The Essential Vanuatu - Second Edition

THE ESSENTIAL

VANUATU SECOND EDITION

INVESTMENT I FINANCE I TOURISM I GEOGRAPHY I HISTORY I CULTURE t heessentialv anuatu.c om

THE ESSENTIAL

VANUATU

Published by Photogenic Limted, Vanuatu Tel: +678 77 47 153 Email: sales@photogenicpr.com

©Photogenic Limited 2017

National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry Title:

The essential Vanuatu / Tiffany Carroll, editor; Craig Osment, publisher.

Edition:

Second edition

ISBN:

9780646973593 (hardback)

Subjects:

Subjects: Tourism-Vanuatu-Social aspects.

Vanuatu-History-Pictorial works Vanuatu-Economic conditions-Pictorial works.

Vanuatu-Social life and customs-Pictorial works.

Other Authors/Contributors:

Carroll, Tiffany.

All rights reserved. This publication is copyright. No part of it may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the written permission of the publishers.

Editor: Tiffany Carroll Design: Nicole Brown Sub-Editor: Elaine Wilson Contributors: Tiffany Carroll, Craig Osment, Yasmine Bjornum, Pavol Stranák, Valerie Fernandez, Andrew Read, Vanuatu Tourism Office, Leith Campbell, Air Vanuatu, Kerrie Lee, Alan Kennedy, Vanuatu Cultural Centre, Pat Ingram, Bob Makin, Douglas Patterson, Tony Wilson, Glen Craig, Daniel Coombes, Allan Power, Mitchell Kanashkevich, Greg Hollis, Timmy Rovu, Christiana Kaluscha, Rae Ernst, Justine Chilcott, Dr. Stuart Bedford, Brian Tosiro, Vanuatu Post, Clare Skelcher, Wendy Hargreaves, the Office of the President of Vanuatu, Ana Terry, Don Hunter, David Kirkland, Steve Jacobs, Rosie Jacobs, Tim Ritchie, Kevin Green, Mayumi Green, Francesca Grillo, Geordie Mackenzie, Allan Kalfabun, Tom Nangam.

Advertising/sponsor sales: Mike Worsp.

Publisher: Craig Osment Printed by APOL, Hong Kong Cover photograph: Pentecost, by Pavol Stranák

www.theessentialvanuatu.com

THE ESSENTIAL

VANUATU SECOND EDITION

INVESTMENT I FINANCE I TOURISM I GEOGRAPHY I HISTORY I CULTURE t heessentialv anuatu.c om

WELCOME

6

EFATÉ

56

Or Welkam, or Bienvenue – an introduction from the

While not the biggest island in the archipelago it is home to the

office of the President in our three official languages.

capital Port Vila and supports the largest population in the country.

CULTURE AND HISTORY

8

ESPIRITU SANTO

Our South Pacific Paradise has a long and rich

The world has an abundance of pristine tropical islands, but

history. Here's the lowdown island by island.

very few match Santo's combination of adventure and beauty.

USEFUL INFORMATION

16

TANNA

Practical information to help you get around the

There’s more to this island than a volcano – think pristine

money, trading hours, the transport system and utilities.

beaches, a rich culture and strong sense of community. But the

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64

volcano is the centrepiece and a must-visit experience.

INVEST IN VANUATU

18

Investment opportunities abound, particularly in Vanuatu’s

MALEKULA

surging tourism industry, with the Vanuatu Investment

The second largest island in Vanuatu has hidden gems

Promotion Authority here to help.

waiting to be discovered by the adventurous traveller.

RESORTS AND ACCOMMODATION

22

GAUA

There is a wide range of accommodation for the

Home to an active volcano, Vanuatu’s largest lake, stunning

holidaymaker, from five-star to boutique and secluded as

white sand beaches and a breathtaking waterfall.

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well as sophisticated and simple.

RAH HOME AWAY FROM HOME

40

Vanuatu is home to a burgeoning private villa holiday rental

74

Shell out for a stay on one of the more unusual islands – especially on St Andrew’s Day in the Banks Province.

market – perfect for privacy and larger groups and a great way to PENTECOST

experience life as a local while on holiday.

76

This is where the art of learning how to throw yourself at FOOD AND DINING

44

the ground and miss it has been honed to perfection.

Our gastronomic journey continues with Port Vila ANIWA

being the culinary capital of the South Pacific.

80

Southern hospitality – the ‘real Vanuatu’ is to be found DINING TRADITIONS

50

on the outer islands, where life is simple.

The Republic and French onion soup – one of the capital's TOURS AND ACTIVITIES

longest surviving restaurants plays its part in history.

82

In a place where you can do as much or as little as you like, with CAFÉ CULTURE

so many islands to explore, there really is something for everyone

A caffeine addict goes on a café crawl to find the best coffee in

here. For those who prefer to pack in as many sites and scenes as

Port Vila and discovers there’s plenty to choose from.

possible, here are a few ideas to get you started.

ISLANDS

4

53

54

DIVING THE COOLIDGE

86

Our 83 islands are so varied in their culture and kastom, it's easy

In 1942 a former luxury liner turned troop carrier hit friendly mines

to think you are in a different country moving from one to the next.

in the Segond Channel off Espiritu Santo; it is now one of the

It's this variety that makes Vanuatu culture unique.

world's prime diving sites.

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

CONTENTS

FASHION, FILLIES AND FRENCH FIZZ

90

DIGGING UP THE PAST

134

It's the race that stops a nation – our small dot of a nation,

Research on Aneityum focuses on its 3000-year history and

that is – but what a great three-day party.

the very first colonisation of the island by people now generally referred to as Lapita peoples.

BANKING AND FINANCE

94

Port Vila is home to numerous international banks and financial

PEOPLE

institutions, all of which are willing and able to advise on tax and

One Trip Advisor review after another says what makes

corporate governance matters for offshore business entrepreneurs.

Vanuatu so unique in the world is the people.

REAL ESTATE AND PROPERTY

PEOPLE – ALAN KALFABUN

102

138

140

There are certain ‘hot spots’ - these tend to be harbour-front,

An island boy raised by his grandmother packed a single

beachfront, lagoon-front and properties with good water views.

suitcase and set off to make his mark on the world.

CHANGE AGENTS

PEOPLE – THE MACKENZIE FAMILY

104

Some of our leading real estate companies introduce

Geordie Mackenzie has had the best of both worlds.

themselves and the services they offer.

Village life in Vanuatu and a second family in Australia.

BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION

108

142

PEOPLE – I AM THE WEATHER

An advantage of building in Vanuatu is that the construction

A personal reflection on the gentle pace of life and its

standards meet many of the rigorous requirements of Australia’s

happy contrast with more 'advanced' cultures.

144

building industry.

PEOPLE – TOM THE HORSEMAN RETAIL AND WHOLESALE

114

146

Tom Nangam is an inspirational success; this modest

It may not be New York or Paris but Port Vila offers plenty

Ni-vanuatu man from Tanna with limited formal education has

in the way of satisfying the retail therapy urge.

carved an international reputation as a horseman.

BUSINESS SERVICES – INSURANCE

124

MARRIAGES MADE IN HEAVEN

150

With a long-standing presence in the Pacific Islands region

Getting married in Vanuatu is a decision more and more

since 1887, QBE entered the Vanuatu market in the 1920s and

couples are making, due to the idyllic locations, gorgeous

incorporated a local business in 1987.

weather and just as important, affordability.

TRANSPORT AND LOGISTICS

126

SERVICES

154

As an island nation on the move, Vanuatu depends on

Inspiring spa spaces. Move over Bali, Vanuatu is emerging

the efficient carriage of goods and people.

as the destination of choice for those wanting to relax and unwind.

AGRICULTURE

130

CLUBS – JOIN THE LOCAL SOCIAL SCENE

158

A tropical climate, fertile soils and an organic approach combine to

Vanuatu's sense of community is not lost on the expatriate

produce some of the world’s finest beef, cattle, copra and coffee.

population, many of whom are involved in local charities and sporting groups, as well as various international business groups.

