On Day 2, we caught an 8:30 am boat from the hotel dock and went out for a full day of exploring & snorkeling throughout the Rock Islands. Our first stop was called “The Milky Way” and was lots of fun for both young and old. When we arrived at the marine lake, you could see the milkyness of the water. Everyone on our boat (16 guests) jumped in, dived to the bottom and got big scoops of this white goop. Supposedly, it’s great for making your skin feel and look younger. One older Korean couple on our boat managed to put the stuff everywhere on their bodies. FM and I kept it to our faces and FG would only apply it to her arms. It’s a very happy place to be and everyone seemed to really enjoy themselves.
The white stuff is actually Chilton poop ~ it feels a lot like really watery clay. It sticks to your face and feels very cool. The chiltons, which are rock clinging marine mollusk, are responsible for the mushroom shapes of the Rock Islands. They gnaw incessantly at the limestone base until the island looks like a mushroom with a lot of foliage.
Next stop was Jellyfish Lake. I was so looking forward to swimming with millions of stingless jellyfish. We were told not to wear fins for fear of hurting the delicate jellyfish. So, we hiked up the hill, then back down the hill and came to the lake. It’s a beautiful setting for a lake but we found the jellyfish were in the middle of the lake. It was quite a swim out to reach the majority of the jellyfish. We all got in and swam a little ways out. FM kept going but FG was starting to panic. I don’t blame her ~ the lake was murky and visibility was low. She decided she wanted to go back to the dock. Once we were on the dock, she decided to try again, so off we went toward the middle of the lake. She wouldn’t put her head into the water since she didn’t want to see the jellyfish. I got out far enough to see a few of the jellyfish but had to turn back again once FG decided she’d had enough.
We hung out on the dock and waited for our group to return. FM came back first and offered to stay with FG while I swam out to the middle of the lake but I was too exhausted from swimming twice half way out without fins. I was happy with the few jellyfish that I did see.
It was a wonderful way to spend the morning. Once we got back to the boat, we were off to find the “Giant Clams” ~ and I’m talking GIANT ones. It was really great to see them up close. This time FG was OK with snorkeling above them.
After a yummy lunch on a somewhat deserted shore ~ just us and a ton of Taiwanese tourists ~ we headed off to the south of the Rock Islands to an area called the Big Drop-off. This time, FG stayed on the boat due to a strong current area. The boat captain dropped us off at one spot, we let the current carry us further south and then the boat picked us up at the end of our snorkel. We were in the water for about 45 minutes and saw SO many fish, a sea turtle and a shark! I can only imagine what wonders the divers are able to see. I could have spent the whole day at this one spot. It was spectacular.
Our last snorkel stop for the day was at a place they call The Cemetery. I don’t know why and didn’t ask. 😉 I was tired of snorkeling but FG and FM went in for a quick snorkel. Soon after they got in I heard our guide yell ” SEA SNAKE” ~ hmm, not something I really wanted to hear. Another guide, Chad, jumped in a caught the snake. Mind you, these snakes are poisonous. He had a firm grip on it and brought it back to the boat for me to see. It was a beautiful snake with black and silver bands. I was so shocked I didn’t even think to grab the camera. When he let the snake go, it swam towards a snorkeler. I thought for sure we were going to have an emergency evacuation but before the snake got to the snorkeler, it went under and headed to the bottom. Whew!
It was a fun, exciting and tiring day. Once again, FG fell asleep before 8 pm. I ended up staying with her in the room while FM went to dinner with the Vice President of Palau and his wife. More on that story tomorrow…
interesting story, complete with photos, so can not wait to vacation there ….
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Sounds like a fabulous vacation!
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Can I go with you on your next vacation? You have a good time! Thanks for sharing your adventures. Cant wait to hear about FMs dinner!!
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Patti – Those clams are ENORMOUS. Tell FG I’m not sure if I would have been able to swim over them! And I’m so jealous of all your beach stories – we’re supposed to have a high of 15 F tomorrow! I think I’ll stay home all day!
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great blog. I felt like I was in the action. I love the picture of FM with all that white stuff on his face.
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