We made our final departure from Ambrym on Wednesday. As you can all imagine, it was an incredibly emotional day and we found it very hard to say goodbye to all the beautiful people we have shared the last year with.

We had a hoard of people come around very early morning (6.30am) to help carry our bags down the hill (we weren’t quite ready yet as our boat wasn’t going to arrive until 10.30am!). An old man from a nearby village had passed away so everyone was on their way for the funeral. It meant we only had a few close people spending our last few hours on the beach before the boat arrived to whisk us away

As a last final gesture, we were asked if we would like to lay the first foundation stone for the Tourist Information Centre that we had helped receive an AUSAID grant for. We were honoured by the thought and mixed up a bit of concrete, black sand and coral to make a small block of concrete. We filled a small hole and laid a black stone on top. The Chairwoman of the Council (Rose) who has become a dear friend to us said a few nice words and thanked us for successfully obtaining funds for the new centre.

(Laying the first foundation stone with Rose and her son Stephen who is a carpenter and will build the centre over the next few months).

Before we left we were also given a matching uniform by a beautiful couple from a nearby village – a nice red island dress and shirt to match!

We spent our last hour on the beach “storianing” with the locals, reminiscing on good times and cracking open a local nut which tastes a bit like an almond.

(Our dear Ambrym family and friends)

As the boat approached us, about 20 of our dear friends and “family” lined up on the sand beach to all shake our hands goodbye. We were both well and truly crying by the time we got on the boat.

Pippa’s two counterparts (Laan and Isaiah, the bungalow owners) and Esther (who we are sponsoring to go to school) escorted us to the airport. About half way, we were able to stop at a natural hot spring where we could soak our feet and relax in the hot black sand.

(Pippa chatting with Esther, a year 7 student who we are sponsoring to get through school.)

(Pippa with her counterparts Isaiah and Laan soaking their feet in the hot thermal spring.)

Our plane landed on time and we had to say our last teary goodbyes before boarding the 19 seater aircraft. We shed more tears on the plane as we drifted away from this very special and magical island.

We were a bit overwhelmed when we came into Vila – cars, noise, people, tourists, lights, smoke, etc! We will slowly ease our way back into this big wide world again but will it is going to take time to adjust.

We have a volunteer friend’s wedding to attend on Saturday and are due back in Oz next Wednesday. Although it was sad to leave Ambrym, we are really looking forward to coming home and spending some quality time with our family and friends.

We are sure it will be an emotional touch down at the Adelaide airport on Wednesday night!

The last goodbye remains copyright of the author pippamatt, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Farewell Ambrym

Well what an amazing year it’s been,
We’ve had the chance to live out our life long dream,
Our dream to live with the people of a faraway land,
We’ve found laughter, friendship and a good life near the black sand,

We have so many memories to lock away in our hearts,
Of which you all play a very strong part,
There are so many skills that you have patiently taught us,
Sharpening a bush knife, scratching a coconut and taking off it’s husk,

When we first arrived we didn’t know a thing,
Laan, Elsie and family, thanks for settling us in,
Thanks also for building us a great place to stay,
Relaxing on the verandah was a great way to end the day,

With Rose, Jacob and family we’ve shared the top of the hill,
With you being close by, warm and safe is how we feel,
Rose, you’re a superwoman juggling to many things,
The Council, the Clinic and yet still have time to grow beans!

Sandy, Krema, Iris, Donal and Nevin,
You have been like a family to us sent from heavin,
Thank you for the day where we planted the mango tree,
We hope we can come back and enjoy the fruits with our pikinini,

The end of our time on Ambrym is here,
I think we will certainly be shedding a tear,
We will miss you all dearly and never forget,
This place and all the beautiful people we have met.

Farewell Ambrym remains copyright of the author pippamatt, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Initially our idea for the ‘party’ had been to buy a bullock and give everyone a good feed to say thanks for making our year here such a special time. But we learned that the Lolihor Development Council (LDC) woman (who we worked for) wanted to have a party to thank us for our efforts! So we compromised and still bought the bullock and the council did all the organising to make the event happen.

So back to the bullock……the party was on Thursday, but late on Wednesday there was still no sign of the bullock (steers, bulls and cows are all refered to as bullock here). It had taken weeks to find one as there are so few left after all the wedding ceremonies.
Jacob, who is the husband of the LDC chairwoman and good friend of ours, grabbed his rifle, collected a posse of ‘boys’ from Ranon (our Village), and caught a boat to the area were the bullock was last seen. It was getting dark and the last they heard the bullock had wondered off into the jungle so things were not looking good. But as they arrived to shore to begin their hunt they were relieved to hear that the bullock had been found.
What a relief! So in the end an easy shot for Jacob and the real work of slaughtering the bullock began. Firstly it was cut into large segments to transport on the boat. Once back in Ranon (our village) it was cut up into smaller pieces and thrown into large pots and boiled for a few hours. This job took many hands and was not finished until 11pm.

While all this preparation was happening we were flat out in bed hoping that we would feel well enough to attend our own party the next day. A flu had been going around and it hit us hard. For a day Pippa couldn’t even keep water down…and dehydration was a real problem.

On Thursday morning we woke with sun streaming through the window of our bungalow and we were feeling much better. The LDC chairwoman Rosie had prayed for us and for good weather and it seems that both prayers were answered!

We went down to the place were the party would be held in the morning to find that the area had already been cleaned and decorated with leaves. Also food preparations were continuing with a horde of helpers cutting the boiled chunks of bullock into bite size pieces to make stew. At the houses in Ranon community members were making lap lap to bring to the party…..it looked like things would turn out well after all!

The last hurdle was our nerves at being the centre of so much attention.

‘How many people will come?’, we asked ourselves. Maybe 100?

In the end around 200 people from the area came to say thanks, share some food and enjoy string band music. Many, especially us, were surprised by the turn out (particularly after there had been so many weddings in the recent weeks).

Representative from five villages made thank you speeches, presented us with a Salu Salu’s (Lae) and gave us gifts. We were humbled by the turn out, the thoughtful gifts and the beautiful words of thanks that we received.

The whole thing was topped off by 2 beautiful songs sung in our honour. During the singing the tears flowed and we reflected on how warm and giving the people of Ambrym have been to us both.

We have included a verse and chorus below from one of the songs.

Happy days and nights gone by
Depending only on God,
Now is the time, yo”ll be flying away
Thanks for the love we shared
God will supply your needs
Now that you’re leaving
We are saying goodbye

Oh please remember us in prayer
How lovely was the time we spent
The only happiness we shared
The love from God above

On Tuesday night we will share our last meal with three close families that have looked after us throughout the year (next door neighbours, bungalow staff and our ‘adopted family’). We have written a farewell poem and have a tonne of pressies to give them as a way of saying thanks. No doubt our tears will be flowing thick and fast.