GOING NUTS IN MALEKULA

132

It’s extraordinary how a small nut growing wild on the coast of

BUSINESS SERVICES DIRECTORY

a quiet South Pacific Island can make such a big impact on the

A guide to everyone who matters if you want to do business in

160

health and well-being of the local community.

Vanuatu and a thank you to our sponsors.

CONTENTS

5

WELCOME. BIENVENUE. WELKAM

ous avons le grand plaisir de

ifala i gat bigfala hona blong prisentem

vous présenter la deuxième

buk ia, “The Essential Vanuatu”, we

édition du livre intitulé

i kamaot long nambatu taem, mo

“The Essential Vanuatu”

mifala i hop se i save helpem yu

(L’Essence du Vanuatu),

blong faenemaot plante samting

un ouvrage qui, nous

long saed blong kantri mo tu mifala

l’espèrons, saura non seulement vous apporter

i hop se hemi save soem long yu wanem nao barava

des informations, mais aussi une idée de ce qui fait

Vanuatu.

l’authenticité du Vanuatu.

Au nom du gouvernement et du peuple de

Long nem blong Gavman mo pipol blong Vanuatu, mifala i glad tumas blong serem “The Essential

Vanuatu, nous sommes ravis de partager “The

Vanuatu” wetem ol man raon long wol we oli wantem

Essential Vanuatu” avec des lecteurs du monde

ridim. Mifala i hop se hemi soem wanem i mekem se

entier. Nous espérons que ce livre montrera ce qui

aelan neson blong yumi hemi defren olgeta.

rend notre archipel vraiment exceptionnel.

Vanuatu est composé de 83 îles spectaculaires

Vanuatu hemi gat 83 aelan we oli spesel mo we evriwan i gat kastom mo kalja blong hem wan nomo.

qui ont chacune une coutume et une culture qui leur

Sam oli gat ol sanbij we oli naes bitim mak, sam

sont uniques. Certaines ont des plages magnifiques,

oli gat ol kaskad, volkeno, hotel wetem faev sta,

des cascades, des volcans, des centres de

gudfala agrikalja, ol kastom we i laev iet mo histri

villégiature à cinq étoiles, une agriculture florissante,

blong olgeta. Ol pipol we oli laev long hem oli fren

de fortes traditions et une histoire qui leur est

gud mo hapi bitim ol narawan raon long wol.

propre. Elles sont habitées par les gens les plus chaleureux et heureux du monde.

Nous sommes une jeune nation qui a acquis son

Yumi wan yangfala neson we i bin kasem indipendens blong hem long 1980. Hemi fren wetem plante narafala neson. Ol patna blong mifala long

indépendance en 1980 et a forgé des liens étroits

saed blong bisnes mo help oli impoten tumas long

avec de nombreuses autres nations. Nos partenaires

mifala. Mifala i stap welkamem bitim 250,000 man

commerciaux et bailleurs de fonds nous sont chers

we oli kam visit evri yia.

et nous accueillons plus de 250.000 visiteurs chaque année.

Par deux fois nous avons été élus ‘nation la

Tufala taem finis oli bin ilektem mifala olsem neson we hemi hapi bitim ol narawan. Taem yu ridim buk ia, “The Essential Vanuatu”, we i nambatu taem we

plus heureuse de la planète’ et vous comprendrez

i kamaot, bambae yu save from wanem oli toktok

pourquoi en parcourant cette deuxième édition du

olsem.

livre “The Essential Vanuatu”.

Nous vous souhaitons très chaleureusement la

Mifala i wantem talem bigfala welkam long yufala evriwan mo mifala i hop se buk ia i givim tingting

bienvenue et osons espérer que ce livre vous incitera

long yu blong kam spel long Vanuatu, blong putum

à venir passer des vacances mémorables, à profiter

mane i go insaed long wan gudfala bisnes o soem

de possibilités d’investissement intéressantes ou

nomo olsem wanem kantri blong yumi hemi naes.

qu’il servira tout simplement à vous faire connaître notre beau pays.

CULTURE+HISTORY

Paradise has a long and rich history

he Republic of Vanuatu is an island nation located in the South Pacific Ocean.

The archipelago is located some 1,750 km east of Australia, 500 km north-east of New Caledonia, west of Fiji and south of the Solomon Islands. It was named New Hebrides during its colonial period which ended with independence in 1980.

Vanuatu is only 2.5 hours flying time north east of Brisbane and 3.5 hours from Sydney, Australia. It’s a little over two hours from Auckland, New Zealand.

There are regular flights from New Zealand, Honiara, Australia, Noumea, PNG and Fiji. There are also numerous cruise ship visits every year.

HISTORY Many of the islands of Vanuatu have been inhabited for thousands of years, the oldest archaeological evidence found dating to 2000 BC. In 1605, the Portuguese explorer Pedro Fernández de Quirós became the first European to reach the islands, believing it to be part of Terra Australis. Europeans began settling the islands in the late 18th century, after British explorer James Cook visited the islands on his second voyage, and gave them the name New Hebrides.

In 1887, the islands began to be administered by a French-British naval commission. In 1906, the French and British agreed to an Anglo-French

PICTURE: Pavol Stranak.

Condominium on the New Hebrides.

Uripiv Island (left) is off the east coast of Malekula and offers pristine reefs to snorkel, authentic village stays and a rich cultural experience.

During World War II, the islands of Efaté and Espiritu Santo were used as allied military bases. In the 1960s, the Ni-Vanuatu people started to press for self-governance and later independence; full sovereignty was finally granted by both European nations on July 30, 1980. It joined the United Nations in 1981, and the NonAligned Movement in 1983.

POLITICS The Republic of Vanuatu is an independent parliamentary democracy, for which general elections are held every four years.

The parliament of Vanuatu is unicameral, and has 52 members.

The leader of the main party in the parliament is usually elected Prime Minister, and heads the government. The head of state, the President, is chosen every five years by the parliament and the presidents of the six provincial governments.

PROVINCES Since 1994, Vanuatu has been divided into the six provinces of Malampa, Penama, Sanma, Shefa, Tafea and Torba. The main Islands within these provinces include: Banks and Torres (Torba), Espiritu Santo (Sanma), Maewo and Pentecost (Penama), Malekula, Ambrym (Malampa), Epi, Efaté (Shefa), Erromango, Tanna and Aneityum (Tafea) GEOGRAPHY Vanuatu is an archipelago of 83 islands, of which two — Matthew and Hunter — are also claimed by the French overseas department of New Caledonia. Of all the 83 islands, 14 have surface areas of more than 100 square kilometres, from largest to smallest: Espiritu Santo (3956 km), Malekula (2041 km), Efaté (900 km), Erromango (888 km), Ambrym (678 km), Tanna (555 km), Pentecost (491 km), Epi (445 km), Ambae or Aoba (402 km), Vanua Lava (334 km), Santa Maria (328 km), Maéwo (304 km), Malo (180 km) and Anatom or Aneityum (159 km).

Most of the islands are mountainous and of volcanic origin, and have a tropical or sub-tropical climate. The nation’s largest towns are the capital Port Vila, which is situated on Efaté, and Luganville, on Espiritu Santo. The highest point in Vanuatu is Mount Tabwemasana, at 1879 m (6158 ft), on the island of Espiritu Santo.

There are several active volcanoes in Vanuatu, including Yasur on the island of Tanna, one of the world’s most accessible volcanoes, as well as several underwater ones.

Pentecost Island has become famous throughout the world for the land-diving ritual (Nagol or N’gol) which usually occurs every Saturday between April and June.

10

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

ECOLOGY Vanuatu is recognised as a distinct terrestrial eco region, known as the Vanuatu rain forests. Vanuatu is part of the Australasia eco zone, which also includes neighbouring New Caledonia

for easy access to Mt Marum and Mt Benbow volcanoes.

