Forgive the long silence from us. We were essentially offline for the seven
days we were in Palau – but it was a magnificent week! I have been in heaven being active with the
sea and camping in the wild – not only that but it was a week full of new
things. All told, those are probably my
three favorite activities: being active
in the sea, camping in the wild, and new things.
I was waterlogged for much of the week. We kayaked around the Rock Islands of Palau
for four long and full days, had four hour-long scuba dives over two days, and had
many, many long snorkels in the sea and in marine lakes around the islands. While wet, I saw all sorts of new things
including: dancing manta rays doing
flips while feasting on plankton; giant clams which were so big that Maya could
lay down inside them (really!); tiny colorful nudibranchs swimming in marine
lakes; batfish camouflaged among leaves floating in the harbor; two new
varieties of Cassiopia Andromeda upside down jelly fish; and the amazingly
colorful and tiny mandarin fish of Palau.
I also relished the solitude of camping on deserted beaches
with my family. Having lived in a big
crowded city in the desert in Jordan for the five years leading up to this
trip, I couldn’t get enough of everything about these seven days: the glorious
shades of blue and green of the water; being in “the now” as we gently paddled
for hours through isolated, quiet lagoons; the sounds of the colorful birds in
the thick trees; fruit bats and white-tailed tropic birds gliding over peaceful
forests and bays; and watching the sun softly rise over untouched beaches.
It was a glorious and rejuvenating active week in
Palau. I’m ready for more days like
these!
Love and Peace, Nadia
