Last Sunday & Monday we spent at an anchorage off Ratua Private Island Resort. The water was crystal clear & there was heaps of turtles...some very big. Steve had a great snorkel on the reef in front of the resort & saw heaps of fish. It was nice to get away from town for a while.
Tuesday morning back at Luganville we were greeted by a dugong swimming around the anchorage! He was in no hurry & was there for a least an hour. Ange's mum Lesley & nephews Samuel and James arrived late that afternoon - great to see them after so long. There was lots of catching up to do!
Wednesday was a day of exploring Luganville for Ange, Lesley & the boys while Steve stayed behind & tackled a few boat jobs. The town explorers were just about to enter the Visitors Information Centre when the earth started to shake...then it got really bad...we had to hold onto each other & a couple of locals to keep standing! Lots of people ran out into the middle of the street & even some ladies were screaming. After our initial fright, then understanding what was going on, it was a pretty awesome experience...about 20 seconds worth. Nothing was damaged but all the stock on shop shelves was thrown to the floor. Reports later said that it was a 7.3 earthquake...pretty big! We continued our shopping after that, checking out the local fruit & vege market and a couple of little handicraft stores.
Thursday morning Steve snorkelled with the dugong for about 15 minutes! We said goodbye to Geri & Richard on PANTHERA - they were heading to Brisbane that afternoon. We all piled onto PANNIKIN & headed north to a lovely anchorage near Oyster Island Resort. We visited the beautiful blue holes of Matevulu and Ri Ri, did some great snorkelling and swimming and then happy hour at the resort. Back to Luganville then on Friday afternoon. Samuel & James both had a turn on the helm!
Saturday we hired a car to take us to the north of the island. After taking a couple of wrong turns & driving on a really bad road we finally found the correct one & our trip was much smoother. First stop was gorgeous Champagne Beach. The water was so clear & beautifully blue and the sand was powder soft. We all had a swim & the boys a snorkel as well. Then onto Port Olry where we were spoilt - lobster lunch! This is a really beautiful spot as well. It would be nice to spend a week up there staying in the little bungalows & swimming in the blue, blue water. Finally to end the day we snorkelled at Million Dollar Point where the US Army sank a ton of jeeps, earthmovers & other equipment at the end of WW2. All just off the beach - great!
Today Steve did two dives on the SS President Coolidge - an ocean liner converted to a troop ship which hit one of the USAs own mines & was sunk off the beach. It is one of the world's most accessible wreck dives & not to be missed. The rest of us went to Santo Fire Walks & Cultural Village where we had a top time. Lots of singing & dancing, fire walking, basket & mat weaving - topped off with a traditional meal of taro and coconut chicken & spinach leaves all baked in a ground oven. We had a ball & the chief and his villagers were really lovely.
Sadly, our visitors head home tomorrow. We will check out of Vanuatu & start our journey to Australia on Tuesday. After nearly 3 years we are almost home! Look out Bundaberg...here we come!!