Another Full Weekend

This weekend was reminiscent of one of my first weekends here. Sunday was spent on a sailboat in the monthly Beer Can race. And today I went fishing. Again, not catching, fishing; just like last time.

I got this great picture of the Worthy coming into harbor while we were racing.


Unfortunately I didn't get a picture but when we were fishing today, we scared up several hundred tiny little flying fish. It was really cool to see. They looked like they were all about 3 inches long. Other than that, we didn't see one fish, no bird-piles, nothing.

A bird-pile is when there are multitudes of birds catching lots of little fish that are getting stirred up by bigger fish. When you see one, you want to drive the boat through it or close and you have a great chance of catching something. That's what we keep our eyes open for when were out tooling around in the ocean.

It was fun to be out on the water, even if we didn't catch anything. That would have been fun too though!

Accompanied Or Unnacompanied - That Is The Question

So far I've been here right about 3 months. It's been a lot of fun, there is no shortage of things to do. Especially if you like to be outside. I'm still learning the ropes as to how everything works and meeting new people almost daily.

The biggest piece of advice I'd like to offer anyone thinking about coming out here though is this; if you are not single before you arrive, make sure your partner can definitely get a job or if you are married, don't come unless you can get an accompanied status, a house from the start and can bring your spouse out with you at the same time you arrive.

This is a tough place to be by yourself. It's very small. Even though you have lots of people around you at all times, it can still be lonely. And getting your partner here after the fact can be difficult depending on the circumstances.

For some reason, it seems it is more difficult to get a house and/or accompanied status once you are already on the island. I know of one person that has been here for many years that is getting married soon and they will have to continue living in the BQ's. Another gentleman came out in an accompanied status but couldn't bring his wife right away, he is now caught in an endless waiting cycle trying to get housing so he can get here out here. I have many examples but the part that is most confusing is that I also know of new people that have arrived on island since I've been here that have brought their non-working spouse and have gotten housing. I have no idea how they pulled that off.

So just be aware; housing is a problem out here and you should make sure in your negotiations that if you are in a relationship, you address that before you take a job here. Being stuck here while your significant other is halfway around the world is not a fun position to be in.

April Beer Can Race

This month's beer can sailboat race was delayed by a few weeks because of the Music Festival the first week and then Easter the following week. So it's been a month and a half since the last one and I was really ready to go sailing!

This time I was on Monte Junker's boat. Monte is the Commodore of the Yacht Club and has quite a large sailboat. We all got to pitch in and help get it set up...me not quite so much, it was only my second time out. I'm beginning to pick up on some terms but there is a LOT to sailing; especially racing.

I'm on the list to take sailing lessons. I can't wait.

Enjoy the pics:

Set up for fishing.

Exploring Roi Namur

This last weekend I went to Roi Namur for some new ground to explore. I’ve been there once before but it was a very quick trip for work and there is a lot to see on Roi as it’s called for short. There are only about 80 people that live there currently so it’s kind of a little getaway for Kwaj people. I enjoyed myself quite a bit; it was very relaxing.

Detail of a coconut tree



There were 4 of us that went up together. The other 3 were divers so while they went off diving, I went exploring. I set out on foot with my camera, my bag of snacks and my book. There are WWII remnants all over the island. I got quite a few pictures but I can’t really tell you a whole lot about the history of them. One thing about the structures that’s so amazing is that you can tell that they have been bombed repeatedly and they are still standing. It’s incredible.






I explored beaches, and went swimming, I found cool little areas people have set up near the beaches, I stopped at the beachside bar. It’s kind of a bring your own kind of place, no one works there and there are no drinks to buy but it’s a pretty cool place to just hang out and watch the waves roll in. I spent time reading my book and overall just relaxing. It was nice.


After dinner I wandered by the outdoor theater, Madagascar 2 was playing and I watched some of it to kill some time until I met up with the others for evening drinks. It was a good time to get to know each other, visit, and talk about our day.

The next morning, we rented a cart and I got to see the rest of the island that I wasn’t able to cover the previous day. It was a very wet and rainy day but fun. We did the tour and then met up with several other Kwaj folks all waiting for the return plane back home.


Originally we were going to sail to Roi but the weather didn’t cooperate for that. We still did what we had planned to do on Roi anyway, just minus the sailing. Hopefully another opportunity to sail will come up soon. I really enjoy it, what little I’ve done so far.