Marbo Cave With Pleasant Surprise

Yikes! It has been too long since we have posted to our blog. It has been incredibly busy with PIBC Days (an action-packed three day event at the college which we'll write and post about soon-- hopefully) and then all the church activities leading up to and including Easter. But, for now, we'll tell you about our trip to Marbo Cave. We decided that since we were all on Easter break (our kids and us professors), that it would be fun to head to this underwater cave located down a remote road only about six minutes from our house. We piled into our car and as we parked at the isolated spot, within five seconds, two vans pulled up beside us. And what do you suppose was written on the sides of the vans? PIBC! Nearly thirty students crawled out of the two 15-passenger vans! What a wonderful surprise! I guess the women's dean, Melissa Heck, decided it would be fun to take the students on a day trip while they were on Easter break. Melissa is also credited with the pictures posted on this blog. (Thank you, Melissa!)

The cave had fresh water to swim in, rocks to jump off into the water, and had water as deep as thirty feet in places. Off the "main" swimming cave were some side caves also filled with water. Some of these areas were pitch dark. I was glad that Eric brought our underwater scuba flashlight to illuminate the areas where we were swimming; otherwise, I think I would have been a bit creeped out. I never saw any living creatures (besides the ever-present mosquitoes) in or near the water. Once illuminated, the water was crystal clear and it would have been fun with scuba tanks to explore what appeared to be underground tunnels leading to perhaps other water-filled caverns.

One of the cutest moments was when some PIBC students took out a HUGE Tupperware container (like the kind you would use to hold a large cake) filled with rice and an entire LARGE can of spam and some uncooked hot dogs (in package) and a can of little wieners. This fare was VERY generously offered to any and all who were interested in partaking (classic Micronesian quality). Ultimately, the students happily gobbled their edibles without utensils as the Tupperware floated in front of them. It is worth going to this YouTube posting (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeZrsHXhwcY) to get a sense of true Micronesian sharing when it comes to food. Trust me, as an American, you will discover more about Micronesian culture in watching 20 seconds of this video taken in the PIBC's men's dorm than you could learn by reading volumes!

This was a very fun family afternoon made especially sweet because of the company we were able to keep!