Spiders in Palau

Rain rain and more rain.................. It sure has been raining alot since I arrived in Palau. We are talking every day/night. Our house is under this huge tree with these hard nuts (will have to figure out the name) and the nuts fall off the tree and onto the Tin roof of our house making a huge noise. You would think it was coconuts falling on the roof. Nothing you can do and the previous occupant told me you get used to the noise. We will see. The spider here is behind our house. I used a macro lens and had my son hold a flash to the left of the spider to get the web to show up in the photo. I thought this was a cool photo. Now I just got to figure out what type of spider it is. They tell me the spiders here are not poisonous but this guy just looks mean.

Lobster

Well, after being at a picnic all day yesterday, with the kids swimming and having a great time, everyone was tired so decided to postpone till next weekend a hike down to another waterfall I heard of. I did go in the car to find the trail which is easy, once you know where to go. Instead, swung by the fishmarket and picked up two big lobsters and some ribs. This will be our dinner tonight as we watch dvds. It's kind of funny as you can rent a dvd (which is guaranteed a copy) for $2 or buy the same dvd in the video store for $3. My beer of choice is becoming Red Rooster beer which is brewed here and is quite good. Mix in a plate of Sashimi and you have yourself a great meal.

I can hardly wait to get my household goods. I have my fishing stuff in it and right by the bridge the group I was with caught fresh squid which we threw on the grill. It looks like you can catch a lot of fish from shore, but I'm still searching for my boat. I have the word out and hopefully soon will find something. Then, it will be off to the rock islands on the weekends and camping. Can hardly wait.

Ngardmau Waterfall

Well, we made it to Ngardmau waterfall. Well worth the hike. The location is easy to find. Just drive down the compact road and about 40 minutes out from Koror you will see the sign showing the turnoff. Drive up a side road and park. It is $5 a person and the trail is well marked. They even give you a hiking stick. Warning, go in shorts and if you have a pair of reefwalkers, wear that instead of shoes. It is about a 30-40 minute walk. You will get wet and it can be muddy. You also walk down the stream bed for a bit and it can be slippery. I went with my kids (youngest is 6) so kids can go, just take it slow and they will have a blast. I have a waterproof bag to carry my camera but when I got to the falls and took my camera out, by the time I had it on the tripod the mist had the lens wet. Got one photo and then put it away. But hiking to and from there are lots of streams to photograph and a lot of pools to jump into and get wet. The kids loved it. I will be going back for sure and will bring some food to picnic at the waterfall. Don't forget to go under the falls for a great experience. When we went on Sunday at 9:00AM we were the only people till after noon. Coming back we even say a small snake. Since a lot of the places here are poorly marked (not this one though) I will try and give instructions. For those with a GPS, the coordinates to the trail head are N 07, 35.204' E134, 35.182'. Anyway, hope you get a chance to visit this waterfall.

Last of the Stone Monolith

Well, another day of rain. Been raining everyday now, which means can't get out and take photos. Wanted to hike to a waterfall over the weekend but it was just too rainy to even try. Instead checked out the museum here. It was actually better than I thought it would be, although photos were not allowed inside. So, I decided to post this photo I took the prior week. So far still loving Palau. The people are friendly and all I need to do now is to find a boat and I will be set. Hopefully will find something soon. There are so many opportunities here if you have a boat and it is almost mandatory.

Bai

Well, went to take photos of birds so brought my 100-400 lens. Ended up raining and the place I was going was muddy. Instead, decided to find the oldest Bai in Palau, which is more than 200 years old. With my long lense I could not capture the whole bai, so focused on the images on the roof. I was lucky enough to have a Palauan man whose family was helping take care of the bai give me a tour. for the life of me I can't remember his name right now. But, he gave me the history of this historic site. The Bai is a meeting place. The sharks at the bottom were for protection. The rese I also cant remember but will have to research some. Anyway, just thought i would share.

Stone faces of Badrulchau

Well, we finally made it to Palau. What a beautiful Country. I like just about everything here so far (with the exception of the dial up internet I have to use now - yawn). This is one of my first photos here. We got in the truck and drove about and hour or so from Koror to get there. These rocks have been carbon dated to more than 2000 years old. No one is exactly sure of the original purpose. This was actually easy to find, right off the road and a short 2-minute walk down some stairs. Expect to pay $5 to visit, which isn't that bad as they maintain the place.