Susan wringing cream from grated coconut

On Tuesday , our first full day in Abiang, Patrick and I venture ashore to take a walk and some pictures of the pretty village of Tebunginako. We meet a couple of people, share a lot of smiles and hellos, and then a few hours later are on our way back to our boat.

That evening, we heard some laughing and splashing and came to the cockpit to see 3 older children on a wooden outrigger canoe. The two boys, age 12, did not speak much English, but the 15 year old girl spoke a little bit and we managed a conversation of sorts. They told us their Kiribati names, but to our ears they were incomprehensible and unrepeatable. We gave each child an English name which they accepted with smiles. Joseph...George and Susan. Even though it had gotten dark, it was obvious these children would not go home until they had at least partially if not fully sat on at least the edge of Brick House. They took turns edging their bums up on the railing- until they all abandoned their ship. Patrick grabbed a spare rope from our lockers and tied their boat up so that it could not accidentally drift away. Soon the children were invited into the cockpit being served cold lemonade and conversing with stumbled English.

The gongs on shore sounded, it was church time. Church bells in the atolls are large compressed gas tanks which are "chimed" with a steel rod. The person who rings the bell has no hearing protection. So this is why Joseph, George and Susan find their way to Brick House at this hour.

We brought out the World Map, so they could find Kiribati, the USA, and England. Once we pointed out where the equator was, and where Australia was, they quickly located Kiribati. It seemed like maybe they would stay all night if given the chance so we had to give them fairly strong directives that it was time for us to go to bed, time for them to go home, etc, Besides not really knowing when it was time to go, at least not by US standards, they were well mannered, said thank you, and were very pleasant, charming children.