Before coming to Vanuatu I read with some concern the presence of mosquito borne diseases - Dengue Fever, Zika Virus, Chikungunya and in the northern islands Malaria. The good news is that so far we have only seen one mosquito since arriving - and we killed that one! Also from a general health point of view we have noticed that very few local people seem to smoke cigarettes and do not have the obesity problem seen in Polynesia.
Denise and I came back into Port Vila a few days ago to drop off two friends Liz and Dave, who had flown up from NZ to spend ten days with us on Katipo and have now returned to the cold in NZ. We had a good time together and a lot of laughs although the original sailing plans were thwarted by a serious infestation of Rhinoceros Coconut beetle in the Havannah Harbour region where we had hoped to sail. The whole area was closed to cruising boats and on shore the army manned road blocks to ensure no potentially infected produce was moved out of the region.
However we instead spent some time in Mele Bay, a delightful spot with a marine reserve nearby with great snorkelling and diving. There was also a small beach bar where an excellent fire dancing display was shown most Friday evenings. The performers were all local village residents and they even set up a trapeze frame supported by a couple of palm trees on which they performed acrobatic feats. A very impressive show.
We hired a car for one day and drove around the whole of Efate Island. The road was not too bad but one had to keep a weather eye out for potholes. We visited the Reef Zoologique which had a turtle conservation and breeding programme. In addition we saw native iguanas, flying foxes, crabs including the very large amazing coconut crab which starts life in the sea for about ten years before moving onto land in the bush near the beach.
The Secret Garden is a place worth a visit, not too far from Port Vila. Besides the plants there is much information about the history of Vanuatu from the earliest days of the contact with Europeans and the old established customs. To our surprise they also had a snake about two metres long, one of the two species native to Vanuatu, which was amenable to being handled. It is like a Boa constrictor. We were told when holding it that it just likes the warmth of your skin as it slides around your neck and means no harm!
We enjoy snooping around the Port Vila market, which has a vast array of local produce on sale. We recently bought two new fruits which we had not eaten before. The chocolate fruit, like a giant persimmon, has a dark paste inside when ripe which the locals spread on bread. It looks like chocolate and has a slightly similar taste. The nous fruit is like a mango but better - we will be buying both again!
We plan to set sail for Epi Island over the next 2 days in search of the dugong. More news later.
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| Hazy Emua island seen in the distance during our drive around Efate Island |
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| The acrobat on the trapeze at Mele Bay |
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| The delicious 'chocolate fruit ' sliced in half showing the paste inside |
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| Denise holding Iguana at Reef Zoologique |
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| Photo Turtles |
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| Totally harmless I was assured ! |
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| Denise wearing her Pirate Grandma T shirt |
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| The rhinoceros beetle causing havoc in Havannah Bay Area |
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| Coconut crab |
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| The long sandy beach lined by coconut palms at Mele |
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| Star fish seen in the shallow water during a reef walk |
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| Friends Liz and Dave who recently came to join us onboard Katipo for ten days |
