Me and the Kids

Today was a great day. Mara is away in Hawaii for the weekend attending a meeting of a regional Board of Trustees of which she is a member, and I decided to have our housekeeper NOT come, just so I could spend time with my kids. There is a certain peace in being the only adult in their lives for a day, in part because there is no other authority to whom they can appeal my decisions. It's also just nice to see each other.

After breakfast and chores, I took them down to Micro Beach. What a magnificent morning. The lagoon was turquoise, the sun was behind us, still rising, as we sat under the shade of palm trees and ironwoods and dug in the sand, waded on the sandbar. It was one of those days when the sky is bright blue and the clouds are gleaming white, drifting by like silent herds of animals. And off in the distant, Managaha Island. I was full of joy just watching them and spending the day with them.

International Day at Brilliant Star

One of the highlights for our family every year is the International Day Festival at Brilliant Star. The kids all dress up in international costumes and the classes give cultural performances. Community guests are invited to perform as well. It's held on October 31, and the skies parted for three hours for the event. It's part of the goal of the school to imbue kids with a sense of global understanding. I thought it was very cool this year than many of the children, and a few of the parents dressed in costumes not of their own culture. Several of the Korean parents, in particular, were sporting Indian costumes. Our boys dressed in Thai costumes, Nava dressed in and island dress, and Jaleh in a traditional Korean costume.

Here's Arman

And Kian,

And Nava,

And Jaleh,

And some of their friends and classmates,

The Press Corps:

How to Eat Out with Kids and Keep Your Dignity

(Here's my column from today's Saipan Tribune.)

We were in Guam a while ago, and were staying with our friends who are first-time parents. Their child is two – the same age as our youngest. For those of you who haven’t gone through it yet, let me tell you, the first kid is a shock to the system. It’s stressful trying to figure out the workings of a baby and adjust to frazzled sleepless nights. The thought of ever having more than one of these critters is incomprehensible to the first-time parent. At that point in your life you cannot imagine that some day you may look back and think, “One kid was eeeaaasy.” When a few more kids come along, you’ll think, “One kid?! That was hardly stressful!” After our second child was born, I realized how simple it was to just have one. When people would ask me about the transition of going to two kids, I would respond “One kid is a hobby.”

Nevertheless, our friends, like many first time parents, were frazzled. I introduced them to the idea of how to eat out, and they were so liberated by the simplest of concepts.

The reason it’s hard to eat out with young kids is that they don’t sit still and they don’t like to wait. The eating part isn’t so bad. It’s the waiting-for-the-food part that leads to mayhem and beaded sweat on your upper lip. So, Mara and I long ago came upon a simple solution: we place the order from home.

We have the menus of our favorite restaurants at home, and when we do want to go out to eat, one of us becomes the waiter and collects everyone’s order. We call the restaurant, and place the order. The restaurant inevitably asks “Will this be for take out or delivery?” and we say, “We’re eating there. We’re coming with kids, so we want to have the food ready when we get there.” They understand. They are soooo thankful. After all, they don’t want our kids sitting idle for 20 minutes waiting for the food to arrive, because, well, they won’t be sitting idle. They’ll be shooting spitballs, making toothpick forts, spilling water, torturing one another by looking at each other, dropping silverware, wasting napkins, and commenting way too loudly about the wads of chewing gum stuck under the tables. So the restaurant loves that we call ahead. We walk in, they whisk the food out as we pull out our chairs, we eat, and go home with minimal disruption to anyone’s sunny disposition.

That’s all. Nothing earth-shattering. Very easy. Call ahead and order so the food is ready when you get there. It’s a way to reclaim your dignity… sort of… or maybe not really. After all, you’re still carrying a diaper-bag and wearing a “dad badge” – that patch of dried drool on your shirt.

Arman Makes the Front Page

We attended a birthday party at the Fiesta on Sunday, and the photographer captured Arman in a happy action shot. That's him on the right on the front page of today's Saipan Tribune.

The caption reads:

"KID's CLUB: Kids beat the summer heat frolicking on the brand new multi-faceted Kid's Pool of the Fiesta Resort & Spa Saipan Kid's CLub during its opening Sunday afternoon. The pool also features slides and fountains for every kid's enjoyment."

I will add that this is a great pool for small kids. It's only about a foot deep, maybe a little more, so our 2 year old son was able to play all afternoon without fear of getting dunked. There aren't any 1000 gallon buckets that get dumped every few minutes, just gentle sprays of water. Hopefully, the Fiesta will put a shade structure over the pool, much like PIC's.

