Nan Madol: The Megalithic Island City of the Pacific

One day later than our usual Saturday release, sorry about that we're trying to work while filming in Crete and the infrastructure of my hotel choice is leaving much to be desired. Outside of the wifi uploading issues they shut off our water so I haven't been able to poop all day, and as you might imagine this has affected the editing process.
But as it turns out this might be fortuitous next week's video is all about feces. So perhaps this will just be an inspirational experience.
Your support keeps us going: / rareearth and ko-fi.com/rareearth
Follow our Instagram: / rareinsta
Follow my twitter: / evan_hadfield
Sign up for Nebula as well, a place where I release these videos early: nebula.tv/rareearth
This video was made possible thanks to our incredible Patreon subscribers: &pointer, adam lenk, Adrián GP, Akasha Yi, Alex boneck, Alex Papageorgiou, Alex The Magical Cat, Alexander Lee, Alexander Reilly, Alexandru Pîntea, Alf Einar Solberg, Alice LWatson, Ammobunny, Anaethema, Andres Rama, Andrew, Andrew Beals, Andrew L, Anina Shaorandra, Antoine Cribellier, Arsalan N, Audrey Brown, Austin Cousineau, bajr, Barrett, BattleGoat Studios, BeanoTheElder, Ben Hewitson, Benkei Paczek, Blaise, Bob Dai, Bradley Brown, Brenna and Peter, Brian Miller, Brian ONeel, Brian Perkins, Bryan Schmidt, Bullseye89, Catherine Berry, Chieftom, Chris, Christoph Hotep, Christopher Perrin-Porzondek, Christopher Simpkins, Cody Belichesky, Cody Schneider, Cole Skelton, Colin Miskowitz, CollapsingHrungDisaster, Colton Creasey, Connie, Cullen McFater, Curtis Shimamoto, Cynical Rhys, Daniel Sierra Matus, Daniel Tyler, Dario Gosu, David Badilotti, David James McConnell, David Shrimpton, David V, Dinotrakker, Dorothy, Douglas Danger Manley, Dykam, Edward Sykes, Einar Holmedal, Elsilan, Emma, Eric Floehr, Erika Riggs, Eugene Pakhomov, f1r3w4rr10r, fadingnebula, fatsaxman, feo, Gabe Sockie, Giulian Fava, Gregory Kintz, Hanyang, herman, Hollis Davis, Immanuel Manohar, J Neko, JackWhoWanders, Jake Capoun, James Hoadley, Jan Vilhuber, Jason, Jenn Herron, Jeremy Impson, Jeremy Wheelis, Jessica Mayberry, jmoggr, John and Tanya Hug, John Goff, Jonathan Lonowski, Josh Hoppes, Juan Coronado, Julia, Julian Fiander, Justin Thomson, Kameron Stroud, Karol Pilat, Karthi Balasubramaniam, Kenny Coulter, Kyle Hammer, Kyle Hofer, Lady Sixa, larry82, Lars Flöer, Lars Hjort Christensen, Lars Sturm, Lee, Lepidus, Lexi, Lilith Berkana De' Anu, Lillian Mark, Lorentz, Louis Lenders, Luke Tomkus, Mad Sumac, Matt, Matthew Campuzano, matthew joseph klein, Matthew Springer, Matthew Wallace, Melanie Sumner, Michael, Michael Amesse, Miguel Martínez Chapa, Mike Frysinger, Mondoria, Muncorn, MysticCobra, Nancy Reid, Nathaniel Feldberg, Nick Grippo, NiordSir, NM, NoPantsMagicDance, Nuno Balbona Perez, Oliver Frommeier, Oliver 'Kannik' Bollmann, Pablo D Lopez, Paul Bartholomew, Peter Gravelle, Petr Doležal, Pjotr Bekkering, Pranav Maddula, Ricardo Machado, Robbie Mills, Robert Velten, Rocky Yip, Roger Hoffmore, Roger L. Basler de Roca, Ron Warris, Ronen Finegold, RustyJuiceTin, Ryan Breaker, Sam Collins, Sam Rossetti, Sam Wolski, Scotty From Marketing, Sean Dennis, Sean McCool, Sensen, Sethzard, Shaventreebeard, Shawn Wang Williams, Shikyo, Simon Bohnen, Simon Hannus, smaz ruby, Space_Chickun, Sriram Govindarajan, Starrylock, Stephen Bourne, Steve Williamson, Svein Ove Aas, Sven, Tedd, Teo Cherici, Theo Davis, TheRmbomo, Thomas, Thomas Paris, Tibor Galbács, Tim Barrett, Tobias B, Traxys, Ubikwitus, Varun Perumal, Vasserot, Vítězslav Houžva, Viktor Lundell, Vitali Perchonok, Wes Mills, Whitefang, Will Mullins, Xellos, Xenonfrenzy, Ylva Trimonyte, Zach Preston, and ZZ. We love you guys!
Thanks for watching! You're clearly one of the good ones.