Ambrym remains volcanically active. Benbow and Marum still rumble away and smaller vents and fractures ooze steam and lava.

The north coast of Ambrym also offers good snorkelling

and the Solomon Islands, as well as Australia, New Guinea, and

opportunities to view dugong, large sea turtles and myriad brilliant-

New Zealand. Despite its tropical forests, Vanuatu has a limited

coloured fish. Dugong inhabit the warm tropical waters, feeding

number of plant and animal species. There are no indigenous

almost exclusively on sea grass. North Ambrym has a beautiful

large mammals, poisonous snakes, or spiders. The 19 species

natural spring often frequented by turtles and dugong.

of native reptiles include the rare flowerpot snake, found only on Efaté. There are 11 species of bat (three unique to Vanuatu) and

ANEITYUM

61 species of land and water birds. While the small Polynesian

Aneityum is the southern most inhabited island in the archipelago.

rat is thought to be indigenous, the large species arrived with

As with all the major islands throughout Vanuatu, its origins are

Europeans, as did domesticated hogs, dogs, and cattle. (The wild

volcanic and the landscape mountainous. Rich soils and a slightly

pig and fowl appear to be indigenous.) The region is rich in sea life,

more temperate climate encouraged the growth of magnificent

with more than 4,000 species of marine molluscs. The giant East

stands of sandalwood trees. Sandalwood is prized in the Orient for

African snail arrived only in the 1970s but already has spread from

its aroma, and traders ravaged the island in the previous century.

the Port Vila region to Luganville.

Source www.nationsencyclopedia.com

Aneityum was the first centre of the Presbyterian Church and the haunting remains of the once largest missionary church in the Southern Hemisphere now stand in ruins. Modern Aneityum has

ECONOMY

few buildings and no cars, apart from the few vehicles of the kauri

The economy is based primarily on subsistence or small-scale

replanting forestry project. It is ideal for the keen bush walker,

agriculture, which provides a living for 65% of the population.

offering many well-defined tracks and paths through vegetation

Fishing, offshore financial services, and tourism (with about

that is quite different from the hotter and more humid northern

250,000 total arrivals), are other mainstays of the economy. Mineral

islands.

deposits are negligible; the country has no known petroleum deposits. A small light industry sector caters to the local market.

Over 80 species of magnificent, delicate orchids adorn the forest. Several waterfalls and hot springs can also be visited.

Tax revenues come mainly from import duties and a 12.5% Value Added Tax (VAT) on goods and services.

DEMOGRAPHICS Most of the inhabitants of Vanuatu (98.5%) are native Melanesian, or Ni-Vanuatu, with the remainder of the population made

FAST FACTS

up of Europeans, Asians and other Pacific islanders. Most of

FULL NAME

the population is rural, though Port Vila and Luganville have

The Republic of Vanuatu

populations in the tens of thousands. A few of the islands are

CAPITAL CITY

Polynesian outliers. About 2,000 Ni-Vanuatu live and work on

Port Vila on the island of Efaté

New Caledonia.

Information sourced from: wikipedia.org (with editing by the VTO), Vanuatu Tourism Office and Government of Vanuatu.

AREA 12,190 km2 (4,706 sq miles) POPULATION 250,000 (approx) LANGUAGES

THE ISLANDS: AMBRYM PICTURE: Paval Stranak.

For the adventurous traveller seeking a real island experience, Ambrym is for you. It is a place of culture, spirituality and adventure, and the people are warm, friendly and welcoming.

Ambrym is considered Vanuatu’s sorcery centre, renowned for

There are over 120 distinct languages and many more dialects in Vanuatu but only three official languages: English, French and Bislama.

RELIGION Christian (84%), Other (16%)

its black magic. The north of Ambrym is famous for some of the best wood carvings in the Pacific, the mysterious Rom dance and CULTURE + HISTORY

11

The island is surrounded by live coral reefs offering excellent

waters. Anyone wishing to see the lake and volcanoes should

snorkelling. The only airport is not on the island itself, but the much

check in advance.

smaller nearby Inyeug (or Mystery) Island. Air Vanuatu services the

A four-hour walk through jungle and tree ferns that dwarf

island twice weekly from Port Vila and Tanna, with Unity Airlines

coconut trees leads to the spectacular cascade waterfall draining

offering charter flights to the island.

Lake Letres. On the western coast, numerous waterfalls plunge

Inyeug is periodically visited by tourists arriving by launch from visiting cruise ships which anchor inside the magnificent turquoise waters between Inyeug and the mainland.

The only accommodation on Aneityum is at Mystery Island Guest

directly from the jungle into the ocean, making for an unexpected and magnificent sight for passing yachts.

Perhaps the most unusual feature of Gaua is the remains of an ancient culture. At first glance it seems as if giant blocks of

house. It is an exceptionally peaceful place to stay, with basic

granite thrown out of the volcano have landed in strangely uniform

rooms and outside bathrooms.

patterns along the north eastern coast, but the blocks are the remains of foundations. In years past, a sign of chiefly standing

BANKS & TORRES

was the height of his house. As grades were taken and a chief’s

The Banks and Torres are Vanuatu’s northernmost islands.

status rose, another layer of basalt blocks was added to the base

Geographically, they reach north and west to the Solomon Islands.

of his thatched house.

Being nearer the equator, they experience the highest precipitation

The Torres group to the far north includes six main islands. By far

and humidity of all the islands, with an average rainfall of

the most remote of Vanuatu’s archipelago, only one has an airstrip.

3900 mm per year. There are active volcanoes on Gaua and Vanua

Passing yachts and the odd inter-island trader are the only source

Lava islands.

of contact for many. Yeyenwu Cave is a great attraction with its

Vanua Lava with its 1400 inhabitants was once the trading base for exchanges with Solomon Islanders from Tikopia. The rugged

stalactites, stalagmites and cave paintings.

There are no roads, cars or electricity in the Torres, however

interior looms up from the ocean to the 730m apex of the active

island bungalows are popping up on all of the islands, waiting for a

Sere’ama volcano. With such terrain and high rainfall, waterfalls are

tourism boom. With white sand beaches and stunning scenery, the

common – and spectacular, particularly Waterfall Bay on the west

boom may not be too far off.

coast.

South of the volcano are two small lakes varying in depth and colour.

To the south is Mota Lava, a stunning island of jungle-clad

Efaté is the main island of Vanuatu, where the capital Port Vila is situated and where the majority of commerce and tourism

craggy peaks plunging to tall coconut trees lining white sandy

activities take place. The island has a rugged coastline and rolling

beaches.

countryside, fast flowing rivers, cascading waterfalls, isolated

Near one such magnificent beach (so near it can almost be walked at low tide) is the classically beautiful Rah Island.

From a distance, Rah looks like a thatch of greenery with

sandy bays and lagoons.

The interior is verdant rainforest cut only by a few walking tracks to remote weather and radio beacons. Havannah Harbour on the

coconut fronds pushing each other out of the way as they

north side is a spectacular natural haven which was used during

overhang the surrounding beach. The interior is studded with

World War II as a naval rear base by the entire US 7th Fleet. It

unusual rocks of enormous size. Rah is an excellent place to

is also the site of some extraordinary archaeological digs and

enjoy fresh lobster (weather permitting) and an ideal retreat

gruesome discoveries.

for honeymooners and travellers looking to leave civilisation

There are numerous types of accommodation scattered around

behind completely. The local culture is still very much alive and

Efaté including newly built resorts, or for just a day trip, you can

unblemished by the modern world.

hire a car or take a bus around the island on a fully sealed road.

Gaua’s 1300 people live on the northeastern coast.

Like elsewhere in Vanuatu, the population is now significantly less than the estimated 16th century figure of 200,000 people.

Gaua has a stunning landscape with an active volcano that towers over a crater lake in the interior.

