Kosrae — Marooned in Paradise
I’m writing to you from the island of Kosrae, 2180 km from Guam and 4560 km from Honolulu. Kosrae is the easternmost island in Micronesia. I landed here on March 6, planning to stay for three days. The night before my scheduled departure, the Marshallese government closed Majuro — my next intended destination — to all international travelers for a period of two weeks.
Okay, no big deal, I thought. Kosrae is a nice place. Kosraeans speak English and they’re friendly. I’ll hang out here for a couple of weeks before continuing my travels. There’s still plenty of time for me to visit the other island nations of the Pacific during April, May and June.
I made myself comfortable and enjoyed a little break from travel. Every morning, I walked through a mangrove forest to a water-side cafe for fresh fish, eggs and coconut. If you ever come to Kosrae, the Pacific Treelodge Resort is THE place to stay.
Kosrae is known as the Island of the Sleeping Lady because of the silhouette of its mountains. If you’ve seen the Disney movie Moana, this might sound familiar.
Kosrae is the least visited of Micronesia’s main islands. There’s one paved road that runs from the airport halfway around the east side of the island.
The rest of the island is beautifully untouched and unspoiled. The beaches are lined with palm trees. The estuaries through the mangrove forests are perfect for kayaking. The mountains are covered with impenetrable jungles. The water is clean both in the sea and in the forest streams. Yesterday, I saw four adult Green turtles while snorkeling on the reef.
There are no seasons here. The daytime temperature is 30°C (86°F). At night it drops down to 27°C (80°F). It rains every day for a couple of hours. The photo of me holding a taro leaf illustrates why I never travel with an umbrella. You can always find an umbrella when you need one.
There’s one more remarkable thing about Kosrae: There is no COVID-19 here. Micronesia started enforcing severe travel restrictions in February. I was one of the few tourists allowed entry because I’d spent the previous month in east Africa, where there had not been any confirmed cases of the coronavirus at that time.
Micronesia’s strict travel bans are understandable. Pacific Islanders have low resistance to outside diseases, such as measles or smallpox. The influenza of 1918 killed ~20% of the population. As of today, 185 countries and territories have confirmed cases of COVID-19. Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, Nauru and Kiribati are thankfully not on that list.
I went to church last Sunday. The only social distancing was that the men sit on the right side of the church, separated from the women on the left. As the service ended, I looked across the aisle and snapped a photo. See any face masks? Nope. On International Women’s Day, there was a celebration at the community center. No masks here either. It’s nice to know that life goes on as normal in some parts of the world.
There’s only so much time one can spend snorkeling, kayaking, eating, going to social events or relaxing on the beach. So, I went over to the College of Micronesia (COM) to volunteer as a guest lecturer. I got hired! Here I am explaining the tectonic collision between the Pacific, Philippine and Caroline plates.
As a teacher for the COM, I was given a spacious 2-bedroom apartment in faculty housing. (Another professor just returned to the US, so I moved into her vacant unit.) The apartment is about 20 meters from the beach. The COM pays my rent. All I have to pay for is my food, electricity and internet.
Unfortunately, after teaching for two days, I was out of job when the Micronesian government closed all the schools on all its islands as a health precaution. No worries, I thought. It was almost time for me to go back to the airport to fly to Majuro anyway.
But then, two things happened: (1) The Marshallese government extended their travel ban to Majuro. (2) With no customers, United Airlines suspended all flights between Kosrae, Majuro or any of the other Micronesian islands. Yesterday morning, the United agent at the Kosrae airport phoned me. Our conversation went like this:
- Good morning, Dr. Zoa. This is Maureen at the airport. Remember me?
- Yes, Maureen. I remember you. Kom fuhkah? (I’m practicing my Kosraean.)
- I’m fine, thank you. I have some news for you about your ticket to Majuro.
- Yes?
- Your flight has been cancelled. There will be no more flights to Majuro.
- Oh, okay.
- And today is the last day that United will take any passengers out of Kosrae.
- Really?
- Yes, today is the last flight.
- Where is the plane going?
- To Guam, sir. From Guam, you could fly back to the states.
- And there won’t be any more flights out of Kosrae? For how long?
- We don’t know. Maybe a few weeks. Maybe a few months. No one knows.
- And when is this flight leaving for Guam?
- In two hours. Would you like me to hold a seat for you?
- (… pause …) No thank you, Maureen. I think I’ll stay here in Kosrae.
- Are you sure? There won’t be any more planes for … well, we don’t know.
- I like it here, Maureen.
