23 November
Jacinta
I’m writing early in the morning from the deck of a guesthouse, watching the town wake up in drizzling rain. A huge thunderstorm rolled in last night and it rained all night. I’m sitting close by because I have the only key and I’ve locked sleeping PJ in the room. I guess it’s too wet for fire safety here.
23 November 2025.
We were awaiting the morning’s arrival after no sleep. On many nights in the bush without creature comforts, our grand confidence in our sleeping arrangement had disappeared after one night. We had pitched the inner section of our tent as an alternative to spending more money on a mosquito net, and were sleeping on our ultralight hiking mattresses. Indoors.
PJ’s Manusian/Australian friend Lynne had suggested a guesthouse close by to the house, so we went for a wander with Mula to see what we could find. We had seen a transit house a few doors up, and the lovely owner Jaclyn confirmed that this was Lynne’s spot. We were immeasurably happy… It had been an enormous few days, taxing in all the ways. The sight of a guest house with a shared kitchen and bathroom had us overjoyed. We will be coming and going for a few nights here and there but decided to book it for the duration so we have a home base. The day seemed infinitely more manageable with a promise of sleep.
We took our key and the three of us headed up the road to the former Kohai Lodge, the guest house and tavern that PJ’s dad Wesley ran. There are now family members and others living there.
I’ve had a story told to me a few times about Wesley enjoying what he called ‘culture food’. On our first overnight hike, when we cracked open a can of smoked oysters, PJ told me when he was a child, his dad would take a quiet moment to enjoy crackers, cheese and smoked oysters that he had imported. It turned in to a ceremony we repeated on every hiking and camping trip. Taking a moment to remember Wesley each time we cracked open a can of smoked oysters. In Cairns, we scoped out the hardest cheese we could find, with a hope of it enduring a day’s travel and a night out of the fridge. Settled on a rock hard Manchego and crossed our fingers for its survival and successful customs clearance. We also had crackers, chilli pickles, mussels and oysters. The customs guy told us we were fine as it was commercially packaged. He also said they are mainly worried about meat.
On the property behind the lodge, PJ’s mum and dad are buried. We gathered at the graves, and spread out our mat and food. PJ’s sister Nawes, recognised it straight away as ‘culture food’ and everyone shared stories. The kids looked in curiously and waited to be offered a taste.
We went back to the family’s house, packed up our things and relocated to the guesthouse, before heading to the markets. The family home was built by Wes, and is now lived in by various family members and other friends to form a little community. I’ve heard stories about the woven walls and the arched doorway that PJ’s dad decided to cut in with a chain saw.
Mula told us it was not a very good day at the market but to my eyes it was incredible. Everyone was selling fresh food from their garden or what they had caught. I wasn’t sure about our cooking situation yet and was also unsure on how to cook a lot of the food there, so we loaded up mostly with pineapple, galip nuts, coconuts, tomatoes and a fruit called ndrinat that I can’t find online to confirm the spelling. It was crunchy, sour and sweet. We plan to go back with a bit more of a plan of what and how to cook and get some more supplies. The market is there every day. How good to get your food fresh from the garden as you need it.
We have not quite worked out how to get protein when we cook for ourselves. The fish from the market is laid out on the ground and fanned to keep flies off, and neither us feel confident enough that we would know how to pick a fresh one and store it safely. We got some eggs from the grocer yesterday, and ate them with tomatoes and galips for lunch. We drank coconuts on the way to our next adventure.
Kevin arranged for us to go out on a boat to visit Two Ailan. Romeo and Sakis, took the three of us with Mula and his kids Solomon and Hazel and his nephew JT. We met two cousins who each live on one of the islands, with their families. They each showed us around their island homes, which were small enough to do a lap around on foot or by canoe. Each family member or family unit has a house surrounded by a huge food garden with chickens and a dog. In the rainforest. It was such a beautiful place to visit.
They let us borrow a canoe on the first island and we paddled out, went snorkelling around some shipwrecks and ate our coconuts. It was magic.
We shared a beautiful meal with the family when we got back, and talked about the planning that will happen over the next two days. We had a plan to go back to Two Ailan to camp for the night but we decided to keep our schedule free, because the gathering of food and fuel for M’Buke Island is shaping up to be a two day exercise.
And now we’re both sitting on the deck eating cereal with coconut water. The best we were able to muster up until we work out how to feed ourselves here!