Community farewell remains copyright of the author pippamatt, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Over 200 guests gathered for the occasion and the food was piled up high. After the ceremony in the church, we all moved to the house of the groom to give our presents. I think plastic bowls and plates were the “in thing” with the couple receiving over 50 of them! It’s always such a weird contrast at weddings...in the background is cheery string band music but in the foreground is mothers and auntie’s grieving over the ‘loss’ of their daughter as she moves from the house where she has grown up to the house of her newly found husband.

(Matt covered in talcum powder after just giving his present to the bride and groom)

After the presents had been piled up high it was time to eat! Weddings on Ambrym offer one of the rare occasions where locals get to enjoy some red meat. Everyone is fed a plate of rice and bullock in a tent that can house about 30 people (made from coconut fronds and local thatch) so the guests eat in shifts until everyone has had their fill.

We moseyed on back to our bungalow mid afternoon but the party went on all through the night.

We have also had some nice thank you and farwell kakai’s (food) lately.

The first took place in the old custom village of Fanla. One of the highest ranking custom chiefs, Chief Maghekon invited us to come to his village at 2pm for a thank you kakai. We arrived at 2.30pm but typically the locals were on island time so no one was around until 3pm. We were anticipating eating with the village but around 4pm Chief Maghekon appeared with a bundle of lap lap. They made a really nice speech to thank us for our efforts and then gave us a carving and three bamboo flutes and sent us on our way.

(Matt standing with some of the big men of Ambrym – chief Maghekon is on the right)

The second thank you was in Fanrereo about half an hour up the hill from our village. The guys made Kava so Matt had some with them and they also killed a chook for us. We helped roast it on some coals and it tasted delicious! All the villagers brought food, layed it out for us and once again lathered us with presents (carvings, flutes and mats).

It feels so nice to be appreciated for the work we have done over the past 12 months. The big party with the whole North of Ambrym is still to come!

Party time remains copyright of the author pippamatt, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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REFAMILIARISATION TRAINING – an occasional series

If you see a big white box in the kitchen – it’s called a fridge and it’s where you’ll find food keeps for more than a day!

Don’t go looking for milk in a tin – it actually started life as a liquid and can also be found in the big white fridge.

The silver metal things in just about every room are known as taps, they provide instant access to water – even hot water!

There’s no need to use the bucket in the laundry to flush the loo. Just press the button at the top of the cistern and it does it for you.

Don’t shake hands with everyone you see in Blackwood, they’ll think you’re weird. Learn to ignore people you don’t know, don’t even smile at them.

There’s no need to drop your head when entering a room, you won’t hit your head, not even when standing fully upright.

Having all your colleagues and work tasks within walking distance is a ridiculous notion and no fun. It’s much better if you can space all your appointments at least 20km apart.

OK, that’s enough training for one day. More soon.

Worldly advice remains copyright of the author pippamatt, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Only 21 days left on Ambrym!! Looking forward to seeing you all very soon!!

Water back on! remains copyright of the author pippamatt, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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The water supply for some villages is getting desperately low. The well where we source our water from is down to about 30cm (when full it is about 3m deep). We were fortunate to get a recent sprinkle of rain but it wasn’t enough to fill up the water tanks. The water source for the North of Ambrym comes from a natural spring high up in the mountains but the spring has either dried up or there is a leak in the pipe some where. Either way, we are down to having a small bucket shower every three days, getting some local mammas to do our hand washing (using a small spring near the sea), flushing the toilet once a day and being very conservative with our drinking and cooking water. We really are Waterwatchers now!!

We have also had a series of earthquakes recently with a big one happening on Tuesday morning (7.0 on the richter scale). The big quake went for about 30 seconds shaking the whole house from side to side. Around 3 or 4 hours later an old man and a blind man came ambling up the hill with all their possessions (rice, clothes, pots, etc) as a tsunami warning had just come in from a nearby village (50 min walk away). We had a bit of chuckle with Nurse Rose’s family about the sudden exodus from the village (especially given that a tsunami would have hit at the very most 1 hour after the earthquake) but thought we should use the teleradio to get the straight story. Sure enough we heard that the tsunami warning had been cancelled and if a tsunami had of come, it would have happened soon after the earthquake (ie hours before people started evacuating from their houses!). We rushed down to tell our ‘family’ the news of the cancelled warning and found they were moving their last load of possessions up high into the mountains. They had already moved all their pots, clothes, pictures, photos, suit cases, etc and were about to move their mattresses to sleep in the bush for the night. They all had a good laugh when they realised they had moved all their stuff up the hill for no reason.

That night there were a few more smaller earthquakes. We awoke to a huge crashing sound and thought a tree had fallen close to our bungalow. We couldn’t see anything nearby but in the morning found that about 50 m from our bungalow a whole hill side had collapsed, taking a number of trees with it!

Yesterday was cold! I know we shouldn’t complain – it wouldn’t even have been close to Melbourne or Adelaide weather but we had our full winter woolies on and slept under our sleeping bag and blanket.

As a final gift, mother nature gave us probably the best sunset we have seen yet!

Mother nature out in force remains copyright of the author pippamatt, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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One of the highlights of our time with the boys was at the North Ambrym Arts Festival (July 20 and July 21). This is the second time this annual event has taken place and we had been looking forward to it all year. We assisted the locals by heavily promoting the Festival in National newspapers, In-flight magazines, e-mails, yacht clubs and posted flyers in Pt Vila. We were happy with the turn out with 24 tourists from around the world coming to be part of the festivities.

The event took place in the old custom village called Fanla – tucked away in the mountains of North Ambrym (about 45 minute walk from our village). This village oozes with character and mystery.

The program on the first day included grade taking ceremonies (namanghe). Namanghe on Ambrym has 8 steps and men can choose to ‘take grades’ by performing a number of rituals including dances, killing pigs or standing on a stage and being pelted by stones. We were lucky to see Chief Bong perform the final grade taking step by dancing high up on a platform, followed by a payment of money and ceremonial killing of a pig.

Local men performing a namanghe dance in the nasara (ceremonial ground)

The grade achieved by Chief Bong means that he is Tabu fire and can no longer share food that is prepared by other people. He cannot even except food from others and must grow his own food and pick fruit from special trees that are marked with his sign. This achievement is regarded as special by the people of Ambrym because the culture is so communal. Normal people rely heavily on sharing food to get through tough times. However those that are Tabu Fire are independent and separate from the rest of the community.

The dancing and singing was a real treat, and the fact that the ceremony was the real thing, not just something for the tourists, was really special.

After the ceremony there was a village tour, a yummy lunch of Island food, and a magic show. The magic you see on Ambrym is not the black magic that Ambrym is famous for, what we saw was more like magic in the western sense, i.e. tricks and illusions.

There was also a dance to unveil the newly made Rom masks that would star in the next days Rom dance. The first day was a real treat but after the unveiling of the Rom masks we were all excited about day two of the festival.