- So do I. Welcome to Kosrae.
That afternoon, I started volunteering with KIRMA (Kosrae Island Resource Management Authority) and HPO (Historic Preservation Office). These are government offices that will remain open. The COM is kind enough to let me keep my apartment as long as I’m here.
So, here I am in an incredibly beautiful place. I have meaningful work to keep me busy. My internet isn’t fast, but it’s stable. The people I’ll be working with are smart, organized and friendly. I can live for a long time on fish and fruit. And I love coconut — of which I have an unlimited supply.
When I read the news about what’s happening in the rest of the world, it’s hard for me to get a feel for what you’re going through right now. Are you basically okay? Or is everyone tense and worried? It’s remarkable that there’s a small corner of the world that remains untouched by this global disaster. The only downside — and it’s a big downside — is that I don’t know how long I’m going to be here. It could be months.
If you were in my situation, what would you have said yesterday when Maureen offered you a seat on the last flight out of here to Guam?
Nick, I thought about you today, and am glad you’re doing well! I would have stayed, too. I’m sure it’s peaceful where you are.
I’m happy in my house, with enough food, projects (painting a few rooms), and a good neighborhood to take walks in. I work 1 day a week, and will wear a mask there. I do feel for people who have lost their jobs or are trying to work from home with children to care for too.
Yes, stay safe, Nick, and as you always do, you’re making your corner of the world better for having you in it.
Josie😊
Hi Nick, A wise and lucky choice.
Like history, no-one who can is learning much from countries who are a few weeks behind others.
The Australian right wing happy clappy PM, Scotty from Marketing has been late to close the border (on an island go figure) and little or no tracing of infected peoples’ contacts. Testing is limited and the dumb and secure believe it isn’t a big deal and are out and about fighting for toilet paper and hoarding.
I am in the vulnerable category and have been isolated at home for 10 days and possibly months to come. Luckily I can work from home. Glad you are safe. Enjoy
Amanda
Well … I was wondering in which country the COVID contagion would find you “sheltering in place” — a term with which we have become all too familiar in the ole USA. Among just a few other places 😊.
We are definitely living through a defining era right now, even in my relatively insular burg that’s 150 miles and a mountain range removed from Ground Zero in the Seattle area.
It’s arguably a shorter list of what is open than what is closed. Among the latter: Universities/colleges (online classes only), K-12 schools, movie theaters, fitness facilities, hair/nail salons, yoga studios, dance studios, bars and restaurants except for takeout. Any event drawing a crowd — concerts, plays, dance performances, church services and even funerals — is canceled or live-streamed. I am race director of a marathon/half-marathon scheduled for early April and had to pull the plug. Hospital and care facility visits are severely restricted. The fruit warehouse down the street is shut down. In most offices, employees are working from home — this includes at my former newspaper.
People are strongly urged — though not (yet) required as in a few states — to stay at home unless absolutely necessary. The goal is to limit the interactions that enable contagion — or at least spread out the numbers of cases over time so that a sudden surge doesn’t overwhelm health providers. We are now schooled in the concept of “flattening the curve.”
We can go to the gas station and grocery store. At my locally owned neighborhood grocery outlet, signs throughout the store urge six feet of separation and notify shoppers of purchase limits on certain items. Hand sanitizer and toilet paper are nowhere in sight; psychologists are having a field day with the TP phenomenon.
One does hear grumbling here and there, but by and large people are going along with the restrictions and trying not to aggravate the crisis (TP excepted). We can go outdoors for exercise, though not in large groups, and many more people are out walking/running/bicycling on a weekday than normal. Folks are generally friendly, helpful and respectful. At least for now.
Perhaps the worst is the uncertainty. A full-on recession is guaranteed, and personal and governmental budgets will take a severe hit. Federal and state lawmakers are looking at a number of ways to help keep individuals and businesses afloat until we are past this. Frankly, the federal government is leading from behind (many will label that a too-gentle assessment), and state/local governments are taking the lead. By necessity, WA state has been among the leaders.
But still, the uncertainty. When will we get past all this? When will we know that we are? Will we see progress in a few weeks, get complacent and then get slammed again? No wonder the stock market’s digging a deeper crater.
Even my GF and I are sheltering in place (we live 40 miles apart). Hunkering down isn’t such a huge burden for a retiree with books, cable TV, a comfortable place to live and a yen for exercise. But the impact of these events will ripple through many lives for many years.
So. I’m not really complaining, but a tropical island does sound pretty good right now. Thanks for the post card.