That's Kian standing at the foot of the slide.

Hike from Banzai Cliff to Beach

I've been delaying posting this hike because I didn't want to bump the "Old Man by the Sea" Hike to the dust bin of "Older Posts." But it must be done.

My friend Chris Fryling of N15 Architects, and I headed down this trail one morning last week. This hike starts at Banzai Cliff and is an easy 30 minute stroll down to the beach by the old Cowtown. The terrain is all flat, and the trail is well worn.

Banzai Cliff marks one of the spots on the island where hundreds of Japanese residents leaped to their deaths as the American warships were approaching the island. They feared a fate worse than death, and entire families perished in this way. There are lot's of memorials at Banzai Cliff, this being, in my estimation, the most striking, reflecting the Japanese sense of design: grace and simple beauty.

The trail starts at the very north end of the parking lot, by the edge of the boonies. Nothing marks the trail, except for the trail itself.

For much of the hike, the trail is covered by a canopy of tagan tagan trees, so even at high noon, there is some shade. Early on there is this patch that I call, "the Coral Gardens", these large 4-6 feet high spikes of old coral dotting the trail.

Soon after the Coral Garden's there is a complex of caves. It's not marked and it takes a little bit of hunting to find the opening. This is the opening, which is really just a hole in the ground. The caves are in a ring around this hole, so the entrance was probably the roof of one of the caves that collapsed.

The view out of the cave back towards the opening.

Here's Chris exploring a bit. There are active stalagmites and stalactites forming. If you manage to find this cave and go in, please tread carefully and leave these alone.

On this rock, previous explorers have left some of the artifacts they have found -- bullets and bottles and an old salt shaker in this case. Many of the caves on Saipan were used WWII as hiding places for pretty much everyone -- Japanese soldiers and civilians, and indigenous civilians.

Farther down the trail is this old boat. For years, I've heard that this boat belonged to Larry Hillblom, who lived on Saipan and died young in a plane crash on a trip to the Northern Islands during the 1990's. He's the "H" in DHL, and was a multimillionaire who gained some notoriety in this part of the world. The Hillblom Foundation gives away hundreds of millions of dollars to medical research and education.

This building was supposedly part of the offices and barracks for his investment companies. He was a major shareholder in UMDA.

Of all the times I've walked by this building, I never bothered to go inside until today. Some of the stuff lying around seemed to confirm that this was associated with UMDA.

The walking trail eventually hits a grassy road. Just turn left (west) and walk about 3 minutes down to the ocean.

The grassy road turns off to the left (south) but keep going straight down this sandy path.

The water can be really rough here, depending on the winds and the tide. I usually take a swim near the shore if things look calm enough. The edge of the reef is close by as you can see. Right at this beach there is also an old Japanese bunker which is easy to miss, but is right there behind where I'm standing.

We headed south on the rocky coral, because we thought we saw a glass ball floating inside the reef. It turned out to be a rubber buoy. Oh, well.

It's very slightly uphill walking back up the grass road to the trail head. If you get to the stone wall, you've gone too far. Turn around and walk back to find the trail head going back to Banzai Cliff. Enjoy!

Taste of the Marianas

Tonight is the last night of one of Saipan's greatest annual events -- the Taste of the Marianas Food Festival that runs each Saturday night during the month of May. For the folks in Japan who have recently been visiting my blog, here is the description from the Marianas Visitor's Authority.

The smell of scrumptious and delectable food is in the air at The 9th Annual Taste of the Marianas International Food Festival and Beer Garden. One of Saipan’s most popular of events will take place on May 5, 12, 19 & 26, 2007 at the American Memorial Park. This event is complete with live entertainment, food, beverages and numerous competitions in the tropical Saipan weather making this outdoor evening event a favorite of visitors in the region who swarm for a "Taste of the Marianas".

There is no fee to join in on the fun and festivities, but you will need to purchase tokens for food and beverages. Saipan’s very best restaurants and hotels participate in this event making it a delectable culinary and cultural experience extravaganza not to be missed.

Locals show the Hafa Adai spirit to visitors of our tropical island of Saipan, sharing in the culture and enjoying all that the festival has to offer. So come and enjoy!!

Our family has been every Saturday night this month. It's great for the kids, and it always strikes me that we (and all the other parents) just let them run around and have a good time -- something you wouldn't do in a larger place.

