I am thrilled to land in Palau, home of Jellyfish Lake — a frequent fixture on Bucket Lists. Their passport stamp is even in the shape of one:

The Republic of Palau is an island nation located in the Pacific Ocean.

The capital, Koror, is located right in the center of the country. Here’s a closer look at Koror Island where you’ll find most of the accommodation, restaurants, and dive shops:

While it is an independent country, Palau is linked with Micronesia and the Marshall Islands under the Compact of Free Association as associated states of the United States. What this means is that the U.S. provides defense, funding, and access to social services for these islands. Palau’s currency is the U.S. Dollar, they use the U.S. Postal Service (and even have their own zip code), plus I spot many cars in Palau with U.S. license plates. This is the first country on my RTW trip where cars drive on the right-hand side of the road, as we do in the States. After so many months in other countries it is surreal to see reminders of back home in the form of cars, currency, and stamps.

Getting to Palau is tricky and expensive. United is one of the only carriers to fly here via Manila (twice a week) or Guam (six times a week). Despite tracking flights for MONTHS, I do not see any price fluctuation. It costs just over $600 for a round-trip plane ticket between Manila and Palau… and it’s only a three hour flight! Bummer. But I am captivated by thoughts of swimming with jellyfish, scuba diving with sharks, and boating around the Rock Islands. I bite the bullet and finally book my ticket a mere three days before flying to Palau.

That flight from Manila arrives around 1:30am, which is unfortunate because I have to pay for a night of accommodation even though it’s really only half a night. And I’ve already discovered how expensive Palau is from browsing budget motels on-line… because there are no hostels. I book two nights at the Guest Lodge Motel ($65/night) with a plan to seek out cheaper accommodation once I arrive on the island. I end up getting a walk-in rate of $45/night at Lehns Motel for the final five nights of my week-long stay on Palau.

If you have come to Palau for world-class diving (as I have), expect to pay for it. Three full days of diving plus a visit to Jellyfish Lake and the Milky Way Lagoon will set you back around $650, including equipment rental and permits. After digging around on-line, I find that Fish ‘N Fins is the most budget-friendly dive shop in the area. I meet with the owner in person and show him my website, and he very kindly offers 20% off my dive activities. I am very thankful!

I don’t intend to scare anyone off from this beautiful destination, but beware that flights, accommodation, and diving are NOT budget-friendly. That said, I am thrilled to visit Palau and over the next few posts you’ll see why.

The Rock Islands are a major attraction of the island. They are a group of limestone formations covered in greenery dotting the waters around Palau. From the air, the Rock Islands look like this:

(image via)

And from the land water, they look like this:

During my three days of diving, we begin each day with a 40-minute boat ride through the Rock Islands en route to major dive sites. Here’s a short (and shaky) video of what it’s like to cruise past the Rock Islands:

We have about 45 minutes to kill between dives on the first day (our surface interval), so we snorkel in shallow waters. It’s beautiful.

We eat lunch each day on an island with this view:

I eat a simple lunch of grilled chicken with rice, salad, and fruit (we place our orders with the dive company the night before).

We spend the rest of our lunchtime admiring this view:

On one of my non-dive days I walk around Palau and admire its scenery on the capital island.

On the second day of diving I meet three awesome Americans who are visiting from Guam: Casey, Ivan, and Julie. Our boat driver has been especially helpful and friendly, and we ask if we can treat him to dinner at any local place he likes. He picks Drop Off Bar & Grill and we enjoy a delicious and laid-back meal right on the water. This is such a fun night.

The following night we try another highly rated restaurant on the island called Taj. I’ve never had Indian food before, but Casey is a pro and orders for our table. It’s all delicious.

My last full day on Palau I walk about two miles to Kramer’s Cafe, the number-one rated restaurant in Koror on TripAdvisor. Their food is delicious and you can’t beat the view:

I order a cocktail, ahi tuna, and garlic fries. SO GOOD.

My go-to restaurant in Palau is a tiny food stand called MJ’s located near the Palasia hotel. They serve great burgers and stir fry dishes for under $5. I order dinner here on three different occasions simply because it’s cheap and tasty. While waiting to pick up my dinner one night around 9pm, I meet a very kind couple (Gina and Rod) who insist on driving me safely back to my motel. They are so kind! I actually run into them again at the airport upon my departure, as they are there dropping off their minister. Palau is a small place. While I don’t encounter any sort of sketchiness outside of the occasional cat call, I take Gina & Rod’s advice and curtail my late dinners.

I also enjoy pancakes at Rock Island Cafe. There’s a sandwich shop next door that’s good as well. And I walk to a sushi place one night.

A few beverages from my time in Palau…

On my second-to-last day in Palau I discover a coffee shop on the main strip in Koror, not far from the Palasia hotel and MJ’s food stand. For the life of me I cannot find it on-line and don’t remember what it’s called. Over two visits I try different milkshakes — a strawberry one and a peanut butter one, both pictured above. They are outstanding.

For the record, Palau has the worst internet connection of any place I traveled to on my RTW trip. Some days I can barely link my daily blog post on Facebook. The prepaid internet cards sold around Palau are a joke. I find an old school internet cafe and end up posting from there most days. A few of the restaurants have Wifi (like the coffee place above) but it’s painfully slow. It reminds me of this Will Farrell joke:

(image via)

But even with internet that moves at the pace of a snail and overpriced flights / accommodation, Palau is still worth it.

Over the next few days I’ll share photos from my magical swim in Jellyfish Lake:

And dip in the Milky Way Lagoon:

And dive in Chandelier Cave:

And last but not least, the best scuba diving I have ever encountered:

More to come!