Change is the only constant
March 31, 2011No matter where we seem to go, which
port we land ourselves in, the procedures differ just enough to be
confusing....Chuuk proving no exception to the rule.
Having tried to raise Port Control on Channel 16 as we entered Chuuk Lagoon and having had no response we thought it prudent to head to the harbour first thing after our arrival (a Sunday mind you) to advise of our presence.
Not knowing exactly how far Weno Harbour was we decided to hire a scooter from the Resort (cheap and easy travel – or so we thought) and head to town. If nothing else we'd get the lay of the land, find a spare parts dealer and maybe locate the Customs and immigration office to check in (always the optimist).
After 30 minutes of bone jarring dirt bike riding (Ralph pushing the mo-ped to it's limits) we found the town centre, which is not really very hard to do as there's only one road on Weno; you either go up or down it. So up the road we went, seeking information as best we could on the location of customs, only to find it close to the airport above a convenience store.... office hours clearly stated on the window, Monday to Friday 9-12pm, 1-3pm, Saturday and Sunday, Closed....So no check in for us.... That said we did locate the local telecommunications company and now have phone and internet access at reasonable rates.
We also got to have a bit of a gander at the living conditions close to town...and I can tell you.... it ain't pretty. The island itself is superb; crystal clear water, coconut fringed, small pockets of lush and still mangroves set against a backdrop of densely vegetated volcanic peaks....but the living conditions are not so idyllic! Houses give the impression of an injection of foreign money and assistance (say in the 70s) that have been steadily run down since that point. Maybe the occasional coat of brightly coloured paint, but not even that can disguise the squalor of the living conditions. Although having spent the last hour scrubbing scum off our own dwelling maybe I should save the term 'squalor' for our own living conditions.... hmmmm.
We did eventually manage to check in come Monday, but it turns out one needs a visitors permit prior to entry here and that can only be obtained in Phonpei. So currently Immigration are holding our passports ransom until our permits have been granted and will issue a visa for 30 days when they do. We also managed to clear in with Customs and Quarantine however that came at an additional labour cost as a host of 'officials' needed to drive down to the resort and perform their routine inspections (basically consisting of sitting on the dock, looking at the boat from a distance and asking us questions).... for this dubious pleasure we were charged $20.00US per official. With 4 officials in attendance we left their company a little poorer financially...but richer for the experience (note the tongue in cheek please).
Posted by Penny Goldfinch. Posted In : Chuuk
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