On the second day we were not disappointed, with the men putting on the most amazing Rom we have seen since being on Ambrym. More than 20 masks were involved in the dance and several high chiefs, including Woorawoorayafu (all decked out in pig tusks and Nambas), led the performance.

(Woorawoorayafu leading the Rom dances towards the nasara)

The Rom dance is so difficult to describe, but so spectacular to see. The costumes worn by the dancers are so ‘out of this world’, that you forget there are men underneath. You become lost in the dance as you are hypnotised by the beats of the giant TamTam (slit gongs), the chanting singers and the gliding motion of the Rom dancers across the Nasara (ceremony ground).

(The beautiful Rom masks made out of natural materials found in the bush)

After the Rom dance had finished, we soon heard the squealing of pigs being dragged into the Nasara from the surrounding bush. It was payment time. The leader of the Rom must always pay with the biggest pig and largest amount of money. Each of the other dancers must also kill a pig and pay money for the right to learn the secrets of mask making and to perform this custom dance. The pig killing is not our favourite part of the ceremony but it is very important part of local custom.

(Payment time!)

After the Rom we all tucked into Laplap, but during lunch Warren and Matt had to sneak off for a clandestine meeting with chief Woorawoora yafu (the big man of Fanla), who wanted Warren to value a gold sovereign coin that he had shown Pippa and I earlier in the year. Waz and Matt were a bit nervous….as the chief one of the highest chiefs of black magic in Ambrym. Waz offered quite a generous price for his coins….however they were both quite relieved when the chief decided to keep hold of his coin for a few more years.

After lunch there was a presentation of intricate sand drawing and the haunting sounds of the bamboo flute marked the end of the festival.

We were both relieved that the event went so well, and the feedback from all who attended was overwhelmingly positive.

The dates for the 2007 festival have already been announced (July 19th and 20th) and if you get the chance to go we highly recommend it – phone + 678 48687 for bookings.

The locals were really happy with our efforts to promote their event and thanked us by presenting us with a small live pig to eat with Wil, Ben and Waz. The pig was cooked slowly in a bread oven and was the most delicious, moist and tender pork we have ever tasted!

From the heights of the North Ambrym Arts festival, Wil and Ben’s visit and the Volcano treck our time here on the Santo has been a little more sedate although not without it’s adventures.

A highlight has been to dive on one of the most famous wreck dives in the world, the SS President Coolidge. This Steam Liner was converted to a troop carrier during WWII, and it sunk after running into friendly mines.

These dives are the deepest we have ever done (and probably the deepest we will ever do), but an experience to remember. The deepest dive was 40m.

(Matt, Waz and Pip at the bow canon of the SS President Coolidge)

(Entering the cargo holds of the Coolidge)

We have also been joining in with the celebrations of the 26th anniversary of Independence in Vanuatu. Just across the road from our accommodation is the main stage with string bands, dancers, singers, pikinini performances, speeches and religious preaching.

Our final bit of news is that Pippa’s work mate Kathryn has popped over to spend some time with us on Santo and will also come with us to Ambrym to share a few days of Island life.

(Kathryn, Pippa and Waz at Million Dollar Point on Santo, which is a famous dumping ground of old WWII equipment…and a nice place to swim!)

From the top of the world to the bottom of the sea - Part 2 remains copyright of the author pippamatt, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Warren, Wilson and Ben are three good mates of Matt’s and they came to share our lives for a few weeks on Ambrym….and boy did they fit a lot in while they were there.

Waz is still here with us on Santo, and we’ve decided to draft him as our guest travel blog writer. Here goes…..

We got to Ambrym on thrillseeker airlines making aerobatics look easy, Pip’s brother, Nigel was at the airstrip with a warm greeting and helped us lug our packs to the boat at Craig Cove. We said our goodbyes to Pips mum and brother as they were heading the other way. The boat hugged the coastline for more than 2 hours, passing dolphins, dugongs and flying fish. Douglas was our boat driver and bungalow owner and casually trolled a line out the back hoping to pick up dinner. Ambrym has stunning coal black beaches, over looked by ever rising mountains of lush vegetation.

Matt and Pip made a great welcoming party. It’s always too long between seeing good friends, especially these two. Ranon reminded me of Gilligan’s island “No phone, no lights, no motor car, not a single luxury”….. well nearly. Actually, the bungalows were simple but comfortable, with Kero lamps and mosquito nets (not really necessary at the moment). It felt like most walking around Ranon requires uphill exertion, but you do quickly adapt after a few walks to the phone hut at the nearby village of Linbul, an extremely important task to stay in touch with loved ones left behind in Oz.

Us boys started with a couple of local tours. We have learnt how to live off the land and between us guys we should be right as Spybee (Ben) was excellent in building a house, I was great at making fire, Matt can easily snare a pig and Wil was extremely adept in weaving women’s dresses and headbands.

(Left to right; Wil, Ben and Warren on the survivor tour)

Pip was not sure who the kids are around here as we played games with the young pikininis and Matt grassboarding down a hill on a coconut tree frond really showed those kids up.

We went to a triple wedding and put great thought into a present (box of Omo and a bar of soap with a Koala souvenir clip). The wedding was fairly traditional with a white bride and the groom in a monkey suit (god knows where they got them from around here). Anyway, the interesting stuff starts after the ceremony; the bride, groom and parents get lined up and seated on show to all. A never ending parade of relatives passes by kissing and dumping gifts at the bride and grooms feet. What was a tad odd was the bride, who bawled her eyes out the whole time, the groom looked sadder then at a funeral and the parents weren’t that overjoyed either, but the string band kept cheerily playing on. Pip and I gave our presents (she had a better present than us) and we got dumped with talc powder and deodorant. I guess they thought Pip was a bit pongy.

(The parents, bride and groom recieving gifts)

The highlight for me was the twin volcanoes (Mt Marum and Benbow); this was truly up there with the South west coast trek of Tassie. It was bloody scary, just ask Wil. We teetered on the edge of the biggest hole I have ever seen, as if peering down into Hades itself, with sulfur steaming from fissures and a small cone spewing lava into the air.

(Marum crater)

We tracked around the very rim on a hard slippery surface that simple dared us to make one fatal step which would send us to either hell or an arse skidding 100m down the volcano side (dramatic hah). We trekked several hours over a lifeless landscape, expecting a wookie or R2D2 to appear any time. Everyone but me found really good lava bombs (Pip was thrilled by nerdmania) and eventually we camped between the two volcanoes in current Melbourne weather conditions (cold).

(Mt. Marum looming in the background)

During the night we woke to a volcanic eruption off shore (we were at about 1000m above sea level). Lava from the island of Lopevi flowed down its side, branching in finger like streams before entering the sea. I was a hardly daunted by the fact that we happened to be sleeping between two volcanoes, while nearby another was putting on a great pyrotechnic display.

