Pacific Magazine > Magazine > February 1, 2003

Stuff We Like

Stuff We Like

Finding Pacific Places

Bess Press and author Max Quanchi have given us a unique compendium of Pacific maps, photos and graphs that can guide newcomer and old hand alike around the region. Filled with interesting statistical information, like the percentage of urban and rural dwellers in each Island country or maps of the mineral deposits in PNG, New Caledonia and Fiji, the book also profiles topic areas like fishing and agriculture. Max Quanchi has taught Pacific history and he knows the tools that teachers need. This publication is one such tool. Atlas of the Pacific Islands is available in regional book stores or directly from Bess Press at www.besspress.com. $24.95.

Typhoon Chaser

Trying to track the events on Tikopia and Anuta islands in the Solomons, we stumbled across the Web site of New Zealand photojournalist Geoff Mackley who was the first outside person to arrive on the stricken islands-while the Solomons and Australian governments dithered for a week saying there was no way to get there. (see story) Mackley’s photos and first-hand account are on his Web site, where he chastises other news services for getting things wrong and for using his photos without paying for them. Check out this site: www.geoffmackley.com.

Yap Dancing 2003

A three-day festival celebrating Yap Day will be held March 1 to 3, 2003, in Yap State, Federated States of Micronesia. Yap Day, an official holiday observed annually on March 1, is a celebration of the culture of the Islands of Yap. Villages representing the municipalities of Yap will offer up to 12 dances each, which have been prepared and rehearsed throughout the previous year. Female dancers adorned in rich colorful grass skirts and men in thuws (loin cloth), perform sitting and standing. The most popular are the exciting stick dances. For more information on Yap, visit www.VisitYap.com.

Marshalls Mega-Band

If CD sales and nightclub crowds are any indication of popularity, Cha-Nin-Way is the band in the Marshall Islands. The band that takes its name from the tasty land crab that is a delicacy in the islands offers up a contemporary brew of Marshallese music that has been a chart-topper for more than 10 years. Any island fundraising event that gets Cha-Nin-Way to play will be an instant success because of the band’s sway among the youth crowd in this central Pacific nation.

The anchor band at The Pub since the night club opened in the late 1980s, Cha-Nin-Way draws a majority share of the Majuro late-night crowd that likes to dance to island songs that rock. Unlike many Marshallese bands that write their own lyrics but use the tunes of western songs, Cha-Nin-Way generally composes its own lyrics and music.

The band is set to release a new album (its 17th altogether), Kakinono #5, early this year. For information about Cha-Nin-Way CDs and T-shirts, email: chaninway@hotmail.com.