Part II
We left the Century Park Hyatt on their earliest shuttle at 6:05am and got to the airport without traffic at 7:30am. Plenty of time to get checked in and get to the Crown Room for the mandatory Bloody Mary. The plane left on time at 9:40am and being in the upper deck, it was another quiet flight. 4 hours later, we arrived in Guam and shuffled off to the Crown Room to waste 5 hours drinking Bloody Marys for our flight to Palau. The plane was late, so we departed at 7:30, arriving at Palau nearly 9pm. Surprisingly, all our luggage made it (yea!). We were greeted by Zenia from the Carolines Resort with a lei and a smile and were whisked off in their van to the resort. After a 40-minute ride, we got settled into our bungalow and went to bed. In the morning, we were brought breakfast to our bungalow and I had the Spanish omelet and juice. It was honestly the best omelet I had in my life. After breakfast, we tooled around the resort until 10am when Fish n Fins came and picked us up to take us to Ocean Hunter. They were very nice and took us to the ATM and a grocery on the way so we can get cash for tips and a couple of bottles of wine for the week cruise. We got to the boat, got unloaded, and met the other folks that were on our cruise.

There were a total of 5 guests: One couple was from France (300+ dives), one gentleman who was from Germany with a camera named Susan (500+ dives), and us (Americans with about 40 dives). We started off with a 5-minute motor to our “check out” dive to the Helmet Wreck. The wreck had a lot to see, but had low visibility and sat at about 60+ feet. After we got out, Lunch was served and we went to our next dive site. Total dives: 27. Number of dives directly off the boat: 25 (both night dives were done off the skiff). I dove in a 2.5mm full wetsuit, but by the 3rd dive in, had to put on the 2.5 shorty vest. I was still a tiny bit cold most of my late day dives, so next trip- I am bringing the 5mm full. Crew was awesome- they help you on and off the boat, handed you a warm towel, and all you have to do is back up to the load platform to take off/put on your gear. Hot showers were provided on the rear deck to rinse off between dives. We dove Nitrox and the mix ranged from 31.8 to 32.1- over 28 dives, that is pretty darn good. After every dive, we had something to eat and drink. Arlie’s cooking was fabulous- it was like eating in a different restaurant each day- one day Italian, next day Indian. They claim it’s low fat, but I’m not sure about that- I gained five pounds on the trip- darn you Arlie! The boat was in good shape- it’s an older sailboat, so don’t expect it to be a spanking new Carnival cruise line boat- it is functional, clean, plenty of hot water, air conditioning was good, and space was adequate for 8 people and their gear. There were three cabins- two up front that shared a bathroom, and a “stateroom” in the back with it’s own bathroom and shower. Crew had their own area. We opted for the “stateroom” and were quite happy with our decision. My only negative comment is that they could update the mattresses or add another layer of foam- they were boat mattresses and not the best- a good “memory foam” pad would have solved the problem. Our guide was Gabby and he was fabulous- he let us do our own thing, yet kept an eye on us when we wanted. We dove all the primo sites including Blue Corner, Pelilue Express, and Big Drop off, and managed to get New Drop Off and Blue Corner in a few times. My biggest gripe was I didn’t sign up for the 10-day cruise- big mistake! The crew went above and beyond the call of duty the entire cruise, and even taking the skiff into town when we needed Sudafed for our ears. At the end of the cruise, they even hosed off and cleaned all our gear- they did a great job and took extra time rinsing out the BCs to make sure all the salt was off of them. I feel like we couldn’t have done a better job cleaning our stuff as they did. I can’t wait to go back, and I will go with Ocean Hunter without a thought. We did visit Ocean Hunter II and boy what a boat that is- very good setup, brand new, but it carries 12 divers, and I like the small number of the Ocean Hunter I, so I will stay with Ocean Hunter 1 for our next cruise.

We got into the port at 5pm on Tuesday, and had dinner and hung out on the dock. We shared a few beers and went to bed. The next day, we got up, had breakfast, and got our stuff packed up and left about 9:30am. Fish n Fins took us to the Carolines where we checked in early and headed off to town for souvenir shopping at the Ben Franklin (thanks for the previous tips from other trip reports) and tooled around town sightseeing. We visited the Jail and got our storyboards and then went back over to the Carolines and were taken over to the Palau Pacific Resort (PPR) to hang out at the beach. It is a quite nice resort with all the amenities- pool, beach, palm trees, foofy drinks while watching the sunset. Nice place, but I like the intimacy of the Carolines much better. We then went over to the Palm for dinner (ok- nothing great) and then back to the Carolines. The next day, we headed back over to Fish n Fins to meet up with our cruise mates for a Kayaking trip. It was ok- the guide didn’t really do much and there wasn’t that much to see- we did a lot of paddling across the channels, and didn’t really feel like we got into the depths of the rock islands, so I was a little disappointed not to see the little coves of nooks and crannies. After the kayaking, we got cleaned up and headed off to dinner at Capriciaos- the island’s best Italian restaurant. It was ok- we were hungry, and it filled us up. After dinner, we went over to the West Plaza by the Sea to have one last drink with our cruise mates and we said our sad goodbyes. Zenia came and picked us up from the Plaza and took us to the airport. It was sad to leave and we promised we would return. Continental screwed up our reservations, so we ended up stuck in “steerage” for the flight to Yap/Guam. I managed to get hubby upgraded when we got to Yap, but I was stuck with the “commoners” in the back. Luckily, it was not a full flight and I was able to stretch across three seats and get some sleep.

