Author: houseala

After a wonderful day off yesterday, we were ready to jump back into action today by visiting the Rock Islands/Jellyfish Lake! Today’s fantastic hosts were our friends at Paddling Palau. We started our day at 8:30 by all piling into a boat with our wonderful guides Jeff, Mac, and Olilai. We had a rainy hour-long boat ride to the German Channel, where most of the class was able to get some prime snorkeling time in. We saw black-tip and white-tip sharks, manta rays, turtles, and tons of fish (barracudas, surgeonfish, groupers, unicorn fish…).

After getting tired out and hungry, we set out to a perfect, beachy island for lunch-time! Lunch was a delicious assortment of bento boxes curtesy of King’s Palace. Once we were well-rested and fed, we set out for a long-awaited part of the trip: Jellyfish Lake. This is a saltwater marine lake nestled in the valley of one of the Rock Islands that is home to multiple species of jellies (primarily Moon and Golden). It was completely unlike anything most of us had ever seen with colorful jellies floating all around us! We spent about an hour snorkeling around and making friends with these lovely gelatinous invertebrates.

Next, we went to a place called the Milky Way for some spa-time. The beautiful turquoise water runs over milky limestone mud that visitors have traditionally spread all over themselves (we were no exception to this). While here, we had a first-time sighting: a crocodile! Garrett grabbed some great footage using his drone that you can check out in the compilation video linked at the end of this post.

Once we washed off the silky-smooth mud, we loaded on the boat, returned to the Paddling Palau facility, said our goodbyes to our incredible hosts, and headed back to the dorms at PCC. Most of us journaled or rested during the quick break before we departed for the final adventure of the day. Every other Saturday evening, the state of Airai hosts a Night Market with live music and dancers, artisan craft vendors, and lots of yummy food. Some of the class danced to the music while others enjoyed some snacks like calamari, coconut rolls, BBQ, and boba tea. This night out was a great way for us to experience the close-knit Palau community first-hand.

We are quite exhausted from such a long, exciting day, but we will leave you with one more treat. Below is a great compilation of clips from today compiled by co-author Alaina!

Thanks again to Paddling Palau and the Airai 680 Night Market for giving us another unforgettable day :^).

This post was written by: Iris Ford and Alaina Houser

We started today off by heading to the Mesei, or the taro patch. Ms. Ann and Ms. Ann Marie shared their knowledge about farming in the taro patch, how to plant and pull taro, and the medicinal herbs they keep in the patch. Ms. Ann spoke about how the medicinal plants they grow are good for both plants and people to keep everyone healthy! She also spoke about how food is an important part of community. It is expected to share food with guests who come into your home. 

Ms. Ann Marie and Ms. Ann shared how the taro patch is not only a place for women to farm, but also to congregate and talk freely, building strong relationships between women. 

After pulling taro, we rinsed them and cut them to bring back to Camp Ebiil for processing. After boiling the taro for 2 hours, we peeled them and mashed them up with coconut oil. While we waited for the taro to boil, Omar and KB taught us how to break open coconuts to make coconut oil. We finished off the day with a meal made from the taro we helped to harvest.

Through today’s activities, we learned the cultural significance of localized food systems and got to experience the work and care that goes into bringing each piece of food from patch to plate.

Today’s blog post was written by: Emma Schnabel and Alaina Houser