The lake is accessible in a three- to four-hour walk and the

12

EFATÉ

There are yachts available for day and overnight charters to the nearby islands of Hat, Pélé, Moso, Nguna, Lelepa and Kakula Islands.

Port Vila is located around a magnificent natural harbour offering stunning views of Iririki and Ifira Islands and a lookout all the way to Malapoa Point. The international airport is a 10-minute drive

ascent to Mt Garet (797m high) is fairly easy after an exciting

from town and most major resorts and hotels. Vila is a pretty town.

canoe trip across Lake Letras and its beautiful sulphur-coloured

Clean and uncluttered, the waterfront area is unpolluted, visitors

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

are stunned to look down from the seawall and see live corals and tropical fish.

It’s also fast becoming known as the gourmet capital of the South Pacific. The potpourri of expatriate cultures is reflected in food styles served in over 40 restaurants and cafés – French, Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, Italian, Thai, Melanesian and Mediterranean. You can buy an Aussie meat pie or American chilli dog, sip cappuccino in one of the many outdoor cafés or purchase pâtés and salads from a patisserie or supermarket to fill your picnic hamper.

Nightlife in Vila has blossomed steadily, the atmosphere is fun and caters for all ages and is offered by resort hotels, nightclubs and pubs, several casinos and more.

Shopping is fun, easy going and hassle free! There’s no such thing as a hard sell or pushy salesperson. Prices are fixed and bargaining is not part of the friendly lifestyle.

EPI Epi is a peaceful island with beautiful white sandy coves, many white and some black-sand beaches and inshore reefs. Around Epi, the waters are safe from sharks and locals swim freely everywhere. The interior is the rugged terrain of recent volcanic activity covered with lush rainforest.

There are several small lakes where you can fish and swim and may get a chance to see wild birds, wild pigs and cows. The coastal area is very fertile and covered with coconut plantations.

The people live scattered around the coast. Few vehicular roads exist. There are two airstrips on the western coast, one at Valesdir to the south and the other at Lamen Bay, to the north.

Valesdir is a plantation and, in the 1920s colonial heyday, it had its own currency. From Valesdir, it is a 6km walk to Imao lakes, known for their wild ducks. Namuka, an uninhabited islet off the southern shore of Epi has white-sand beaches, clear water, coral and a fringing reef.

The 1.5km-long beach at Lamen Bay is considered to be Epi’s finest. There is plenty of shallow coral for spectacular snorkelling.

The beach is an unusual combination of black volcanic sands to the south, suddenly changing to white coral sands at the northern end.

About 2km away by canoe is Lamen Island, a small but beautiful PICTURE: Vanuatu Tourism Office.

island surrounded by white-sand beaches. About 450 people live here and are always delighted to show visitors their traditions.

The volcanoes on Ambrym and Lopevi Island can be seen from the northern point of Epi. There is a hot spring accessible on the northeastern tip. Epi has two submarine volcanoes close to its shores. Mt Nitaia, part of the collapsed Kuwai volcano, 3km offshore, occasionally steams or bubbles up and Cape Kone, also part of Kuwai, is intermittently active.

CULTURE + HISTORY

13

Throughout Vanuatu, magic is believed to work best near active

so he climbed the tree after her and as he reached the top she

volcanoes, consequently the Epi people are known for their ability

jumped. In his anguish Tamale jumped after her, only to realise that

to make magic and invoke ancestral spirits.

she had tied liana vines around her ankles. The woman survived

In the past, magic was used to harm their rivals. Nowadays, young male islanders use love magic to win the hearts of their favourite girls.

while Tamale perished.

To this day, men jump from the tower as a show of strength to women in the village and as a statement that they cannot be tricked again.

ESPIRITU SANTO Espiritu Santo is the largest of Vanuatu’s islands and with some of

MALEKULA

the most beautiful white-sand beaches, amazing blue holes, caves,

Malekula is the second-largest island and the most diverse,

world-renowned diving and snorkelling, it is a little-known paradise

culturally and linguistically, with over 30 distinct languages spoken.

waiting to be fully discovered.

Some of the best custom dances come from the island. The

While Santo is a Mecca for dive enthusiasts, it also offers breathtaking sightseeing for non-divers. Days can be spent lazing on empty white-sand beaches, snorkelling and kayaking in the

names given to the primary cultural groups are Small Nambas and Big Nambas.

The interior of Malekula is mountainous, rugged and forest-

crystal-clear blue water, trekking through untouched rainforest or

covered with good walking and bird watching. There are old

discovering an ancient and relatively unchanged culture.

cannibal sites hidden in the bush on north Malekula and an

During World War II, 100,000 allied troops and support staff were stationed in Santo. Remnants of this time, including the SS President Coolidge, a 22,000-tonne luxury liner turned troopship which sank just offshore, have become world-renowned dive sites.

Divers and snorkellers can explore shipwrecks and sites like

estimated population of about 25,000 on the coastal areas and around 1500 in the rugged interior.

The villagers are exceptionally friendly and enjoy sharing their proud cultural heritage with visitors.

Neighbouring islands, such as the Maskelynes and other small

Million Dollar Point, where thousands of tonnes of war surplus

offshore islands along the east coast, have sand beaches and

were dumped in the ocean by the US, as well as amazing coral

coral reefs with good snorkelling and diving.

reefs and blue holes joined by underground caverns.

TANNA PENTECOST & MAEWO

There is a lot to see and do in Tanna so, if you want to swim in

Pentecost Island has become famous throughout the world for

underwater caves, snorkel on some of the best coral in the South

the land-diving ritual (Nagol or N’gol) which occurs every Saturday

Pacific, visit untouched waterfalls, see the island’s wild horses and

between April and June.

experience an ancient culture that remains largely unchanged to

The ritual, which influenced the invention of bungy jumping by New Zealander AJ Hackett, sees local men and boys jump from

this day, allow time to explore.

Tanna is best known as the home of one of Vanuatu’s most

a 20-30-metre high man made tower with only a vine attached to

popular tourist attractions, the Mt Yasur volcano, and a walk

their legs. The tower itself takes locals five weeks to build, using

to the rim of this fiery volcano certainly makes a visit to Tanna

materials from the forest.

unforgettable.

Viewing this magnificent ceremony is a once-in-a-lifetime

At first sight the ash plain is like a lunascape. Considered one of

experience. No words can express the feeling of the ground

the world’s most accessible volcanos, Mt Yasur is a two to three

vibrating under the dancing and stomping feet of villagers and the

hour drive, depending on the state of the roads, from White Grass

excitement of sitting beneath the tower waiting with unease for the

Airport, followed by a 10-minute walk to the crater.

diver to jump safely to ground.

The awe-inspiring ceremony celebrates the yam harvest and is a fertility rite for men. The story of the festival tells of a woman who

While you’re there, don’t forget to post a card at Vanuatu Post’s Volcano Post box – the only one in the world.

Yasur is best viewed at dusk, so at least a one-night stay

ran away from her husband and hid in a tall tree. The husband,

in Tanna is recommended. Most accommodation venues will

Tamale, begged her to say sorry and come down. She refused,

organise a tour.

Anthropologically, Tanna is fascinating, with the local culture largely unaffected by the western way of life. To experience the

14

Opposite page: The island of Ambrym is known for its strong

traditional Tannese culture there are day tours to local villages, as

kastom, black magic, carvings and famed festivals.

well as custom ceremonies throughout the year.

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

CULTURE+HISTORY

A bit of Bislama If you want to blong, tok tok like a local.

Stoa kolosap long haos: The store next to the house.

Mi bin stap long ples ia bifo: I have stayed at this place before.

Mi stap long stoa: I am at the store.

Jea long haos: The chair in the house.

Buk blong mi: The book that belongs to me, my book

n the late 19th century at the height of the practice of

Man Amerika: Man from America, American.

