More photos from the island

Having a great time this weekend. Explored some different parts of the island and discovered a Go-Cart Track! The boys loved it! They are already talking about racing Grandpa Michael when he gets here!

This is a photo of the sunrise taken from the roof of our house. We tease that we have a view of the ocean. You can see a little slice from the roof! Matt and I enjoyed some quiet rooftop time last night under the full moon and 80 degrees at 10:30 PM. Ahhhhh. Roofs are flat here on the island. They grow their insects LARGE here. Kaden insisted that I photograph this spider yesterday. It was about the size of my hand. Not sure you can tell from the photo. The boys had a wonderful experience snokeling yesterday! The two of them were out at Pau Pau beach snorkeling around and happened upon 4 Eagle rays. This is a rarity on the island and they got to experience it side by side. Matt and I were not close enough to get there in time to see them before they swam off. They were exstatic! Matt and I are going diving in a few hours with our friends and really looking forward to it! I am still hoping to see a sea turtle!

The Darker Side of Island Life

Being a $1200 plane ticket away from all of you! We miss you!

Random Photos of Island Life

The boys got to experience the "local" mode of transportation.

No time to write much today so thought I would post some photos that don't really fit into a category. Enjoy.

Obyan Beach

Obyon Beach

These are photos from the beach where we began our first SCUBA adventure. Love this beach. Great snorkeling. The best place we have found so far for finding shells. Nice amenities. However, it can be busy as it is well known as an interesting dive site because of the variety of fish, the abundence of garden eels, and it is the designated sea turtle nesting site. I would have tried to upload photos of the boys at this beach but they are in the water the instant we arrive! Also, Kaden loves to dig for "Ghost Crabs" and look for these giant hermit crabs on the beach. If I can catch the boys next time I will add a photo of them at this beach.

The Darker Side: Medical Care
Work here is fascinating, and exciting and depressing as it is probably in any third world country (although this is technically not as it is a U.S. territory). There is extreme poverty here and many people on government assistance of one kind or another. People here do SO much with so few resources. I assisted in screening many, many Headstart and school age kids one day with my colleague. The majority with hearing loss have holes in their ear drums that have never been and will likely not be corrected as there is no ear surgeon on the island. The other reason for hearing loss? Cerumen (ear wax)! Can you believe it? Daily we see kids who have ongoing bilateral hearing loss that has been there for months because they have impacted wax and nobody will do anything about it! We have been brainstorming to see if there is something we can do as the Audiologists but parents can't afford to come to the hospital to get it taken care of, can't or won't take the kids to see a Dr. in the clinics, there are very few school nurses to provide ear drops, and with such a huge case load we can't get back to see these kids frequently enough to apply treatment ourselves. Of the kids with permanent hearing loss, they are well taken care of audiologically. Hearing aids are provided for them at no cost. However, there are no teachers for the deaf and very few people who know American Sign Language, but they really do the best they can for these kids. That is really the theme, "Do the best you can with what you have got." One of the reasons I love it here is that everyone has PASSION for what they do. You could not stay here and function very well without it. I visited a baby in the NICU that was born with many craniofacial anomalies, including ears that were so low set they were affixed to the baby's neck and had canals that seemed to enter directly into his throat. And who is taking care of this baby? NOT a neonatologist (none on the island), NOT an Ear Nose and Throat doctor (none on the island), but a first year resident pediatrician (working here as a loan repayment project) and the most dedicated nurse I have ever met. She is the one taking care of this baby. She should be paid the salary of 4 neonatologists in my opinion but is surely not. Anyway, the baby is thriving somehow under her care and she is working to get the baby transferred off island for care. This however is also a major challenge because it has to pass through a referral board and then they have to find a hospital that is willing to take the patient as the family likely cannot pay for any of the medical bills. Doctors in general are incredibly scarce on the island. When local people find out what I do, they are sooooooooooooo gracious and thank me over and over for coming to Saipan. People understand that the healthcare system leaves much to be improved upon. Also interesting is that because of the mix of cultures, there are many Asian practitioners of acupuncture and other eastern medicines. However, I have seen only one chiropractic office. Anyway, more than you probably wanted to know but it makes me so very thankful for the quality of our (admittedly flawed) healthcare system.

