Destiny is lying quietly at anchor in Lamen Bay, Epi Island. We came here via Wala Island off the coast of Malekula. Wala is a fascinating place. It lies only about 0.4 nautical miles offshore; it is a very Kastom island, where the men and women preserve the old ways but are keen to display and explain them. Anthropologists and archaeologists have studied the island's culture extensively, and have found some of the earliest examples of Lapita pottery in all of Vanuatu. We were given a tour of the island and its sacred sites by Glen, chief of one of the island's four clans, and he arranged for us to attend a Kastom dance and to be shown traditional methods of house construction. This was all first rate, and another of the clan chiefs, George, stayed with us to explain all what we saw. George's "cousin brother" Silas is a very educated man, and we spent a long sunset and evening sitting in front of him as he told us much of the island's history. He has strong recollections of the ructions that accompanied the leadup to Independence in 1980 - when local firebrands tried to form an independent state comprising Ambae, Santo and Malekula (islands with a strong French influence during the Condiminium). They were aided in this by the French who had governed Vanuatu (the New Hebrides) along with the British; the French hoped to sabotage the looming Independence by dividing and ruling. They failed of course, and Silas had vivid stories to tell of the struggle between the various forces. They are very grateful for the role played by Australia and New Zealand in settling the dispute, and very much so to Papua New Guinea, who sent troops to aid the fledgling Vanuatu Government (which had no real Army of its own as yet). The young men from the village listened spellbound by the stories he told. Wala itself is a tiny anchorage, just a little sandbank off the beach shoaling rapidly from deep water. We anchored in 8 metres and dropped back to 20 metres on 35 metres of chain. We were there next to "Najat", and there was really not room for another yacht, had one come in. But our days there were magic. More about Wala to Lamen tomorrow, and you can look at some pics from there by clicking here. Cheers from us