After a an absolutely shocker of a nights sleep, squished in with Ben and Wil in a one man tent (least it felt like it) and a bed of sharp scoria, we had a tin of chorizo and lard (Ok only us boys) for breakfast. After packing (in more ways then one) we summoned up our energies for the second volcano assault. It was a short but difficult climb, first advancing up a series of ravines and then a very steep ridge to the rim. We walked along the rim on a track angled at 45o to our feet and some unnamed individuals said they felt lucky they had a crap before they left; otherwise they would have added plenty of nuggets to their jocks. The crater of Benbow was mostly shrouded in acrid clouds of smoke but the glimpses we got were awesome. Anyway we survived being up on top of the world and have got the lava bombs to prove it.

(Mt. Benbow Crater)

(Mt. Benbow Crater)

We hardly had time to catch our breath before the two day North Ambrym Arts festival kicked off, but I’ll let Matt and Pip talk about that in Part II of this blog.

Matt, Pip and I were also invited to Pikinini day (Wil and Ben had left) at the local primary school at Ranon. Here in Vanuatu they have a public holiday every year for the kids, which is a bit like Mothers day in Australia. The kids were very cute as they all marched up carrying hand made Vanuatu flags with balloons atop.

We were made special guests for the day and lined up to be presented with a salu-salu (type of lae). Matt and Pip presented a soccer ball to the school which was going to be a quiet affair until they were ordered to shake the hand of every school kid (150 of them) in front of around 200 onlookers. We were privileged to sit and listen, while songs were sung, speeches were made and a rousing sermon made by the local preacher. Lunch was kindly provided by Sandy and Krema who had been so nice to us all during our stay on Ambrym. After a traditional lunch (including Lap Lap) the children’s games followed. The pikininis rotated from game to game and they all looked like they were having fun. The biggest highlight for the locals was the dog with a coconut leaf tied around its neck. We couldn’t quite see the amusement in a frantic dog running all over the place, chased by locals (and the leaf tied to it) but we may have just missed the punchline. All in all we were very lucky to be invited to a local festival with other locals from all over northern Ambrym and get a real taste of Ambrym village life.

From the top of the world to the bottom of the sea Pt 1 remains copyright of the author pippamatt, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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We have managed to see two of their games. We are back in the capital now, so last week we went to a local pub to watch their game vs Italy on the big screen. Although they had a disappointing end to their quest for gold we should all be proud they reached the final 16.

We also had a fun adventure on Ambrym trying to watch the game vs Brazil. There are only about five TVs in the whole of North Ambrym all hooked up to generators. We had some volunteer friends stay with us for a week and we all decided to do a 2am night walk through the jungle to the nearest TV. We walked up to the old custom village, Fanla (home to some of the high chiefs) and managed to wake up every dog and person in the village! One of the locals stumbled out of their homes to ask what we wanted. He told us that they couldn’t get the satellite dish to work and that we would have to walk to the next village if we wanted to see the game. We had only walked this track once (in the daylight) so it made for quite an adventure walking in the middle of the night in dim torch light at each intersection trying to decide whether to take the path to the right or left. After about 20 minutes of exploring, we finally found the Rural Training Centre and could hear the match was underway.

We walked into the hall and shuffled our way to the back behind about 100 passionate Ni Van Socceroo supporters. The TV had good reception but was quite small so we shared a pair of binoculars to see what was going on. It took us quite awhile to realise that Australia wasn’t the ones wearing yellow!

Although we lost and could hardly see a thing it was a great adventure and a totally unique experience! The next morning we were blurry eyed but had to attend heavy going meeting followed by the arrival of the National Geographic cruise ship.

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Our work has focused more on ecotourism and bringing small groups to Ambrym but when the cruise ship was scheduled to come recently we offered to help out. The cruise ship that visited Ranon is owned by National Geographic and you could say it caters for the ‘top end’ of the cruise ship market. 100 weatlhy guests (mostly well educated retirees from the US) and 60 crew had been around the Pacific for a few months seeing a whole stack of cultural and natural wonders before coming to Ambrym.

The purpose of their Ambrym visit was to see the Rom Dance.

With all the big preparations already taken care of, our only task was to settle the nerves of the tour guides who would be interpreting the Rom to the curious tourists. We have developed a good working relationship with the guides in our tour guide training workshops and although they were nervous we assured them all would be well as they knew their stuff.

(The string share a joke while in the background the dancers assemble before a big crowd)

In the end the day proved to be a success with many in the community having an opportunity to earn income through selling handicrafts, dancing or being guides.

The highlight for the kids was a zodiac ride. The cruise boat crew were generous enough to offer swarms of kids joy rides out to their cruise ship and back.

(Kids scramble to the shore after their joy ride)

For us it was great to see our guides in action and hear plenty of positive praise from the visitors and local community about their work.

(Pippa showing the kids a National Geographic magazine which was a gift from cruise ship staff)

The big question – Are cruise ships good for the community?

From our point of view the income generated from the visit is sorely needed in the community, particularly when it comes to school fees. Even if the guides just spend their earnings on Kava, the money trickles back through the community as most families are involved in growing and selling the Kava plant.

The impact of the visitors on local culture on face value seems minimal. The visitors are retirees who dress conservatively and come to view the culture for a few hours and then they leave. There is never more than 100 people, and they more or less stay in the area of the Rom dance on the edge of Ranon village so the place doesn’t seem overwhelmed by people when the guests arrive.

The main down side that we can see is jealously arising because some people benefit a lot more than others from the cruise ship visits. In particular the event organizer and the land owners receive a lot more income than the dancers and people who are selling handy crafts.

So on balance we would say the cruise ships are good for the local community however we are currently setting up a tourism task force that will include in its work monitoring the impact of tourism.

Cruise ship comes to town remains copyright of the author pippamatt, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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Most of you would have seen pictures of the land diving on TV. We were lucky that this amazing display of courage occurs annually on Pentecost Island which is a 2 hour boat ride from our home village Ranon.

Our speed boat ride across was quite rough with 3m waves coming at us from all sides. The currents between the islands can be tricky causing an effect like being a cork in a washing machine. We are both proud to say we didn’t feed the fish!

Once safely on dry ground we found there would be a 4 hour wait so we had time to explore as our excitement about finally being able to see the land diving grew.

At the allotted time we were joined by 9 people from a chartered yacht and headed up hill to the 15m rickety tower made from logs, vines and bush rope where all the action takes place. The soil in front of the tower is cleared of rocks then loosened which apparently helps to reduce the chance of injury.

What we saw at the Naghol really was an incredible experience. One at a time the boys would climb the tower to their designated diving spot. Two vines would be tied to their legs.

Meanwhile around 40 men and women, boys and girls in traditional dress were singing and dancing and essentially egging the jumpers on.

Once tied “safely” to their restraints the jumpers walked to the end of their diving board and went through a series of gestures; back arching, clapping, deep breathes, praying, in preparation for their big jump. We were both really frightened for the jumpers and as they continued to gesture and psyche themselves to take the plunge the tension was intense.


