has deep roots. they have a very traditional culture, and the roles between men and women are still very well defined. when i think about it, palau is a tiny archipelago that thinks big - really big. (kauderael bintorio-keane) palau is about 340 islands scattered in micronesia. it's about 500 miles from the philippines, in the western pacific. in palau, i think the last census was about 20 or 21 thousand population. most people in palau live in koror, our main capital; the reason for that is that's where the government is, and most work, and schools. japan took over palau, i think in 1914, from germany. they were in palau until the end of world war ii. that's when the us won the war over the japanese. right now, palau has a very good relationship with the united states. we signed into agreement a compact of free association, which says that the united states will protect palau for 50 years. just recently, they renewed it, because it was signed in 1994. and so right now there's a small military group - we call them civic action team - that's based in palau right now. (sophie fouron) kauderael bintorio-keane, clan leader and mother of three. she has lived in palau her whole life, and has no intention of leaving. proud of her culture and the beauty of her country, these are her islands. (kauderael bintorio-keane) palau has been influenced by europeans, spanish, german, japanese and the u.s. there are still things that were introduced to us by those countries that we still use today, or still use the term. our two official languages are english and palauan. those are mainly spoken right now. but in the palauan language, we still have some words that were introduced to us by the japanese, and we still use them to this day. right now, palau's main economy is tourism, but we need to be careful. at some point, we used to have all these chartered flights coming in and out, and we saw the effect on our environment. at some point, we started cutting down on tourism and charter flights to try to protect our country. we don't want to scare away the high-end tourists, the ones that will keep coming back. it's still very pure, and that's why people want to come here. so when somebody says, "oh, you're from palau? the best diving spots... we've heard about that. is it true that you can just jump anywhere and swim?" and i say yes, it's true. (sophie fouron) year after year, do you see more and more tourists coming to palau? (swingly aguon) yes, and that's what we want. we just have to be picky. - what do you mean, you have to be picky? - we want to bring in the individual travellers, not package tourists, and that's what everbody has a problem with, because they're so many of them that they can't control them when they come. - where do these tourists come from? - now it's all over the world, even china as well. mostly from japan, the states, europe as well. (sophie fouron) swingly, why do you think people want to come to palau? (swingly aguon) because of the beauty and the nature. there's not a lot of places like this. it's not just about the boat ride, it's not just about me. it's what they will see once they jump in. and that speaks for itself. palau being the way it is, now that it's under world heritage, it's going to stay like this forever, and it's just a jewel. - it's a jewel. how many islands are around here? - my estimation is 340 - rock islands, though. counting all islands, there's about 500. and out of the 340, about 100 have beaches. these would be all the rock islands nothing but rocks. - so nobody lives on these islands? - no. not live, but they use them as camping... - grounds. - about three of them. - about three of them? - three of the islands. - that's it? - that's it. - how important is it for you to preserve this jewel? - very important. everywhere in the world, whether it's from bleaching or not caring about the trash piling up... you're poisoning the reef, and people don't want to come visit. and palau, being a tourism economy, that's what we want, to have the place the way it was like 10, 20 years ago, and try to keep it that way. i'm gonna say it's about 80%. - i'm sure you notice some bad manners, and tourists that are not respectful. - right, yes, i have. - for instance? - we were snorkeling with jellyfish one time, and there was this big group, and i was looking at this kid that was playing with them, and then i see him just hold it, and for me i was thinking maybe he's thinking, "what would happen if i squeezed it?" and he just went *clenches fist* and the fish went... i got up and i yelled at the guide. "bro, you better come and check your customer here. what are you doing?" - here's another boat. - hey guys! - where do you think these tourists are from? - i'm going to say taiwan. - okay. you're probably right. - because the president of taiwan was just here. - yes. - and china is not sending anymore package tours. - are all these guys from palau? - the captains are palauan, the assistants are from bangladesh. - okay. - their guides