[@RareEarthSeries]

Donate to the temple of Rare Earth: www.patreon.com/rareearth ko-fi.com/rareearth

[@emilynelson5985]

Hey I see you're into lost civilizations... I got something in the woods I think I should show you.

[@inveniamviam4691]

I’m really curious when you visited, I booked a trip here a few months ago to visit from Hawaii (using the famous Island Hopper route). Was surprised not many people know about this place.

[@bobwilson7684]

I think this one is very interesting, especialy because is the only existing document I know that is real, a real factual case in the field, very very simple maths, no magic kzbin.info/www/bejne/hWq9g4t5bpqkg9U

[@cocacola4blood365]

Every time you said "Sau Deleur," I thought you were going to say "Sardukar" as well.

[@DonoDoni-xt7nk]

There is two kids play "Gasing". Gasing is from Indonesia.

[@Boydar]

I saw this on history channel and they said that locals were granted telekinesis by aliens to build it

[@microcomputermaster]

This was on that Graham Hancock Netflix show too, he claimed a lost advanced civilization of Atlateans built it during the last ice age. 😂

[@Ddub1083]

@@microcomputermaster heh yeah they built it up on a mountain and when the sea levels rose after the ice age it just so happen to land right at its doorstep.

[@AWindy94]

😂🤣

[@razor1uk610]

​​@@microcomputermaster Going by the simplistic tie in, Handcock is eminently more believable in ways than Stitchin or Zsukalos; because usually Handcock at least believes that even if more ancients humans were involved, that they were human. Where as the other two only ever appear to think '...Aliens did it ! ..because aliens !

[@Silent_Depths]

@@microcomputermaster I don't think Hancock has said anything about aliens, but his hypothesis does suggest and conclude with lost civilizations. That's one deep rabbit hole which wasn't done much justice on the rather poorly executed Netflix show.

[@mattcy6591]

Man launching your coconuts via coconut tree is legendary

[@ShawnRitch]

Who would've thought ? ? ? LOL

[@StuffandThings_]

Quite literally legendary

[@sharonrigs7999]

The quickest way to 'transition'

[@lovepeace1552]

This is something out of that kids game Fortnite

[@FuckGoogle502]

I read this before watching the video and assumed you were talking about launching actual coconuts as a defensive weapon. I could not have been further off. Edit: "This is the Reverse Coconut Harvest. I'm Isokelekel and welcome to Jackass!"

[@stevetittman4851]

Post credits shot: he found where it landed.

[@ShawnRitch]

Any speculations on what happened next ? ;)

[@vapormissile]

​@@ShawnRitchhe put de lime in it

[@ShawnRitch]

@@vapormissile lol

[@joelnolan7642]

thanks for the....uhh....tip

[@willhall4037]

so that's where robin hood got the idea!