Blackbirding, thousands of Ni-Vanuatu were forced to work on

Hemi woman blong saiens: She is a woman of science, She is a

plantations in Australia and Fiji. With several languages being

scientist.

spoken in these plantations, a form of pidgin English was developed, combining English vocabulary with grammatical

discovering this fascinating and fun new language.

structures typical of languages in the region. This early

• How much is that? Hamas long hem?

plantation pidgin is the origin not only of Bislama, but also of Tok

• How much is this? Hamas long hemia?

Pisin of Papua New Guinea and Pijin of the Solomon Islands.

• Do you know..? Yu save (pronounced savvy)

This pidgin started spreading over the Vanuatu archipelago at

• I don’t know. Mi no save

the turn of the 20th century, as the survivors of Blackbirding began

• This is broken Samting ia hemi bugarup or Samting ia i brok

to come back to their native islands. Knowledge of this pidgin

• The best Nambawan

would facilitate communication not only with European traders and

• How are you? Olsem wanem

settlers, but also between native populations of remote islands

• I’m okay Ia oreat

within the archipelago.

• Water Wota

Ni-Vanuatu began to add their own words and pronunciation

• Drinking water Freswota

(today 95% of Bislama is based on English, with a few dozen

• Ocean Solwata

French words and ‘island language’ thrown in).

• Full / too much Fulap

Over the past century or so, Bislama has evolved to what is PICTURE: Pavol Stranak.

Here’s a few other phrases to get you going on your journey to

currently spoken and written in Vanuatu.

In order to understand Bislama, common advice is to throw

• Thank you Tankyu • Thank you very much Tankyu tumas • My name is… Nem blong mi

in the words “long” and “blong” a few times every sentence and

• What time does the plane land? Wanem taem plen ia lan?

you’ll just about have it.

• Food/eat Kai Kai

Here are some examples:

• Dictionary Diksonari CULTURE + HISTORY

15

USEFUL INFORMATION

WEATHER Vanuatu officially has two seasons – the wet and the dry. The wet season (November to April) has the warmest temperatures (around 30 degrees) and higher humidity, with intermittent heavy rainfall during this time. The dry season (May to October) has average temperatures in the mid to high 20s. Locally, we call that winter.

BUSINESS HOURS / SIESTA In the capital, Port Vila, offices and shops usually open from 7.30 to 11.30am and 1.30 to 5.00pm Monday to Friday. Many shops open on Saturday morning. Local general stores open seven days a week. Siesta (lunchtime) is 11.30am to 1.30pm when many businesses and shops close. Restaurants, cafés, supermarkets, banks and the Port Vila market remain open.

POST OFFICE Vanuatu Post has locations throughout the country, some shared with the National Bank of Vanuatu. The Port Vila Post Office is open 7.30am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday and 7.30 to 11.30am Saturday, for stamps, parcels, postcards, express mail service, faxes, phone cards and souvenirs.

In Santo, the post office is open from 7.30am to 4.30pm Monday to Friday and 7.30 to 11.30am Saturday.

MEDICAL

ELECTRICAL VOLTAGE

Visitors do not need vaccinations, but anti-malarial medication is

220-280 volts; mainly three-point plugs in hotels.

recommended for travel to the outer islands. There are several private doctors in Port Vila and hospital facilities in the capital and

TELEPHONES

in Santo. Medical clinics operate throughout the outer islands.

Roaming is available for most international visitors. Contact

Urban water is safe to drink and bottled water is readily available.

Telecom Vanuatu Ltd (TVL) or Digicel for roaming information.

Country dialling code is 678; dial-out code is 00.

TIME ZONE Vanuatu time is GMT/UMT plus 11 hours. There is no daylight

VISAS AND ENTRY REQUIREMENTS

saving.

All visitors must have a return/onward ticket and a passport with six-month minimum validity beyond their arrival date. For stays

CURRENCY / VAT

up to 30 days, nationals of Commonwealth and EU countries, Fiji,

Vanuatu’s local currency is the Vatu (VT). Australian dollars and

Japan, Norway, Philippines, South Korea, Switzerland and USA do

credit cards are widely accepted in Port Vila; however, the outer

not require visas. To extend permits (up to four months maximum),

islands prefer Vatu. There are branches of the National Bank of

contact the Immigration Department; phone 22 354, fax 25 492.

Vanuatu throughout the country, with Bred, BSP and ANZ also in Port Vila and Santo, where currency can be exchanged from

DUTY FREE

Monday to Friday. Goodies foreign exchange is in three locations in

Passengers over 15 years of age may bring the following into

Port Vila.

Vanuatu duty free: 250 cigarettes or 250g tobacco or 50 cigars;

VAT is charged on goods and services.

16

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

1.5 litres of wine or spirits; 250ml eau de toilette; 100ml perfume.

Duty free goods can be purchased at the airport or the duty free

DIPLOMATIC REPRESENTATION/AMBASSADE, CONSULATS

shops in Port Vila.

Australian High Commission

Please ensure your duty free allowance meets international laws governing the carriage of liquids, aerosols and gels (LAGs) should you be on an international connecting flight on your trip home.

European Union EC Delegation for the Pacific PO Box 422, Port Vila; phone (678) 22 501, fax (678) 23 282.

TRANSPORT / TRAVEL

Ambassade de France

Driving in Vanuatu is on the right-hand side of the road. Cars and

PO Box 60, Port Vila; phone (678) 22 353, fax (678) 22 695.

4WD vehicles are available for hire.

New Zealand High Commission

Buses are a great way to get around town. Any minibus with a red B on the number plate will take you on its route through central Port Vila for 150VT and trips further afield start at 200VT. Some taxis can be hired for a full or half day, for sightseeing or trips PICTURE: Vanuatu Trouism Office.

PO Box 111, Port Vila; phone (678) 22 777, fax (678) 23 948.

around the island.

Air Vanuatu flies to the outer islands of Vanuatu and has

PO Box 161, Port Vila; phone (678) 22 933, fax (678) 22 518.

Papua New Guinea Honorary Consulate PO Box 594, Port Vila; phone (678) 23 930, fax (678) 22 439.

Swedish Honorary Consulate PO Box 169, Port Vila; phone (678) 22 944, fax (678) 22 944.

international flights to Auckland, Sydney, Brisbane, Melbourne and

People’s Republic of China Embassy

Noumea.

PMB 071, Port Vila; phone (678) 23 598, fax (678) 22 730.

Air Vanuatu’s Sales Office is open 7.30am to 5.00pm Monday to Friday and 8.00 to 11.30am Saturday; phone 23 878, fax: 26 591.

CULTURE + HISTORY

17

INVEST IN VANUATU

Untouched Paradise There are many investment opportunities in Vanuatu’s surging tourism industry with the Vanuatu Investment Promotion Authority here to help.

V

anuatu has long been coined an ‘Untouched Paradise’ for its unique and natural scenery. From cascading waterfalls to

active volcanoes to underwater shipwrecks and rare black sand beaches, there are countless attractions to be discovered across the country’s 83 islands.

These attractions, both touched and untouched, are some of the primary reasons for foreign investment in the tourism sector. The past ten years has seen Vanuatu’s tourism sector enjoy a healthy growth and it accounts for 48.8% of the economy.

Even after enduring the brunt of Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Pam in March 2015, the tourism sector performed better than the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) initial forecast for 2016 by

From active volcanoes to spectacular dive sites, Vanuatu is a paradise for tourism operators and only a few hours from the major markets of Australia and New Zealand.

18

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

PICTURES: VTO

moving up by 1% to a 3.5% projected growth.

VIPA INVESTMENT

19

In fact the damage caused by Cyclone Pam propelled

the sector is also evident in its efforts to establish a conducive

the tourism sector to rebuild itself with major infrastructure

business environment through existing policies and capacity

developments including a revamp of the wharf and airport. The

building avenues for skills growth in tourism related services.