are from their country, taiwan. - is there a difference when the guide is from taiwan and not palau? - well, you have to have a taiwanese guide to talk to the customers, and then the captain tells them what not to do, what to do. - i see. - i just hope they are doing that, you know. but the influx has kind of slowed down, so we're at a pace where it's good. it's not as bad. until about two years ago, or a year ago, twenty boats. - no way. - right. that's how it was. there were like four charters a week. so the president said, "let's cut it to two." they still filled up those two, and still came. that's how popular palau was to them. it was filling up four charters, and they came and just, boom, people everywhere. - and your president said enough? - right, yes. - that's unbelievable. - well, he heard complaints as well, by the influx of traffic, the buses. we're just too small to make us like a mall, you know? - to be invaded. - well, i'm not going to say... we don't want to say invaded. we want to be invaded. in a slower pace. (sophie fouron) we can't come here and not be in the water. (swingly aguon) right. underwater is what makes palau. - alright, i'm going in. - bye-bye! (sophie fouron) apparently there's over 300 species of coral. and the fish, the fish... just the variety of fish down there. i had the impression i was diving in a tank at the aquarium, but no, this is real life. this is palau. (kauderael bintorio-keane) it's a balance between keeping the right tourism, and leaving the bad tourism out. where do we want to go? there are some people who aren't happy about that, because their main businesses are the fast money, and there are some that have said no, we need to take our time to get where we are. if we get there too fast, it will eventually end too soon. so let's take it slow, and hopefully we get there, in the right direction. (sophie fouron) here we are. is this the moment we've been waiting for? (swingly aguon) i believe it is. the jellyfish lake. - we're not the only ones here. - yes, there's more than about 100 people now. the reason why is because at this time of the day is when the jellyfish are close to the surface, and everybody wants to see a whole lot of them, so that's why there's a lot of people here now. - and apparently, it's just been re-opened. - right. we're going on now almost eight months since it's been re-opened, because it died out... it didn't die out, they all swim down, and due to the water temperature being so warm and the influx of tourists with sunscreen, it kind of left a sludge at around 10 to 20 feet, so they weren't able to come up. the mushroom parts of the islands have cracks, so if we close them for a little bit, it will drain itself, eventually, so now it's at that stage where it's drained and they're able to come back up. so now they're all back to their regular state. - we're at one of the most touristic spots in palau, the jellyfish lake. apparently we can swim with tons of jellyfish around us, and they don't sting. (swingly aguon) it's good we're taking our time, because we want to let those people go up first. - perfect. i can keep up with you. - alright. - are you worried about the future, if there are too many tourists that come to jellyfish lake? - the thing that's really hurting the jellyfish is the sunscreen part. so it doesn't matter how many people come, as long as you don't lather up anything, they will not leave a sludge in the water, and we'll be okay. that's why they have you wash your body up there. - do you find that it's important that tourists come here and witness this extraordinary marine life? - yes i do, because it's one of a kind. they say we're maybe the tenth wonder of the world, the jellyfish lake, so i would love for everyone in the world to come and experience what we have to offer in palau, especially with the underwater life and activity. (kauderael bintorio-keane) in spite of all the influences on palau, we are still very palauan. we have our own traditions, and we still follow our tradition. in our culture and customs, palau is run by two high clans: one is in koror, it's ibathul, and the counterpart is mobeo, which run by j'aklai. the women are the ones who appoint chiefs. palau is actually run by women. women have power to control the land, and mostly women control the assets of each clan. the reason behind that is we believe that if you want to keep something in the family, women have to control it; no matter what, that home will always be the female's home, and we try not to let that go away, so it's still very strong these days. (sophie fouron) in palau, there are certain activities that are only practiced by women. (emily tkel) this is her taro patch, and i'm here helping her to clean between her taro. we help each other with cleaning: we come here to clean her taro patch, go to my taro patch, clean it... that's how we work together. (sophie fouron) taro - why is it so important? (emily tkel) it's our main food, with fish. fish and taro go together, and