Nukufetau Atoll, Tuvalu

An overnight trip from Funafuti, no wind but more of those ‘confused’ seas that are so tiring, OK – so sick-making. Early morning arrival and we are open-mouthed at the beauty of water, sky and the circle of islands, some so tiny they support only two trees, turquoise water means we are anchoring in sand, phew!

The local Police Force comes out to meet and greet and spend a few hours as a tropical downpour passes over. We learn that the empty boat at the pass was accompanied by guys diving for beche de mer (sea cucumbers), the main source of income here (white ones earn $6, black $5; striped ones apparently worth nothing). At low tide(s) you could walk around most of the atoll and, indeed, an English visitor did so recently; it takes a couple of days and ‘no need to take food, there’s a lot out there’. The lagoon is rich with a variety of fish and when the locals go out they know exactly what they will catch, unlike us who throw in a line and hope. Lobster and coconut crab too.

Next morning we go into the channel blasted in the low reef that gives easy access to Saveve village where most of the boats are pulled up well away from the shore, and are greeted by Ulysses, newly back from Nauru where employment in the phosphate mining industry is in decline. His son becomes our guide as we wander the shady and quiet but lively village. The small sand roads are being edged with small white coral stones, older trees felled, undergrowth cleared, the new meeting hall being carefully tiled and hand grouted by a workforce. The church congress will be held here in 2008 and it is creating so much work that the joke is ‘We will sleep all 2009’!! Many new houses are being built, western-style of concrete blocks because there is little timber available. Sounds as if there will be a party at one of the maneapa (meeting halls) on Friday night so we may be lucky and see some local dance…..

Jacob introduces us to everyone who pauses, we share details about ourselves, and look at their kids’ school reports, we say ‘Talofa ‘’ to our Policemen buddies and look at the jail, a tiny cell with the door hanging off. No doubt all snippets of news will be common knowledge by nightfall so they’ll know my age, that I’m to visit the tiny kindergarten tomorrow and that I tried the local form of bread - flour and sugar mixed to a stiff paste and dropped into boiling water to make very solid ‘dumplings’.
Jacob points out the tiny gardens, fenced from chickens and ducks, they have a few tomatoes, pumpkin or ‘cabbage’ and he is anxious to start a patch once his new house is finished.

Another afternoon downpour threatens so we hoist the dinghy to prevent it filling as the islands disappear under a thick grey cloud. To show what he learnt aboard this morning, Jacob swims out from the edge of the reef with six of his mates, typical teenagers they’re as hungry as they are inquisitive! But we want to learn too, so tomorrow while I get to know some of the local ladies and try to convince the little ones that blonde hair and blue eyes need only be scary for a few minutes.

Weather patterns rule our day, mornings are clear and sunny with crystal waters so we can see the anchor. We go ashore until lunchtime when the sun overhead reduced visibility in the water and clouds begin to gather around the Atoll. Each afternoon these darken to grey and we experience a power-wash downpour that effectively scrubs the deck and keeps us sweltering inside, hatches locked down.

Today is no different. The day starts with a ‘drive by’ delivery of freshest tuna, all this in exchange for a couple of hefty hooks and wire trace? Femasino is obviously a ‘good guy’ as we see him casually fling another towards people netting at the cut through the reef. Ashore I was guest of honor at the Kindergarten, 30c per attendance, deemed so important that the mothers must pay if the kids miss too many attendances. Each wearing a single twisted leaf head garland, the children were led by the capable teacher, singing simple songs softly in quaint English, gathering courage the noise level and enthusiasm rose until a break was called. Grabbing an assortment drink bottles they settled. Now, let me tell you, it is VERY difficult to watch a kid swig his morning juice from an old pop-top detergent bottle! Craft time and I helped thread frangipani blossoms onto coconut leaf threads. Modest gifts were shared (hair elastics for the girls, combs for the boys) then it was home time and now with calls of ‘Angela’, I get grins from assorted mothers and grandmothers.

Preparing to sail to Kiribati, more posting from there……… Lucky me, heh?