As usual I start off the journal (old junior high term) by saying, “it’s been a while since I last updated” and isn’t it the truth. When the blog first went on-line it was like a travelogue. As soon as the 2010 American Samoa project ended, we were at locations that I had already written about. That led to redundancy, as there are only a so many adjectives to describe riding a bike on Midway Island. No I am not bored with what I do. Since then there were many external distracting factors that made my job feel like only a job on many occasions. The anxieties include waiting for the final decision on the family and me to relocate to Hawaii instead of Oregon and the wait for “Lv”s visa to complete.
This last cruise in the Northern Marianas was enjoyable as these islands and atolls I have seen for the first time. When I arrived in Saipan two years ago it was to relieve my partner and take the ship back to Hawaii. So my time on Saipan was one full day and the next day we were underway. This time I sailed from Tinian all the way north to Farallon de Pajaros. I do not know of too many jobs where you can have homemade bread and chocolate with coffee social on the boat deck with the volcanic cone of Farallon de Pajaros in the background as the Hi’ialakai swirled around the island in the middle of two-day diving ops. The moonrise made a beautiful photo opportunity at which I posted on my Facebook page. I took so many different photos of each island we visited that I cannot remember or distinguish which was which after our visit to Maug Island.
Several interesting notes about the Mariana Islands are the location of islands not far from each other. You can usually see where you are going or where you came from. From Maug Island I can see Farallon de Pajaros, 60 kilometers away and vice versa. Several of the uninhabited islands had abundance of coconut trees littering the sides of the mountain while others lacked any sort of evidence of above ocean life with nil vegetation on the lava pathways that had flowed down the mountainside into the sea. The scale of the volcanic mountains struck me as I ventured out on the weather decks during my daily rounds of inspections and preventive maintenance. Photos do no justice to depict the sheer size of these mountainous islands that dot the Western Pacific in an eastward bulge from the Philippines to Japan.
After the second half of the Marianas cruise came to an end, it was time for rotation. We pulled into Saipan where my partner was waiting for the ship’s arrival at the pier. After a brief turnover I checked into the Hyatt Hotel for three nights while wrapping up my time and further work on the ship. First night in town briefly watched Japanese television in the hotel, got a Chinese foot massage and dinner at Hiro’s Island Japanese Cuisine. After conversing with the owners in Japanese, I had dinner for the next three days (I paid of course) with seconds on rice and miso soup. It was akin to going to a relative’s house and having dinner. Of course I would not be charged for o'devours or the main course at a relative’s place or would I? I ordered and ate a combination of Japanese and local, sashimi with Chamorro sauce plate. I would never imagine eating sashimi covered with hot pepper pieces and sauce.
On Friday April 29 I was scheduled to catch a flight from Saipan to Guam and then to Honolulu. After dinner at Hiro’s, I went back to the hotel to get a few hours of shuteye. I awoke at 2 AM to checkout and drive to the rental car office near the airport. Turned in the rental car and driven to the Saipan Airport to start the first phase of the day’s long journey. The flight from Saipan to Guam was 45 minutes but I spent majority of the time dozing off. The ninety minute wait in Guam was short and then phase two of the long day was an eight hour flight to Honolulu and reliving part of Thursday evening again. Yes I had already participated Thursday evening in Saipan but repeated it in a different dimension at a different location. And they say that time travelers do not exist! I arrived in Honolulu at 6:30 in the evening, checked into the hotel and got a few hours of sleep until my next flight in the morning to Apia, Samoa.
My stepson had completed all requirements for his immigration visa to the United States. The only item left was to go to Samoa and pick him up. His mother had offered to come and get him but he refused. He insisted that I come and get him. The impression I had was that I would not be very emotional on leaving the island. Of course it was emotional but somehow it was supposed to be less for me. My wife’s home village and family home is my second home and I always enjoy my times with them. The difference is I am in the Samoas more often due to work related activities. Next year when the ship is doing ops in American Samoa, I plan to fly to Western Samoa for several weeks and spend time with the family again.
The five-hour flight to Samoa was spent sleeping. Upon arrival the rental car agency personnel met me (I always rent from Budget) and off I went to Apia for shopping of basic essentials. Those include bottled water, toilet paper, fruits and a stop at Myna’s Store in Vailima for bread that my stepson loves to eat. Usual food items I buy in town for the family, as I would pull into the driveway just as they were preparing to cook dinner.
There was some melancholy to my appearance in Samoa at the family house in the village. They knew why I was there and that was to accompany my wife’s son to the United States. I didn’t do anything significant and just waited for the week to pass to catch the next weekly flight to Hawaii. When it came time to leave the usual sadness of goodbyes, especially if the separation is long term, were the norm and took “Lv” to different relative’s locations to say his farewell to be reunited with his mother. Getting through immigration in Hawaii was not difficult or time consuming and the wait for the flight to Seattle six hours. I could not find a ticket in coach so I had purchased a first class seat for “Lv” for the flight from Honolulu to Seattle. When arriving in Seattle I could feel the anxiety from text messages sent to my phone from “L.” When trying to call by voice I found out that my mobile phone’s voice capabilities had malfunctioned. There were greetings and hugs at the airport and I was exhausted from my long flights within the past week. The family was finally reunited after 15 months of waiting.
Returning to the office in Seattle found a depressing state of affairs. Some of my counterparts had already relocated to Newport. Many of the furniture had been sent to salvage or packed ready for shipment. There are three of us going to Hawaii instead of Oregon and it’s too bad that there could not have been a farewell party where we could have ended our tenure in Seattle on a celebratory note. Unfortunately the opposition to and combative nature of the move had left disdain for the entire situation. I feel fortunate not to have to move to Newport . Next time Newport media, when you say 175 jobs, make that 172 because there are three of us who will not be there when you celebrate the ribbon cutting. Oh yes, I still have not had a reply about Lincoln County School District's English as a Second Language classes at their local high school. Not that it matters anymore.
When I arrived in Seattle two weeks ago it still felt like February, the month that I left. This week the weather has improved and there was actually more than one day in a row of sunshine. It is starting to feel like Seattle summer. I will miss it once we are gone.
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