Adjusting to Island Life—One Quarter at a Time!

Well, our first full week in Palau has come and gone! We’ve attended the branch twice now and already feel so welcome. There’s such a sweet sense of family in this little branch. Last week they had a potluck after the meetings, so we were able to visit with several members. This week we both spoke in church, and I’ve started playing the organ again. We’re getting involved quickly and want to help wherever we can!  The building has the island vibe with the outdoor baptismal font as in Guam.  

On Monday we finished gathering all the items needed for our apartment. Since it’s a new apartment to the mission—just like our one in Mongolia—we had to start from scratch with dishes, pots and pans, small appliances, a microwave, and other essentials. Because there are many Seventh-day Adventists on the island, most stores are closed on Saturday. We did what we could at the one store that was open, then finished up on Monday at a beautiful new shopping center. It’s very modern and even has an escalator—the only one on the island outside the airport!  That shopping trip also gave us our first real exposure to the Palauan language. The restroom signs were in Palauan, and we think we figured them out correctly! Another fun discovery was seeing fresh, seasonal, local fish laid out in the grocery store—something we didn’t see in either Arizona or Mongolia.

Speaking of our apartment, we feel pretty spoiled! I’ve already mentioned our front-room view, but the inside is lovely as well. It’s a three-bedroom, three-bath apartment with a nice balcony out front. Although the mornings are often cloudy, we’ve already enjoyed one beautiful sunrise.

Our apartment is the white building on the right...the view from the island across the water that we look out on.

The good news about our location is that we’re only on the third floor—not the fifth—and there’s an elevator! The bad news is that you have to put a quarter in to use it. Some days we splurge; other days we take the stairs. When we met with President Williams before heading to Palau, he gave us the key to our apartment and three quarters so we could get our luggage upstairs—something we were very grateful for! We also need quarters to do our laundry--It's been a long time since I had to put quarters in to do my laundry!  Apparently banks don't give quarters here, so we have to plan ahead to get them from the apartment manager!  The good news is we have a dryer! 

Monday’s other big task was setting up internet service and SIM cards. Since the internet provider was closed on Saturday and we arrived late Friday, we’d been without communication all weekend and were eager to get connected. That led to another round of good-news/bad-news. The good news: we were able to get a SIM card and data plan for J.D.’s phone—slow data, but better than none! The bad news: my newer phone doesn’t have a physical SIM slot, and eSIM technology hasn’t made it to Palau yet. So I’m hotspotting off J.D.’s phone for now.  More bad news came when we tried to set up our apartment internet—they were out of splitters and didn’t know when more would arrive. We’re quickly learning that island life means being flexible and patient. Shipments come when they come! I was a little grumpy at first, but I’m doing my best to remember: Don’t worry, be happy!

In the meantime, we’ve taken up residence in the clerk’s office/family history center at the church to use the Wi-Fi there. Thank goodness for the reliability of the Liahona—no matter where you go in the world, the Church keeps you connected in more ways than one!

One of the first things we jumped into was one of our favorite traditions—feeding the missionaries! It was so fun getting to know them better, and we look forward to many more shared meals and laughter in the months ahead.

On Tuesday morning, we received a call that a large shipment of donations—hospital beds, wheelchairs, braces, crutches, dental supplies, and more—had arrived for the local hospital. We quickly arranged a handover ceremony so the hospital could begin using the equipment. To our surprise, the Vice President of Palau (who also serves as Minister of Health and Human Services) came to accept the donation! The people were so grateful for the brand-new items; they said it felt like Christmas morning. We wrote a story about it, which became our first post on the Guam Newsroom.

That evening, we attended our first district meeting. Our district includes all the senior couples serving on the islands outside of Guam. After serving in a district with young missionaries in Mongolia, this was a new experience, but we’re excited to get to know these wonderful couples and share stories and testimonies together.

Tuesday night was also music night at the branch, where we learned to play the ukulele! I didn’t get much practice time since we had our other meeting, but I hope to learn more in the weeks ahead.

Another exciting event of the week was us getting our driver licenses!  No giving blood, tests at the hospital, or poorly translated driving tests were involved, but we did have to get a Palauan Social Security card!  Now we are official residents of Palau! 

Later in the week, we found a quaint restaurant called The Canoe House, with such a fun island vibe and delicious food. J.D. even tried macaroni and cheese pizza!   

And yes, even on a small island—rush hour traffic is real!  There is just one main road which most of the businesses are on.

We have enjoyed watching the political process in motion as each evening after work residents, including families, stand on the street campaigning for their candidate.  There is waving and smiles and horn honks, all friendly in nature and quite refreshing for us to see!  

We also visited Palau Community College to offer our services. I think they were a bit surprised that we wanted to volunteer without pay! Between J.D.’s experience as a college president and my background as a math instructor, we let them know we’re happy to help however we can. We’ll see if they take us up on the offer.

Another highlight of the week was attending our first missionary lesson here. The elders were teaching a young boy and his family. In Mongolia, all the lessons we attended were held at the church, so it was extra special to visit this family in their home and feel the warmth of their love and faith.

It’s been a week full of learning, laughter, and tender mercies. We’re grateful for the warm welcome we’ve received, for small modern miracles like an elevator and dryer (even if they do require quarters), and for the peace that comes from knowing that no matter where we serve, the Lord’s work moves forward!