Honiara
In every spy movie, there is a scene where the protagonist is in a foreign city. They sip coffee from an apartment window while watching the city below. The windows are open for ventilation but covered in curtains for privacy, and the fabric streams in the breeze. Sounds of the street below waft into the open window - honking horns and crying children and rubber tires over dirt roads. The spy watches life go on around them, because they are in the city but not of the city. A silent observer three floors up. This week, I am that spy. I am the foreigner intently watching the city below me but unable to join its throngs. Friends, I made it to my next destination: the Solomon Islands. As excited as I am to be here, I have to be patient. A short quarantine is required before boarding the ship, so I have 5 days in a spy-worthy hide-away in Honiara. I love watching the city. I'm up on a hill, so I have a great view over the bustling capital to Iron Bottom Sound. The architecture in...