Who would have imagined that we would visit all the Hebridean archipelagos this year? It wasn't planned that way, but we got to visit the Inner and Outer Herbides in Scotland in June and finished the year visiting the New Hebrides - Vanuatu! The archipeligo is a smattering of 100 odd islands (80 inhabited) located on the Pacific Ring of Fire where the Pacific tectonic plate subducts below the Indo-Australian plate. Not surprising then that some of the islands have active volcanos. The islands appear like a densely forested, wonky mountainous skeleton running north-southish.
Like their northern hemisphere namesakes, the islands of Vanuatu were inhabited for thousands of years before the first Europeans, Spanish explorers, arrived around 1600. Not long afterwards, and shortly after Captain James Cook visited, the islands were colonised by both the British and French - to teach the ‘natives’ how to live a better life! Familiar story. However .... in 1980, the New Hebrides gained their independence as the Republic of Vanuatu. Even so remnants of colonialism remain in the language. Both English and French are still fairly widely spoken and one or other is taught at school. While some have been lost, there are over 100 dialects thoroughout the islands, but communication between language groups is usually in Bislama (pidgin), a type of creole language.
The economy is poor and education beyond primary school a luxury the majority can’t afford. Many of the men come to Australia to pick fruit and vegetables as a way of earning more money. The dream of many both men and women is to work in tourism either as guides or owner-drivers. The majority of the businesses are island owned which is encouraging.
Beautiful people.
Boarding the plane for the half hour flight to Tanna Island from Port Vila. We were surrounded by jungle mountain peaks.
Port Resolution named by Capt Cook in 1700s. He wrote about the smoke and ash from the volcano Mt Yasur, which is located in the southern part of Tanna.
We were treated to a feast of local vegetables and eggs by one of local village families. This shelter is a place for special occasions, feasts, holidays - and for feeding tourists. The people are very generous sharing their food. The little tyke atbthe sidd was very wary of we white folk but got lured out by pix of our great grandson. Unlike further east, the sand here was white and the water pale. Where we were thevsand was back andvthe water slatey blue.
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