[@StuffandThings_]

I love how the Pacific is like a microcosm for the rest of the world. Empires rise and fall, ecological collapse ruins societies, explorers discover and colonize new worlds, new crops are developed, except its all in miniature. Such a fascinating, and quite frankly, underrated (I mean everything except for maybe Hawaii and Tahiti) region of the world that really deserves more deep dives into its history.

[@simonphoenix3789]

Its crazy to think that these people managed to travel across such vast stretches of ocean and settle in so many placed without even having metal tools, let alone iron. Even crazier is that they settled in islands without any stones that are used for making edged tools- flint, chert, obsidian. Working wood becomes so much more difficult without metal, and then even more difficult without flint, or at the very least some quartzite. I guess Basalt could still be used to make some sharp enough edges, but it must have taken an incredible amount of time and effort to make anything.

[@tyler___3]

This a good comment^

[@ZeWaka]

You can make azde blades out of basalt, which are all of those black rocks in the video.

[@TheHappinessOfThePursuit]

We don’t really know what they had. We don’t really know how this all happened. 😊

[@AilbheOisin]

​@LookAtYoSelf they borrowed lasers from space aliens

[@Quoboct]

The biggest feat is engineering an ocean worthy ship with no nails. NO NAILS. For Polynesians specifically, crossing the pacific must have required massive ships to not be capsized with plenty of live pigs and chickens. In hawaii they replicated a polynesian ship and sailed it across the world. It is called the Hōkūleʻa.

[@TheNoblestMan]

Me, sick in bed sipping tea: "Oh a new Rare Earth vid!" Evan, immediately: "So this guy ripped his f****n balls off and it kinda made sense!" Thanks Evan. There's tea everywhere. This is Rare Earth.

[@gracephillip44]

😂

[@rotaman8555]

I’ve been there. It’s even more amazing than you imagine. The effort it took to build that complex is monumental, and that means the societal organization that made it possible is far beyond what the Western World commonly thinks of “pre-historic” civilizations.

[@user-nd7rg5er5g]

"And within a hundred years that great temple city that had ruled this island for longer than the empire of Rome existed, would be all but deserted." This line gives me chills. Excellent video!

[@kacperwoch4368]

Roman Empire existed for 1500 years, nearly a 1000 longer than Nan Madol.

[@Spanky_808]

As a native Pohnpeian, thank you @RareEarthSeries

[@danko6582]

That they deliberately seeded the island makes so much sense. I have done a lot of Jungle Survival training in Asia and my eyes bulged when I first saw that forest. Most of the vegetation you see is edible or useful. It's like living in a Costco.

[@hamstarr100]

basalt not granite, but good work as usual

[@RareEarthSeries]

I say basalt at one point, no idea how I slipped granite in there

[@BobisOnlyBob]

It's easy to take vast stone slabs for granite.

[@sheldonaubut]

@@BobisOnlyBob -- Got a chuckle out of me on that one.

[@Sembazuru]

Looking at the temple, I like the look of the columnar basalt used like logs. It's a great log cabin/temple made of stone. 😀

[@hobog]

Once you recognize basalt's hexagonal columns it's hard to miss ​@@BobisOnlyBob

[@play4dc]

The main thing I know about Pohnpei is the the football team and it's attempt to be recognized by UEFA. Micronesia still aren't recognized by UEFA. They deserve that football money as much as any nation.

[@jaywitt5171]

You might mean FIFA? UEFA is the Union of European Football Associations. The FSM's regional equivalent would be OFC - Oceania Football Confederation.

[@RickTheBoss98]

Wrong try better next time you go get it right now I'm ready to go back home

[@sledgehammer-productions]

I saw the National Geographic documentary they made here a while ago. Interesting to see what they found using Lidar. The stories told by Rare Earth are just as important!

[@RareEarthSeries]

It was funny to see how annoyed everyone I met in Pohnpei was with the host and his 'theories'. He certainly didn't pass through here unnoticed.

