Oh, hey little pacific island!!!

G’day Mate-

I know it’s been awhile since I have last written.  I have been crazy busy with school- writing more lesson plans a day than I could ever have imagined, at school from 8am until 5pm every day.  I know that it sounds very exciting, but I have other exciting news.   I am currently sitting in Sydney International Airport.  I am sure you are perhaps guessing that I am flying home to the U.S. – but that is not correct.

My Australian Visa is coming to an end.  With my tourist visa I am only allowed 3 months at a time.  As the end of my three months is coming up fast I had two options:

1.      I could pay around $250.00 to fill out some paperwork online and continue to stay in Australia. 

2.     I could buy a round trip ticket to fly out of Australia and come back in and my visa would be automatically renewed for another three months.

After chatting with my host family about this – and my host mom making an amazing offer, flying out of the country seemed like the better choice. Where we’re heading you might ask?  Well, don’t worry if you have never heard of it, because I hadn’t when she asked me about it, but the country of Vanuatu.  Vanuatu is a country made up of 83 islands that are out in the Pacific. 

Heading to this tropical island I am thinking that it will be a beautiful island full of sun, beaches, and people.  I was right, however I was missing a lot! 

When we arrived at midnight (our plane was a couple hours late.. I guess that’s island time!!), there was an island band that was there to greet us.  We got off the plane outside in the open air.  We just walked to the door that said “international arrivals” and went in.  Right in the door was an island band.  They were dressed in the bright colors and playing the island music.  It was a fun welcome!  The airport was NOT like any I have ever seen before (however, as you know I haven’t really seen that many airports in my life!).  There were no computers, no flashing lights, trolleys, people running in all directions, etc.  It was a laid back, comfortable feel.  We stood in line to be checked in by the customs officers.  Surprisingly enough, these guys actually cracked a smile J After customs we went to collect our luggage – and there was no worry as to where to collect it at, as there was only one belt for luggage.  We then went through with our baggage.  There were no metal detectors; there were no machines to put our luggage through, just men waving us through.  It was so amazing to have an experience like this in an airport.  The duty free was about the size of a hotel room, and that was all that was at the airport.  Just incredible how this international airport was so laid back and easy going.  What a great experience!  There was a bus company awaiting us as when came in.  They took our bags and loaded them into their trailer, gave us a bottle of water, and had us sit on the bus.  When we left the airport, one of the ladies on the bus explained a few things about Vanuatu.  She told us that the people here love to talk to the visitors.  They will answer any question we have, so feel free to ask.  She also said that seatbelts are not mandatory here, and most vehicles will not even have them.  Any buses are marked with a “B” on the license plate, and Taxi’s are marked with the white “Taxi” sign on top of the vehicles.  Tipping is not necessary here, but small gifts are appreciated.  There are NO speed limits and NO stoplights in Vanuatu.  (Yes, this scared me a bit!)  People drive on the right side of the road (so like the US) however they give way to the people on the left (like Australia)…. 

The Band that greeted us as we went through security! 

With this information I had a whole new idea of what Vanuatu might be like.  I know I was a bit worried about getting in a taxi or bus after that, knowing there were no seat belts, speed limits, or stop lights. 

When we arrived at our hotel, we were greeted with many smiles.  It seemed as though the hotel staff were excited about our arrival (Perhaps because they had been waiting 2 hours extra for us to check in!!!)  They carried our bags to our room, which was very nice of them.  The hotel is astonishing!!!  The lobby is all open, HUGE ceiling, and just a lovely tropical feel to it.  Our room is one that has just been newly renovated.  We are pretty lucky!!! J  Well that is it for now!  Off to bed I go, I want to be up nice and early to explore Vanuatu tomorrow!

 We just spent our first day here and I learned so much.  We first went to check out the beach, talked to the people who were working at the hotel, and went into town to grab some food for the next few days.  We were told that the market would be our best option as it would be cheapest to get fresh fruit and vegetables.  We found the market and wandered around it, I only recognized one item there, and that was coconuts.  I have no idea what other vegetables or fruits they were selling.  I don’t even know if I could figure out how to eat them.  Most of the items were green and brown, so there was not much color.  The people who were selling them all greeted us with a smile.  There were whole families there, children too!  Walking through the market, one of the more popular tables was a table that was selling lunch.  Using a leaf for a plate, they were serving octopus and a few different fruits and vegetables.  It seemed to be popular because when we were walking around the market there were small groups of people sitting on the ground eating out of the large leafs. 

