Kiribati tourist information with details about
travel to and around the islands. Where to stay and what to see is made easier with
insider tips and hand-selected Kiribati links, by dedicated editors and visitors to
TravelNotes.org - The Online Guide to Travel.
Kiribati, formerly the Gilbert Islands, is made up of
thirty three atolls and coral islands, and one volcanic island.
Straddling the Equator at the International Date Line, Kiribati proclaimed
that all of its territory lies in the same time zone as its Gilbert Islands group; even
though the Phoenix Islands and the Line Islands, under its jurisdiction, lie on the other
side of the International Date Line.
Kiribati is a part of Micronesia, and
around 20 of the islands are permanently inhabited.
With such a large area of sea between the islands of Kiribati, it is
safe to say that fish exports are a major source of currency.
The capital of Kiribati, Bairiki, is situated on Tarawa but
Kiritimati, or Christmas Island, is the largest of the Kiribati group.
Battle
of Tarawa:
On November 20th, 1943, five thousand US marines stormed the beaches of Tarawa; a
seemingly invincible Japanese island fortress barely the size of the Pentagon parking
lots.
Before the first day ended, one third of the Marines who had crossed
Tarawa's deadly reef under murderous fire were killed, wounded, or missing.
In three days of fighting, four Americans would win the Medal of
Honour and six-thousand combatants would die.
The official language of Kiribati is English, although many of the
islanders speak the native I-Kiribati, formerly known as Gilbertese.
In 1991, Britain agreed to pay for the damage done to Banaba Island by
large-scale phosphate mining. Residents of Banaba even had to be resettled on Rabi Island;
a part of Fiji.
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