[@stevef.8708]

This is the episode I have been waiting for…for over 20 years since I first became aware of Nan Madol. Thank you!

[@thomasdoubting]

"Magical octopus"? Lä lä Cthulhu pfntagen

[@19karpatil90]

Commenting to suport the great gods of youtube algorithm. A true marvel as always Evan. It is really meshmerising to see that how much we the people have no idea about. Civilizations popping up and thriving thousands of year, yet not even noticed by the great western powers and getting forgotten almost compleatly. Only the stones of the temples remember. I wonder how long will it take for the for us to be forgotten and turn into legends.

[@TheHappinessOfThePursuit]

🔥Sacrificeth my comment to the algo-gods 🔥

[@ethanwagner]

What the actual fuck was that, dude? I’m absolutely blown away. The tone you set for this video and the way you held it to the very end was captivating. What a story. Also banger outro card, these kinds of things fuel my creative fire🔥🤝🏻

[@RareEarthSeries]

What a nice comment, thanks dude.

[@UserUser-mu6cf]

I'm trying to stop watching youtube, and your channel is one of 9 that I bookmarked to check from time to time

[@tyler___3]

Good luck! I feel ya

[@IstasPumaNevada]

Certainly a good pick.

[@yasmeencatoline9561]

What are the other 8?

[@UserUser-mu6cf]

​@@yasmeencatoline9561 Thomas Flight - movie reviews/essays, Jared Henderson - philosophy, Phil Edvards - ex producer from vox, Mac Adress - videos about apple, Steezy Kane - ex prank youtuber, Van Neistat - brother of Casey Neistat, Drew Joiner - fashion, Frugal Aesthetic - zoomers fashion

[@vxxiii4160]

They said if you levied its military you got an achievement and the favor of Cthulhu

[@adamrodaway1074]

Clearly the Civ devs heard the “giant octopus points the way” story. Impressive depth of research by them.

[@TheLostBear78]

As a lover of stories and experiences. It always hurts my soul to have so much of our history be long lost. Forgetting history is the most unforgiveable thing to me. So vastly many cultures have been lost, some totally forgotten. I really hope we figure out time travel, to be able to go back and find out all the long forgotten things from all over the world.

[@jamesonpace726]

This is 1 of very, very few non-stupid channels on this infernal device & I thank you....

[@apteropith]

"foreignness equating to great importance" yup that's a "stranger king" dynasty alright

[@RareEarthSeries]

I'd never heard of this concept and I thank you for giving me something to look into deeper

[@apteropith]

@@RareEarthSeries _On Kings_ by Graeber and Sahlins is from where I learned it, and it's a solid recommendation if you can track it down

[@MattBellzminion]

@@RareEarthSeries Xenophilic biases can be extremely beneficial to isolated communities where inbreeding is a continuous peril. Consider the case, as analyzed by Claude Levi-Strauss, of a Pacific Northwest indigenous tribe that worshipped a triune salmon-man-heavenly-spirit god. According to their myth, their tribal god would spend part of the year with his heavenly divine family, then transform into either a salmon or a stranger (I don't remember which "direction" their myth spun), then either be caught by his tribe in their big autumnal salmon harvest (which they relied on to survive the winter), or assist in that harvest as a stranger visiting the tribe from afar. The tribe welcomed strange men to assist them with their salmon catch and preservation (salting, drying, & smoking, maybe not in that order), in the belief that at least one of these guys was their god in human form. Accordingly, they allowed [encouraged?] the stranger[s] to have sex with at least some of the tribe's women [unmarried only? I don't know.] To wrap up the mythic cycle, after the harvest festival season had concluded, the stranger would leave, presumably to make his way to a river or the ocean shore (I'm not sure which; not sure the myth specified either) and turn into a salmon [fry?], to continue the cycle of life. Consider the benefits of this belief system: 1) intermittent injections of unrelated DNA in their gene pool; 2) likely improved relationships with other tribes in the region, as this was clearly a friendly, unthreatening people offering the males of their entire region a fun time once a year; 3) some helpful free labor during their critical harvest; 4) some flesh-and-blood affirmation of their religious creeds that every member of their society could witness play out with their own eyes every year. Re. the source: this was one of CL-S's writings that I read for a one-off elective class as an undergrad. Sadly, I don't remember the title, the name of the native nation, or anything useful like that. I thought it was "Kwakiutl", but I've already tried to find L-S's analysis of this myth using that term and failed. Perhaps you're well familiar with this text? Given your peripatetic interests and travels, I would guess that you are; certainly more so than I! Lastly, I know that L-S's reputation has been, um, re-evaluated in light of evolving and improving standards and ethics for cultural anthropologists, academics and writers, and men and adults generally; your opinion of CLS's worth as a source and analyst of myths may well be much lower than mine.

