From left, Jenette Hodge, Tim Kerr, Lee Tae Young, and Lee Hyun Woo at the Hyatt beach on Thursday.
Traditional canoe Anåguan sailing south on the Saipan Lagoon on Thursday, Sept. 21, in front of the Hyatt Regency Saipan.
Anaya Tudela, left, high fives her cousin Nasima Uddin, after their sail on the Saipan Lagoon.
ON Thursday, guests of Hyatt Regency Saipan and 500 Sails took the opportunity to speak with Marianas Variety about the free canoe rides being offered around the Saipan Lagoon as part of a collaboration between the two organizations from September to November.
This is the second time Hyatt Regency Saipan and 500 Sails have collaborated to bring free canoe rides to the island, the last iteration taking place in December 2022.
For the canoe rides, 500 Sails staff members, including traditional sailor and director of seamanship Junior Colemen, utilized traditional proa Anåguan to sail north and south along the lagoon in front of Hyatt Regency Saipan.
Canoe rides were between 10 and 20 minutes long, with about three to four passengers each ride.
Tim Kerr, front desk team leader at the Hyatt, was off duty and spoke to Variety about his sailing experience. He is going to recommend his family take part in future 500 Sails activities.
“I called my brother,” Kerr said. “He’s lived here for ten years, and I’ve told him we’re definitely taking everybody and going out.”
Kerr said he believes there is a way to bring more traditional sailing into the tourist market.
“People are always asking about sails,” Kerr said. “They’ll ask about going to Managaha or snorkeling, but we’ll have a lot of people asking about going out on sailboats, and some people ask about the culture. [Here] you can get both of them in one — learn about the culture and sailing at the same time.”
Cheryl Cheng is a visitor from Taiwan vacationing on Saipan to visit her friend Viola Chen.
Cheng said she believes Taiwanese people would look forward to sailing proas on Saipan. Cheng added, however, that she had never heard of Saipan prior to her friend Viola moving to the island.
For her part, Chen, who lives on Saipan with her husband, said she first heard about the free sailing event on social media and wanted to entertain her friends.
Lee Tae Young is a guest at the Hyatt Regency Saipan who took part in the sail. She spoke to the Variety in Korean and her speech was translated by 500 Sails managing director Kuen Hee Han.
Young said she came along on the canoe ride looking forward to the view of Saipan via the lagoon.
She had no idea this kind of attraction was available on Saipan. She said she was on island, partially, to take part in beach activities.
Local resident Nasima Uddin came to the sails with her cousins, Siska Tudela, Jornei Tudela, and Anaya Tudela.
“I wanted them to try something new,” Uddin said. “I sailed with 500 Sails on the canoes last year at the [Northern Marianas College] Set Sail Leadership Conference. I had a really fun time and I’ve been wanting to bring the youth out to try it out and be exposed to our culture more.”
For Uddin, who is of Refaluwasch, Chuukese, and Bangladeshi heritage, it is important for the youth to connect to their cultures.
Uddin said her cousins are Refaluwasch, Palauan, and Chamorro in cultural background.
“To be outdoors instead of being inside, to feel connection to our land and the history here, holding on to some sort of tradition is very important for our youth,” Uddin said. She shared her belief that sailing could empower her relatives.
Six-year-old Anaya Tudela said she was nervous at first, but later had fun on the canoe. She said she saw birds.
Jornei Tudela is a freshman at Saipan Southern High School.
“I wanted to try sailing,” Jornei Tudela said. “It was lit.”
Jornei Tudela said she wouldn’t do TikTok dances on the canoe but would tell her classmates to try sailing.
A family photo of, from left, Jornei Tudela, who was too mamålao to show her face, Siska Tudela, Anaya Tudela, and older cousin Nasima Uddin.
