Impressions of Micronesia

After 6 weeks in Micronesia, we were able to take away some interesting learnings about several aspects of the culture and world views. As we usually do when we leave a region, we wanted to share with you a few of our impressions and learnings...


Connection With the USA

• Yap and Palau before World War II were both occuppied by the Japanese (and before that, the Germans). From what we gathered, the Japanese occupation in Yap was much more brutal than in Palau and for this reason, many Yapese greatly dislike the Japanese. In Palau, it seems as if the Japanese respected the people a bit more and worked alongside them (instead of enslaving and killing them), so the people there feel more neutral towards the Japanese. In Palau, there are still many Japanese tourists and they have received a great deal of Japanese monetary gifts to build roads and other public works.


• After WWII, the Americans "liberated" (as the Yapese say) the islands from the Japanese. Palau is now its own free country and Yap is a state in the Federated States of Micronesia. Both are still heavily influenced by the US and continue to receive a good deal of US financial aid to support their economies. Palauans and Yapese both have special rights to visit, live and work in the US (basically, they can come/go as they like) and have the same access as Americans to US univerisities, job corps, the military, etc. As a result, many islanders do study, visit, work and live in the US at some point in their lives. Americans also have the same access to the islands and can stay (and even work) as long as we want without a visa. A good number of the expat community on the islands we met were Americans - either divers, Peace Corps, or American attorneys on foreign contracts.


• While we still did encounter the usual anti-Bush and anti-Iraq sentiment from a number of islanders that we have in other countries, most people are pretty pro-American due to the influence of US government, US financial-aid, American consumerism, movies/music/TV, etc.

The People, Culture and Traditions

• The local people we encountred in both Palau and Yap were very friendly and polite - always sure to wave and say hello as we passed by. They are quite relaxed and very laid back individuals - hanging out, chatting, and chewing betel nut to pass by the morning, afternoon, or evening is a favorite pasttime. While the people are very friendly, they are also quite shy and private - beyond basic conversations, they are not likely to expand on their personal lives or opinions.


• Local food in both countries is quite similar - a lot of fish, taro root, tapioca root, coconut, rice, bananas, pinapple, papaya, etc. In addition to what can be found locally, Westernization has brought plenty of canned and processed food with long shelf lives for island living...so Spam, hotdogs, Spagettios, pasta, etc. are easily come by and growing in popularity. In addition, Western living has meant more cars, office jobs and fewer islanders living a traditional lifestyle. One consequence of all this is an increase in obesity, which means diabetes, heart problems and other kinds of health issues are a major problem.


• We found local traditions in Yap to be more pronounced than in the more developed Palau, but both island groups still have a strong sense of their island cultures. People are very proud of their traditional dress, dances, rituals, arts (such as canoe building and carving) and will annually celebrate their heritage. For example, in March there is a 3-day "Yap Day" celebration that brings in hundreds of Yapese, outer islanders and even some foreigners. On the outer islands of Yap (and to some extent on the main island), people still go topless and wear the traditional "lava-lavas" for women and "thus" (i.e., loin cloths) for men. To read a bit more about Yap culture click here. To read a bit more about Palau culture click here.


• Education on the islands is improving, but not yet at the standard of many Western nations. Many teachers do not have degrees and the courses, from what we were told, are not extremely rigorous. In fact, we were quite surprised to find that on Palau, there was only 1 small bookstore at the community college that had a total of maybe 100 books. In Yap, they are seeking to raise the bar and get accreditted by the American board of education, but still have some work to do. Despite this, a number of Micronesian students do go on to community college in Micronesia and some attend university or go into job corps abroad - usually in Guam or the US.


• The last tidbit we wanted to share with you, mainly about Yap, is the continuing existence of a strong caste system and the power of the chiefs. In their government, The Council of Chiefs (the 4th branch of government alongside the President, the House, and the Senate) hold as much or more weight than the other powers. No law gets passed without approval from the island chiefs, who continue to be greatly respected and obeyed within their villages and on the islands overall. The caste system we were told originated many years ago from India. To this day, the caste you are born into will determine your place in the village traditions, how others in the village will treat you, etc. While those of low caste still have access to education and employment, if they truly want to get ahead, they must choose to get their degrees and work overseas. For example, someone of a higher caste will often refuse to work under someone of lower caste - even if the lower caste person is more educated and qualified. It was difficult to learn the true ins and outs of how this system continues to function, but we were certainly made aware it did exist.