That’s an excellent summary of the situation. I could especially identify with your description of retired life. We are in Portugal, but we are all sharing these times. There will have to be a new vocabulary to describe them.
Are restrictions in Portugal as severe as those in Spain? Word is even recreational bicycling is banned out of fear of tumbles leading to ER visits — this clogging up the health system.
I think I might have done the same as you. We are mostly closed up here in Prince Edward Island. Things started to close on Monday with more and more people shutting things down Tuesday and Wednesday on only essential services running. Crazy times for sure. Thanks for your update. This place sounds amazing, I think I will put it on my list.
I spent a month on Kosrae in 1982 censuring native forest birds for the USFWS. We cut random transects all across the interior of the island, over mountains, across rivers, through villages that had little contact with the rest of the world. It’s a beautiful place and probably the best spot for you to be right now. Although you will get a little stir crazy after a month or two.
Hi JN,
That might be your new nickname. I wondered where you were. Glad you are somewhere from which you can post. I own an N95 mask by chance. Bought it for gardening. I wear it mostly at the grocery store and when I picked up my sister at the airport when she returned from LA. People at first looked at me weirdly but now some smile when I say I just happened to own one so why not wear it. I am working from home. I have three listings. Met the photographer twice in the last week or so to get photos. I am working on a contract on a house that was not yet on the market and we are hoping that the home inspection will be permitted to take place next week. Lenders are scrambling. Home inspectors are very busy as are photographers I know. Malls, libraries, offices, parks are closed. I am gardening as the daffodils and narcissus are blooming. I have enough projects in my house alone to keep me busy for two years and I was stocked with most necessities before the run on toilet paper began. I also live within walking distance of my grandson and my grocery store. My husband has found Australian soap operas to keep us busy in our rec time. I am enjoying the accents…so similar to my Canadian and Scottish relatives. I am delighted that you chose such a beautiful place to be quarantined and that you have found meaningful things to do. Be well.
Wow — what a fascinating conundrum to have faced. And what a courageous and, to most Americans, unexpected decision to have made. I am wondering how the feel and texture of daily life there will change for you as the days unfurl to weeks and months, what friends you will make, and whether you will eventually write up your experiences for a broader audience.
Wow Nick!! I enjoyed reading it!! You are lucky to find yourself here at this moment and nice people who let you stay at the aparment.
Hi Nick:
You sound like you made a good decision. I hope all is well for both you and your audience.
Kevin
Sounds like a great time, Nick! Have a load of fun… 🙂
Hey Nick, Did wonder where you were hunkering down. So sorry you’re missing all this chaos 😷. A report on my news feed doesn’t show any cases in the Grand Rapids area and up to Cadillac and north. But that was an hour ago, it can change quickly. I’m at my son’s in GR,, he had neck surgery, his wife is still able to go into the office so I am “babysitting”; he’s 55 yrs 😷 No doubt it can be unsettling to so many to not feel in control, but fact is, we never are. The saddest part are the families that are having to be told by counselors how to “live together.”
Stay well in your little paradise.
Sue
Hi Nick!
If I were allowed to bring family, I would joyfully maroon myself. If I were for the most part free of obligations, like you I would say no to the last flight out. Though Coronavirus has cast us under a pall in many ways, here, too, has become a sort of paradise. The ocean is cleaner than usual, the skies are brilliant with billowing clouds, the tourists and homeless are winnowed,
May your impulse to pitch in wherever you are as well as your appetite for new places and pleasures serve you well! Susan
Nick,
I agree – Frank summed it up very well. And, the impact will be felt for years – maybe decades. We, too, are retired and minimally impacted, save the cleansing we had in the stock market. We were in Australia and NZ for the past 5 weeks and got home just under the wire. Contact unknown – we’re waiting out the incubation period.
I’d say you were in the optimal spot to be “stranded” and it seems like you made the right choice. Just getting on an airplane is a big risk as is going through customs wherever you land. If it could be done, Nancy and I would trade places with you. Though you might get bored in paradise, you would surely get bored at home in MI or Thailand. I guess it will become a matter of missing those to whom you are close. Safety is THE paramount concern for us. MN is a well managed state with a relatively low number of infections and a bright team of medical administrators and governor. We don’t go out but for the necessities but even then we are placing ourselves at risk. Because of the hoarding and panic, we are forced to go out more often and to more places to find the essentials.
Keep us reminded of the good life.
Nick.
We’ve never met. I worked for Joe Arden. Paula Harbecke, and Rick Hess in the AD! You are on one of my favorite islands! Enjoy!
