Welcome to the “reverse journey” that takes me 9,753km all the way from Majuro Atoll MARSHALLS to Port Moresby PAPUA NEW GUINEA (PNG) to trek the mighty 96km KOKODA TRACK with my brother Nick and nephew Sam !!!
This reverse journey was necessary because UNITED AIRLINES has a monopoly on travelling between Marshalls, Micronesia and Guam and there is only one way in and out and not every day. This means 2 nights in Micronesia, 1 night in Guam and 1 night on the aircraft from Manilla to Port Moresby. Someone please break this monopoly. Not only is it expensive but it robs Marshalls and Micronesia of much needed tourists since the UNITED airfare alone could pay for two weeks of accommodation in each of these places !!!
In this post I present to you NEW stuff visited in Micronesia, Guam and the Philippines.
We begin this reverse journey with a direct 150min 1,442km flight from Majuro MARSHALLS back to Pohnpei MICRONESIA. Enjoy the window seat calculated shots I took of the Majuro Atoll as I took off !!! I always work out which side of the aircraft I need sit on by studying the airport runways and typical wind directions so I can determine in which direction the aircraft will take off – this gives me the best chance of great photos of the places I am landing into or taking off from… what a GOOBA !!!
My time on the way back in Pohnpei was a double-edged sword. On one side I suffered one of the most difficult runs so far and on the other side I experienced the best island hospitality so far… My run was not on good ground since I had no choice but to start it at 0930 since it was pouring rain at 6am, 7am and 8am during three separate alarm settings – when it rains her it absolutely buckets down – no chance of running… The upside is I got extra sleep under the mesmerising sounds of rain against metallic rooves. Once I got running the heat and humidity “rained” upon me in sweat and not water and wore me down like soap on a runway. Then there were the dogs. I was chased by a record number of dogs – I estimate 50-60 of them trying to bite at my ankles – why – because every house has 3-5 of the creatures. This was part of my running demise since I had to run faster each time I was chased to ensure they could not clip my heels. I had previously learned that if I was chased I would shout SHAO, which in the local language means “SHOO” or “GO AWAY” and it worked for some but not all !!! I was very pleased to get back with my heels in tact since there was 96km of Kokoda waiting in earnest for those heals !!!
The rest of the day was a delight. I walked to town, had a haircut and a coffee and stopped by the Tourist Bureau to ask about where I could buy a National Costume for the Kokoline Film Launch !!! We got talking about my expedition in the island after showing the blog and prising all the photos the two lovely local women running the show actually GIFTED ME a local costume even though I offered money – photos for costume – now that kind of island economy works well for all of us.
That evening at the hotel whilst writing this very blog a small rodent bit my toe !!! Why? The lady in attendance blamed my wine and cheese and olives for attracting the creature.
The very next day was drama day. United decided to cancel my 1530 flight to Guam leaving me stuck here and did not even send me an email – the lady at reception told me when I was checking out. What a low blow. United are the only airline that come here and they up and cancel flights without telling anyone – poor show indeed. I managed to get onto a United 0045 flight after midnight that would land me in Guam at 0335 with my connecting flight from Guam to Manilla leaving at 0555 – only 2hrs 20min to go through immigration, collect my bag, check-in and back through immigration. I just has to make the 0555 to Manilla since I had a tour booked for Noon the next day and my flight from Manilla to Port Moresby at 2125. Lucky for me Philippine Airways decides to delay its 0555 to 0635 and I am safe again – what a nail-biting day. I managed to research Kokoda with the rest of the day and even get some sleep before heading out to Pohnpei Airport in the darkness of night to catch the 0045 to Guam.
Lucky for me I had downed a bottle of Chardonnay and got to sleep as soon as my head hit the seat. United arrived in Guam on time but I have a bad taste in my mouth on how they treated us with the cancellation. To make matters worse, United service is crap and there is no food and you have to pay for drinks – even though each flight averages 2hrs and $700AUD a pop !!! These islands seriously need a second carrier. Contrast this to Philippine Airways who were late leaving Guam at 0730 but fed us and got me into Manilla at 0900 with plenty of time to take my final tour outside Manilla from Noon to 1700.
The driver Pedro and guide Einstein did their best to reassure me that the heavy hot humid Manila haze would lift but I knew I was stuffed. Runners know the weather. Especially runners who have run all over the world in 110 countries in all sorts of weather. The drive out to Tagaytay City and The People’s Park in the Sky is typical Manila chaos – especially on a Sunday !!! The freeway was packed solid and the trip took close to 90min to travel a mere 60km. Not only was the place crowded but we could not see the volcano – pity – the only drawback of my trip so far but I am thankful I because I only got two half rainy days in forty and they did not involve major sites – just travel. We made the best of the haze by visiting the local markets and sampling the famous BUCO PIE and locally grown pineapple and jackfruit. BUCO is made with custard and coconut and if it were not covers in whipped cream you’d think it was baked by Marianne on Gilligan’s Island !!! On our way back there was a huge electrical thunderstorm with lightning and thunder that you could feel in your rib cage !!! Amazing !!! Given we skipped the scenic boat ride to the volcano we made a stop at a huge supermarket to pick up food and wine so I could drown out that volcano !!!
After a quick evening dinner and wine bottle, I walked to the airport to catch my overnight flight from Manila to Port Moresby – no problems – on time and slept the whole 5hrs getting there. Arrived in Port Moresby at 430am and headed to hotel to catch up on sleep. Woke at 1030am the news of drama drama drama – this time not mine but Nick and Sam Golfins !!! Their flight to Port Moresby had been cancelled at the last minute and this also affected James and Cristan since Jacob was on the alternate flight via Brizzie, which was not cancelled. What a ker-fa-fel !!! After many texts the last four of our Kokoda Team would arrive at 1750 tomorrow resulting in a one day pushback of the start of our Kokoda Trek from early 23MAY to early 24MAY. I made the best of the rest of the day by packing my Kokoda Pack and visiting the huge VISION CITY MEGA MALL completely overrun by locals with not another “whitey” in sight !!! The supermarket in their was terrific complete with hot food but then to my horror the adjoining liquor shop was CLOSED !!! When I asked why I was told that the PNG PM had mandated EVERY liquor outlet in the city to close out of respect of the Indian PM Modi who does not drink and was in town for the India - Pacific Cooperation Forum which would last today only !!!
I had to resort to my hotel bar where I sank a few local beers since the wine (ozzie Jacob’s Creek and Yellow Tail) was a ridiculous $65AUD a bottle !!! No way ho-zay !!!
Tuesday 23 May was another easy day. I confirmed my accommodation and hire car post Kokoda and marked out all the places I would visit on maps.me. Visited Vision City and watched some movies until Nick, Sam, James & Cristan arrived around 1830. Finally after much saga it was good to see them. All six of us met with our porters and a senior representative Saii from the trekking company Southern Seas Horizons for a complete briefing of what would happen tomorrow and over the next 7 days and 6 nights. This was followed by a Team Ozzie dinner and a few local beers. We all hit the sack early for an early rise for what was to be a HUGE day tomorrow – the start of THE KOKODA TRACK !!!
Enjoy the journey to PNG…
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