Another Seeliger First From CNMI

Well what a great weekend for the Seeliger clan. It was a beautiful weekend with sunny skies and we took full advantage. Here are some photos of our days on the island. Matt and I completed our first SCUBA dive in Saipan with our friends Angie (who brought me to Saipan to work) and her husband Tyce. We dove from a beach called Obyon. We love this beach as it has great snorkeling and is the very best for finding amazing sea shells. SCUBA Diving is truly sublime and amazing. I tried to take some underwater photos but they do not do the experience justice. After the dive we grabbed some lunch at a great little coffee house and then headed to the beach for an afternoon of beach volleyball and soccer. We stayed long enough to watch the beginnings of a beautiful sunset and then went home for dinner and bedtime. Enjoy the photos.

The Dark Side : Food and Water

Food and water are both abundant and scarce. Because this is a tropical island with a year round growing season, there are amazing fruits available in mass quantity. For example we had 4 bunches of eating bananas and a bag of oranges on our door step this morning from our landlord because they would go bad if someone didn’t eat them. However, different things are ripe at different times so you eat bananas until you can’t look at another banana for a few months and then you can’t really get bananas after that. And the fruits that are not ripe or are not grown on the island are shipped here from the U.S. so that by the time they get here they are EXPENSIVE and not very tasty.

Cases in point: yesterday I bought a single apple for my daughter who was repeatedly begging for an apple in sign language as we strolled through the grocery store. The single apple cost $1.19 and was mealy and flavorless. Even the toddler who had longed for the apple in the first place did not really want to eat it after the first few bites. Also, you cannot buy a mango on the island right now. There are a lot of fruits that simply do not exist. However, in a few months when mangoes are in season you will be able to pick one as you walk down the street because the trees are so plentiful.

Another: we went to a Mexican restaurant attached to our hotel when we first arrived. It would not have been my first choice but it was ohhh so convenient and I do love guacamole. When we arrived we learned that there was no guacamole because there were no avocados on the island at the moment. I was appalled. This would have been entirely unacceptable at home. However, here…it happens. Often. I went to a restaurant that had the best raw fish ever on Friday night. I took my family back there the following Tuesday evening and tried to order the same thing so they could also experience how delicious it was only to be told that they were out of all of it.

Another: food safety is a concern. Organic is not a recognized label here. Or if it is, we haven’t seen it yet. We were very hopeful about the large farmers markets and local vegetable stands that are everywhere. Until, when asking around about possible community projects for Michael and Alice when they come to Saipan, we were told of a huge no questions asked pesticide drop that was apparently quite successful and resulted in several tons of pesticides (most of which was illegally smuggled from China or Japan and therefore likely out of compliance with any U.S. safety standards). Most of these were also probably used by small local farmers as there are requirements and testing for the larger farms that export off the island. That definitely made us re-think those farmer’s markets.

Another: water is plentiful on the island. It is an island after all, surrounded by water. However, none of the water is potable. You cannot drink directly from any tap unless you see the filter on it. You have to buy the water from dealers in 5 liter jugs and then you need to purchase a water dispenser. The water is very cheap ($1.00 per jug) but it is still inconvenient to have to call and order your water all the time. It does however, make you so much more conscious of how you use water and how much water you use in a week. There is very little wasting of water here, at least in our family.

The Darker Side of Island Life

Matt and Kierik are becoming master Spear Fisherman. Here is a photo of Matt with a Striped Goat Fish and a photo of the catch they had one night this week.

Well by now you have been reading and seeing images of this blissful life on Saipan. So in case any of you were getting too jealous, I thought I would add a little bit to each blog about the practical realities of up and moving your whole family to Who-ville (you know the tiny planet inhabited by microscopic-sized inhabitants featured in Horton Hears a Who). Although Saipan is a wonderful place full a wonderful people and we are having a grand time, there are definitely things that we miss about home. I will try to categorize them for you under he header of The Darker Side.