Lapetasi Wharf project will see a major upgrade of Vanuatu’s main

If you are looking to invest in Vanuatu’s tourism sector, you will

port into international standards, with the capacity to berth multiple

be contributing to the livelihoods of around 10,000 Ni-Vanuatu

major vessels such as cruise liners and cargo vessels.

workers who directly engage with tourism related services and

Furthermore the construction and rehabilitation of Bauerfield International Airport will see the airport upgraded to ‘Code E’ status to cater for long-haul flights.

With these major infrastructure developments and Vanuatu’s

account for 41% of Vanuatu’s employment.

Whether it’s accommodation, a recreational activity or a restaurant, there is enough diversification in tourism related services to allow for healthy competition. Vanuatu’s success stories

strong offshore financial centre, the future of Vanuatu’s tourism

include the luxury couples-only boutique resort The Havannah,

sector looks promising. The national government’s support of

which recently won Vanuatu’s Leading Resort of 2016 for its fourth consecutive year, to family friendly international hotel chains such as IHG’s Holiday Inn and The Warwick Le Lagon, Warwick Hotels

With major infrastructure developments and Vanuatu’s strong offshore financial centre, the future of Vanuatu’s tourism sector looks promising.

20

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

and Resorts.

To invest in Vanuatu, you will need to obtain a Foreign Investment Approval Certificate (FIAC) from the Vanuatu Investment

Promotion Authority (VIPA). VIPA is the statutory body operating under the Ministry of Trade, Tourism, Commerce and Ni-Vanuatu Business Development.

PICTURES: Craig Osment, Holiday Inn, Tiffany Carroll

It was established in 1998 and is mandated to assist all potential

the country’s economy for inward foreign direct investment inflow.

Vanuatu is a relatively young country that only gained independence in 1980 and offers plenty of opportunities for unique tourism related investments, particularly as many of Vanuatu’s

foreign investors from initial inquiry to a project’s operational stage

outer islands remain untouched. VIPA has profiled various hot

to after-care services.

spots that can be viewed through www.investvanuatu.org .

This includes requests for work permits, residency permits, business licenses and other government approvals. No foreign investor is allowed to do any business in Vanuatu until an approval is provided by VIPA. Although there are no formal investment incentive schemes,

Foreign investors are encouraged to contact VIPA’s bilingual staff for more information.

Vanuatu’s prime positioning in the South Pacific ensures that the country is accessible enough to Australia and New Zealand and with infrastructure upgrades of the wharf, airport and roads,

there is legislation that allows the government to waive import and

supported by reliable telecommunications and ICT enhancements,

export duties for activities that benefit the economy.

the future for foreign direct investment has never looked better.

Many foreign investors have often negotiated substantial benefits to successfully compete in the marketplace.

As well as facilitating business expansions and variations, VIPA is

Invest in Vanuatu and discover why it has twice been voted the Happiest Place on the Planet.

With Yasmine Bjornum.

responsible for the promotion of tourism and other key sectors of VIPA INVESTMENT

21

RESORTS+ACCOMMODATION

From spectacular to secluded

reat holidays start with great accommodation, and Vanuatu has plenty to offer. From the stunning properties fronting the Erakor Lagoon to romantic beachfront hideaways on Santo and EfatÊ to glamorous and serene Havannah Harbour and Port Vila harbourfront convenience, there’s something to suit everyone.

BREAKAS BEACH RESORT Over the past fifteen years Breakas Beach Resort has been very active in developing unique accommodation solutions to sell to the happy traveller with destination Vanuatu in mind. Their designers produced a fare (bungalow) that captured the romance of a 'feet in the sand' holiday. Set in grounds amidst swaying palms and dotted with pandanus trees, the 63 fares offer romance and escapism for the holiday-maker pursuing more than a hotel room experience.

The resort was overwhelmed with the success of these up-market tribal fares, and they steadily gained design recognition for their celebration of the Melanesian aesthetic and architectural features. Wholesaler support was the juggernaut that allowed the growth of the product and has nurtured the dream of creating something incredibly special amongst banyans and spotted pandanus on a white sandy beach in Port Vila. The managed growth of the business allowed the proprietors to secure a position as the number one adults-only, child-free resort in Vanuatu.

Breakas has invested in additional infrastructure to cope with the growth and a strong focus on guest satisfaction.

PORT VILA | VANUATU

Bookings essential

Phone 25844 | Email res@breakas.com | www.breakas.com

lounge and pay tribute to the setting sun ... for another wonderful

The Havannah’s professional wedding coordinator will organise

day. The Point restaurant also welcomes the public whilst resort

the perfect tropical wedding for the happy couple. Special

facilities including the beach are reserved for resident guests only.

wedding packages come complete with minister or celebrant,

Daytime activities include massages in the Arom’essence

photographer and wedding fare. The wedding coordinator ensures

Day Spa, lazy lagoon-side afternoons, and picnics on secluded

your day is just as it should be – perfect. Attractive honeymoon

beaches or enjoy the resort’s facilities, including snorkeling,

and anniversary packages offer a completely romantic experience.

kayaking, sailing, petanque or tennis.

There is a wide choice of activities that can be organised at the Havannah, from total relaxation to adventure sports. Scuba diving,

The Havannah, Vanuatu is a romantic retreat exclusively for adults.

Children under 16 are not catered for. www.thehavannah.com

deep sea fishing, Snuba and Lelepa Island tours are only a few of the many activities on offer straight from the jetty.

For the more culturally minded, there are tours of Chief

28

THE GRAND Considered the entertainment capital of Port Vila, Grand Hotel and

Roimata’s Domain, the South Pacific’s most recently listed World

Casino is centrally located in the heart of Port Vila, ideally suited

Heritage Site, located on your doorstep. The area was also a base

for both business and pleasure. With a relaxed setting, the prime

for American Catalina flying boats during the War in the Pacific so,

waterfront location is just a 10-minute drive from the airport and

plenty of relics to fossick for!

right in the heart of the shopping, business and entertainment

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

harbour cruises, sailing and helicopter rides.

In addition the hotel works closely with major activity tour operators to ensure guests are able to get easy transport to those activities that are further away.

For those wanting to explore the shopping, markets, restaurant and cafes, these are only a step away.

Aroméssence Day Spa is located on the pool level and the extensive menu includes a wide range of body and facial treatments including couples massage. The Spa opens daily from 9am to 6.30pm.

As well as spectacular views Crystals Restaurant offers alfresco and indoor dining, serving a cosmopolitan menu in a chic yet relaxed setting. The Cabana Pool Bar offers a range of poolside drinks and food to enjoy while taking in the tropical sunshine or views of the harbour.

The casually sophisticated Lobby Lounge Bar is a popular meeting spot for guests. Whether meeting over coffee or just relaxing in air conditioned comfort while enjoying snacks and beverages from the extensive menu the Lobby Lounge Bar is always open.

The Grand Hotel offers the very best gaming facilities at Grand Casino, with a total of 122 slot machines, 12 gaming tables and a private VIP gaming lounge located in the Hemisphere Lounge on the sixth floor.

The Grand Casino is widely considered the best in Vanuatu.

Location description: Located on the beautiful Port Vila Harbour in the downtown area of Port Vila.

Room descriptions: Harbour View – Level 1 -2 (24 rooms).

Located on the first and second floor with uninterrupted harbour views, these well appointed Harbour View guest rooms offer unique, contemporary and comfortable hotel-style accommodation. district.

Grand Hotel and Casino is the tallest building on the island,

Deluxe Harbour View – Level 3-5 (36 rooms). Located on the third to fifth floors with uninterrupted harbour views, these

comprising six levels with 74 rooms including Penthouse, Harbour

well appointed Deluxe Harbour View guest rooms offer unique,

and Panorama Suites, Deluxe Harbour View and Harbour View

contemporary and comfortable hotel-style accommodation.

rooms.

