Lison's first impressions

I’ve been remiss in the updating of my blog lately, and for that I apologize. Mom was here for 19 days and so I was pretty occupied. On top of that, work is busier than ever. I’m now starting to wonder if 2 months will allow me to tie up all the loose ends.

I interviewed mom at the Tide Table Restaurant, only 30 minutes before we got on the shuttle to the airport for her departure.

Mom first realized that this place was far away when she could spy outside the window how tiny Majuro is. As the plane turned into its descent, she saw that the landing strip was almost as wide as the island itself.

As she emerged from the aircraft, the humidity hit her. That may just be because it was negative something degrees when she left Montreal, and it’s a balmy 85 degrees most days in the RMI.

As we drove the 10 miles from the airport to our house at Marshall Islands High School, mom saw that the place isn’t quite as poor as she’d envisioned, not as dirty, and people were dressed more nicely than she’d expected.

Perhaps Majuro is a place of contradictions. Because although her first impression was that this place was tiny, the 40 minute trip from the airport to home made the island seem bigger up close. Moreover, when on her last day here I asked what she hated most about Majuro, she immediately said “garbage”. When you walk by a dumpster you’re assaulted by the stench of wreaking dead leaves and rotting food. And there’s trash strewn all over the place. Without any household pick-up, people have a tendency to litter.

What do you love the most about Majuro?

“I love the women.” The women she interacted with “really wanted more for their children; worked hard and get involved. They’re loving, caring and so beautiful when they smile.”

The men on the other hand, surprised. They’ll stare at you, but when you look them in the eyes they look down and away. “In other places I’ve been, they’ll keep checking you out.” But here there’s a shyness or meekness.

What was the hardest thing about being in Majuro?

“Being from Canada, it was hard to dress properly.” It’s hot and cumbersome to dress in full length skirt and t-shirt in the intense equatorial heat. In fact, this was the aspect that helped mom realize that she wouldn’t want to live in the Marshall Islands.

What was your worst experience?

Without a doubt: the boat trip to Arno atoll. It’s about 75 minutes away on really choppy open ocean. We heaved on the swells and got completely soaked. Luckily the Gravol we ingested kept us all from getting sea-sick. But the journey was still intense. Mom remarked, “At one point I was thinking about which cooler I’d use to help me float if we flipped over.”

What would you have brought that you didn’t bring?

A hammock!

(Luckily, Ali and I ordered one from REI and it just arrived. I tested it this weekend by hanging it from our coconut tree.)