Today marked the halfway point of the trip, and we had a day off to do with as we pleased. The majority of us decided to charter a boat to Peleliu, one of the southern islands of the Palauan archipelago and the site of one of the bloodiest battles of World War II. In an island-hopping campaign across the Pacific, American forces set their sites on the Japanese-controlled Peleliu and its valuable airfield. What was expected to be a short, 2 to 3 day campaign turned into a 2.5-month siege. It has earned the nickname “Museum Island” because of the sheer number of well-preserved artifacts and buildings, with more being unearthed even today.
Our tour guide, Des, led us around the island, recounting stories from the war and the horrors that faced the people there. More than 11,000 Japanese soldiers were entrenched in positions they’d spent months fortifying, and of these forces, only 19 survived. Over 2000 Americans died there as well, marking it one of the costliest battles in the Pacific.
With that somber reminder fresh in our minds, we returned to the boat and headed to our last artifact of the day, a sunken Japanese fuel freighter. Here, we enjoyed the cool water after a hot day in the sun, floating over the shallow wreck and watching the life that calls this wreck home.
Scott and Reid spent the day doing much the same, diving on some of the incredible sites scattered all over Palau. Iris, Lydia, and Bryan spent the day around Koror, shopping, visiting a local park, and enjoying the local Palauan cuisine.
We’d like to thank Garrett and Omar for getting us the boat, KB for connecting us with the tour company, Peleliu Adventures, and especially our tour guide, Des, for taking the time out of his busy day to lead us on an incredible experience around the island he calls home.
Today’s blog post was written by: Myles Tallmadge, Micaela Muñoz, and Megan Haner