The Darker Side: Power

Electricity is very expensive on the island, about 20 times more than in the continental U.S. People are very conscious about conserving energy out of necessity and there are some a significant number of inhabitants who live without any power at all. Even I take my laptop to work to charge it and then use it on battery at home. Also, power outages are quite frequent on the island and to us, they seem completely impossible to predict. It is not based on stormy weather, time of day, or any other single indicator that we can wrap our minds around. The first couple of times they were very short and were during the day so we didn't really think much of them. Last night we experienced our first significant inconveniences caused by a power outage. It happened at 7:00 PM. For our family, this is the worst possible time. For one it is pitch black as there was very little moon last night and seeing as we are new to the island, we were completely unprepared. We had one headlamp, my otoscope (aka ear light), the kid's Nintendo DS and a diving flashlight (which is super bright but consumes 8 batteries in no time flat). Two, it is homework time, which the boys were finishing by the light of the headlamp and otoscope. Third, it is poppy's bedtime which means time to make and heat up a bottle. This proved to be an impossible task. I couldn't clean out the one pan we own to heat up the bottle because the well pump is run by electricity. Also the stove is run by electricity so I had no way of heating the bottle up even if I could. We let her stay up until around 8:30 but then had to go about putting her to bed sans bottle. This was not easy but not impossible as she did eventually fall asleep. This is good to know. Matt went out and bought candles, matches and extra batteries today so that we are better prepared next time the power goes out, which could be at any moment. You learn to take nothing for granted :)

FNGs no more!

Matt and I also went through our very own island initiation. WOW what an event! It started early in the week when our new friends, Angie and Tyce, inviting us to participate in something called a Hash Race. We agreed with the caveat that neither of us are runners and we would need to find childcare. Angie offered to let our kids stay with her kids and their nanny Leoni. So with no more excuses, we agreed. Later Tyce informed Matt that he was going to help him set the route and would be participating in the role of Hare. Details of this role unfolded slowly throughout the week, which was good because if he had known the details up front (including the punishment for getting caught by the harriers) I am not sure he would have agreed. Matt and Tyce spent hours during the week scouting the path (aka hacking a trail through the dense jungle with Machetes, fighting off bees and spiders, wrestling with darkness and mud). The last of these scouting exhibitions was the morning of the race at 6:15 am. When I got home from breakfast with the kids I found Matt asleep on the couch. When I asked him how his morning was he responded, "spiders…wet...mud…very tired." Finally the afternoon of the big race had come. As I had gone out the night before with some girls from the clinic and was feeling less then energetic on four hours of sleep (and yes, perhaps a bit too much tequila) I was admittedly worried about how I would do with the big event. However, Sylviah and the boys were easily settled in with Leoni (who is now my new heroine because she managed to distract Poppy all night with very few tears while simultaneously assuring that 5 little boys stayed safe and happy) and Matt, Angie, Tyce and I hit the road for the race. We signed in, the group was gathered (many with beers in hand) and the Hares were off (they get a 10 minute head start). Meanwhile myself and the three other FNGs were explained the instructions for the race. I was more than confused and happy to have so many veterans close by. The next hour was unbelieveable and pretty much unexplainable. If you want to learn about the details of the Saipan Hash House Harriers you can check out their website. The trail that Matt and Tyce set was awesome. More jungle than road. They lead us past amazing bamboo stands, a beautiful church (although running around and over graves was a little disturbing), up and through this awesome cave that was filled with these little birds called flitlets that use echolocation like a bat) and ended very near Angie's house overlooking Lau Lau Bay. Although I was not in the first group that was only aboout 5 minutes behind the hares (Matt successfully escaped having his shorts stolen) I did come in about sixth or seventh (not too bad for my first hash). I ran across a large E that Matt had made out of trail flour and had strewn many flowers across my own personal finish line which I cartwheeled across. Awww! The finish line was also complete with two trucks, one filled with assorted beverages and the other filled with fire wood. Later in the evening there were many songs, honors and traditions, and general carousing. Matt and Tyce were greatly honored for setting a truley bitchin' trail that only left senior wiener and his son alone in the jungle after dark. The top photo is of their part of the ceremony where they got to tell "tales from the trails." They even brought one of the huge paper wasp nests that they chopped down for show and tell. Matt volunteered publicly to be a Hare again so I think he had a fun time after all.

