Yap is the most traditional of all the Micronesian Islands. From the moment you step off the plane you will be immersed in two worlds that peacefully coexist in this tropical wonderland. Men wearing traditional thuus and women in lava lava's standing next to a visitor in his best designer tropical wear. Visitors are asked to understand and respect this culture. The people of Yap are warm and friendly but a little shy. Women are requested to refrain from wearing "short shorts" or swim suites in town and to keep their thighs covered.

Anthropological theories suggest that Yap was settled over 3,500 years ago by seagoing voyagers migrating eastward in primitive log like canoes from either Indonesia or the Philippines. The ancient Yapese empire was a large, powerful and highly organized society. At the empires peak, the central islands of Wa'ab may have had a population of more than 50,000. Huge meeting houses, stone amphitheaters and Men's Houses dotted the shorelines. Inland majestic family houses sat atop raised stone platforms called "dayif," and their thatched peak roofs jutted out between coconut palms over an intricate winding network of stone paths.

The Yapese empire stretched beyond the islands of Wa'ab proper through the village of Gachpar, Gagil. Partly because of their material abundance relative to the Outer Islands and partly because of the respect they commanded due to their fierce warriors and allegedly powerful magic, the Yapese were able to demand and receive tributes from the Outer Islands. Each year canoes loaded with gifts of lavalavas, coconut rope and other valuables made pilgrimages to Yap to pay homage, seek continued protection and valuable goods such as wood for canoes and the ritual spice tumeric.