This was the food market in town! 

Here were a few of the islanders playing a game outside of the markets.

Since we weren’t sure what exactly we were looking at in the fresh markets, we decided to take a look in the super market.  Here we were a bit more knowledgeable as to what we were getting.  We got a few biscuits, peanut butter, cereal, milk and tuna for the next few days. 

While we were in town we decided to grab some lunch.  We had to first get some Vatu (the currency used in Vanuatu) out of an ATM.  It is amazing how their currency is in such large amounts.  For example, for $20 Australian dollars, I received around 2,740 Vatu.  I know this seems like a lot, but it really isn’t.  A burger for lunch was about 700 Vatu.  Things are really that much more expensive, but when I see the large numbers I definitely cringe a bit at them!  While we were eating lunch at Jills Café, a man, Allen was his name, came over to ask if we wanted a newspaper.  I asked how much, and he told me it was 100 Vatu.  I said “no thanks” to him with a smile.  He asked where I was from, and I told him I was from the United States.  His face completely lit up, his eyes got large, and he smiled.  He asked if he could please just shake my hand.  I told him of course, and he was so happy!  He asked what my name was, and introduced himself as Allen.  He seemed so shocked that I was in Vanuatu from the US.  He asked if I liked it here, and was so pleased to see me.  He then asked if he could give me a kiss before he left, so I turned my cheek for him.  He shook my hand again after that and smiled while he said “Nikki it is so nice to meet you!”.  Allen then turned away to continue selling his papers.  After this, I was really thinking about why was he so excited.  What made America so appealing to him?  I figured it must be media, or perhaps word of mouth that he would especially show interest in a person from America.  I almost felt bad, he should not be the one appreciating me, I would love to appreciate him for welcoming me into his country.  It just truly amazes me to think that I had never even heard of this place called Vanuatu – and I am here now and there are 83 islands!!!  There are thousands and thousands of people who live here, who work here, who sell their local produce at the markets, each and every day!  It truly is amazing to think how large our world is, and how much is really out there.  I am so blessed to be here, and to be able to learn about the culture here.  It makes me want to learn more, see less common places in the world, meet the actual villagers, and see what makes the country the way it is – so thank you Allen, thank you for greeting me with such kindness today.  Please know that I want to thank YOU for welcoming me into this beautiful country that you live in.  I am  very fortunate to be here. 

Not only did I meet Allen today, but I also met a lady named Gweneth.  She was selling clothing and other tourist trinkets in town.  She was absolutely lovely, and was so happy to just talk.  There was also another lady we met today, Nancy.  She was absolutely lovely.  She smiled at everyone as they walked past, shook my hand, and told us how the day before the weather was so bad.  She thinks that we may have brought the sunshine.  J  I also met a grandmother and her two granddaughters.  They were at the markets selling trinkets and clothing also.  The granddaughters were 6 and 7.  They were so happy to be there, smiling the whole time.  It was absolutely adorable.  They were so excited to show me the different items that they had. 

It was just an amazing day today!  I absolutely loved meeting with all the locals.  I wish I could have visited with them more!  They were lovely!  The people here are so kind; they love sharing their culture.  It is absolutely beautiful.  They also are so considerate, every person that I met throughout the day said to me “I hope you like it here..”  It was almost said as though perhaps I wouldn’t like it, and they were really hoping that I would enjoy my time here – well let me tell you this place is BEAUTIFUL – and not only because of the landscape.  The people here are what really make it beautiful!  I think I am really going to enjoy Vanuatu.  Tomorrow I am planning to go on an island tour that is hosted by our hotel for free, and then perhaps take a kayak out and just wander around the lagoon.  I would really love to meet more locals, and possibly visit a real village.  I will just keep praying about it and see where it takes me!  Goodnight for now!

Love from Vanuatu! 

The Kayaks at the hotel! 

A look at the lagoon we stayed at... :)