[@legentilhommedefortune]

I've dreammed all my life to visit this place .. !! thanks for your review !!

[@mr.lavander7145]

Incredible stuff. You really bring a place to life in a way that mainstream history content doesn't anymore. Keep up the good work!

[@MrPohnpeiboy]

Yessss, as someone who grew up on pohnpei I was waiting for this episodeee ❤

[@Daniel-lm4ex]

What were you told as to how Nan Madol was built? I lived in Pohnpei for nearly three years and was told by Pohpeians that their ancestors knrw how to levitate the huge basalt columns and float them through the air from the other side of the island (Sokehs). Sounds good to me as I don't see how the relatively few Pohnpeians could have manually carried those thousands of huge rock columns across the island.

[@kennethklein6213]

Thank you for your commentary and for your truly excellent use of still, video, and arial photography.

[@cybersentient4758]

been waiting for you to upload, you have no idea how much i like these vids man.

[@Davefromcanada411]

Another great vid! Happy to be a supporter of your story telling!

[@DavidS5118]

I love your brand of storytelling. Thanks for sharing.

[@wpattison]

Supporting you on Patreon - thank you for sharing your work!

[@natenatters]

Another facinating story, thanks! I cant imagine how much time you must spend on these, but it really shows in the quality of the storytelling and filming. Keep up the great work :D

[@dschlie6669]

Fascinating stuff, as always! Cheers

[@Natures_Son]

Fantastic short doco. Thank you.

[@michaellechner3194]

I subscribed to this channel a while ago, and every single episode confirms my descision, it is truly a crown jewel!

[@sheilam4964]

Thx for doing this, filming it and sharing it it with us. 👍👍👍👍👍

[@fedoramaster6035]

So happy this channel is a thing. Binged a bunch of your vids years ago, and idfk for the life of me why I didn’t subscribe. I’m like 96% sure I did, I’d think about the channel from time to time. Just had to re-sub/subscribe, but I honestly love your stuff

[@1st1anarkissed]

Another excellent offering, thank you!

[@timmybarry7207]

Before going any further… That INTRO man!!! Had me hooked I don’t care bout the rest of your stuff yet, that into gained a sub👏👏👏

[@chrisvice7736]

Thanks for uploading! Glad to see you always.

[@bl8388]

Fantastic. I wanted to see the ruins and you showed a variety of shots and meandering clips that gave more perspective than most videos I've seen. It was interesting hearing a mixture of their myths, too.

[@RCake]

Thank you so much for this video - I nurture the fairly unrealistic dream of one day visiting Nan Madol, so this was a feast to my eyes.

[@clovisthegreat7078]

You are genuinely an excellent storyteller. I hope you don't stop your work on telling niche stories from even nicher places!

[@nonsequitor]

Maaan.... this channel is so amazing and I'm so grateful I'm almost managing to get over you saying "stepped foot" instead of "set foot" at 4:17 🤬😵🤬🤬🤬🤦‍♂️💚💚💚

[@RareEarthSeries]

Language isn't static.