Finally when the jumper was ready they would lean forward and plunge at breakneck speed towards the ground. Instead of a smooth slowing like the bungey we know, they reach the limit of the vines and then there is a big crack as there downward motion is halted suddenly and they are flung sideways into the dirt ground.

A cheering was raised by the crowd and we were most relieved to see all the six jumpers get to their feet after each jump.

We are both fairly adventurous people but quickly agreed that land diving would never be for us!!

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(Glass bottomed Kayaking at Le Lagon)

We stayed with Peter at Le Lagon for a few nights, and fitted in plenty of sports including golf, tennis and kayaking.

After a few days of a relaxed resort life it was time for a bit of adventure. We had heard that the Tanna volcano was an amazing experience…but the weather wasn’t looking good!!!! The thick cloud we flew through to reach Tanna confirmed our suspicions that the weather might not be the best to view the volcano. By the time we arrived at our bungalow accommodation, Jungle Oasis, rain looked imminent and after an hour of exploring the beautiful bungalow surrounds we were forced inside by a heavy downpour. It’s quite an investment to get to Tanna and as we were there for only one night we hoped for the rain to stop. By 4pm it had and we set off on our adventure!

Matt and his Dad infront of Mt Yasur, Tanna Island

We had been hearing explosions from the Volcano all afternoon, and were eagerly anticipating getting up close to see the source of all the commotion. We decided to go on foot as we all felt like a walk and Jungle Oasis is only around 1 hour walk from the Volcano summit. The walk began well but by the time we got to with in 300m of the Crater a huge cloud rolled in and rain pelted down at a 45 degree angle totally drenching Peter and giving Matt’s raincoat and Pippa’s umbrella a good working over. However a great explosion turned our heads and we were amazed to see pieces of lava, some the size of a human, flying up into the sky. They seemed to move in slow motion as the lava lumps hung in the air before they fell back down out of site into the crater mouth. We all knew we had to see more of this!

The final push to the top was tough through the driving rain and as we got closer to the top the wind became even more furious forcing the rain against our faces and dampening our spirits. Once we reached the top there was no boiling cauldron of lava as we had imagined but a moonscape with clouds and volcano smoke whizzing by partially blocking our view of the crater. We huddled together and waited. After a cold wait of around 5 minutes (it seemed much longer) a small explosion sent streams of lava flying into the air. It was quite exciting but the rain really was cold. During the next wait we wavered between heading back to our cozy bungalow and staying in the rain, but before we could make our final decision there was a great flash of light, a huge explosion and the sky lit up as great chunks of man sized lava filled the sky. After that we were like druggies waiting for the next hit. We ended up staying for more than an hour in the cold wind and rain (Matt was shivering) but were able to experience some of the most amazing sites we had ever seen.

In the end our guide Charlie had to make us promise that we would head back after the next explosion. We reluctantly agreed…and not long after doing so were rewarded with the biggest explosion of the night.

Although the conditions were not ideal our Tanna experience was certainly unforgettable. We managed a little video and a few dodgy photos in the rain. The best one is shown below.

(The dodgiest photo ever taken of a lava explosion)

After Tanna we had a night back in Vila and then headed to Ambrym. Peter had a great time and was able to test out a few tours for us including the survivor tour, the kids tour and the revamped Rom tour. He also got to meet many of the great friends we have made and enjoyed himself thoroughly. He left saying it was his best holiday!

(Peter was quite a marksman. He hit a bulls eye from about 10 metres)

(All on Ambrym are so warm and welcoming, but the kids really make it special)

(The High Chiefs of Ambrym Magic danced the Rom sending tingles down our spines)

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By this stage we were fuming and super stressed we were going to miss our plane. When we finally arrived at the airport, it was all closed up…the plane was 2 hours late…on island time!

When the airport opened up, we found they didn’t have our booking that we had made over the phone. The flight was all booked up but they just managed to squeeze us on a later flight. We spent 5 hours in the airport (which is more like a concrete building with no toilet, shop, drinks, etc). Pippa had a headache the whole day just to make the journey that much more pleasant. Our flight took us via Santo Island where we had to wait 1 hour for a connecting flight to Vila. We finally arrived at 7pm that night!

While in Vila, we were lucky to have a beautiful place to house sit for a week overlooking Vila bay. Matt spent the week working at Live and Learn while Pippa spent her time in meetings, running errands and stocking up on supplies for Ambrym.

Last weekend we trialed one of the tours a Youth Ambassador volunteer has been developing with the local community. The tour was of the some cultural sites of a respected high chief called Roi Mata. He died 400 years ago and was buried with his multiple wives and family members of which some were buried alive.

As part of the tour was a tour of a beautiful cave with ancient rock art.

There were also some beautiful handicrafts to buy.

Pippa and Lisa showing off some of their purchases!

Another highlight of our week in Vila was the news that our Rom Dance article was published in the Virgin Blue In-flight Magazine. We got a 2 page colour spread with our names mentioned in the bi-line! You can check it out on their website.

Go to:

http://www.virginblue.com.au/products/voyeur/may06/?section=Song%20and%20dance

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In amongst our busy month there have been a few classic moments that we think are pretty unique to our time here on Ambrym Island.

Where ever, when ever ….

Would you use a sea shell to scratch out the inside of a banana, wrap it in leaves, stick it into the fire, pour coconut milk on top and eat it (this is the famous lap lap that we have mentioned before)?

Would you see a cat desperately hungry for some coconut scratchings?

Would you see a birthday boy so happy with some of the simple pleasures in life?

Would you be able to buy a hand carved canoe for $25 AUD?

Would you be able to sit on a black sand beach and watch incredible sunsets every night?

Would you see mammas in their colourful island dresses walking for an hour to a church service in the next Village?– Recognize the mamma on the left?

Would you see a lunch spread of starchy vegetables such as taro, manioc, banana laplap and yam?

Would you see a bunch of such crazy advanced tour guides?

Would you receive as thank you presents a yam, a chook and a home made mat?

Would you find a 7 year old boy expertly butchering a chicken? He saw Matt struggling to pluck the thing and soon took over. The butchering was amazing. A very specific process was used to gradually cut the carcass into bite size pieces. He didn’t gut the thing…but instead butchered around the guts. Although the end result wasn’t your chicken wings and drumsticks, it was an effective way to butcher a chicken using only a sharp knife and no chopping board.

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We came back on the Pelsaert (a fast passenger ferry). This is a new service that operates between islands provided locals and tourists a more comfortable alternative to the cargo boats (ie no pigs and plush seats). It’s surprising that the price for the fair is basically the same as the smelly cargo boats! We set out at 6.30pm on Friday night and arrived at 7am on Saturday morning (twice as fast as the cargo boat).

We were blessed with calm seas and the clear sky gave us a great view of the twin volcanoes of Ambrym.

