KITV
Some of the limestone money is bigger than
cameraman Jeff Cuales and Gary Sprinkle.
Yap returns
to traditionPacific Adventures: Yap, Land of the Stone Money
By Tim Ryan
Star-Bulletin
Visiting the Micronesian island of Yap is an enjoyable slide back in time to a more gentle and simpler life.
In his continuing "Pacific Adventure series," KITV news anchor Gary Sprinkle not only takes viewers to "The Land of the Stone Money" -- Yap is best known for having used stones as currency -- but to a place of cultural resurgence, newfound ecological responsibility, and a strong sense of community.
The opening, not-to-believed sunset shot by photographer Jeff Cuales, quickly captures viewers' attention. And the rest is equally inviting. There are images of village life, where children are welcome in any household while elders tend to their duties. Sprinkle explains how Yap's people are returning to sound fishing practices dating back a century to their ancestors.
The limestone blocks used for money often weigh more than a ton. Yap's inhabitants valued the stones because they knew the stones would last. (Today, United States currency is used.)
This fragile island between Guam and Palau has most of its villages along the shoreline because the ocean is Yap's "lifeline."
Sprinkle's visit to Yap gives viewers a slice of life in a place most will never see first hand. What a shame.
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