Yap – A step back in time

Leaving Palau and onward to Yap and a step back in time to a simpler life.  The first day in Yap is a rest day to get laundry and gear prepped for another amazing week of diving. The big draw in Yap is the Manta Rays.

The first day of diving was kind of a letdown. We only saw one Manta after two dives. Hoping that the next day would be better, we took a smaller boat to Mil Channel, another coral head that is known to the Yapese for attracting the Manta’s. The first dive we saw several Mantas. All of the divers were in awe throughout the dive.  As we ended the dive everyone could not stop discussing the several mantas they were able to photograph. The dive guide asked us if we wanted to stay or try a dive site where we might see some sharks.  It was unanimous; we would dive with the sharks to have the best two dives so far in Yap.

The week in Yap was incredible. Besides the diving and seeing Mantas and Sharks on most of the dives we were fortunate to visit Kadai village.  A bus took us from the hotel to the rural looking path. The path was hand laid stones covered in moss and looked to have been in existence since the dawn of time. Two members of the Kadai Village greet us, a young man and a young woman.  Dressed in the traditional Yapese attire they are both wearing grass skirts and Lai’s. Some of the women also cover their bodies in turmeric and coconut oil. This gives the skin a golden shimmer as the sun hits their skin.  Once at the village we were all given Lai’s to wear and offered fresh coconut milk to drink. The one thing that is very noticeable at the entrance of the village is the stone money.  It was interesting to hear how the Yapese would travel by outrigger canoes to Palau and quarry the stones and then bring back to Yap.  The value of the money was not determined by the size necessarily, but by how many people died bringing the stone back to Yap.

The final dive day of the week was back to Mil Channel and Vertigo.  We again were entertained by several Mantas on our first dive. Vertigo sits on the edge of a wall were black tip and grey sharks are known to roam.  The crew bates a small mesh cage with frozen fish and drops it over the boat.  As you begin descending you are surrounded by sharks as well as other reef fish.  You slowly get closer and closer to the cage.  As you focus your camera for a shot of one shark another shark bumps into you.  The final dive of the week as I look back seems so surreal.