Back to reality, cold and routine, which is not necessarily a bad thing. It is nice to go on vacation, but at some point I  start to miss darling people in my life, my bed and the intimacy of my home.

But enough nostalgia. Today I want to tell you about the special places I have visited in my last vacation in Palau.

Until I found the offer, I didn’t even know where Palau is on the map and now I’m watching documentaries about the island.

I don’t know a cheap route to recommend you. You can track the apps in the last travel post and maybe a system error occurs. (Now there’s an Amsterdam-Palau offer for 450 euros) Otherwise I believe the flights are quite expensive.

I went on Bucharest-Amsterdam-Bangkok-Taipei-Palau. I had a longer stopover in Taipei, and exit the airport, I slept and I visited an Asian City for the first time.

I arrived in the evening and of course we wanted to discover the famous Night Market, where I was shocked. I’m not a fan of strange food, but what I saw there exceeds my imagination. Frog eggs, stinky tofu (which smelled awful), all sorts of strange foods. I think you have to be very open minded to try something like these. I left with one casserole of papaya, which I ate it at the hotel, because I lost my appetite.

The next day I started with Democracy Memorial Park and I think I could sit there all day, if time allowed me. Small groups of people were doing all sorts of activities, dance, self-defense, breathing exercises, each in his square without being bothered by those around them. If you followed my snaps you have seen some pictures, but I did not want to get too much into their privacy. The place had a sober vibe.

Photos by Rares Pulbere 

The combination of this white building, flanked by 2 typical buildings seemed fascinating to me, and huge yard makes you feel so small …. It is a place that instantly relaxes you and you want to just sit and enjoy.

In the remaining 3.4 hours, I wandered the streets to feel as much of the Asian vibe. Besides the perfectly landscaped parks and imposing buildings, there are those seemingly messy streets, but which makes sense to them. What amazed me is the multitude of small restaurants. You feel like everywhere there’s something cooking. I’m just sorry that I did not get to taste the biggest avocado I have ever seen.

And with this feeling, to discover more, I left Taipei behind for the last flight of the 4th, to Koror, Palau.

We arrived in the evening and in the moment we’re off the plane the got hit by a heat wave just how I like it. At the same time it a wave of concern hit us too, when I learned that European SIM cards do not work in Palau. So Airplane Mood for two weeks. I’ve put my hope in Wi-Fi. We took a taxi along with two Polish guys, with whom we became friends after, and went to Palau Royal Resort, our hotel for the first few days.

Palau Royal Resort is a small corner of paradise with a private beach, built artificially, because the beaches are not natural in Koror. Hotels, who can afford it built their own and there are very few with a beach. From a living room style entry with a custom river  with hundreds of fish, to spacious rooms with heated toilets and a spectacular view, everything looks gorgeous. This hotel is the top choice for island visitors and not just any visitors. Most are high-income Asians, Americans and very few, very few Europeans.

But even if the distance is so big, it is worth it for at least once in life to get here. For lovers of scuba diving, snorkelling, kayaks it’s a must see !!!

But back to our experience at Palau Royal Resort. I waited anxiously to get to my wi-fi which is only  available in the restaurant, and for the rest I learned that you should purchase cards from different companies who do not work in certain locations and have a limited time (you can buy 2, 4 or 10 hours maximum) You don’t want to know how many cards I bought to communicate home and share some things with you in real time.

The wi-fi problem is all over the island. The only decent coffee shop in Koror where  you can find decent wi-fi, a good tea and coffee is called Coffee Berry.

In the first two days we tried to get over the time difference, to tan on our small piece of white sandf beach and to discover the city center. But because I worked until the last day, I could not relax at all the first few days. I had to  post, the internet was killing me and I was very anxious. The first night I was kneeling at 5 am glued to the restaurant door to catch some internet and send some urgent emails. 

But slowly I calmed down and we managed to enjoy the scenery. I asked for coconuts from the palm trees in the backyard from those who were maintaining it, I did the first session of snorkelling in the cove in front of the hotel and started to organize our activities.

We had so much to see and didn’t  know in what order to see them. We arrived at Fish & Fins, one of the largest companies on the island that offers from snorkeling, kayaks, to the most extravagant experiences, sleeping on a huge ship, with chef and activities, scuba diving, off road and island helicopter flights. These people can organize your entire vacation, because of the many things they do.

I started it “easy” with a day of kayaks in Saygon Bay, a small part of Rock Island. To paddle  several hours without training is not easy, but I liked it very much. Our instructor, Douglas, took us to a cave, we passed under a rock to a super lake, where we saw a lot of fish, I saw parts of airplanes fallen in the Second World War and the list goes on.

I had lunch with my feet in the water and it was the tastiest meal after how much effort we made. Every day we choose a trip from the existing menus, and the 2nd day we had it ready for the road some very funny and practical cases. In fact, at Fish & Fins everything is very organized, which at first surprised me, because locals are more zen, but when I learned that Tova, who handles with iron hands this place is native to Israel, I understood everything .

We have a say “The man sanctifies the place”

Darlings we continue our adventure in the next post. I have so much to say and do not know how to compress them in writing ?

See you. Kisses