The Solomon Blog: 3rd Quarter
Visiting other provinces, village life, and what books I’ve been reading.
It’s Tuesday, September 12th here in the Solomon Islands & I’m about 3 quarters of the way done with my time here in Guadalcanal. Since the halfway mark, I have ventured away from Tenaru on some weekends while staying active on during the week. Here’s what I’ve been up to:
Gizo & Kennedy Island
During the last weekend of August, I took a trip to Gizo, the capital of Western Province in the Solomon Islands. The flight to Gizo took about 1 hour via dual-propeller plane. The domestic terminal at Honiara’s airport was small & very laid back. The plane could hold about 50 passengers, but only 20 were on my flight.
The plane landed on Nusatupe Island, which primarily serves as a landing strip. I walked about 5 yards from the plane to the waiting area and met one of the Dominican priests I was staying with. Then, I proceeded to another 10 yards from the waiting area to the shore where there was a boat ready to take us. Everything is so close together; You could see the landing strip and plane from the boat. The boat ride was 5 minutes from Nusatupe to Logha Island, which is the home for the Dominican Order in Western Province.
I unpacked and settled in for a bit, then sped off to Gizo which is directly across from Logha. Gizo is very small compared to Honiara, about 1/4 the size. I also saw where the 2007 tsunami hit the Solomon Islands, as well as St. Peter’s Church for the Diocese of Gizo.
After walking around Gizo, we took a 30 minute boat ride to the famous Kennedy Island. Kennedy Island is known for the legendary story of PT 109, when John F. Kennedy and his 11 crew members swam to after PT 109 collided with the Japanese destroyer, Amagiri. Kennedy used a life jacket strap clenched between his teeth to tow his injured crew mate to the island. After realizing it was barren, JFK then swam to two neighboring islands for coconuts. It was only until two Solomon Island Coastwatchers spotted the crew and relayed JFK’s message, etched on a coconut, to send for help.
I had the privilege of spending an afternoon on Kennedy Island. The island is very small and can be walked around in about 10 minutes. It’s hard to fathom that the 35th President was there 74 years prior, stranded & in danger. This day was by far, the best day I’ve had in the Solomon Islands.
Marau Sound and Avuavu
On the first weekend of September, I went to Avuavu which is on the southern side of Guadalcanal. The side of the island is called the “Weather Coast” because of it’s unpredictable, stormy weather and rough seas.
Three of my students are from this area of Guadalcanal. It took about 5 hours to get from Honiara to Avuavu via motorboat. The sea was ROUGH to say the least. By the time we arrived, I recall saying “I think I’m concussed.”
The second essay I assigned the 1st year seminarians was their autobiographies. One of my students wrote about his upbringing in Avuavu, including the breakdown of tribal community in the area. He wrote how there are four different tribes and that the big tribe can marry from the three smaller ones. One particular thing that caught me by surprise was the story of his namesake, and the resentment that came from inter-religious marriages. He wrote about how his father’s parents (Anglican) resented his mother for her faith (Catholic). The father’s family has the privilege to name the child, so they named him “boy of ignorance” in their family dialect.
Spending time in Avuavu definitely made me reflect on the backgrounds of my students, but also the cultural conditions each of them come from. Not to mention, the work they plan on doing as they prepare for priesthood.
Driving, WWII Bombs & Earthquakes
Other cool and abnormal things have happened too:
One day, I was teaching & all of the sudden I heard a loud blast as the entire classroom shook. The seminarians laughed at my reaction, because WWII mines regularly explode from time-to-time. There’s actually a government run center, appropriately called “Hells Point,” where the government discharges leftover mines. This particular instance was random & close by however. I was told that the blast was probably the result of farmers burning crops.
The same week, I was woken up by an earthquake! It was small, and I was actually thrilled to have finally experienced one. You’re probably reading this and thinking “damn Kiran, what’s wrong with you?” But I don’t care, I was sitting in bed all excited. Plus it was small, so no damage or casualties.
I was also able to apply for my Solomon Islands Driver License. It is easily the coolest souvenir I have ever gotten. However, as expected, driving here is much different than the United States. Similar to the United Kingdom, the driver’s seat is on the right hand side and cars drive on the right side of the road. Learning stick-shift has been an experience though! The truck stalled out on me the first few times, but now I’m able to drive around Honiara with ease.
What I’m Reading
Here’s a list of the books I’ve been reading. I’ve had a lot of downtime to get some reading done. Be on the lookout for my last blog post!
- “The Motorcycle Diary” by Ernesto “Che” Guevara
- “The Devil in the White City” by Erik Larson
- “The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao” by Junot Diaz
- “PT 109: John F. Kennedy in WWII” by Robert Donovan
- “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” by Ken Kesey
- “The Guadalcanal Diary” by Richard Tregaskis
- “An Unfinished Life: John F. Kennedy, 1917–1963” by Robert Dallek
- “No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II” by Doris Kearns Goodwin
- “Dreams of my Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance” by Barack Obama
- “Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln” by Doris Kearns Goodwin
