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Kiribati
is located in the central Pacific Ocean, about 4,000 km (about
2,500 mi) southwest of Hawaii. It is part of the division of
the Pacific islands that is known as Micronesia. Kiribati consists
of 33 coral islands divided among three island groups: the Gilbert
Islands, the Phoenix Islands, and the Line Islands. All of the
islands are atolls (ring-shaped islands with central lagoons)
except for the island of Banaba in the Gilbert Islands. Of the
33 islands of Kiribati, 21 are inhabited. Most of the population
is concentrated in the Gilbert Islands. Only one of the Phoenix
Islands and three of the Line Islands are permanently inhabited.
The capital of Kiribati is Tarawa, an atoll in the Gilbert Islands.
Bairiki, an islet of Tarawa, serves as an administrative center.
Kiribati
has a total land area of 811 sq km (313 sq mi). The islands
extend about 3,900 km (about 2,400 mi) from east to west. From
north to south they extend about 2,100 km (about 1,300 mi),
straddling the equator. Kiritimati (also called Christmas Island),
one of the Line Islands, occupies 609 sq km (235 sq mi) and
has the largest land area of any atoll in the world.
Christmas
Island - Where the canoe is still the main mode of transportation
On
Christmas Island, life is relaxed and laid-back. The local people
are friendly and helpful, and are sure to greet you with smiles
and hellos as you walk through town. The local language is I-Kiribati,
but most of the Gilbertese locals speak English.
Christmas Island is located about 1300 miles south of Hawaii.
That's only about a 3-hour flight, but Kiribati bends the dateline
to keep all its islands on the same side, so you will arrive
a full day later. Christmas Island was named after the day in
1777 when Captain James Cook first happened upon it, but it
remained uninhabited until the 1950s, when the British chose
it as the site for their nuclear weapons development project
and induced a small Micronesian work force from the Gilbert
Islands to relocate there. Once they'd detonated their H-bomb
nearby, however, the British pulled out, leaving behind a few
Micronesians and a great deal of debris. Today the island's
4400 residents are citizens of the Republic of Kiribati (pronounced
cure-a-BOS).
All year round, daytime highs are in the mid-80's with moderate
humidity, while evening lows are typically 72 degrees with a
light breeze. Bonefishing, offshore fishing and diving is available
year-round on Christmas Island due to the remarkably stable
weather. Water temperature ranges from 77-82 degrees year round.
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