Each room has floor to ceiling windows, its own balcony, bathroom, free wireless access, 24-hour room service and stunning views of Port Vila Bay. As a business property, The Grand caters for conferences, business meetings, functions and incentives. With Wi-Fi throughout the hotel and dedicated 5MG pipeline for each meeting space, multiple bars and excellent dining, the Grand Hotel and Casino makes your business stay as convenient as possible.

As a leisure destination, The Grand is superbly located for visitors to explore Port Vila and the island of Efate. Just a few steps away from fishing charters, dive charters, reef explorer,

Panorama Suites – Level 1-5 (10 rooms). Located on the corners of the hotel, Panorama Suites provide large open plan accommodation and spectacular 180-degree views of the harbour.

Harbour Suites – Level 6 (3 rooms). Located on the top floor of the hotel, these magnificent suites feature spectacular harbour views with floor to ceiling windows and a separate lounge area.

Penthouse Suite – Level 6: 1 suite with two bedrooms and separate lounge.

The Penthouse suite is the epitome of stylish and luxurious accommodation. Superbly finished, the suite provides the ultimate in unobstructed panoramic views of Port Vila.

Interconnecting rooms are available in numerous rooms.

RESORTS+ACCOMMODATION

29

P R I VAT E I S L A N D VA N UAT U

“

In the blue waters of Vanuatu, I swam with a horse for the first time and saw extraordinary sea turtles. Then I went back to my room, feeling amazed by another world...

www.ratua.com

RATUA PRIVATE ISLAND The sleek, canopied motor launch glides to a stop at the Ratua jetty. A platter of iced towels is offered, along with a tall, fresh fruit juice. The beachside BBQ is already alight, with two lobsters standing by.

The silence is so complete that a deliberate noise is needed every so often in order to remind yourself that you aren’t going deaf. This is absolute tranquillity and serenity in a climate close to blood temperature. It’s a form of total immersion.

Are you getting the picture? There simply aren’t enough travel brochure clichés to do justice to this place. It is another world – but within another world, as I’ll explain.

Its genesis was in 2005, when the original French owner was sailing across the Pacific and found himself enchanted by Vanuatu’s laid-back lifestyle. He then set about importing 40 dwellings dating back to 19th century Java and Sumatra.

Each was carefully disassembled, shipped to Bali for restoration, then on to Espiritu Santo and, finally, to Ratua, where a team of Indonesian artisans faithfully reconstructed it on the shores of this 60-hectare South Pacific island.

The island now has a private airstrip if catching the boat is not your thing, an overwater spa, beachfront ‘glamping’, horse riding through the clear tropical waters, fishing, fabulous local cuisine, much of it sourced from the island’s own gardens, and a thriving wedding and honeymoon business.

The perfect island getaway and escapism at its finest.

The silence is so complete that a deliberate noise is needed every so often in order to remind yourself that you aren’t going deaf. This is absolute tranquillity and serenity.

32

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

PICTURES: Andrew Read

By Craig Osment

RESORTS+ACCOMMODATION

33

apartments with panoramic lagoon views. This premier resort

was required of this unique beachfront resort and has locals and

caters to couples looking for a quality getaway, families and

visitors alike flocking to the restaurant and the stylish new villas on

conferences and retreats. Located just five minutes from the heart

the sand.

of Port Vila and 15 minutes from Bauerfield airport, the Ramada

The place has undergone a remarkable renaissance and re-

offers guests fabulous unobstructed views of the sandy white

emerged bigger, better and more beautiful than before. It now

beaches and turquoise waters of the Erakor lagoon.

has what was always the intention - more villas, a porte cochère

www.ramadaresort.com.vu

to introduce the view, an in-ground swimming pool along with a couple of private plunge pools attached to luxury villas, revitalised

TAMANU ON THE BEACH

décor in crisp blue and white to reflect what’s outside the white

Tamanu's recent change of ownership has seen not just a revival

louvered shutters, along with lavishly upgraded bathrooms and a

of one of the iconic boutique resorts and dining destinations of

wedding ‘chapel’ (it’s always been a sought-after wedding location)

Efate but a complete re-build, refurbishment and extension of the

or function pavilion on the edge of the beach, all of which reflects

accommodation offering. New owners Ryan and Claire Foots and

the original sophisticated simplicity.

Glen Craig are old Vanuatu hands who understand perfectly what

The choice of villas ranges from beach view which are set just a few metres back from the beach but still enjoying stunning views to the ocean, to new beachfront villas designed with a French/ Caribbean flair with high ceilings, subtle lighting, king beds and stylish contemporary bathrooms which include a raised 'couples' bath. There is also a two-bedroom villa with private pool which is perfect for two couples or a family holiday; this includes two king beds (can be split) plus two single daybeds. And then there's the beachfront plunge pool villa for total indulgence. Facilities and inclusions are extensive. www.tamanuonthebeach.com

Tamanu now boasts and in-ground swimming pool along with a couple of private plunge pools attached to luxury villas and revitalised décor in crisp blue and white to reflect what's outside.

38

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

40

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

ACCOMMODATION

Home Away From Home Craig Osment looks into the burgeoning holiday villa rental options in Vanuatu and decides that when it comes to seclusion, space, serenity and privacy you can’t beat living like a local.

T

here are travellers and there are tourists - the dictionary definition doesn’t make a very clear distinction between

the two but somehow the word traveller carries a slightly more experienced connotation of the activity of making a journey than does tourist.

As the world shrinks and more people travel, accommodation choices have expanded to cater for those of us who prefer a more independent approach to seeing the world. Hotels are a great choice for the fly-in fly-out business trip where efficiency and facilities are on hand and there is an expectation of a high level of service. Resorts are terrific for the fully catered family vacation or for the indulgent romantic getaway for two but for some the idea of a more assimilated, involved and self-catered foreign trip is the ultimate way to experience another country.

PICTURES: Steffen Burggraaf

Most of us have stared at real estate agents’ windows in faraway places and wondered what it might be like to live in the country we’re enjoying temporarily as a holiday destination. We’ve watched locals going about their daily life, and speculated on doing similar things in an exotic location. There is a way of tasting life as a local on a try-before-you-buy basis, rent a self-contained private villa.

Rental apartments and holiday villas have long been a part of RESORTS+ACCOMMODATION

41

the European landscape and now Vanuatu, well mostly the main island of Efaté along with some on Santo, offers a wide choice of this sort of accommodation. Private holiday homes, bungalows and apartments which are used part time, often by expatriates, are increasingly becoming available for short-term rentals, catering to the more sophisticated holidaymaker.

Many of the properties stand on large plots of beachfront land or enjoy panoramic elevated views, most are serviced by either live-in staff or by daily help from outside and come with fully equipped kitchens, laundries and linen, plus many have pools and private beach access.

Prices range from budget to ballistic depending on the level of luxury and the number of guests but all are good value on a perperson-per-night basis, and you get total privacy and the freedom of the house. The starting point for a modest studio apartment can be less than AU$100 per night up to around AU$1000 for something which sleeps 16 and right on the beach.

THE ADVANTAGES Apart from privacy and the exclusive use of facilities, you get to live like a local and shop at the harbour-side market, stock up on exotic flowers for next to nothing, buy mud crabs and lobsters, pineapples and pamplemousse or drop into Au Bon Marché and buy French wine, local organic beef and air-freighted cheeses and

Christiana was for many years the chatelaine on board La Violante,

charcuterie. Invite your friends, and enjoy being spoilt by a daily

one of Vanuatu’s most renowned charter yachts which hosted

linen service and cleaning provided by your own local staff. Most

royalty, celebrities, passionate sailors, divers and sybarites on

villas offer an airport transfer service and once in residence you

cruises throughout the South Pacific.

can catch a bus, hire a driver, a taxi or rent a car for your stay.