[@norlockv]

Evan, this script is excellent. I could watch this for days. I can’t imagine the effort it took. Never doubt yourself in these matters.

[@basilepapadopoulos8286]

Congratulations on what I believe is a very unique and serious attempt to grasp the history behind the people behind the incredible structures of Nan Madol . Thank you for that !

[@Ingyboy911]

What a beautiful story. Thanks for sharing it

[@artawhirler]

Excellent video! Thanks!

[@danko6582]

The foreignness of the stone equates to Yap money. Transporting big rocks from far away is very dangerous in a canoe. Hence bringing in 1,000s of tons of hard volcanic rock to a reef or sandbar with no volcano nearby is a huge flex among Micronesians.

[@CodyRushDriving]

12:15 I got shivers. "...but from the East. Like the sun." What an awesome story, and you did a great job telling it.

[@Bufekana]

Thank you for this video, i love it👍

[@finnmoran]

That was amazing dude, thank you

[@kuurakuutamo]

Kiitos paljon; thank you so much for continuing to bring us amazing Rare Earth stories~ ❤

[@camillastacey4674]

Always good to see a rare earth story pop up.

[@ancientfutures]

Thanks for coming back

[@Gougar]

Love your videos

[@RareEarthSeries]

That means a lot thank you

[@enterfil]

That is so absolutely cool. Definitely one of the most awesome places one can visit on earth

[@XvoseEthereal]

this is so cool man thank you

[@ShimmeringSpectrum]

A wonderful story that I'd never have otherwise heard.

[@dragonflydroneservices1021]

That was excellent. Gratitude

[@NarffetWerlz]

He was trying to invent the bungee jump. He was a little confused but his heart was in the right place, unlike his junk.

[@acquisitium]

as usual, just magical

[@theghosthero6173]

Called it months ago! Nice seeing you there

[@TrickiVicBB71]

Another great video

[@stevebrown8163]

Thank you

[@sillybilly8028]

Great video!

[@dr.lazysloth3415]

Beautiful video

[@daveellis9339]

So much world, so much hidden history (or mythology) , and here's hoping for so many more videos.

[@EyesOfByes]

The best storyteller on KZbin is king

[@ponganfutbolenstardewvalle2888]

This pacific series has been incredible

[@CoffeePot31]

Wow what a marvel of architectural genius!

[@bauhnguefyische667]

This is what I like about You Tube. This Chanel is jewel.

[@paladinkhan]

I appreciate the inclusion of all the perspectives you heard. What a beautiful and mysterious place

[@ritiksinha5651]

We are so lucky to have such a great storyteller.

[@gd3551]

Rare Earth never disappoints.

[@jwinter7480]

Hey Evan! You should do a video with Stefan Milo!

[@RareEarthSeries]

He's an extremely talented dude who I respect deeply and I don't think he has much need for my collaboration tbh. But if he had a need I'd certainly hold his camera or send him footage to use.

[@mellissadalby1402]

Wow, that is one heck of a story.

[@mercator79]

that story is nuts

[@sidremus]

the whole thing about kings having to be foreigners sounds a lot like they had to prove themselves in some way going abroad. many cultures (think of ancient Rome or China, Japan or the Vikings) had traditions which expected martial leaders to first go and earn their keep, so to say, before they could become legitimate rulers. I wonder if those traditions would line up here as well

[@Timbeon]

Nan Madol is such a deeply cool and endlessly fascinating place, and it bums me out that most of the time it gets brought up it's by people trying to argue that aliens built it. And even if you want to stick to supernatural explanations, the actual stories from Pohnpei's oral history about it being built by demigods are so much cooler!

[@Madfattdeeb]

Like everyone else, I don't know how much of that is true. However, it would make for an amazing movie. Thank you for sharing this video with all of us. I am now going to look for books on this information. 😊

[@stephenwright414]

Thanks for that.