Religous Beliefs

• The Spanish missionaries began making their mark many years ago on these islands followed by the Germans and a number of others. As a result, the bulk of Palauns and Yapese have converted to some form of Christianity. There continues to be a strong missionary presence from a number of religions including Catholic, Prostestant, Seventh Day Adventist, Jahovah Witness and Mormon - all vying for the Yapese souls. Our friend Dieter put it well - "Considering there are fewer than 11,000 people in all of Yap and outer islands, what is the price of a Yapese soul?" Some Yapese and Palauns are devout in their religion and beliefs. Others are swayed by the changing tides and the enticing offers of the missionaries (free food, education, special benefits, etc.). And from what we were told, regardless of the religion that many islanders claim, many still practice some of their traditional ways. Those traditions might include a trip to the shaman or witch doctor to get rid of evil spirits, to connect with ancestors, or even to heal a medical ailment. This is more common with the older generations, but certainly aspects of these traditions and beliefs will continue to be passed down and mixed and matched with more modern religions.


• Another side effect of the missionaries we feel we must mention is the way in which it has changed and altered the traditional way of life on the islands. One of our tour guides expressed his frustration at how many missionaries insisted that the islanders must not only convert, but must also live in exactly their way. He himself was a Christian, but said he did't think he had to change his entire way of life to believe and worship God. Sadly, the approach of many missionaries did not always respect traditional lifestyles - and God aside - instead of altering their lifestyle to fit the way of the islands, they insisted the islands alter their way of life to fit Western ways.

Marriage and Relationships

• Since we ourselves are preparing to embark on life-long commitment, we thought it would be interesting to ask the islanders how marriage works in their cultures. While there are differences between Palau and Yap, in general, we found that marriage (and especially a wedding) is not as big of a deal as it is in the US. Sometimes, but not as often now, arranged marriages occur. Marriage ceremonies are simple, if they happen at all. Pretty much, the fathers and/or uncles of the bride and groom must declare the marriage is official, a dowry is paid by the groom's family to the bride's, and the bride moves in with the groom.


• Dating in Yap is a very private affair, happening after hours where the couple can't be seen, on dark back roads, or by text messaging. It is not uncommon or looked down upon for Yapese women to have children before they are married, and the kids are often cared for by the family. As far as committment, we heard different things. Some said marriage was taken seriously. Others claimed that affairs are not at all uncommon.


• Again, it seemed the whole topic of male/female relationships and marriage was a bit complicated, so we can only provide the surface explanation of what we heard through the grape vine of local and expat conversations and rumors. In every country we've visitied, we certainly have learned that relationships and marriage are approached very differently all around the world.

The Future

A couple excerpts of what locals told us...

• "I want to go to community college in Yap and then to University in Kentucky. I like the sound of the same of that state, and I have family there. Then I want to come back to Yap and live here, maybe start my own business on the island."


• "I'm concerned about the growing Western influence and loss of traditional ways and culture in Yap. I feel like we are a spoiled child to the US. Instead of sending people to help us learn how to make our economy more self-sufficient, they just keep giving us more money. I think we need to be allowed to fail and make mistakes and learn to stand on our own two feet. My ideal future would be Yap returning to more traditional ways (work, food, building, etc.) and becoming self-sustaining with everything we have on the island - like we used to be many years ago. Our interaction with the outside world would be for the purpose of trade."


• "I fear the big developers of Asia coming to Peleliu (Palau) to make the island a resort island. Some chiefs and people are supportive of the idea - thinking it will bring in money and make them rich. I, and others, are against it because we think it will ruin the island's culture and relaxed atmosphere. I think the money will go more into the pockets of the developers than to the locals, and would prefer to see the island's tourism grow organically and locally."