Food is one of the major topics/ issues here in Kiribati. Due to population pressures, and salination of soils, there is very limited food availability and most foods are imported from NZ, Aust or Fiji. Foraging for food is a weekly task, well at least biking the 12km or so to Bairiki and back, stopping in at various "supermarkets" on the way is. Theses aren't NZ style supermarkets, rather most are warehouses/ stores selling a range of products, no two of which seem to sell the same things. As well as theses there are numerous small shops along the main road where families make an income selling various products. To get your weekly shop you need to stop in at several different places to see what is in stock this week. At one one the larger ones in Bairiki this week they had some fresh fruit and veggies, last week the shelves were bare. After three weeks without any fruit I couldn't resist spending $6 on a single orange and a peach! Yes, that is the first fruit (apar

For the next year I am living in a house rented by VSA, it is about as far into the centre of the island as you can get. Which means we've a 200m walk to the road and lagoon on ones side, about 75ms to the seaward beach on the other! Yes, the island is that narrow. I'm currently flatting with a VSA volunteer called Aaron who finishes up his 20 month placement later this week, then the place will be mine. It has been great flatting with him, he's really been a  great host and full of good advice to make settling into life here so much easier. The outdoor area, the room at the end is the washhouse and houses a couple of old soft top surfboards the local kids can use, my boards. The house is pretty solid- we are above the cyclone zone, king tides and strong winds combining are our main natural hazard. The home has been used by volunteers for a number of years so is well appointed with various odds and ends left behind by my predecessors, making it a reasonably well ap

One thing that has been going on here in Kiribati since I arrived is the unfolding tragedy of the recent ferry disaster. A ferry with 85 people on board travelling between Nonousti (pronounced Na-noose) and South Tarawa left port on January 18th for the two day journey to Betio (on South Tarawa) but did not make it. Unfortunately, it was several days before the ferry was reported missing and New Zealand (and later Australia, the US and Taiwan)  sent out planes to search for the ferry and, once a lifeboat was located, other survivors.  I must admit I am not one hundred percent up on the exact details but his terrible accident which has been slowly unfolding here. I first learned of the missing ferry while waiting for my plane at Auckland airport and have been relying on news sources in New Zealand and the UK to keep up to latest developments.     Last week a week of prayer was declared in Kiribati and there was, and continues to be, hope amongst the people that I have s

Last weekend we were taken to a village on the island of  Nabeina in North Tarawa for the weekend to complete our week long orientation programme. We were picked up by boat abut 4pm and whisked across the lagoon to North Tarawa. We stayed in one of the local villages with the family of Motire, who had been our guide for the week, navigating us through the various government departments getting various forms stamped, helping to get my work permit, as well as a drivers licence, bank accounts etc. One of the family huts. North Tarawa is a real contrast to South Tarawa. South Tarawa is quite noisy and crowded;  land is at a premium so there are huts and houses everywhere. Young kids and dogs wander about and there is a constant background hum of cars and vans (used locally as buses) travelling along the main road linking the islands, people and music.  North Tarawa on the other hand was a tranquil haven, an insight into how life would have been like prior to the rapid population g