We had a general idea of what we wanted to do for the next three days. This was supposed to be a day of kicking back and recovering from all of our days at airports. So, it may come as a surprise that the best part of our day was going back to the airport and getting on a plane. How did we get here?
We spent our morning trying to contact places to reserve a boat tour of the rock islands (the UNESCO heritage site that Palau is perhaps most famous for). Just as we discovered with trying to get a rental car on this island, doing any kind of business or inquiry is very challenging. Places simply do not respond to emails in any sort of timely fashion. We eventually drove to their offices on the island in person to try and get things sorted out. You see, neither of our phones can find a network on this island, so we can only make arrangements over Wi-Fi. So while we were out in the car, someone could have responded to our inquiries. Spoiler alert: they didn’t, but it is kind of a logistical mess either way.
There was one company that had availability who did kayak tours, but that wouldn’t really take us through the rock islands. Everyone else said they were booked solid for the next few days and offered little help in finding alternatives. It was now noon and we were finding this unanticipated situation a bit frustrating.
The best view of the rock islands is from the air, where one can see them more clearly spread out over the turquoise water. I had emailed the two air operators that do these flights. The first one got back to me and said they are closed for both of the days we would have wanted to fly. I followed up and asked if we could still do something yet today, and it was silent for about an hour and a half.
Eventually I heard back and responded that we could do a 2:30pm flight if it was still available. They never responded back to confirm, but a van eventually arrived at our hotel to take us to the airport. Communication on this island is a challenge. After getting to the airport, we checked in with Pacific Missionary Aviation. They’re a Christian-based organization that does a lot of work throughout this region of the Pacific.
After getting a safety briefing, we boarded the Cessna 206 with modified door (or more accurately a lack of door) for photography purposes. A small bar went across the gap horizontally as our “protection.” We were instructed not to have anything loose in our pockets. We took off from Koror and were soon on our way south toward the rock islands.
The heat of the day led to a few bumps in the air, and poor Nicole looked a bit nervous next to the edge of the open door. I noticed her leaning a bit left and away from the gap, but eventually found her courage and was able to enjoy the incredible views. We first flew by notable Palauan stops such as Jellyfish Lake (where currently there are very few jellyfish), and the “Milky Way,” known for its mineral-rich waters that are supposedly good for one’s skin.
We flew as far south as the edge of Peleliu island, the site of a battle in World War Two. On our way back north we made a few passes around Ngerukewid, a grouping of lush green islands that seem to be iconic when one thinks of Palau. They are a protected area for birds, so even tourists cannot venture within its perimeter.
It was really cool to see from the air and even a bit surreal looking. The entire flight took about 40 minutes, and I think that was about the right amount of time. We made our way back to the Koror airport after passing over the Carolines Resort, where we are staying.
I am glad we did the aerial tour, and I hope Nicole is too. She was real brave. After returning to our bungalow, we watched the sun set in the distance before heading out to dinner at the Elilai, a five minute drive from our hotel.
I had one of their specials with fish and pasta and Nicole had a flatbread. She was quite pleased with it. It is actually really hard to find a place to eat on this island that’s open at normal hours, so we will more than likely be returning. In the ongoing saga of trying to schedule a rock island tour (from the ground level), I eventually contacted a Japanese company that said they had availability on tomorrow’s tour. The tour itself may or may not be in Japanese, but I think the views will speak for themselves. It departs at the reasonable hour of 9am. It will be interesting to compare the views we had from above with those at the water’s level. Hopefully the weather continues to cooperate, but doesn’t sunburn us to a crisp.
passports & pepto bismol 