(The view from the Pelsaert – Mt Benbow is quite active at the moment with vents of steam billowing out while Mt. Marrum (on the left) is much quieter)

We were weary and tired on our arrival as we both had just a few hours sleep on the boat. We trudged up the hill but our spirits were lifted when we saw our new abode, complete with deluxe decking, mozzie screens, curtains, bed, tables and shelves. We set about moving in at once and by the end of a tiring day we collapsed onto our comfy bed for our first night in our new home.

A few hours in to our sleep we woke to find we had slid down the bed and both our legs were hanging over the end. This may have been due to the more than 10 degrees slope of the floor! A few blocks of wood to chock up one end soon resolved this issue and we had good nights sleep ever since.

We’re also really enjoying having our own kitchen (no more sharing with tourists) and spending hours on the balcony working, eating and relaxing.

(Taem blong spel – Pippa enjoying an evening rest)

(Ples blong slip - Our bedroom complete with solar powered fan and reading light)

(Ples blong kakai - Our very own kitchen!)

It’s hard to believe we are more than half way through our placement. It seems that the locals are starting to realise our time here is short and are really taking advantage of our skills. As well as continuing on with our tourism project, we are now offering English training once a week, teaching music to the school and giving computer lessons to those interested.

During our stint in Port Vila we had to say goodbye to a few of our volunteer friends who had to return to Australia. We got a bit teary to see them go and it made us think of our own departure in 6 months and how hard it will be to say goodbye to all these beautiful people.

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We decided this time to attempt to camp between Ambryms twin Volcanoes on top of the ash plain and do the trek in 2 days. The weather was quite hot and our packs were much heavier than last time. It took us 5 hours of hard slog to reach the awe-inspiring view at the top of Mt Marum – we were blessed with clear weather again! As we were getting close to Mt Marum we heard a loud rumbling quite like thunder. We thought a storm was coming…but when we reached the top we realised that it was bursts of hot gas roaring out of one of the Volcano vents.

(Almost there)

(Inside the crater – the small hole in the centre is the place where the roaring sound was coming from)

(We made it!)

(Walking around the edge of the crater of Mt. Marrum)

We continued our journey to the other side of Mt Marum towards Mt Benbow volcano. The ash plain was a scene straight out of star wars…big boulders, stark landscape, no trees, and mountainous backdrops. There was even a small hot vent that was emitting steam, like a scene from an early science fiction movie…or ‘lost in space’. It was really hot when you put your hand up close.

(Mt. Benbow in the Background)

(A scene straight out of Star Wars)

As we approached Mt Benbow the billowing clouds of gas and steam rose above us from this very active Volcano. We were planning to walk right up to the crater of Mt. Benbow, a little scary with so much activity….but our guide couldn’t find the path to get to the top. Instead we decided to camp between the two Volcanoes and then head back the way we had come in the morning. We were a little disappointed about having to retrace our steps!

(Our campsite – total silence accompanied us once we’d settled in for the night)

During the night it began to rain and by morning the whole scene had changed. We were clouded in which made the trip home much cooler, but also gave the landscape a more eerie look.

(Walking home through the mist)

Unfortunately as we set out for the second days walk, Pippa’s feet were in agony. She had at least 10 blisters by this time. Although it was extremely painful, somehow she managed to walk the 15km back to our bungalows!!!

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(Pippa about to receive her salu-salu with all the guests of honour)

Chief’s Day is celebrated every year but the annual occasion in Ranon, Ambrym this year was very unique. 600 people throughout the North Ambrym district came together to celebrate the official handing over ceremony of the local area council to women. This is the first time in the history of the Pacific a local council will be run by women.

(The new Lolihor Development Council)

(The official handover from the men to the new woman council)

The Lolihor Development Council, which has been managed by men since its inception 12 years ago, is responsible for managing community issues such as health, water, education, transport, tourism, and governance.

The famous super nurse Rosie was appointed the role as Chairwomen. Pippa was asked to give a speech....in Bislama. After a few dull speeches, she stood up and spoke briefly about the work she has been doing, gave a big congratulations to the newly appointed women and then decided to run an interactive activity to demonstrate what happens when the community unites as one…she asked one women to stand up. Pippa yelled out hip hip and asked the women to yell out ”Booray” (locals have embraced hip hip boorays as their celebratory cry during New Years festivities). She then asked all the women present to stand up and do the same thing. To finish off her presentation, she asked all the men and pikininis (kids) that support the women to join in. It was pretty powerful having 600 locals all cheering for the cause for women to have more say in the community. Part of our future work will be to help build the capacity of the newly elected women.

(Pippa giving her speech)

(The women cheering their Hip Hip Boorays)

(Pippa and Matt with the masterminds behind the change of council - Our Supervisor George Bumseng and his cousin John Salong who now resides in Australia)

Another highlight was a return visit to the spectacular Ambrym Island volcanoes. We had another Australian Youth Ambassador (Krista) join us on our adventures. See the next travel blog for piccies and story.

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We decided to travel back to Ambrym on the cargo boat. We had loads of gear and food to get back and the excess freight on the plane would have been a killer. We also saved around $200 just on our fares as the cargo boat was only $50 each! The trip was as good as it possibly could be. We set out from Port Villa at 9pm (only 2 hours late) and arrived at 3pm the next afternoon. The sea was calm, there were only 11 other passengers on the boat and we even managed to grab an hour of sleep or so on the hard wooden benches. (Sometime the boat can be so full that finding a place to sit down is almost impossible and the sea can get really rough!)

(The hive of activity when off loading and loading cargo on to the boat)

We were prepared for the hardships of Ambrym and knew that adjusting back to Island life would be hard after the luxury of Villa. We were right to prepare ourselves – the mozzies are thick, mould is starting to grow on everything, the ants are taking over even to the point of finding their way into zip lock bags, rats are waking us up during the night rummaging through our stuff and more to the point, there is no cold beer! Besides all this, it has felt like coming home with our friends and family welcoming us back warmly as we got off the ship. It has been heart warming to wander around and catch up with the locals and we are realizing how difficult it will be to say goodbye at the end of our stay. The hard work we did in Vila has also been well received and they hope it will result in more tourists visiting their island.

Now that we have been back for a week, we have solved the rat and ant problems, we are getting used to the heat again and our daily routine includes applying mozzie repellant three times. We are once again enjoying having lots of quality time together which is much easier to find without the distractions of modern life.

Talking of modern life, we have set up the solar panel that Pippa’s Dad gave us in our bungalow bedroom. This is just a temporary set up until we move into our new place. Last night we used the light for the first time. It felt a little odd laying in bed reading a book without a head torch on but our eyes will be much better off. When we set up the system properly in our new house, it will be awesome to have decent light in the kitchen while we are preparing dinner. Not sure how many bugs we have eaten in the last 6 months from preparing meals in dim kerosene lamp light! We have also rigged up a small bedside fan which will be a welcome relief on the next really hot day. Pippa’s Dad also bought us a small beer cooler that runs on 12 volts. Our quest for a cold drink is coming closer to fruition! We will keep you posted!

