Tabuaeran II: Bigger and Better

Saturday, August 1, 2009

Fanning Island Blog: By Riley Coon

Woke up early this morning to some pretty large surf. A nice side-offshore breeze was making things much cleaner than yesterday afternoon's storm surf. Kenny and I hit the waves at 7:30am. It's so nice not having to worry about this wave crowding up with people. Although the sets were farther apart, it was still carrying some considerable size. Every half hour or so, a cleanup 12-15 ft. set would come through. Ginger and Uncle Randy came out on the skiff to take pictures. Kenny and I scored some awesome waves to ourselves for an hour. Then Jerry, Robby, Chuck, Matt, and Pete came paddling out. The tide switched and immediately things started to clean up even more. The big sets were no longer swinging wide and we could all sit at the main peak waiting for the set waves. The water also quickly became clear thanks to the newly refreshed incoming tidewater. It soon became a perfect scene with bright morning sunshine, crystal-clear water full of deep turquoise to light blue, and clean, barreling double-overhead waves. In only a couple hours, I had caught some of the best rides in my life. On a noticeably bigger set, I was scrambling to make it out while most got caught inside. A huge wall set up right in front of me so I turned and started paddling with all I got. Next thing I knew I staring fifteen-feet straight down the face of this thing, and then free-fall. I shot out the bottom of this thing with more speed than I've ever had. A butter-smooth wave face continued to wall up in front of me and towered far above my head. The 6'4" Roger Anderson I had bought from Chris Walsh was the perfect board. Though the ride most likely lasted less than fifteen seconds, it felt like minutes. It is amazing how loud the water is as it rushes past your surfboard at these speeds.

It was by far the best surf this trip, and the best I've ever had. Every person out there got sweet waves then peeled for hundreds of yards in the most idyllic setting imaginable. Kenny and I felt sorry for Denver, who was missing out on this due to his toe. Thanks to Ginger for taking pictures.

Later that night there was a big festival to celebrate a Kiribati Holiday, much like Father's Day. We had no idea what to expect. As we arrived to this big open-air structure with a couple hundred people inside, we were treated like honered guests. There were people sitting down lining the perimeter and we were ushered to sit right in the middle, by the Priest. It was exciting to see so many new faces, all of which were happily-glued onto this strange group of white people. To kick off the celebration, they all started singing (in 3-part harmony, no less) and clapping. Three for yourself- clap clap clap, two for the people on either side of you- clap clap! Then a group of twenty women (the wives of the men) came out singing and dancing a well-practiced hula for us. We were given head leis and had baby powder rubbed on the back of our necks, which is their most welcome form of greeting. Soon bowls of food were presented to us and we feasted on baked breadfruit, barbequed pig, chicken adobo, and rice. Bruno's Daughter, Magali, answered all our questions. Tonight was the Man's Day celebration. I could get used to this. All the men (and Ginger) were catered to and given these head leis. Then the dancing started. One older and quite round, voluptuous (to say the east) woman danced at Robby with some pretty comical and suggestive hip thrusts and butt shakes. We're not sure exactly what this means, but everyone seemed to enjoy it. Apparently it's a thing reserved for only the most meaty of women. So tonight was Mans' Day. They also had a Womans' Day, Teenagers' Day, and Childrens' Day spread throughout the year.

Uncle Randy went up and played some Banjo and Sang for a few songs and everyone clapped along and sang what they could. On one song the men on one side chimed in with a low harmony that went surprisingly well with the country/ folk Capt/ Rand was laying down.

It wouldn't be a Kiribati party without dancing. The custom on dancing here is that the women choose who they dance with, and "no thank you, I'm tired" is not an option. So we all danced (except Denver, who really couldn't walk much) with what seemed like every woman in the tent- old and young.

There there was the local male Beauty contest. Enough said.

We had brought a drum with us and a bunch of kids ages 2 to seven had scooted up behind us and were starting to edge closer and closer to us. I started taping the drum and instructed the kids to do so. Most were pretty shy and couldn't hold your eye contact without laughing, but soon every kid wanted a piece of this drum. And they drummed pretty darn well. They kept time well and could copy any beat with relative ease. I took a lot of pictures and they soon loved looking at the camera even more than the drum.

They party was still going strong when we left close to midnight. Bruno lent us a bicycle for Denver so he wouldn't have to walk back to the skiff. I said I'd carry him, but the bike was definitely fine by me.

A great night with memories that will last with me forever. Keep living the dream.

-Riley