North Beach Cottages and the Parents Depart

My parents were very good about sun protection during their stay. They wore hats and applied copious amounts of sunscreen. Occasionally spots are missed and unfortunately for my mother she didn't apply sunscreen to half her face while we were at PPR. That night she was burned, but luckily it wasn't too bad. Still, the next day she wanted to stay home, so we hung around my place and watched a few movies. For dinner, we went to Bandidos so my father could experience Mexican food in Palau. He agreed it wasn't the best, but really enjoyed the atmosphere and the margaritas. After dinner we went to the Coconut Hut, one of the few places you can get an ice cream cone. It is located right next to work, which is great for a slow workday.

The next day, I put my parents into the car and sent them north all by themselves. As my Christmas present, I gave them a one night stay at North Beach Cottages, a small resort at the northern tip of Babeldaob. It is comprised of four individual cottages set off by themselves right on the beach. They are made of mahogany wood and while they look rustic have modern amenities like air conditioning. It is the idyllic fantasy of a cottage on a tropical beach at the edge of human civilization. They successfully drove all the way up there and arrived in the early afternoon without getting lost. There was only one other couple there and few staff, so they pretty much had the place to themselves. They spent the afternoon on the beach and enjoyed the shade provided by the large trees that hang over the beach. They especially liked the single person hammocks and spent many hours in them reading. They ate dinner at the small dining area, but otherwise were at the cottage or on the beach. The next morning was more of the same: lounging at the beach or on the deck of their cottage. They said it felt like being at the end of the world. They stayed until checkout and then successfully drove back to my place. They met me at the PCC track and walked a few laps while I played frisbee. For dinner, we went back to Krämer's. We all had the tuna melt and thoroughly enjoyed it. Their tuna melt is world class and I figure nothing will measure up to it so I better get my fill.

The following day was my parent's last day in Palau. They spent the morning packing and then met me for a final lunch at Rock Island Cafe. They spent their last afternoon at PPR before bidding it farewell. After work, we all went to Sam's to go kayaking. I had one last adventure for them before they left. Neither had done much kayaking and Mom was hesitant, so I took Dad out in a double kayak. We slowly figured out how to paddle together as we meandered through the boats tied up in the coves near Sam's. Then we went to an enclosed cove just out of sight from Sam's. Once you enter that cove, the rest of the world seems to disappear and you are surrounded by the islands, the water, and the sounds of nature. Dad really enjoyed that spot. We next tried to kayak into Jellyfish Cove, but it was very low tide and the shallow reef prevented our entry (although we tried to get in and got hung up on some rocks). We then wandered around a bit more behind turning back to Sam's. We arrived back at the dock without about 25 minutes to sunset and I was determined to get Mom in the kayak. I told her to get in and she thought I was joking at first but soon relented and got in. I was able to paddle the kayak without her paddling, so we left the extra paddle at the dock. I paddled us straight to the secluded cove and showed Mom around. We left that cove and then went to a great spot to see the sun setting over the islands. It was a gorgeous spot and a perfect way for Mom to see her last Palauan sunset. Mom was really happy she went on the kayak trip and said it was a great way to end her vacation. I paddled us back and we drifted past a massive yacht in the harbor from George Town, Australia. We made it back to the dock and got Mom out of the kayak without getting wet. Dad had managed to amuse himself with a Red Rooster beer at Sam's bar.

After more packing, we went to dinner at the Penthouse Hotel to have one last fish dinner. They were out of wahoo, so instead we had barracuda. Just like its disposition, it is tougher than other fish but was still tasty. Afterwards, the parents finished packing and then it was off to the airport. They checked in and other than a slow counter agent there were no issues. We said our goodbyes and they were off on their journey home. Thankfully, there was no repeat of Mom's trip here and they made it home safely without any problems.

I really enjoyed having my parents visit. It was a lot of fun showing them all the things they have been reading about in this journal. Even though I have had a long stretch of guests, we got to do new things I had not done before and plenty of other exciting activities. I'm very happy they could visit and share this experience with me.

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