Week 2 in Saipan

Our second week on the island has been a rainy one! I keep reminding the boys, "better rain than snow!" Their first week at their new school Whispering Palms has been exciting. Both boys moved up a grade and are now in mixed age classrooms. Kaden is one of five boys in a 4th/5th room with 16 kids and Kierik is in a 6th/7th/8th grade room. Their teachers are wonderful, the curriculum challenging, and the kids all seem great. I feel more confident then ever that this is an amazing experience and opportunity for our sons.
The rain has not kept us completely off the beach or out of the ocean but we spent much more time exploring the city and our new backyard. The boys found a huge Gecko that was Kaden's pet for a while. They spent hours learning about and harvesting the fruit that grows around our house. Lessons learned:

• the papayas and mangoes are NOT ripe yet, even if we really really want them to be


• coconuts are really really hard to get open even with a brand new machete


• bananas come in two forms, the eating kind and the cooking kinds and there can be no mistaking the two


• oranges on the island are actually green


• if you eat more than 5 star fruit it is highly likely that you will get a belly ache


• banana leaves make great umbrellas


• we may have a lemon tree or it may be a lime tree so for now we have a citrus tree

Lau Lau Beach

I have decided to upload some photos of the beach closest to our house today. It is called Lau Lau Beach. It might be my favorite because there is never anyone there! It feels so private, almost like it is our family's secret spot. It is however a challenging beach to do much swimming on because you have to get out past the reef and then it drops off into 40 to 50 feet of water. When Matt and the boys went out there, they saw big fish deep down and also saw a large sea turtle. The shoreline and shallows remind me a little bit of a Wisconsin Lake in that it has large smooth rocks and seaweed. However, when you look a bit closer you can see that the shallows are teeming with sea life. Kierik almost stepped on a little flounder that Matt then tried to catch with his hands. There are also many bright blue fish and hermit crabs of all sizes. Several of these hermit crabs have been temporary pets. A few nights ago, I decided that we should all go down to the beach to exchange out our current pets for some new hermit crabs and also see what we could see in the shallows at night with our Dive flashlight that can be submerged in the water. Well, it was rainy and Sylvie kept splashing the water when we would try looking for creatures. I started to get complaints about my "Bright" idea when the night took an unexpected turn. The boys discoved these HUGE marine toads hopping around everywhere up on the shore. Then the night got much more exciting. Sylvie was absolutely beside herself with excitment! She was signing FROG FROG FROG and squealing with delight. I couldn't stop laughing. She so desperately wanted to hold one but as we didn't have hand sanitizer and Iknew her hands would end up in her mouth, I denied her emphatic requests. We will have to go back again another night armed with Purell so she can hold one.

Enjoy the photos of Lau Lau Beach!

Pau Pau Beach

Pau Pau is a fantastic beach for snorkeling and seeing lots of reef fish. Matt and the boys have also seen some nice sized Jacks that they are trying to spear for dinner! It is not a good beach for skim boarding however because there is so much coral on the beaches. I have never seen so much coral washed up on a beach before. Here are some photos of our time at Pau Pau Beach.

First week in Saipan

Well we have settled into the Gold Beach Hotel but our internal clocks are still very much stateside. We are making the best of it however by taking 3:00 a.m. walks on the beach. Sylvie would not walk on the sand initially but has now found it delightful to splash around. By about day three she has fully acclimated to the water and is actually saying Water when we get near the beach. The kids are having so much fun getting to know the wildlife. The kids have held geckos, anoles, puffer fish, butterflies, marine toads and more. They are also having a blast learning how to skim board and spear fish. We have played at 4 different beaches and are getting to know the uniqqu qualities of each beach. I will try to post photos of each beach soon.

Getting there is MORE than half the battle!

We left the United States in 2009 and arrived in Saipan in 2010. The cheap boxed champagne and awkward hugs from the airline staff at the 25 hour of traveling mark did little to appease my exhaustion or to increase my celebratory mood. However, we did not encounter any major snafus so overall we count ourselves lucky. Traveling with Sylvie illustrated how much she has changed in the short time since she joined our family. She easily settled into my arms to sleep, was easily entertained on our laps, and actually managed to sleep for about 6 hours of flight time.