25.04.2013
Hello friends and loved ones,
Happy Wednesday! How
the devil are you all today?
It seems like a busy
month for birthdays - much love to Luise, Isabel, Melissa, and Andrew! Also,
wishing Steve a safe journey to Papua New Guinea to finally start is ODI
placement. And thanks to everyone that wrote to me.
7 months into my placement now J
Dive, dive, dive
Without any contest, the
highlight of the last couple of weeks has been diving. Last Saturday, for the
first time since Lukasz and I passed our open water diving course, I went
diving in the deep blue sea with Carlos and Sophie. My goodness – I was
absolutely terrified but after much persuasion, I eventually pulled myself
together and entered the wonderful world of the Pacific Ocean…and boy was it a
wonderful world. Let me take you there…
As I slowly descended
underwater, I looked around to see what can only be described as paradise. The
visibility was about 25 metres that morning. Laid bare in front of me was a
coral version of the Grand Canyon with the vibrancy of colours and weirdly
shaped objects of a Star Trek set (the Captain Kirk era as opposed to the
Captain Picard era of course). There must have been thousands of fish in all
shapes and sizes, from the tiniest neon blue ones dancing around their anemone
home, to huge tuna fish that were about half my body size that darted through
the canyon’s deep valleys and illusive caves.
Swimming cautiously
further into the deep, the WWII wreck was rapidly approaching on the left hand
side. I saw two divers swim through the hull of the old ship (don’t think I’m
that confident yet) chasing after this flash of orange that sped passed me.
Above my head, there were huge waves of fish busily swimming among one another
yet minding their own business and being occupied by what seemed to be their usual
morning routine. Watching them reminded me of the equivalent hustle and bustle
of the London Tube or the Manila’s transit system – buuuuuuuuuusy!
The wreck is massive
although I can’t recall the dimensions of it. So many parts of the ship have
remained as if Japanese vessel only sank yesterday...sad really. In fact, I
remember seeing Carlos peering down into the ship’s main gun. When it was my
turn to look, it’s fair to say I was a little apprehensive at the thought of a shell
blowing out of it. What actually happened was that a small clown fish poked its
body out…look at Nemo being such a joker!
When I wasn’t spending
my time constantly checking my dive computer for depth and air (21.1 metres –
take that Mr. Tobiasz!), I was able to catch a glimpse of this strange black ball
of mass, matching the size of my head, and bobbing through water. The creature
looked a spaghetti junction marble, which grew and shrank and wobbled like a
jellyfish – so much mystery in one entity. In terms of other beauties, Carlos
also saw and poisonous lion fish and Sophie spotted a giant clam.
The great thing about
the diving that day was that Carlos and Sophie brought their underwater camera
so I have a few pics to share with you. Unfortunately, we videoed quite a lot
of the creatures so not so many actual pics.
Exercising the mind and the body…
With the imminent arrival of the Inter-Bank
Tournament, a day of sports for CBSI, commercial banks, insurance and pension
companies, it’s sport mania at the Bank at the moment. We’re now up to two
evenings of netball training every week and the other sports are also gearing
up – the netball team are coming along nicely. What’s more, the organising
committee have agreed to allow men to play in the netball tournament – yay!
It’s not just physical
sports though – the organising committee has announced the inclusion of chess. As
a result, the Bank is hosting training sessions for chess too so lunchtimes are
now being taken up by chess…reminds me year 8 playing against Dr. Street. Just
like then, my skill level remains at ‘beginners’ status! Lots of fun though.
The Onesie arrives in Honiara
In addition to
sporting activities, I’ve been keeping myself fit by dancing. Caroline and Cid
recently hosted Honiara’s very first onesie party. And before you ask, yes I
did wear a very hot cotton onesie (Polska crew – notice anything familiar?) and
yes I did have a costume change. In my defence, this was due to ripping a
modest size hole while demonstrating the full extent of my Filipino-Singaporean
dance moves – arguably the hottest moves in town ;) Jokes! Puja – it was like
being at a Destiny’s Child concert…but better!
So long, farewell…
Over the last
fortnight, my friends and I said goodbye to Ben (that’s right – Lamington Cake
Ben from my last blog entry), who has finished his programme and is now back in
Melbourne. And yesterday, Jesse (Frisbee Jesse who lived in Camberwell when I
lived there – small world – just saying), announced he is cutting short his
volunteer placement by a couple of months to start a new job in Melbourne (I
know – Melbourne is obviously the happening place, dear friends.)
Soon, a mass exodus
will be occurring what with Jarrod, Theo, Irene, and Ben finishing their
placements too. Well, better to think about enjoying the remaining weeks than them
leaving I say…We’re off to Mbeki in Central Province in two weeks – woohoo!
Solomon Islands Fact File (SIFF)
Finally, welcome back to SIFF. Today’s
interesting facts are about the ethnic tensions.
- Although more than 90% of the islanders are ethnic Melanesians, ethnic tensions between the Isatabus on Guadalcanal, the largest island, and migrant Malaitans from the neighbouring island, led to fighting in 1998 when the Isatabu Freedom Movement began to force Malaitans out. Fighting continued leaving around 100 dead.
- Despite efforts of an Australian-brokered peace deal being signed in October 2000, lawlessness continued until the arrival of an Australian-led peacekeeping force in July 2003. The Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI), as they are better known as, have been present since 2003 but are due to withdraw in the comings months as the country returns to peace and social and political stability seems to be returning.
Anyway, best go now as time is
a-ticking and plenty of work to finish. Wishing you all a super day/afternoon
ahead and looking forward to hearing your news very soon.
Much love and God bless.
Kennton xx
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