Vanuatu

I arrived in Brisbane on Aug. 25th and only had enough time to catch a night's sleep before leaving the country again to go to Vanuatu in the South Pacific with BJ. The plan was to ride bikes around the main island of Efate (about 140km) and stay in local villages along the way.

We spent the first night in some beach side bungalows just outside the town of Vila. I knew I had been traveling too much when I woke up in the middle of the night completely disoriented and had to think for a minute about what country I was in! We stayed in Vila for the first 2 days organizing things for our bike ride and checking out the local market scene. We waited an extra day for a ride up the colossal hill just out of town- you can't judge us for waiting until you've seen the hill! The bike riding was pretty novel at first because we could pick up and go whenever we wanted and enjoy the outdoors at the same time- for free! The first village we stayed in was in Mangaliliu where we were lucky enough to catch a week long wedding celebration for the chief's son. Everyone was in a celebratory mood and welcomed us like we were part of the village, which meant that we got to stuff our faces at the feast and dance with the local kids to some island pop.The pile of wedding gifts- all food for the feast!

We got to check out a beautiful little cove owned by the village and went snorkeling off the village beach.

The hut where we stayed in the village

The family we stayed with in the village

On the way to our next stop we got a flat tire but still made it thanks to a local truck that picked us up and even helped us ask around until we found the house where we were going, since BJ didn't think to get directions beforehand. We camped in his parents friend's beach-side backyard in Havana Harbor where we did some amazing snorkeling and had a view of Lelepa Island.

The next day we rode our bikes through groves of palm trees and past villages who had set up small huts memorializing the U.S. Naval base that was stationed there in WWII. They all sold old Coke bottles that had been tossed overboard the Navy ships- there are thousands of them! They fetched different prices based on which town was printed on the bottom- San Francisco bottles were double the price! Our next stop was even further up the road in Siviri village where BJ had stayed a few years ago on his first bike ride around the island. The people remembered BJ and let us stay in their "strangers hut" for the night and even had us over for dinner and breakfast the next morning. BJ got to see the little boy named Coco again who is now 2yrs old and quite social.The road out of Siviri

BJ carrying all the gear

We kept riding further the next day and rounded the northern tip of the island along the coastline. We picked up a stray dog along the way and rode right into a storm which forced us to pull over and stay the night in some little bungalows. I doubt they get much business because the owner's daughters had to move out of the bungalow and clean out their stuff before we could go in. It ended up being pretty nice, despite having to shower using a bucket of cold water, and the dinner they cooked was a feast. The highlight of our stay there was the after dinner entertainment that consisted of watching Ugandan music videos.
The next day we attempted to ride the 70km back into Vila past an old U.S. Naval base which was slowly being hidden by Kudzu. The novelty of the ultimate eco-tourism bike ride began to wear off since BJ seemed to be suffering from a case of Giardia and his handle bars fell off. Not to mention that the combination of the bumpy road and my hard bike seat were causing me to take a "bum break" every half hour. We ended up giving up part of the way down the road when the sun got so hot that we couldn't bare it any longer- fortunately BJ's prayers were answered and just like magic a local transport truck came along and offered us a ride back to Vila for $5.

The icing on the cake was being bitten by a ferocious dog back in Vila and being treated in their hospital that brought back memories of the Jones County, Mississippi Health Dept. I got 2 shots, 3 bags of pills, and bandaged all for $10! We treated ourselves to a nice place to stay back in town where I spent the rest of the time sitting at the bar by the pool.

In retrospect the people of Vanuatu were truly amazing and I don't think I ever passed anyone there without them saying hello. After only being there for 8 days I could see why it has been called the happiest place on earth. It was such a refreshing break from India and restored my faith that there are indeed good people in this world.