Koror, PALAU

2017 Palau Diving from Katherine Mathiasmeier on Vimeo.

Whew!  We made it.  After a very long series of flights and lay-overs, we arrived in Koror, Palau.  We easily found our hotel shuttle driver and made our way to our new home for the week, the DW Motel.  Katherine found this little place through our dive operator.  It is tucked back off the main road and was just right for us.  

Michael and Katherine in front of the DW

DW MOTEL KOROR, PALAU 

- motel catering to Japanese tourists
- simple, clean, AC works, Fridge in room
- no TV or Phone in room
- off main road, no car noise, but roosters and dogs get lively
- rinse tanks for dive equipment on the side with secure drying area
- washing machines and dryers, reasonable prices, self and full service
- complementary water, tea, and coffee
- well stocked kitchen for self-catering
- large communal refrigerator

Our room was on the 2nd floor.

- closest restaurant is the Rock Island Cafe that has a huge menu for low prices
- grocery store is farther (maybe about a 1/2 mile,) but easily walked to in the evening


After some much needed sleep, we loaded our dive gear bags for pick-up and got a bite to eat at the Rock Island Cafe.  After buying breakfast food and snacks at the nearby market, we spent the day relaxing. We were glad to have a day to rest and recover from the jet lag before diving began.

Katherine arranged to have us dive with a small dive op called Palau Dive Adventures.  They offer a 5 day diving package, with 3 dives a day from Monday through Friday.  They also arranged our airport transfers, accommodations, and included Nitrox at no additional charge.  Each morning our driver (set up by Palau Dive Adventures) grabbed us promptly at 7:30am and took us to the dock.  Even though we were tired, the early pick-up time was not a problem because we knew that another day of magnificent diving laid ahead.  

Palau Dive Adventures operates one boat with paired seating as you can see below.   They take no more than 10 divers at a time.  The boat is set up with two powerful outboard motors that make the lengthy boat rides not as lengthy.  Each morning we would check our Nitrox fills (higher O2 %) and be on our way.  Our fellow divers were not partial on locations, so we left that decision up to the guides.  You can't go wrong with letting them pick their favorite sites!

Katherine and I sat is this location for the week.  It felt like our own private boat.  The seats were comfy and listening to music made the boat ride quite relaxing.

The glory days before I lost the stash.

Our boat captain Dustin knows the Rock Islands like the back of his hand.  Weaving in and out through the tight islands is a treat in and of itself.

On our second to last day of diving, a land tour of Peleliu was offered.  We did two morning dives, had lunch on Peleliu, and then toured the island.  I only vaguely remembered the name from WW2 history and thought it was worth a visit.  After reading about it online to refresh my memory, I was astounded.  This was one of the most insane battles of the Pacific Front.   The tour was $55 a person including the Peleliu permit.

James, our guide explaining the beach landing.  We are standing at "Orange" beach.

I don't want to go into the entire historic detail of the battle on the island, but need to say a bit about our guide.  James is a local man that was born and raised on Peleliu.  He said that when he was a child there were no phones and women did not wear shirts.  After spending time in the Air Force in Texas, he came back to see a totally different island.  He currently lives on the island and has an interesting perspective  on what happened.  He said the Japanese call the American Marines "invaders" of the island, and the local people call them "liberators."  Continuing, he said that the Japanese were the first "invaders" occupying and enslaving the local people and was surprised that the US did not just starve out the Japanese with a naval blockade during WW2.  This would have been easier to take over the island, but would have killed all the native people too.  Instead, many soldiers lives were sacrificed to free the Peleliu people.  James said that history books and shows never talk about the battle of Peleliu as a liberation mission, but he and the other people of the island see it that way.  He said kids from all over gave up their lives to save him, someone they never met.  This led James to join the US military.  James did not give much information on the battle (which did not bother us because you can look it up easily,) but went into great detail explaining the different memorials on "Bloody Nose Hill."  We also saw the museum, drove through the little village and saw the infirmary and elementary school and the island's only police officer, stopped by the Dolphin Bay Resort and saw the beach landing zone, and even drove along the run way.

73yr old Japanese tank

US machine guns

Japanese machine guns

US Marine Corps memorial

Our hotel room had an interesting wall decoration.  A SEA TURTLE SHELL!!!  The turtles are protected, but can be harvested during certain months and of a certain size.  Check out the internal bone structure.  You could make a killer Ninja Turtle costume with this baby!

Palau Dive Adventures REVIEW

10-14 April, 2017

• very prompt service for taxi pick-up and drop-off
• NItrox fills were accurate and checked on boat departure each morning
• The boat captain, Dustin, was a professional navigator and personable
• 2 main guides and a guide in training, (Nick, Christian, Alain)
• dive sites were well planned to give a varied impression of the area
• lunch was an outstanding bento from a Korean restaurant, the next days lunch was ordered from the large menu (18 choices)
• we were given shirts and a water bottle to keep, and a nice microfiber towel and quality rain jacket to use and return at the end of the trip
• all dives were around 55min
• boat was stocked with de-fog, water, camera fresh water tank, cold weather jackets, first aid kit, oxygen and AED, reef hooks, warm shower at the end of dive day
• lights were available for free cavern dive at Chandelier Cavern
• crew gave patrons the option to climb aboard with gear, or lift it out of the water if needed
• dive briefings were accurate, thorough, and informative with local knowledge
• passengers each had dry storage under seats
• boats are FAST and smooth even in rough seas
• land tour of Peleliu ($55 each) was a nice option to a third dive ($75) on one of the days for WW2 history
• BC tank exchange after each dive was performed by crew and meticulous to customer’s needs
• need to worry about mask and computer.  Everything else (including wetsuit) can stay on boat and will be set up for the next day’s dive.
• fresh fruit and tea are served after 1st dive in the surface interval.  
• 1 hour surface intervals are observed

Heading to the South Pacific!!!

Hello everyone.  It's been a while, I know.  We are heading out on a massive dive trip to the South Pacific.  Specifically, Palau and Truk Lagoon.  This trip has been in the works for many years, and it is finally happening.  As I look back at my childhood memories, I remember watching some dive footage of Truk Lagoon and being mesmerized.  Not only is it a time capsule of World War 2, but a spectacle in which the Sea is taking over and creating new life.  I can't wait to see it first hand.

Travel has already been a little crazy, with our first leg being delayed 3 hours from Las Vegas to Los Angeles, but it will work itself out.  The rest of the trip goes like this.

Los Angeles --> Honolulu --> Guam --> Yap --> Koror

Partially packed dive gear.