[@ashergoney]

5000 years in the Region Atleast From 1908 Onwards.. 1500 Onset From Site At Enche Monastery and Paddy Fields Of Trumpeting Bull Pups..

[@auspiciouscloud8786]

Think lower sea levels, love to see what it looks like then. Love your video! Thank you! ❤

[@RareEarthSeries]

There are some images available online of what it looked like with the slight lowering of sea levels during construction, if you're interested.

[@auspiciouscloud8786]

@@RareEarthSeries am I! I sure am, thanks for the tip! 😃❤️❤️❤️

[@johnnesbit2371]

Yap has its own famous Micronesian Modern Stone Age feature: Is 'stone money' a thing we "moderns" might re-consider?' This one, like all your vids, is worthy of two/three-viewings. THANKS.

[@ozragland3455]

And the value reflects the difficulty of transport...

[@TaLeng2023]

Stone block(chain)

[@ringsystemmusic]

would make a fun method of storing value

[@TaLeng2023]

@@ringsystemmusic people call it blockchain coz the stones are often large enough that they change ownership without moving out of their original spot. Everyone just agrees and remember the transactions involving the stones. One rather large stone sunk into the sea during transport and people still used it for trading anyway.

[@OllamhDrab]

Outstanding.

[@jonathanbush6197]

I'll take your word for it.

[@BiNumLi]

Interesting. The natives of the North West of British Columbia Canada also worship a supreme 'Thunderbird'. In BC eagles are plenty along the coasts. Did the Austronesian diaspora reach North America? It also fascinates me that the Eel god ruled Nan Madol but when he lost the battle with Thunderbird he reverted to a common eel. After the Eel god ate the people to the bone with taxes, he fell, and the people ate the eels.

[@weswhite6058]

Best monument in eu4

[@felixsheppard27]

Is this a rust reference?😅

[@FengLengshun]

Bro literally took the phrase "The Man, the Myth, the Legend" and decided "I am That Guy". It might just be a story, but man if that shows how timeless these ideas were.

[@blueboxman5517]

Hey it's OK Evan, I was mentally hearing Sardukar every time you said it

[@TaLeng2023]

Any video about the Austronesian Expansion is nice.

[@danielweston9188]

This is the one location/build that needs more investigation

[@samdumaquis2033]

Wow, what a story

[@ScrewyDriverTheMan]

What an amazing place.

[@RCSVirginia]

It may or may not be connected, but in the Solomon Islands, large eels dwell in the pools that the people use for fresh water because it is believed that they keep the water in the pools clean. There may be a spiritual and mythical meaning, as well. The eels become completely tame: Children swim and play with them, and the adults feed them. When they reach sexual maturity, the eels return to the ocean, and young ones replace them. It is possible that something similar is happening on Pohnpei.

[@AHumblePear]

God I love being subscribed to this channel

[@TheWrightLifeTravelChannel]

Very cool!

[@fedoramaster6035]

10:12 well, idk about Laos specifically (it’s a bit north and inland), but a lot of kingdoms in indochina were started by Indian merchants, as Indian society was much more centralized than the small (even by southeast Asian standards) native kingdoms, and Indian religion provided new opportunities for native rulers. Odd compass did a cool video on it

[@RareEarthSeries]

I also did a video on it, in fact!

[@fedoramaster6035]

@@RareEarthSeries omg really?? Watched a bunch of your vids years ago and ig KZbin did that thing where it unsubs for no reason because I never saw another of your vids pop up until tonight 😭. Rest assured, I have been binging. Also wanted to say that I really love your content. your Yugoslavia series was probably my first time hearing about balkan politics, and I was absolutely shocked at the time. You really did it justice in hindsight. Love your vids.

[@Chris.Davies]

Calling this equal to Khufu's pyramid is like comparing a child's pedal car to a Lamborghini. These are impressive structures, for sure, but they're at least two orders of magnitude less impressive then the only surviving ancient wonder of the world. Maybe three orders!