After checking out of Suvasuva on Monday morning and doing a bit of last minute shopping, we had our last curry lunch in the yacht club and then left to anchor out off the Coustau resort again, ready for an early morning start towards the island of Makogi (pronounced Makongi). This small, hilly island hosted two leper colonies from 1911 until 1969. The main colony hosted sufferers from across the South Pacific, and the smaller colony in the next bay round was for the Indian population. We had a good journey across to the island and arrived in plenty of time to negotiate the passages through the reefs while there was still plenty of light. We anchored in a beautiful bay opposite the remains of the main leper colony. We went ashore to the small village based there to do our sevusevu (kava presentation & blessing) and were warmly welcomed by the chief of that village. The small houses of the village are surrounded by the remains of the old colony. On our tour of the village, he showed us the remains of a large cinema, now overgrown with creepers, a hospital, shops and a church. A grand flight of steps leading to nowhere was once the building where the Sisters lived while caring for the lepers. The stones of the building have long since been recycled elsewhere. There is also a large cemetery, currently overgrown, where 1241 leprosy sufferers were buried. In 1984 the island was declared a marine reserve and is run by the Ministery of Fisheries. Until recent sanctions reduced funding, the village ran a research station and a large hatchery for giant clams and sea turtles. The chief of this village is the fisheries officer, as well as the preacher and person in charge of maintaining the ancient generator (a relic from the leper colony). We all dined on Mahi-mahi that night, caught by Harmonie on the way across.

The following morning we went across the village again and the chief provided one of his sons to guide us on a walk across to the second village - about an hour and a half each way. After a steep climb up a narrow path we reached a broad path that was once a road linking the two villages with a side track (now overgrown) up to a water reservoir constructed high up in the hills. It was a pretty walk through dense vegetation which provided welcome shade. Once over the first hill we came to the remains of the second, smaller leper colony for Indians. The remains of the two temples can also be seen in the undergrowth. After going up and down several hills, we eventually arrived at the second village where we visited the elementary school which caters for children up to the age of eleven. A husband and wife teaching team manage four classes and are based here for two years before moving on to another posting. They appear to be doing a good job in difficult conditions. At the moment they are waiting for a water tank to be built to flush the toilets - currently the children have to carry buckets of water about 200 yards across to the toilets in order to flush them. The children also maintain the grounds and keep the grass cut.

We returned with aching legs, looking forward to some snorkeling the next day to view giant clams resident near the beach. The snorkeling next day was fantastic - amazingly clear sea. Anne and Don watched a turtle eat a fish. We missed this, but did see lots of giant clams, amazingly multicoloured coral, lots of fish and, rather eerily, lots of old single hospital type bed frames, presumably dumped after the last lepers left or died.