Below is a photo showing the progression on our new house. Doors, the verandah and inside furniture are yet to come. We are looking forward to having our own place (especially with the solar system all in place!), but we will have to get used to the small incline from the bedroom to the kitchen. The guys forgot to use a spirit level during construction, so the floorboards have about a 10 degree slope.

For all those cat lovers out there, we just thought we’d give you a quick update on the kittens. One has been taken to a new family but we are still left with three mischievous playful cute little kittens. There are lots of play fights, random spurts of energy, hungry meowing, adventurous tree climbing and snuggles with Mum.

There also a few new fruits in season. Our favourite would have to be the pomplemousse – the sweetest and most delicious grapefruit we have ever tasted! We also tried samlong fruits for the first time which taste a bit like pomegranates. The avacado and orange season is just around the corner and we can’t wait!

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We had a huge surprise last week! A visit from Pippa’s dad, Miles (who said he would never come to Vanuatu!). He arrived from Australia determined to ‘bump into us in the street’. Matt heard a car pull up where we are staying and went outside to discover Miles getting out of a taxi. He then asked that Matt entice Pippa outside on false pretences. What a surprise for her! Tears and hugs were shared and he was welcomed inside. Luckily we had a spare room (in our friends house where we are staying) so he could stay with us rather than a hotel for the week.

Pippa toured her Dad around the delights of Port Vila including the colourful markets, cultural museum, cascade waterfalls, secret gardens, village life, the underwater world (snorkeling) and she even threw in a cyclone for the complete tropical experience. Cyclone Jim came within 300 kms and caused some gale force winds and rough seas. Luckily the weather improved and the seas calmed enough for a snorkel at Hideaway Island later on in the week.

(Pippa’s Dad in the Port Vila markets)

(Pippa and her Dad trying some kava at the local nakamal)

(Cyclone Jim's movements - supplied by Pippa's brother, Nigel)

(Waves whipped up by cyclone Jim hitting Vila)

Pippa’s Dad gave us a second surprise when he arrived with a “picture frame” under his arms. He offered to show us what was inside and instead of a painting he pulled out a 40 watt solar panel that he had carried all the way from Australia. He had also bought 2 lights and a fan that could be powered by the panel – these simple items will be ultimate luxuries back on Ambrym Island!

(Miles with his generous gifts)

While Pippa spent the week with her Dad being a tourist, Matt spent the days teaching at Port Vila International School. He enjoyed getting back into some maths and science teaching and had a fun week with well behaved students from all corners of the world, even one from Russia!

After both having busy weeks, we decided to spoil ourselves with a 4 day/3 night diving package at Tranquility Island Resort on Moso Island. Pippa completed her PADI Open Water Certificate and is now a qualified recreational diver. Matt did some different dives while Pippa was doing her theory and underwater exercises.

The water was a little stirred up from Cyclone Jim but we still saw heaps of turtles, beautifully coloured fish and some great coral. The deepest we dove was to about 20m. We stayed in some beautiful basic bungalows right on the waters edge and had heaps of privacy (we were actually the only tourists there!) The food was also fantastic and the hosts were a young Aussie couple who we got along really well with.

(Matt holding a baby Hawksbill Turtle - Moso island has a rearing facility for holding baby turtles until they grow to 30cm and can fend for themselves.)

(Moso is full of Hermit crabs – no shells left for this guy who was using a shell of a local nut)

(Matt relaxing on Moso)

We are now back in Port Vila for another week getting as much done while we have mains power and resources close by. We are getting a little too used to luxuries of Vila and are a little apprehensive about going back to the basic conditions on Ambrym.

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The night before our journey, we stayed at Isaiah’s bungalows in Ranvetlam, as this is the best starting point for the trek. Two AYAD volunteers have being staying with us throughout the week, so decided to join us on our big adventure.

We began our journey at 7am and walked for 3 hours through beautiful lush rainforest. At the edge of the ash plain where the rainforest ended, we were given a home made javelin made from local cane to throw out on to the ash plain. This local custom ensures a safe journey to the volcano. The walk along the dry ash plain was flat but hot. The guides found a few kinds of local berries to give to us to eat and many put flowers in their hair as decorations. After an hour of walking, we ventured up a rocky river channel to the ridge of the volcano. We were blessed with good weather and no sign of the dangerous winds the guides had mentioned on the way to the top.

(Flower decorations – looking to the East from the Volcano top)

(Mat making the final ascent)

(We made it!)

(Janelle, Phillipa, Pippa, Matt and George on the Volcano edge)

(Matt with tour guides on the crater edge)

When we reached the top of the volcano crater, we yelled out a cry of amazement. The crater of the volcano was a huge canyon more than 1km across with sheer cliffs all around. Although there was no lava inside we could see jets of steam coming out of the rock and the smell of sulphur was quite strong and made you cough.

We took photos and then hiked around the rim of the volcano for a few hundred metres to see a smaller crater that joins the main one. This had a little more steam coming out but still no lava.

After a little more gawking at the amazing view we grudgingly began the walk home. It took us more than 4 hours with few breaks and we got home just before dark. Over all it was an exhilarating, amazing and exhausting day.

All the villages in our area have been celebrating Bon Anne (New Year). This involves all the people in one village gathering together with instruments and flowers. They head off to a neighbouring village (sometimes walking for more than 4 ours) and sing songs, dance, clap and cheer to welcome in the New Year. The singing is amazing with up to 50 people all singing in a beautiful harmony. Onlookers throw talcum powder, flour and sometimes paint onto the singers, while homemade fireworks go off. At the end of most songs the leader yells ‘hipi’ then everyone else answers with a deep, booming ‘booray’ (of course a local version of hipip hooray). You can hear the singing and cheering from miles around. After the singing flowers are sold and the host villagers also give gifts of food to the visitors. Bon Anne has lasted for 2 weeks and at the end all the money and food that has been collected is used to host a big end of Bon Anne feast.
Our local village came to sing Bon Anne to us. We then joined them and sang to a neighbouring village. It was heaps of fun but really tiring. It’s amazing these guys have been doing it for the last 2 weeks.

(Pippa pouring talcum powder onto Bon Anne singers)

(Pippa and Berry on their way to sing Bon Anne at a neighbouring village)

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We have filled this festive season with family feasts, snorkeling adventures, gardening and relaxing on the hammock. Christmas on Ambrym was certainly a unique one that we will treasure always…

We listened to carols in local language at the church on Xmas Eve and although we didn’t understand the words, the harmonies of the locals were beautiful.

On Christmas morning, we opened up our parcels from Australia including an awesome board game, xmas table cloth, tea towel, calendars, boules, smelly soap, lollies and books – thank you everyone who sent us a little something!!

