Quote:
Originally Posted by Skippy
Slightly more OT: What prompted these friends to move all the way to Kiribati?
|
Well, one of them (originally from CA) had been running a dive operation in Turks / Caicos. He and a partner were recruited to start a dive operation on Christmas Island. The partner was a flake and he left years ago, so Kim was able to buy the operation basically for nothing. He married a local, so it looks like he is there to stay.
http://www.frontierstravel.com/SportingDestinationSaltwater.cfm?DestinationID=388
Another fellow, originally from Scotland, had been overseeing copra plantations on Tabueran and Teraina Is. He ended up running a general store / vehicle rental / auto garage / steveador / etc operation. Also married a local.
Another fellow, originally from Fiji, had been running a theatre on Tarawa. The VCR's killed that business, so he came to Christmas Island and started a tropical fish export business. He has since passed away.
Various others have come and gone over the years,,, Peace Corps folks, missionaries, commuter pilots, TRW tracking station technicians, construction folks, etc.
Things will be tough there for a while as the air service has just been terminated due to deterioration of the coral runway. I suspect it will be a year or two before it opens up again.