We arrived in Guam a little early at 5:30am and went and rented a car since we had almost 12 hours until our flight left for Narita. We got directions from a FlyerTalk member to a remote beach on the north end of the island, so we set out to find it in the dark and pouring rain. Sleep deprived, cranky, hung over, raining, and then we couldn’t find it. We got to a cliff, but the only beach I saw was one that was 1000 feet below us, and we didn’t have a parachute, so we gave up and went back toward the main tourist strip to find a public beach. Around 6:30, we were too tired to drive anymore, so we found a hotel and parked and fell asleep in the car. Around 8:30, the sun came out and we started baking, so we migrated to their beach. Unfortunately, their beach had some nasty flies and bugs (quite pretty, but the bugs sucked), so we “poached” their pool and fell asleep under an umbrella next to the pool. Around 10am, we woke to realize that we were the only Americans amongst a sea of Japanese, so we vacated the premises before we were asked to show proof that we were staying there. It was quite obvious we were intruders with my blonde hair and looking like I slept in my clothes for 3 days- I was quite the scene. So, still having 6 hours to kill, we decided to do “duty free”. But, apparently, you need to supply them with a hotel or tour group before entering, and when I got to the front of the line, they asked me where I was staying, I thought quickly and gave them the hotel Nikko that we poached earlier in the day- entry accepted. It was a false win though- duty free is terrible- the US dollar is so bad, the prices were horrible and there was nothing but a bunch of upscale stuff that we wouldn’t even think about buying (tell me why someone would spend 1k on a plaid purse??? Dive computer yes- plaid purse- why?). After the fruitless shopping, we ate lunch at Hard Rock Café, and then migrated back to the airport. We went to the Crown Room for the customary Bloody Mary to start the day. It was hilarious- I went to find the person manning the bar, couldn’t find her, but the other woman that was at the front desk asked if I could take the keys and help myself. I ended up being the bartender for the Crown Room for about an hour. Didn’t get any tips though L, but I was glad I could help out. I pour a mean drink. Everyone loved my skills- can’t go wrong in life if you know how to bartend (I was a bartender in college- skills that last a lifetime!).

The flight boarded on time, and we were back in upper deck with our pre-flight champagne. After a 4-hour flight, the trip through Narita customs was much easier. We went to bus stop 14 for the Narita Excel Hotel. We just missed the bus. We had to wait ˝ hour, but we passed the time trying to help a fellow American who had never been to Tokyo (like we were pro’s by this time) to give her coins to call her hotel. After successfully helping her, we were on the bus to the Narita Excel Hotel. We got a great room with a view on the 7th floor where we could see the “big birds” landing and taking off- it was cool. The room was a little small and worn, but the bed was comfy. After we checked in, we went up to the top floor and had a drink of sake and beer, and went to bed. The next morning, we grabbed the shuttle to town and took in the sights of Narita- it was very neat- did some shopping, tooled around the temple and gardens. The cherry blossoms were just starting to bloom- darn. One week too early, but some were blooming, so it wasn’t a total loss. After we got all our shopping done, we realized we were tight on time to catch the shuttle back to the hotel to grab our bags to go to the airport, so we found a little noodle place and had a quick bite- it was fabulous- cheap and good.

We got to the airport and you guessed it, went to the Crown Room for ---yes--- a bloody mary. This time we were on a Delta 777, and although we were 1 hour late taking off, we still arrived a little early. The seats weren’t even close to nice; the video was not on-demand, and the food was not that great. Next time- we do ALL NWA- I was missing the 747 upper deck big time! But, it was still better than “cattle class” and they still fed us drinks, so we weren’t too worse for the wear. After 12 hours in the air, we arrived in Atlanta and collected our bags. I got stuck behind some 50 year old- I wear waaay too much makeup socialite with a poofy fur coat and Gucci glasses trying to take off her high heel boots and everything on her beeped. She was scary. They finally got her through after she took off her blingy belt, and her 10,000 pieces of arm jewelry. After that annoying episode, we figured because we were all domestic at this point, we would not be allowed into the Crown Room. Hubby talked me into trying, and we walked in looking like something the cat spit up after flying for 14 hours. They saw the NRT and let us in for our 2-hour layover!!! That was two for two!!!! We found a quiet spot amongst chaos and yup- you guessed it- had a bloody mary. The flight was on time and uneventful. We had a couple more drinks (since we didn’t have to drive) and got to DCA. We got all our bags in one piece and none were duct taped together or in a plastic bag. I pity the poor soul who went through it- most of it was wet and had been “percolating” in our baggage since we got off the boat- we ended up opening all our bags on the porch- it was that bad!

After 8 million hours in the air, I was glad to be home. Even as jetlagged as I am writing this, I can’t wait to go back. I can’t wait to see the big Napoleon at Blue Corner again, and say hello to the sharks at Pelilue Cut while riding “rip your mask off” current.

Will I go through the trouble to use my miles? Absolutely
Will I go through NY again for a “free night”? Yup!
Will I spend extra days in Guam/Narita/Tokyo- no- did that- don’t need to see anymore.
Will I do Carolines Resort again- Absolutely- no better place on the island to stay, including PPR!
Will I do Ocean Hunter again- you bet your buns I will!
Will I spend more time tooling around Palau- yes- I feel I should have spent AT LEAST 4 days on land so I could have done the waterfalls, jungle exploration, yap money quarry, and the WWII sites. But hey, got to leave something to do the next time I come!
Final summary- Use NW through Guam and limit your time on Continental and Delta. Stay at the Carolines, and do the Ocean Hunter or Ocean Hunter 2. All the other live-aboards make you use the skiff for all the dives and it eats time from diving. Bigger boats means more people on the dive site too. And above all- go business class- it is the ONLY way to fly when you are dealing with that many hours in the air…