Digging into anything and everything that makes the CNMI tick beyond politics...

Sunday, March 8, 2009

Twilight at the Fishing Base

Photo by Raquel C. Bagnol

My most favorite moment in a day is when the sun begins to set, signaling the end of another day and the moon begins its journey to the skies to rein when darkness falls.

Perched on the hood of a car, I waited with the shutter poised, savoring each second before capturing what I wanted through the lens—the sunset and a moon half-hidden in the clouds. The tide is still out but at the dock there is a flurry of activities. While some boats are quickly closing the gap between the sea and the dock where where pick up trucks are waiting to tow them home, some are preparing to go out fishing for the night.

Transitions are taking place and it’s a wonderful feeling to be an observer of it all.

I was not at some exotic dream location whiling away time and splurging my hard-earned money but at a place known to everybody which is just a few minute’s walk from the road — the Fishing Base in Garapan.

The place is a favorite hangout of many. A visit to the place at noontime will reveal cars parked under the shade of the trees while its passengers are having lunch break or a few minutes off from work. Others just want to sniff a breath of salty air from the sea while others just want to relax.

Saipan is blessed with so many beautiful spots where you can do many things for free, and the Fishing Base dock is one of those places.

You need not take weeks off and spend thousands of dollars for a lavish vacation in some paradise you see advertised in travel brochures. Paradise is right within your fingertips all for free, and a few minutes are all you need.

Take those few steps across from Kristo Rai Church in Garapan and get rewarded by the wonderful sounds, smells and sights of local color unfolding before you especially as dusk falls in the place.

This article was originally published HERE