46) Port Moselle, Noumea, New Caledonia pt2

October 2008: South Pacific

Port Moselle, Noumea, New Caledonia pt2 (S 22.16.815 E 166.25.963) 

                Go to the museum and learn something.  That’s not an order that’s what happened to me today.  Even though I don’t understand French I understood the sign of a camera in a red circle through it.  So, no museum pictures.  Anyway, I noticed that everyone here smokes.  Well, every local that is.  It think it is the law.  It’s kind of like the woven basket you are put in upon birth for 18 days and then the basket weaving you learn as a cultural thing.  I learned that in the museum today.  The Kanak’s and weaving are synonymous.  Ok, back to the other thing.  I saw a display of cigarettes on top of cloths in the museum.  I already knew that giving a family a pig and some yams pretty much buys the girl for your son but I did not know that smokes were also dowry quality.  Go figure.  I thought they were only worth something on the inside.    

            On that note, why are prison’s in the south Pacific near marinas and bays?  Does it date back to the old days when they sent all the bad guys here as punishment?  Ah yes, New Caledonia was a penal colony too.    

                         

                I guess where I am going with this ramble is that smoking here is very acceptable and very open and every one does it.

                                                                                                                                                           

                The running joke around here is that the odds of getting a slip in the small guest slip area are pretty bad.  There are lots of locals that have boats around here and this is a good destination spot.  Not only is it scenic, modern and comfortable it is also a stopover for boats on their way to and from Australia.  We’ve given up on getting a slip.

 

                 The other Dave and I took a bus ride to the next bay over.  We are currently in the older industrial, commercial section of Noumea and wanted to see the newer side.  They have catered it to the tourist crowd with small hotels, manicured beaches, shops and restaurants.  Most of the development here looks well planned.  They have done a fantastic job of keeping the beach area open with minimal buildings.  And, the food is excellent.

        

    

        

      

                We went to the aquarium and I loved it.  The outside of the building is very misleading.  The displays are very well done with natural light coming in from above.  It was great to see the indigenous creatures as they can be spectacular.  I am used to seeing the U.S. aquariums and was quite pleased to see what this place offered. 

   

 

 

45) Port Moselle, Noumea, New Caledonia

October 2008: South Pacific

Port Moselle, Noumea, New Caledonia (S 22.16.815 E 166.25.963) 

                               

                We have arrived back in civilization.  It is remarkable to know that roughly 400 miles behind us is a place where they have no electricity except flashlights; they live in huts; and travel in hand-made outrigger canoes.  We tried to get a slip in one of the several marinas but they are all full.  So, we are out here among several dozen boats that are anchored or tied to mooring balls and it is actually quite nice.  The water is smooth and the breeze blows. 

 

                                                                                                                                                                   

     

 

 

 

                                                                                                                                                                     

44) Sakau Island, Maskelyne Island, Vanuatu

September 2008: South Pacific

Sakau Island, Maskelyne Island, Vanuatu (S 16.29.916 E 167.48.344) 

  

    
      

                This place was special.  The approach to get here took us thru some very scenic small islands with lots of anchorages, small villages and things to look at.  Once again offshore we came across an outrigger.  This time it was about 2-3 miles out with somebody in it.  It blended in so well that we did not see it until it was abeam of us.  I’m sure the real rules of the road applied here and he just got out of our way.  Our daylight transits thru reefs and groups of small islands as well as approaches to harbors and marinas are well intentioned.  Today we passed a sloop that was on the reef near our destination.  We made radio contact with either the large catamaran sitting off the reef or the rescue boat that was coming. The name of the boat is the Evelyn Roberts and is being single-handed by one guy.  We heard thru the guys that came up to us that he fell asleep underway.  It appeared that the boat stopped on top of a shallow reef and when the tide went out the boat fell over.  We listened to the radio and heard what they were doing.  Since there was not much wave action there was no real damage or holing.  They had lots of people in dinghy’s that were running a line from the sloop to a large fishing boat that came to help.  On the first attempt the 1” line broke.  But, luck was with them and the boat was freed and floated on its own to a nearby anchorage.

               

                We were greeted by lots of people in outriggers at this anchorage and that just added to the uniqueness of the place.  First to visit us was the guy in the upper left that helped with the mooring ball.  Yep, a mooring ball in the middle of nowhere.  This site is in one of the guides and if it’s on the map well then things are good.

   

  

 

 

 

      

      

 

        We gave several items to these different boats.  The other Dave even gave up the Elvis glasses.