that's our main dish, as palauan people. - and it's been growing here, and harvested, for ages. has it always been this way for women? - yes. it's been this way for generations and generations. women go to the taro patch; men go out fishing. that's why we don't allow men to go to the taro patch; they get fined for that. that's the way we like it, and we keep it that way. (kauderael bintorio-keane) there's a saying in palaun, that the taro patch is the mother of life. at the end of the day, women go to the taro, and that's going to feed you. the taro patch, way back, the mothers used to use it as a school for their girls. this is where they go to pass down the traditions, and teach their daughters the customs, the responsibilities as a woman, and that's how the tradition really passed down, because that's where we really learned a lot from them. (sophie fouron) okay, i'm very curious, because, first of all, how do you know it's ready? (remurang renguul) when you see the leaf coming out, like that... - one, two, three... - wow... what do you do with this? - i'm going to cut the leaves. - you're good with your machete. oh, you plant it back right away! wow, the cycle of life. (emily tkel) the cycle of the taro. - and then i can save this. i can make a soup. - here's the lady who cleans the other taro. - hello! i've got a special surprise for you. thank you! this reminds me of when i was in jeju, in south korea, where only the women were allowed to go diving to get the seafood. no men could do that; just the ladies. and it's exactly the same thing here, with taro. this patch here - is it just one patch, or does it belong to many women? - it belongs to many women. each portion belongs to individual women from this state. here's the area where the cooking is taking place, right there. this is one of the women right here. her name is ruth. - ruth! i'm sophie, so nice to meet you. you've been farming taro for as long as you can remember? (ruth l. andres) yes, it was a woman's role; they teach their daughters how too it when they were young. - yes. - now, our girls, when they don't work, they buy from any woman they know. western ideas came here and changed the culture, so they don't farm taro, they buy. so very few women are taro farming; not all of us are taro farming in this community. - how do you feel about that? - i think that we have to teach our children, otherwise it will be lost. - the significance, for you, when you think about taro... what does it mean, to you? - it's the life for our life, and our children, but for them, i don't think they worry about that. - but if the ships stop bringing in rice... - i worry about our children: w are th going to survive? - and it's also... the significance is very strong. it's about women, and women getting together, and praring food for their families. but also it's about survival. - survival, right. - and for the community, too. if you're a woman and you have a lot of taro, you feel good. - oh, you have some cooked? because... i would love to taste their taro. okay, there's some cooked already. - yeah, there's some cooked. - it should be ready. - it should be ready because it's cracked already. - i will not argue with these ladies. - there you go. - and this is not hot? - yeah. this is pounded taro; it's from this taro. we just peel it and then just pound it like this. smash it, then it's ready to be eaten. - thank you, emily. this taro, in palau, symbolizes life. that's pretty much it. you don't need anything when you have this. (kauderael bintorio-keane) there is a ritual for everything in palau. and there's a way to do it. when i did my first-born ceremony with my oldest girl, that day was the best day of my life. everybody was celebrating. it's like your wedding day. (sophie fouron) hi! how are you? (woman) good. - i'm sophie. - i'm regina. - regina, can you tell me what will happen today? - this is about the first-born ceremony. every mother in palau, when they have their first-born child, they have to go through this process. and it's called omengat, which means a celebration of life. - how many people are you expecting? - i would say about 300 people. - and what will be your role today, regina? - the oldest sister of steven, who is the father of sascha... my role is to bring her out, in her glory, for everybody to see. - it's really a celebration of life, but also of women. - women. the role of women in palau. and an exchange of food and money. sascha's part is to prepare all the food. all the food. and the husband's part is to give the money. and i would presume no less than $20,000 for this occasion. - do all women in palau go through it? - yes. all women who have their first-born have to go through this. before, in the olden days, only the married women came out in their glory like this, for the husband's relatives to witness. - but now, today, it's different. - today it's different. everybody comes out like this. (sophie fouron) the fantastic food that the women are preparing today is only