Glenniver’s Travels
My First Trip to Roi-Namur
I had an interesting last several weeks in the USA with all the traveling I had to do. Well, maybe it wasn’t interesting but it was exciting in a bad sort of way for the most part. It all started when I drove up to Seattle to let my children have my car while I was gone. I had to drive through LA which was a pleasure because there are probably a million drivers in LA who drive exactly like I do…. Traffic was heavy but moved along at a good clip because everyone drove in a logical manner for the most part. But there was this one truck driver that I sort of cut off because I didn’t want him driving slow in front of me. He made a gesture I didn’t understand with his hand (maybe he was telling me I was number 1) and then seemed to be chasing me through traffic. For the most part this was a good thing because it encouraged me to get through LA as fast as possible and not to lolly-gag there, admiring the drivers and looking for Hollywood movie stars.
That first day I made it to a motel north of Sacramento where I had my next experience. While checking in, the attractive but gothic young lady asked if I had AAA or AARP discount. I said “What?!!!!” She asid AARP. I said “I’m old but not that old.” I then explained to her what AARP stands for. She said she didn’t know but now realized why young people gave her a funny look when she asked that.
I made it up to Seattle without further incident. I had a good time seeing family and friends. I returned to Tucson on Christmas Eve in order to have a few days to prepare for my trip to Roi-Namur. I forgot to mention that on the way to Seattle I started having certain symptoms. I went to the doctor the day before I left for Roi and she determined that I either had a kidney infection or a kidney stone but either way I should drink lots water even if I was on an airplane.
My last night in Tucson I stayed at a motel by the airport so I could sleep as late as possible which was more like a time to go to sleep and then get up. Other than security hassles I had an uneventful flight to Honolulu by way of Salt Lake City and the frequent trips to the head. After checking into the hotel I had supper at a nearby Japanese/Chinese fast food restaurant. Then I decided to go for a walk in the neighborhood to get some exercise. I first asked the desk clerk if it was all right and she assured me it was perfectly safe. I thought she was right when I saw a family pushing a baby stroller. When I turned around to head back to the Hotel I decided to go back a different way. I was almost to the hotel when I young man, maybe about 20 or so who was walking the other way crossed the street and started following me. At this point the street was deserted other than my new friend and I . I thought that maybe I should walk a little faster but he sped up as well. At this point I asked myself what Sifu would want me to do. Since I hadn’t been studying gung-fu that long I thought I should rely on my natural strength which is that I can run faster than 90% of the people out there and maybe more if I’m scared. I noticed a car coming the other way so I crossed the street in front of it so they could see what would happen if the guy attacked me. My next plan was to head for the little shopping center that was on the side of the street. My buddy decided at that point to turn around and go the other way. I am sure he could tell by the way I dashed into the street in front of a speeding car that I was an expert in Wing Chun Gung-fu. I headed back to the hotel keeping my eyes alert for any other would be attackers.
The next morning I took a cab to the Air Force base to catch my MAC flight for Kwajalein. While waiting for my plane I noticed a scuffle outside and saw the MPs escorting a rather angry individual with his hands cuffed behind his back. I had a chat with the lady behind the counter at the gift shop and she said that the dude had been brandishing a knife. I guess he went postal. She said he was normally a nice guy but that he was a bit strange. I guess so. In today’s climate I don’t think you want to threaten airport military police with a knife.
Eventually it was time for us to board our luxury C-141 for Kwajalein. That was a real interesting experience. We were sitting in these seats facing backwards so that we would all be able to watch the baggage. There was so much baggage we couldn’t see out any of the windows so you had no idea what the plane was doing. You could only guess by the movement. Evenutally we seemd to take off into the wild blue yonder. I felt lucky since I was in the back roll facing the luggage so I would have extra leg room. About 45 minutes into the flight the load master or pilot got on the intercom and said that we would need to return to Honolulu, as there was a hydraulic failure on board. So we turned around and went back. Fortunately for us, there was another flight that same day so they put us on that one instead. This one didn’t have as much baggage so they had the seats configured in the traditional jump seat arrangement where you sat on a webbed seat with your back against the skin of the airplane. This was pretty cool I have to admit. I was sitting next to the colonel who is the base commander here. Both he and his wife seemed like great people. He helped me figure out how to buckle my seat belt (it was this weird old fashioned kind) which probably helped me make a great first impression. His wife spent part of the flight reading her bible. I was hoping that was a regular practice of hers’ and not because she had some insider information on the likely hood of the plane landing safely. The colonel also politely informed me that there would not be an in-flight movie when I asked him. We got a pretty good lunch on the plane and the loadmaster (the Air Force equivalent of a stewardess) gave us all the macadamia nut candies we could eat.
When we landed on Kwajalein I walked across the tarmac and into the terminal. Immediately I had to get a badge made and then you walk into this other section and look dumbfounded because you are new and have no idea where to go to catch the flight to Roi-Namur. It turns out my sponsor had to leave when he found out my flight turned back but he arranged to have a nice couple pick me up. They didn’t pick me up in a car but rather Dave steered a second bike for me to ride once I got there. We went to their beautiful home and had hamburgers on their patio.
Eventually it was time to board the Beechcraft to fly to my new home on Roi-Namur. It was dark by then so I couldn’t see the beautiful lagoon below. I’ve since made 2 more flight to Kwaj during the day and have seen the coral heads and even some sunken ships from the sky. We fly at about 3,000 to 4,000 feet. After a safe landing on Roi I was greeted by my sponsor who had arranged for a company truck to carry my suitcases to my new apartment.
We heard someone say that it is a 5-hour trip from Honolulu but it is like a trip in time 40 or 50 years into the past once you arrive here. I especially felt that way when I first got here. Although I had a phone in my room it had not been hooked up and would not be hooked up for several more days. I remember thinking this is what it must have been like for my Mom when she was a girl. No phone, cars, trains, internet, or computers. Now I have a working phone and partial access to the internet at the end of the day.