Saturday, 10 October 2009

• Where Are You Micronesia?

  
  
  From Guest Blogger Art of Backpacking.
  

  Grab the nearest world map. Look in the North Pacific Ocean region. Do you see it? Maybe your map doesn’t have it, but this is common. Try going on Google Maps and zoom in. A little more. Yes! There it is! Micronesia, those tiny group of islands by Papua New Guinea. Totalling 702 sq km, Micronesia is a very small group of islands and sub-islands divided in land, but united in a variety of culture, flora and fauna.

  Map of Micronesia

  Micronesia is divided into eight nation-states and territories:

  • Guam
    
  • Kiribati
    
  • Marshall Islands
    
  • Federated States of Micronesia, sometimes referred to simply as “Micronesia”, or abbreviated as “FSM”.
    
  • Nauru
    
  • Northern Mariana Islands
    
  • Palau
    
  • Wake Island

  There are many interesting locals for the off beat traveler to see. Each island is unique in its own way, but together, they form the little area known as Micronesia. It is basically four major island groups totaling 607 islands.
  

  Some facts about Micronesia (From the CIA World Fact Book)

  • How big? Four times the size of Washington, DC, America (Land size)
  • Climate? Get your sunscreen out! Heavy year-round rainfall, especially in the eastern islands; located on southern edge of the typhoon belt with occasionally severe damage. Typhoon season is from June to December.
  • Population: 107,434
  • So who lives there? Chuukese 48.8%, Pohnpeian 24.2%, Kosraean 6.2%, Yapese 5.2%, Yap outer islands 4.5%, Asian 1.8%, Polynesian 1.5%, other 6.4%, unknown 1.4% (2000 census)
  • What do they speak? English (official and common language), Chuukese, Kosrean, Pohnpeian, Yapese, Ulithian, Woleaian, Nukuoro, Kapingamarang. Hm. I hope there is an Apple application for these!
  • What about those four nation groups? They are 4 states; Chuuk (Truk), Kosrae (Kosaie), Pohnpei (Ponape), Yap

  Now that we know a little bit about these small island nations, here is a list of interesting places to check out if you decide to make the grand voyage to the micro place!

  

  Kosrae:  is the state that really observes the weekend. Every Sunday, the state shuts down and puts full focus to vibrant all-singing, all-dancing church ceremonies. Join together with the people of this cultural island and make sure to capture the essence of their culture. There are mysterious ancient ruins of the Kosraean people that date back to World War II.

  Chuuk: Check out Truk Lagoon, a sheltered body of water surrounded by reef. Looking for marine life? You’ll find mantra-rays, turtles, sharks and corals.  Its a scuba divers paradise!

  So how do you get there? From Wiki Travel: The major airline that travels to FSM is Continental Airlines, which operates a thrice-weekly “island hopper” flight (CO956 eastbound, CO957 westbound) traveling Honolulu—Majuro—Kwajalein—Kosrae—Pohnpei—Chuuk—Guam and vice versa. The flight is fourteen and a half hours, leaving in the early morning and terminating in the evening, with a stop of about one hour on each island. There are also nonstop flights from various islands to both Honolulu and Guam.

  Micronesia Visitors Guide

  

  Have you visited Micronesia? Let us know how you liked it!

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