for the people on the father's side, because they're the ones who are giving out the money today. and apparently it's $30,000. (kauderael bintorio-keane) what we do after giving birth, after about six weeks, we have to go through the whole ritual, and it's a combination of blended coconut oil with ginger and turmeric. and she has that oil on her for the whole time. (sophie fouron) sascha will come out any minute now, and it's the moment everyone has been waiting for, where she's introduced to everyone, and to her husband's side of the family. palau is the only island in the pacific, and probably in the world, to celebrate mothers like that - to have such a big party for their first born. (kauderael bintorio-keane) the colors of the grass skirt represent the clan, either her father's side or her mother's side. and every palauan knows she's coming out with her dad's clan, with the color of what she wears. (sophie fouron) elizabeth, i almost want to call you the mother of the bride. you are the mother of sacsha. is it the most important day in the life of a palauan woman? (elizabeth kyota) it is the most important day of a palauan woman's life. - did you get a lot of people coming from outside palau? - my oldest son lives in seattle, and my first grandchild is a boy. they came over. my younger sister lives in hawaii, and she came. my cousin lives in iowa, and she came all the way from iowa. and she's the singer, also; i was looking for her to do some numbers. - get on stage and do a number. but they came all the way it's that important. - yeah, they came all the way just to attend this special occasion. - in your opinion, what does it mean to live in a matrilineal society? - other cultures are so different from us. we, the ladies, we can decide, and we can amend rules. - because the chiefs are the men, now, but the ladies decide who the chiefs are - is that right? - yes. - so, basically, you get to decide a lot. - oh yes. if there's happenings in the community, the women get together, and the first lady of palau can decide what to do with the person who did something, and then the men will just follow. - the men will just follow? - yeah. that's how strong women are in palau. (kauderael bintorio-keane) before we were introduced to all these countries, the only protein that we had in palau were flying birds and fish. we didn't have two-legged or four-legged animals in this country. before we were introduced to fishing lines, the only way for men to get fish was through spears. they got fish by spearing it or by trapping it. (sophie fouron) in palau, men have been fishing with spear guns since ancient times. good morning, sambal. (sambal espangel) morning! - how are you? - fine. - you are going spear fishing. - yes, spear fishing with this gun. - this is the gun. - we use this one, so long, so we don't need to go to the very bottom. only halfway, then shoot the fish. (sophie fouron) palauans, in general, do they eat a lot of fish? (sambal espangel) they eat fish morning, lunchtime and dinner. when i come fishing, i get some for us, and i sell some. - how much do you make? - in good weather, i'll go out for a night, and if i'm lucky i'll make maybe $200 or $300. - how does it work? - it goes down for maybe 40 feet. - 40 feet down! how long can you stay under the water for? - maybe ten minutes or five. - it depends, it depends if the fish comes. you just go here every morning? - sometimes i go at nighttime. - why do you at nighttime? do you prefer it? - the fish are not... so it's... - easy. - if you go to the deep water, we can get down. - i see. - this one is for nighttime only. - okay. - and i use this one, like this, then i... - my god, holding your breath all this time. - it's easy. - but you've been doing it for fifteen years, twenty years now. - over, maybe... i was a young boy when i started fishing. (kauderael bintorio-keane) spear fishing has been passed down through generations. and little boys usually go with their big brother or their dad, and get introduced to spear fishing. and eventually they get into it. (sophie fouron) you're the only one here, today. do foreigners come and fish here, or just the palauans? (sambal espangel) just palauans. - why only palauans on the water? - foreigners, from other places, cannot fish here. - and you like that, you think that's good? - yeah, it's good. - do you go out fishing with the kayak? - yeah, most of the time i will. i don't buy gas. it's really easy. - is that a concern for you? e environment? - yes, aolutely. when we look for the fish, sometimes they're sleeping under coral. and i won't break the coral. (sophie fouron) so, it's here? (sambal espangel) yeah. - it's here. so this is your spot, sambal? - yeah. one of my spots. - one of your spots! why do you like this place? - it's not too far, and the water is not rough. it's really easy to dive. - and how many hours do you stay, usually? - only half an hour. - half an hour. and you have enough? - depends on the current, if the current is strong.