A Return to Pohnpei

On our way home, we stopped off in Pohnpei for a few nights at Para Nuii.

Several sisters from the congregation warmly welcomed us at the airport. Debbie (right) was incredibly helpful from the moment we arrived. She assisted us in securing a rental car and personally guided us to the resort office for check-in. She then led us to the grocery store and even accompanied us part of the way to our pickup location. Debbie went well above and beyond our expectations, and her kindness and generosity made our arrival much easier.

Debbie coordinated with the boat driver and gave us detailed directions to the pickup location. Once we arrived, we loaded our belongings onto the boat, and I climbed aboard. Meanwhile, another man hopped into the car with Aaron to take him to a nearby parking area. As they drove away, the boat headed straight into the mangroves.

Although I knew I was perfectly safe, my imagination briefly took over. As the mangroves closed in around us, a little voice in my head said, “Oh no! He’s taking me into the mangroves to kill me. No one will ever know!” 

Thankfully, it was nothing more than an overactive imagination. Not long after, Aaron walked down a path through the mangroves and got in the boat.

First sight of the resort

It was a beautiful evening—a great start to a memorable adventure!

Our bungalow on the left

The moon was full and the stars were breathtaking.

Swimming deck and floating gazebos

Our well-appointed bungalow featured a sleeping area, kitchenette, eating nook, bathroom and a private deck.

There was a constant breeze.

Rainbow

We enjoyed simple meals—eggs and toast for breakfast, chicken salad sandwiches for lunch, pasta with marinara and broccoli for dinner. It had to be simple! We had to pack in all our food and the refrigerator was small.

The views were stunning!

There were eight bungalows perched over the shallow waters.

During our stay, we kayaked to Nan Madol. 

We stopped along the way several times to watch stingray.

The round-trip journey from Para Nuii (bottom left) to Nan Madol (top along the coastline) and back was approximately 2.6 miles.

Nan Madol is called the Venice of Micronesia because it is an ancient city built on dozens of small islets connected by canals, where people traveled by boat instead of by road. We had visited Nan Madol back in 2013, but on that occasion we approached from the north, so we weren't entirely sure how to find the main channel. Besides that, we were hoping to discover another route. This was a dead end.

Paddle with us as we approach the ancient city

Enjoying the swimming deck 

Just one of the many stingrays

Strolling around the island

Priority No. 1

Beat Aaron at cribbage

Golden hour shenanigans

Rumor has it that the owner of the resort has reserved Unit 8, so the next best thing is Unit 7.

Pulling away from our little bungalow at the end of our stay.

Time to go home

We met with friends for lunch.

A few more sisters showed up to say goodbye.

Until next time!

❤︎