Llegamos a St. Martin tarde una noche de agosto. Salimos del aeropuerto para disfrutar del aire fresco de la noche. Buscamos un taxi que nos llevara al hotel. Conocimos a un taxista con el que empezamos a platicar. Nos preguntó de dónde éramos, qué estábamos haciendo en la isla y si era la primera vez que visitábamos su país. Estuvimos platicando un rato con él y nos dijo que una de las cosas que más disfrutaba en la vida era de ir a bailar con sus amigos. La música está muy presente por todos lados en la isla y bailar es una de las cosas que pone una sonrisa en su cara. Al día siguiente nos fuimos a caminar por la isla, a compartir con la gente y a disfrutar de la atmósfera de relajación que se vive en el lugar. Después de platicar con varias personas, conocí a Thomas, un joven de mi edad con quien platiqué de muchas cosas. Una de las cosas que más le hace feliz es el buen clima que hay en la isla y, sobre todo, algo que siente muy común en su país: que la gente al ir caminando por la calle te saluda sin importar si eres un conocido o no. Y es que, sin lugar a dudas, entre lo paradisíaco de su naturaleza y la amabilidad de su gente, St. Martin es un lugar especial.

A very special welcome awaited us the airport of Papeete. Some Polynesian dancers gave us a great show. The girls swing their hips so fast it looks like their buttocks have a mind of their own.

As is the custom in many of the Pacific islands, the welcoming of visitors is very important. We were honored by a traditional dance show at the airport. We then found out we were not staying at a hotel this time but in the guest house of a world renowned Tahitian surfer called Raimana. 

Tahitians are crazy about water sports. Surfing, sailing, jet skiing... Anything that happens on or in the sea. And with a sea as great as this it's quite normal. We got to try out some 'paddling' which basically consists standing on a board (not as easy as it looks cos its hard to keep your balance) with a paddle. In a typical family house you will find boards and paddles of all shapes and sizes.

Raimana was keen on showing us Teahupoo, also called ‘The Big Wave’. Eager to find out what this was all about we set out bright and early on his boat. Unfortunately the rain was pouring down but it didn’t spoil our fun. As we got to the spot he took each of us one by one on a jet ski to get closer to the wave. He would wait for a big one and turn around to almost ride the wave just like you would on a surfboard. Sitting on a jet ski in the pouring rain being chased by a huge wave, now THAT’s exihilirating.

Atfer more jet ski fun we headed back to his house situated right at the water. We had a lunch with his family and a whole bunch of people that just seemed to show up from nowhere. This is the Tahitian way. People are very open and welcoming. 

Everyone we spoke to told us how their only happiness is their family. Everything else is extra. 

Welcome to the worlds smallest independent republic. With a coastline of 30km, Nauru is the smallest country we have visited so far. To give you an idea, the airport is so small that the actual airport manager is the one that organized our visas and chatted with us while we waited for our luggage. He said the country is so small that people on the other side of the island usually know what you had for breakfast!

The island is mainly known for its phosphate mines. There is much more to the place though, as we were soon to find out.

Capelle, the main store and Coke retailer hosted us. They took us to a school where the minister of education had prompted the students to give as a real Nauruan welcome. At first the kids were very shy. We were told that this is a typical Nauruan trait. The first performers had to literally be dragged to the stage. Soon though they realized we weren’t going to bite and were crazy enough to join them in their dances, so they started to feel more comfortable. 

We were invited to a school where the kids gave us a wonderful welcome. They performed for us and even composed their own Coca-Cola song for us. It goes something like :"Coca-Cola is our favorite drink, we love Coca-Cola" The people here tend to be very shy. They had to drag the first performers out. But after a while they grew more comfortable with us and were keen on sharing their culture and many talents. We had a lot of fun!

We enjoyed watching them dance and sing for us. I particularly enjoyed the typical Nauruan dances and Antonio couldn’t get enough of the hip-hop performances. In the end, Antonio and I tried one last push against the shyness by trying to get the crowd to go crazy for a few second. This did not work well… But then Antonio turned to the DJ for help. As soon as the music started something amazing happened. All the kids in the school created a huge circle and started taking turns leaping in the center to show off some moves. We couldn’t believe these were the same kids who were almost too shy to say hello! All you need is some music and some good vibes. We reluctantly left with a grin plastered over our faces as the kids waved goodbye and ran behind us for pictures with us.

What I will remember of Nauru?  The friendliness of the people (there is no such thing as crime here!), the tight-knit community (you will always find someone to help you) and the amazing potential of those kids from a tiny island lost in the Pacific.