Monday 1st and Tuesday 2nd June. Heat, going round in circles and red-carpet welcome.

The last 2 days has been a blur of trying to get sleep sitting on planes or in airports, adjusting to Kiribati heat and humidity and the many other things that make Kiribati, Kiribati!

We managed to arrive uneventfully after a spectacular view of the narrow strips of Tarawa atoll landmass overshadowed by massive storm clouds. Squeezing everyone into the tiny baggage collection area in stifling heat was memorable, while we peered expectantly at the baggage carts for any signs of our bags. I was a little surprised but relieved see all our luggage. The patient waiting had begun. No point getting impatient and we eventually got through bag inspection (almost last!) and were greeted by a lady waiting with a large van to take us to our hotel in Bairiki. More relief that we had a ride in an airconditioned van!

A very long, slow and at times bumpy ride past many familiar places to one of the largest villages called Bairiki where we were booked to stay at the new hotel, the Tarawa Boutique Hotel. Quite a spacious, new, clean,  mosquito-proof room with airconditioning made us happy!

After a great sleep we were ready to face our first full day. Catching the local bus down to Betio was a good introduction to atoll life for Helen and Leesa. We had organised to meet Brian our navy vet down at the Betio wharf where the ship was expected to dock at 8.30am.

Our morning walk along the old wharf to meet up with Brian and to see the ship.

We should have learnt from the locals to take it easy and relax while we waited.

More lessons on Kiribati time and how little control we actually have over situations in a new country.

I said “expected” to dock at 8.30am. So after walking down the wharf road we met up with navy people who informed us the ship was being cleared by customs. But they were still expecting it to dock at 8.30am. Yes, so we talked and waited and talked and chatted to the locals at the security gate to the wharf eyeing off their little cats that needed desexing. I also got translations for various english words such as “surgery” (te korokoro). No ship. We finally decided to wander back into Betio to Phil’s old workplace to meet a colleague of his. After we had a nice chat, it was at least 10 o’clock before we wandered back along the wharf road to the gate. Still no ship. It was still waiting a long way off port undergoing customs inspection and clearance.

By the time we had done all our walking and waiting we were pooped!

Customer?

Yes the ship had docked and now the long walk to reach it
down the new Betio wharf.

So then we decided to go and wait for Brian back at his hotel in Betio. So we waited some more. Still no ship. Brian eventually arrived back. No ship. So we had lunch. No ship. Then we finally decided to head back to Bairiki on the local bus after a very heavy downpour to retrieve some veterinary gear we left at the Australian High Commission so we would be ready for work tomorrow.

USNS Millinocket (JHSV-3) 

So the bus headed off down the very sodden potholed road, and then instead of heading along the atoll towards Bairiki it headed back down around the Betio loop, another 20 or 30 minutes of bumpy joy. It felt like groundhog day as we watched the same scenery pass us by AGAIN. When we finally left Betio to add insult to injury we could see in the distance that the ship had finally docked!!

More waiting back in Bairiki (getting a phone SIM card), bumping into a few old familiar faces (which was a delight), slight freshen up then we were headded back down to Betio on the local bus for the ship’s welcoming ceremony. A slight hiccup at the security gate…our names weren’t on THE LIST despite Brian’s warm welcome to attend the ceremony. But we were soon allowed to walk down the brand new wharf towards the ship. Red carpet and guard of honour was soon in front of us…really, for us? yes we were all the way from Australia….but no, we skirted that (just after the President of Kiribati, Anote Tong had passed through).

Red carpet welcome....but not for us.

The President Anote Tong, US Ambassador and the chief Navy
 officer for Pacific Partnerships 2015 

But yes, we were welcome to follow and board the ship….this huge piece of engineering…a bit daunting. So up we went and stood at the back and tried to blend in to the metal wall (?) and stay unnoticed as everything looked so official and most people looked very smart and elegant in their navy uniforms and we did not feel likewise!

We got through the speeches, all with the initial worry that we were about to faint in the sun only to realize that the swaying was the ship! In his speech Anote Tong highlighted the international collaboration and friendship between the US, Australia, New Zealand and Kiribati, and even commended the previous dog sterilisation programmes that had taken place on Tarawa that had helped his people. Yay to vet teams!! What a plug! So I chatted to him afterwards and he had had his dog desexed a few years ago!

Our PP2015 vet team, Paige, Brian, Helen, Leesa and
a few others missing. With pallets of gear!

So now we await our patients with great expectation…radio announcements have been aired on local radio and we are hoping we will be kept busy!