July 22, 2005

• Fanning Island and Kona

  We traveled 2 days and 1200 miles southwest from Hawaii to reach our next port, Fanning Island in the Republic of Kiribati. Some say it is the most remote place in the world. If it isn’t, it’s darned close. The people there have no electricity, no running water, and no bathrooms. I didn’t see any outhouses either, but I decided not to be curious about that. They have no medical or dental care except what the NCL ship’s doctors provide on a volunteer basis when the ship is there, but they are accepting donations from visitors to help build a medical facility.

  The trip to Fanning Island was necessitated by something called the Jones Act, which requires that ships registered outside the United States must have a foreign port on all cruises with US ports. NCL’s foreign port for Hawaiian cruises is Fanning Island. Some passengers complain about this little side trip, but it was actually the reason we chose this particular itinerary. NCL does have ships with US registry cruising the Hawaiian Islands and they do not leave Hawaii. They do not have days at sea, either, and we like days at sea, so we were very happy to comply with the Jones Act and head south. I actually would have been happy to go even farther south. We were only 3 degrees from the equator and I have always wanted to make an equator crossing on a ship, but that was not to happen on this trip.

  Until NCL started sending the Norwegian Wind there, the only contact the people of Fanning Island had with the outside world was a supply ship from Australia that stopped 2 or 3 times a year. Now, every 11 days, a large white ship anchors off-shore and disburses several hundred visitors. Although their official language is English, most of the islanders don’t speak it, so it is difficult to talk to them. They are friendly, though, and will be happy to smile and nod at you if you attempt to talk to them. They set up a bazaar near where the tenders dock, and they offer some remarkable native crafts for sale. Dozens of smiling natives are there to display their wares, and they can all at least say “thank you” when they make a sale.

  Here’s Dan standing at a signpost with arrows pointing to Tokyo and Sydney, both over 4,000 miles away. You can see a little of the bazaar in the background.

  

  
  Although NCL has developed an area with clean bathrooms, a first aid station, a soccer field, a basketball court, beverage stands, and a couple of buffet lines where the crew prepare and serve hot dogs, hamburgers, salads and various other goodies, those facilities are for passengers and the people of the island do not use them. They live very simply in the straw huts you see pictured here.

  

  
  Visitors are welcome to stroll through the village. We knew that they accepted donations for their school, so we brought some paper, pencils, and crayons and walked over to the school to drop them off. NCL helps support the school and is helping to build a new building, so the people of Fanning Island call their school NCL School and proudly fly the cruise line’s flag.

  

  
  Other than the fact that the poverty of the island is evident, the inside of the school looks pretty much like any school in the United States. There is a blackboard – yes, a real blackboard, not a white board for dry erase markers – and above it there is student work hanging for parents and visitors to see. Textbooks are more like paper fliers than like the books US students use. There is obviously great pride in this school, though. The Superintendent himself was there to accept our donations and to present us with crafts made by the children as a thank you. He spoke proudly of the new building they hoped to have soon and told us of the high school students who were sent to Australia to attend school.

  When we returned to the NCL guest area, government representatives had a table set up and were stamping passports. That big bowl on the table is a tip bowl, and it was almost full. I don’t think US Customs Officers are allowed to accept tips, but this is not the US.

  

  
  By our standards, the people of Fanning Island have nothing, but they seem to be enjoying life very much. They make their living fishing or harvesting seaweed, which they export to Denmark to be used in the production of cosmetic products. Music and dance are important in their culture. Many of them gathered to perform for us. We noticed the strong ties that connected the people. Many times we saw them sitting or walking very close together, talking and laughing. They were healthy appearing people. I did not see any children with the distended abdomens often seen in third world countries, nor did I see obese people. There were many who seemed to be elderly, although I have no idea how old those people really were.

  I am not sure I could adapt to living on this island, but I am very glad I had the opportunity to visit it. It was absolutely beautiful and we had a delightful day there. For both Dan and me, it was the highlight of the trip.

  When we sailed from Fanning Island, we traveled 2 days to reach our last Hawaiian port, Kona on the island of Hawaii. Of course, the thing to do there is to visit one of the famous coffee plantations. As a matter of fact, we visited 2 of them. Although the first plantation was actively growing coffee, its primary function was historic; it provided education about the history of Kona coffee. This plantation was originally owned by a Japanese family. Plantation life was hard. The plantation owners were probably considered rich, but they lived in this simple house.

  

  
  They had to work very hard to grow not only the coffee, but also all the food that was needed for the family and the plantation workers.

  

  
  Plantation owners and workers had to be quite innovative, developing the tools and work areas they needed. They used and reused everything, making the soles of their shoes out of old tires. Many of the techniques they developed are still in use because coffee does not ripen all at once, so crops cannot be machine harvested.

  After we left the historic plantation, we went to a modern operation. As you can see by this picture of the building where the coffee is processed for shipping, modern is a relative term. It doesn’t look much newer than the building on the historic plantation, does it?

  

  
  Kona was our last port. The next morning, we were back in Honolulu and preparing for the long flight home. Did I enjoy my time in Hawaii? Oh, yes, very much! Am I glad I went? Yes! Did I like it even better than the Caribbean as my friends promised that I would? No.

  • 11:55 pm
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