Pippa put on her colourful Mother Hubbard dress and we ventured down the hill to enjoy pancakes, bread and tea for breakfast with our ‘adopted family’. We gave everyone a small gift including marbles for the kids, family photos, tea towels and cards. We enjoyed a lunch under a big tree together consisting of banana and pumpkin lap lap, delicious roasted pork (a whole piglet cooked in a wood fired oven), pineapple, cucumber and rice. Although we didn’t have mince pies, turkey and a cold glass of wine, we felt pretty spoilt to be enjoying such a delicious feast. It was the most tender and moist pork we have ever tasted.

(Pippa sitting with her adopted family about to eat the Christmas feast)

We spent the afternoon with the nurse Rosie’s family (next to the bungalow). It was beautiful weather, so we all lazed under the shady trees, played with the kids and their new toys we had given them (including a boomerang, frisbee and bubbles), Matt played the guitar with Stephen (nurse Rosies son) and we ate some more food as we watched the sunset! Overall, it was a lovely day although we did miss you all back home!

(Kids pram – Vanuatu style)

(Christmas Day sunset)

The day after Christmas is known as Family Day here. We enjoyed a relaxing day with our adopted family, Rosie’s family and Laan Douglas (our counterpart) playing boules, cards and eating local island food.

Willie, a Canadian friend/CUSO volunteer stayed with us over the Christmas period.
On Tuesday, we all went snorkeling along a massive drop off with incredible fish and coral. From the surface you see a small cliff coming out of the water but when you get in the cliff continues underwater as deep as you can see. Visibility was probably 20m but no sign of the end of the cliff could be seen. We were all a little nervous as we snorkled along the cliff because of how deep the water was. We felt a little exposed on the surface and so kept a close look out for sharks. At one point the cliff wall jutted right out in front of us so we had no idea what was around the corner. After a few deep breaths we worked up the courage and swam around the corner to come face to face with a massive 6ft groper. Not sure who got a bigger fright, him or us, but after the initial shock we watched him for a while and he watched us. We also saw a massive pod of dolphins and our first turtle, unfortunately after we got back out of the water!!
On the way back to the village we passed a bunch of boys swimming in a beautiful fresh water spring. We are told that there are quite a few turtles here! Maybe a place for our next snorkel?

(Snokelling in the warm tropical waters of Vanuatu)

(Matt and Willie with boys at the natural spring)

(Local boys cooling off in the sea splash)

We also spent a day with our adopted family making a traditional meal called tuluk. It took all day and involved grating manioc, scratching coconut, milking coconut, cooking bully beef, onion and garlic, wrapping it up in lap lap leaves and roasting it in the fire. It ended up being delicious! We also planted a mango tree with the family to commemorate our stay here on Ambrym.

(Kremer, Pippa and Nevin grating manioc)

(Eta, Nevin and Kremer preparing the tuluk to be roasted in the fire)

The locals have decided they want a constant stream of volunteers to help this community As a result, the bungalow owner has decided to build a house dedicated to volunteers next to the tourist bungalows. We will soon be living local style in a house made from 100% natural materials. The house will be big enough for a small kitchen and bedroom and has a stunning view over the valley to the beach below. It should be complete in a month or two.

(Our new house)

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(Happy tour guides)

Below is a photo of our newly accredited tour guides who over two days gained practical experience in welcoming tourists, good hygiene, developing tours, and presenting information to tourists in an informative and interesting manner. We were lucky enough to have the story of our tour guide training picked up by the national newspaper of Vanuatu with a half page spread and photo.

Cyclone season is upon us and the owner of our Bungalow organized a renovation to make our Bungalow Cyclone Proof. Apparently if you tie green coconut leaves to the roof they help to keep the roof on in the event of a cyclone. The locals seem very confident about this technique, although we will be very happy not to have to test it out. We will both be pretty scared should a cyclone come.

(Cyclone proofing our bungalow)

The weather is still so hot. Some days it can be completely still for hours on end and when you lay down for your midday nap you drip with sweat. On these occasions our hand fans and cold showers offer a brief respite. When the rain comes it offers relief and its nice to fall asleep to the sound of it on the thatch roof of our bungalow. The mosquitos have really kicked in and we are in the routine of wearing repellant and burning mosquito coils most of the time.

Kids are in school holiday mode now. There is no cinemas, nintendos, or bowling alleys here so kids entertain themselves by using rubber sling shots (to kill flying foxes and birds for a midday snack), playing cards, swimming or kicking around a ball.

Laan behind, then Walter, Jomai and Donal in front on the hunt

We were having a nice evening walk recently when we came across a large group of families sitting by the water. We took out our camera out to take photos of a few kids in the water which caused a stampede as every kid in a 50m radius bolted for the water to be in the photo. It was hard to get the right shot so in the end we settled for a group photo on the beach.

After the stampede.

And now the Christmas message from the Queen. Na just kidding…..

We hope you all have a beautiful Christmas with your friends and family. Make sure to have a cold beverage, a nice cut of tender meat and fruit mince pie in honour of us! We love you all, miss you heaps and look forward to our return to OZ in September 06.

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- Our first big earthquake; our chairs shook and the crockery in the cupboard rattled for a few seconds. Some of you may have heard that a Volcano on Ambae (a nearby island) has been erupting. We can only just make out the smoke from the erupting Volcano from our local beach so it is a fair distance from us…no worries for us here….but perhaps the Earthquake was related to the Seismic activity around the Volcano?

- We were the first tourists to visit an amazing waterfall about 4 hours walk from our Bungalow. This honour was bestowed on us as part of our work here on Ambrym. Local guides are developing new tours and we are helping them test and improve these tours. The waterfall adventure tour as this new tour is known went off quite well even though we had to slog through the rain for most of the 8 hour return walk. The 40m high waterfall at the mid point of our journey was breath taking and set amongst pristine rainforest. During the tour we had our names discretely carved in a Banyan Tree declaring our presence as the first tourist to the area. Another first – we were invited to plant a banana tree and kava (the local narcotic) bush.

(The waterfall photo we will use on the advertising brochure)

(Proud first tourists!)

(Boys hiding from the rain during our practice tour)

(Hopefully many bananas for the locals from this one!)

- We had our first big dose of tropical rain, it lasted for 3 days and felt as if it was never going to end. Some of our things went mouldy, and clothes were impossible to dry. The coming wet season will certainly be quite a challenge for us both.

- We saw our first use of bush medicine. We were wandering through Ranon village when we noticed a small arrow being constructed using broken glass for the tip and a tiny stick as the shaft. A mini bow was then produced and we thought a toy was being made or perhaps a miniature animal hunt would soon begin. However the true prey was soon revealed. The feet of a man with injured knees. The bow was drawn back and the arrow was repeatedly fired into the skin of the victims feet. This we were assured would release the pressure inside the leg and reduce the pain the patient was feeling in his swollen knees. Acupuncture Vanuatu style?

(Bush medicine in action)

First times remains copyright of the author pippamatt, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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