Your decision to stay was the right one.
I had intended to live my life in Micronesia but went to the Far East Division instead. Every Christmas vacation for a decade was a month at my wife’s beach house in Southern Leyte of the Philippines. Time passes slowly there.
I’m not a swimmer or fisherman so I’d sit in the shade watching the gentle waves of Sogod bay. Paper and pencil were important for recording one’s thoughts and fight boredom. You are in a much less rural area than I was in and you have the internet so you will be fine. There is the copra boat for inter-island transport but it may not be available to you.
You will survive this contagion where you are, just don’t come out before it is safe.
dennis gwynn
geology and biology 1976-1993
ps: If you do decide to ride the copra boat you may like myself develop a dislike the nauseating odor of copra. living near a copra warehouse was ok at first, but in time it got to me. So now I don’t even like being near people wearing tanning lotion. And never ride a ship with a cargo of live pigs in the forward hold. They throw up and it stinks.
Wish I were there. I’m too close to the epicenter of the virus in San Francisco Bay Area. Loved Guam and Palau. Love to snorkel. Love to teach. Sounds as if you’re in paradise. And you have the Internet. Right On!
OMG, I’d wish to have that choice and not being worried too either infect someone or be infected while at the supermarket or something… The Germans got crazy with hamstering pasta, rice, potatoes and first of all – toilet paper! It’s not available for nearly two weeks now… It’s sarcastically called “the white gold” at the moment 😅 So I hope with all the mitigation the government directed that the curve will flatten soon – today I heard that they can see signs for that in Germany. So, best decision from you to stay where the virus hasn’t reached anyone and with the ban hopefully won’t do in the future. Stay sound and enjoy the time in the paradise 😎
Greetings Nick!
The Changing World in Oregon
Today 3/23/20, Gov. Brown ordered Strict Stay at Home Orders, here in Oregon. Businesses are on mandatory shut down and downtown Portland is almost void of people. Even walking in my neighborhood there is a restriction if you pass someone there must be 6 feet between for social distancing. Failure to comply, is considered a danger to public health and can result in $1250 fine and or 30 day jail sentence
Opened:
Grocery stores – lines outside, to limit the number of people who can enter at a time. Plus, cannot bring your own bags for fear of contamination.
Banks
Pharmacies
Gas stations
Restaurants (take out and delivery only)
Hospitals but only if you’re very sick
Closed:
All outdoor and indoor malls, retail complexes
Fitness, yoga and dance centers
Salons, grooming facilities, tattoo parlors
All entertainment centers
Oregon state parks
All skate parks, playgrounds
Schools, Colleges, Universities
And more ….. these are only state closures that Gov. Brown has authority over.
At age 65 I am healthy and have a strong immune system. I check in on my older neighbors daily. I went out yesterday for a hike stopped at a grocery store and the paranoia is palpable.
This world is so different from what it was just 2 weeks ago. I’m having to redirect my real estate business for the changes coming.
But, with this kind of change, there are always good things that will come as well. I encourage Nick’s readers to check in with their neighbors especially individuals living alone. Encourage one another, and be together in all of this. Text or call as I did with an older neighbor today and, I am glad I did because she was in deep concern over what she experienced after the Gov’s announcement and a death from CoVid 19 less than half mile away. A few minutes of texting and she was not alone, and felt supported.
Let your Kindness be contagious!
Nick, stay where you are dear friend, I am happy to know you’re safe and well!
Many Blessings to All your friend, Jessie
Hi Nick, My Brother Ben Byrd has mentioned you and what I call your adventures from time to time, and my sweet niece, Caroline, his daughter forwarded me your blog (?).
It is such a pleasure and a gift to learn the different takes you have brought to your life after the time when we shared the enviroment that was NASHVILLE in our teens.. I would like to share your news and observations with a few others who are NASHVILLE with a twist and am assuming it’s okay unless I hear otherwise. Thank you for being exactly who you are and sharing!
Hope all is well there, the only possible enemies are boredom and alcohol.
I doubt that many women look tempting so that is no risk.
I think you will weather this well.
Are there coconut crabs (the big ones) there? I never did see one.
i saw great numbers of the tiny land crabs but they don’t count.
Perhaps they were all eaten where I was, but I do not even know if they are edible.
People here are acting as though there is no virus problem, but
it is only wishful thinking. It has recently been written that the corona virus can move as an aerosol
so it is much more easily spread than was previously thought.
best wishes.
Dennis