Young Dancers
(Photo courtesy of Dave Hodges - visit his site for more great shots of Saipan)




Photo opportunity with the Carolinian dancers
(Photo courtesy of David Hodges)




The main stage




Artwork at the Taste of the Marianas



The ubiquitous roasting pig

Food huts on the grassy lawn at American Memorial Park, the usual venue.
Come join us next year!

Hike to Old Man by the Sea

Once a month, the kids at Brilliant Star School (which is one of the greatest schools in the WORLD, right here on Saipan!), go on a Junior Hikers' Trek. Today, we headed off to Old Man by the Sea. While we were there, my friend Xavier told the story that his father told him. There is a legend that an old man was fishing at this beach, and cursed the ocean for not giving him any fish. The ocean reached up and plucked the man away, but left his image on this rock on the beach for all to see and remember to respect the sea.

The trail has some small ups and downs and can be muddy and slippery if it rains. Take water, snacks, sunscreen, a hat and clothes to get wet in if you want to wade in the water at the beach. It's not a good snorkling beach, so don't bother lugging snorkle or mask along. It's a kid friendly hike. A few toddlers under two made it, albeit they were carried most of the way. It takes about 30-45 minutes each way, from the road to the beach.

Down at the bottom of this post, there are directions (complete with satellite photos) of how to get to this hike.

The Lamar's going down the steep part. A rope is always there to help.

Through the thicket.

Arriving at Old Man by the Sea beach.

Michael looking like MacArthur wading ashore.

Cool water and great waves crashing on the reef. I love this island!

Today Nava learned that it's not a good idea to run in the rocky water without reef shoes. She got a pretty deep gash on her heel. She was a trooper hiking back out. But it was deep enough that we went straight to my office where I put three stitches into the wound (after cleaning out all the bits of rock and coral.) We managed to get it sewn together in about 15 minutes, with enough time left to get home and shower and run off to see Shrek the Third.

Beautiful rock formations at the beach.

Preparing to leave.

Rob leads the way out for the last ones to leave.

Arman takes home a piece of Styrofoam -- a prized souvenir for any six year-old boy.

***

Directions to Old Man by the Sea

I think this is one of the coolest maps of the trail to Old Man by the Sea. I left the file "full size" so if you click on the image, you can get a nice detailed view of the map and satellite photo.

The trailhead for Old Man by the Sea is on Talafofo Road (the road to Kingfisher Gold Course from Capital Hill which starts next to Esco’s). The trail begins just after the Egigi Road intersection (misspelled on the map as Igigi) , and before the San Igancio Road intersection (not labeled on the map). The road widens a bit and there is room to park on the side.

As you get close, you'll see this "winding road" sign, which goes downhill.

Then as you start to come back uphill you'll see this telephone pole. The trailhead is past the telephone pole, near the farthest car.

Here is what the trail head looks like. It's an oft used trail, so it's usually pretty well worn and rarely gets overgrown. As is typical on Saipan, someone has left some markers hanging in the tree on the right, in this case, a water bottle and a pink shoe. If you're ever driving around Saipan and see something hanging from a tree by the side of the road, it is usually the start of a trail.

Hike to Lao Lao Bay

This was a great Wednesday morning. I was off from work, so my friend, Don Bader (who used to live on Saipan and is now here on a six month sabbatical from his job as an Emergency Room physician in Durango, Colorado) and I headed into the jungle.

This trail to Lao Lao Bay starts on Railroad Drive in San Vicente. The entire hike is down a gully that is usually dry, but fills with water when the rains are heavy. Today it was dry. The hike involves a fair bit of climbing over rocks and under fallen trees, so it can be a bit slow. The hike down is lush and shaded. Some of the most massive Banyan trees on Saipan are on this trail.

It is moderately kid friendly. I've taken my kids on it a couple of times. The ones under four usually need to be carried (mostly for speed), but the older ones do great.

To get to the starting point, turn down Railroad Drive, which is near the San Vicente post office on Isa Drive. The trail starts near the second telephone pole. If you get to the first set of houses on the left, you went just a little too far. There really isn't a trail head per se. At the lowest point in the road, just dive down into the overgrown gully and start walking.

You'll pop out, about an hour or so later, on the road to Lao Lao Bay. Walk left on this road, and you'll soon be at the beach. The fastest way to get back is to not go back up the gully, but rather to walk up the Lao Lao Bay road to Isa Drive, then turn right and walk along the main road (Isa Drive) to Railroad Drive.

It's a great hike, and can easily be done in a couple of hours.

One of the Banyan Trees on the way down.

Lush, "old growth" vegetation at Lao Lao Bay

Lao Lao Bay waters at the bottom of the hike.