Remote and poor – two words that came to my mind when first picturing Kiribati. It would take only a couple of days and trips to the outer islands to replace these two words by remote, unspoiled and beautifully simple.

Despite a first impression of a country where time seemed to have stopped, of an atoll filled with waste of all kinds and of a place where people appeared to treat the passing of days with a certain apathy, Kiribati would soon become very dear to me. It would be one of the most authentic places that I have ever been to. Perhaps it felt so because of its remoteness, of the people’s simple way of living and of the few tourists that I spotted while there. In a strange way, it was also because of the shortage of food, in particular fruits and vegetables which I tell you not made me crave for different things every day. Especially at a 30+ degrees (Celsius) walk in the heat when your only thoughts are focused on that smoothie that you haven’t had in months. Fortunately for me, I was soon about to discover Chatterbox café, seemingly the expats’ favourite hang out place in Tarawa, Kiribati’s capital. As you can easily guess, they had smoothies, banana smoothies. No need to mention the happiness that a banana smoothie could bring to a human being – yet another reason to jump on the local mini vans and head to the café, listening to some national hits and chatting with the locals on the way there.

Now, don’t get me wrong. Kiribati isn’t only about cravings and banana smoothies. It is about so much more… seen, unseen, spoken and unspoken. It is about incredibly low tides and the fear that it would be the first island nation to disappear under the rising sea waters (debatable according to the locals who are more worried about other effects of climate change, for instance the increasing water temperature and ensuing impact on fishing),…

about listening to the sound of the ocean while sleeping in a tent at Dreamers (in the absence of available accommodation),…

about sharing the bumpy ferry ride to the Abaiang island with the locals (and being stared at given that you were the only tourist on the boat),…

about flying to the outer islands in your slippers and shopping bag (and picking up your “checked in” luggage from the grassy “runway”),…

about snorkeling in waters that seemed unearthely (and making friends with a curious babyshark),…

about watching traditional dances on an idle afternoon (and realising what talent actually means),…

about continuously marveling at the Pacific sunsets (and taking endless pictures to capture their beauty),…

about going to church on a Sunday morning only to be touched by the uplifting gospel songs that could be heard from far away,…

about stargazing from your buia (traditional overwater accommodation) and accidental astrophotography at 2am when nature called and on the way back to your buia you were amazed by the view up there and decided to take a few shots of the stars and our beloved Milky-way,…

about riding a bush bike to the broken bridge in North Tarawa (fighting the heat and the bushes), occasionally stopping to chat with the villagers and entertain the island’s beautiful children, happy to see another “imatang” (foreigner) in their village,…

about testing your patience limits when your flight to your next Pacific stop was postponed several times (and you were stranded in one place), but also…

about new opportunities to yet again jump on a plane (piloted by a lady captain) and explore the Abemama island on a motorbike (driven by a lady), stopping at different villages on your way to the island tip (where “painting” your face with sand would give you the long awaited island initiation),…

about watching mothers and grandmothers competing in a volleyball match (and yet again being amazed by how unfit you are),… and

about waking up at 6:30am to do your morning swim in the turquoise lagoon waters.

Two unplanned weeks, full of experiences that I certainly didn’t expect. Experiences that made me rather uncomfortable being back to the modern world where simplicity would be replaced by the intricacies of life. The same experiences that made me reflect about the kind of travels I enjoy best and no least about the kind of traveler I ultimately want to be.