on the shoreline (created when building the structures on the atoll) that are incredible for snorkeling at low tide (and for getting sun burnt).  Gorgeous sunsets.  Cute sand pipers.  NO stray dogs.  

Kwajalein reminded me more of Hawaii (or, the pictures I have seen, given that I have never been there) than the islands of Thailand.  It is flat with short grass and tall palms. It also smells different than the Thai islands.  Other than the tang of the ocean, the only other scent is the occasional wafting of plumeria you get when you bike past the park. It is quiet and tranquil. No mangy dogs. No motorbikes. Very few motor vehicles at all, actually. It’s all bikes and skateboards and golf carts and walking. I loved it.

One day we took a boat out past the lagoon in to the open ocean. I wanted to float in the sea with my long, red hair all around me, like a mermaid.  It was an overwhelming feeling to be out in the ocean with no land around.  And the pictures proved to be not quite as romantic as what I had in mind.  They won’t be getting posted.  BUT, I did drift in the open ocean with my hair fanned out around me as planned. For about a minute and a half.  Cross that off the bucket list.

Kwaj is like a tiny slice of America out in the middle of nowhere in the South Pacific. Hospital, post office, grocery store, convenience store, souvenir shop, bar, swimming pools, schools, rec centers, “movie theater”, bowling league, bingo night, dormitories, and duplexes. But most importantly, Burger King and Subway. They also have a Baskin Robbins and a pizza joint, but I was more concerned with Burger King and Subway. My pass for the island limited my shopping privileges. I wasn’t able to use the grocery store and I (technically) wasn’t allowed to use the convenience store. I was more or less limited to the food court and whatever we had in the (mini) fridge.

I completed my Open Water Diver certification while on the atoll. Everything should have been finished in four days (four confined water dives, four open water dives), but since there were other people in the class having issues with equalization and whatnot, it got drawn out. Spencer and I weren’t able to go out on any dives together (except when he accompanied us on the first open water dive) which was kind of a bummer. The instructor ended up having to take me out one-on-one to complete my final two dives. I had to be certified before we left for Pohnpei on October 20th. I was certified on the 18th.

What I did get to experience while doing the open water dives on Kwajalein was fantastic. Although, not having any real basis for comparison, it would have to be, right? Sea turtles, black-tipped reef sharks, trigger fish (who always look like they are smiling), sea turtles, anemone fish galore, zebra fish, stone fish, sea turtles, lizard fish, etc… Did I mention sea turtles?  I love sea turtles.  They look as if they are flying under water.  It is such a fantastic feeling to be down in the depths of the ocean, breathing air and getting to be a part of a world we don’t belong to.  In the words of Sebastian, “Darling it’s betta’, down where it’s wetta’…under da sea”.

Next up: Pohnpei.