Christiana represents an exclusive clutch of prime-position

While there may not be a turndown service at night, you won’t

luxury villas on the White Sands beachfront at Narpow Point (on

have the inconvenience of someone arriving to check the mini

the south-east coast of Efaté), only 18 km from Port Vila GPO. All

bar every time you down a Tusker or a Martini, or searching for a

these properties are new and feature every luxury you’d expect

poolside sun lounge and sharing the water with strangers. You can

from a house on its own private beach. All have live-in house staff

also enjoy a holiday with family and multiple friends all within the

in separate premises, walled gardens on half-hectare plots with

one private compound.

direct beach access and private pools. Some have beach farés for sunset drinks or dining on the sand. Sizes range from two to four

HOW TO BOOK

bedrooms and up to 650sqm in floor space. Christiana can also

As with most things these days, the Internet is always a good

arrange wedding planning and catering if you’re planning an event

starting point, there are various specialist websites offering holiday

while on holidays. This location has the added advantage of being

rentals. Some offer direct contact with property owners while

minutes from one the island’s best restaurants – Tamanu on the

others provide booking services via agencies that offer full-service

Beach as well as the casual bay-side Ripples.

advice on tourism activities, airport pick-ups, briefings on each

Christiana and Toga ensure all your needs are taken care of

villa and a personally tailored level of service while in residence.

and act as concierges if needed throughout your stay taking care

Others will arrange for functions and larger groups and organise

of airport transfers, initial stocking of fridge and advice on dining

weddings, parties, anything.

and tours, they even provide a local mobile phone for the duration of your visit. They also provide an exclusive table d’hôte dining

42

TRY: PAUA LUXURY VILLA RENTALS

experience for six or more. See www.paua.co or phone: +678 26

This Agency is run by long-time Vanuatu resident Christiana

108 / +678 7751793 or email: info@paua.co 5-star TripAdvisor

Kaluscha and her husband Toga Vaatuitu. The well-travelled

rating.

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

VANUATU LUXURY HOLIDAY HOMES

Previous page main: The soaring ceilings, pool at the doorstep

(www.vanuatuluxuryholidayhomes.com or phone +678 557 7034)

and absolute beachfront loaction of Villa Anouska and the

is another full service business run by Bryan and Val Death, Port

tropical charm of Villa Masari, both at White Sands. This page:

Vila residents of 13 years, offering a range (24 on the site at the

Villa Asana, also with direct beach access. Bookings via Paua.

moment) of good quality independent accommodation throughout Efaté. The website features comprehensive descriptions and photographs.

Another good web address is www.holidayhomes.co.nz (click

You’ll need to do your own food shopping and cooking, or go to

the Vanuatu link). This site is one that gives you the option of

one of Vanuatu’s many fine restaurants if you can’t be bothered.

emailing an enquiry or contacting the owner directly. A wide range

Having said that many villas will provide the basics on arrival so

of properties including some on Santo, detailed descriptions and

that you’re not starving while getting orientated.

many photographs along with testimonials from previous guests, makes choosing easy.

The other obvious places to search on the internet, of course,

What you can be assured of is a genuine tropical lifestyle experience in houses designed to capture the best of the weather and outdoor living – louvres, decks, open-plan designs, pools

are www.airbnb.com. www.flipkey.com and www.tripadvisor.com

and beaches are what your Vanuatu holiday is all about and most

and simply search the Vanuatu entries.

private villas are created to make the most of all these aspects of South Pacific living.

WHAT YOU GET Typically in the more upmarket places you’ll find everything a

A FEW DAYS OR A FEW WEEKS …

quality home would include; all linen, napery, kitchen crockery

The choice is yours. The period of availability varies and mostly

and appliances, mobile phone coverage, iPod dock, CD player,

can be arranged to suit your preferred arrival and departure dates,

wireless Internet access, satellite television reception, outdoor and

so convenience and flexibility are part of the service. The choice is

pool furniture, fans and air conditioners, BBQs, laundry facilities

yours – from a few days to a few weeks.

(and often an in-house service), staff (either live-in or visiting), some even include access to a vehicle for an additional charge.

So what are you waiting for? Get organised and experience life as it’s meant to be lived in Vanuatu.

RESORTS+ACCOMMODATION

43

FOOD+DINING

Our gastronomic journey

f you're looking for some of the best food in the Pacific Vanuatu, with its French heritage and cosmopolitan collection of expat and local chefs, is not going to disappoint. From beachfront to harbourfront, from sophisticated to simple, the produce is all fresh and fabulous and having been grown in a pesticide-free environment, is good for you too.

Try some of our favourites.

BREAKAS BEACH RESORT There’s a simple equation for getting an adults-only resort right – privacy, service and food.

Breakas Beach Resort in Port Vila also happens to be set on a magnificent white sand and coral beach and enjoys stunning sunsets and now, thanks to famed

PICTURES: Tamanu on the Beach, Craig Osment, The Havannah

Brisbane chef Mario Alfieri (formerly of The Dining Room, Hendra), five star dining.

Mario is the executive chef-come assistant manager-come entertainer. He greets all guests like old friends and if you’re lucky he may even serenade you after cooking what will be, without doubt, the best Italian food in the South Pacific.

So renowned is Mario, he has recently returned from a stint at the Warwick Fiji Resort on the Coral Coast where he trained staff and freshened their menus. But it’s Vanuatu that he favours and he’s pleased to be home.

Breakas Resort offers waterfront dining, perfect for romantic evenings as well as

Tamanu on the Beach: memorable for "the stunning location – that amazing ‘reveal’ as you enter the restaurant portico and get your first glimpse of the whiteness of beach and the 180-degree blueness of the Pacific".

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

weddings and other functions.

Mario’s food is fresh, with local seafood and Vanuatu’s renowned beef on the menu.

However it’s his Italian fare, including mouth-watering buffalo

crustaceans and cuts of meat, extremely stylish and with a culinary output to match.

On the water side of the white-curtained pavilion is a deck, which could have come straight from Capri’s Marina Piccola with

cheese air freighted regularly from Italy, that keeps diners returning

a rough-hewn pergola supporting flowering vines, and shading

night after night.

tables that might as well be overlooking Lakes Lugano or Como -

And he’s quick to point out his cheese isn’t just any old Italian cheese – the best buffalo cheese comes from within 70 miles of Rome. Anything else is a poor substitute, he says.

except that it’s Vanuatu’s own calm Havannah Harbour and green islands as backdrop.

The ambience is Med meets the Pacific and the food is the

Mario’s seafood marinara is known as the best ever and comes

perfect complement. The menu is in both English and Italian

with prawns, mussels, fish, lobster – enough of a meal in itself, but

reflecting Francesca’s heritage (and her reputation as one of

it’s the sauce that my companions were raving about.

Vanuatu’s leading foodies) and ranges from a selection of Assaggi

There are themed Melanesian nights at Breakas and live music,

(tastings) which include Spiedini di Maiale (local pork on skewers),

but the à la carte menu is always available. The wine list, selected

Fegatini di Pollo (chicken livers) and Crudo di Tonno (local

by Mario and long term Vanuatu resident and chef/food+beverage

marinated tuna) to a variety of pizza and pasta dishes followed by

manager Roy Ernst, offers a range of Australian, New Zealand and

a ‘feast from the grill’. These include Grigliata Mista di Carne (a

French favourites and is well priced for a resort. – TC

carnivores’ delight consisting of six different meat variations) and a

Open seven days. Phone +678 23 670.

Grigliata Mista di Pesce for the seafood lovers.

The wine list is the perfect match with selections from Sicily,

THE HAVANNAH

Chianti (a joy to find in Vanuatu), New Zealand, France and

The Point Restaurant, with its commanding 270° views over

Australia all served by a knowledgeable and charming floor staff

Havannah Harbour, offers gourmet cuisine using the freshest of

under Francesca’s watchful eye.

local ingredients. You are also spoilt for choice for dining locations,

The restaurant is actually just part of a work in progress which

as you can dine in the restaurant, on the beach with a bonfire, in

will include bungalows and a spa-like experience under the name

the tropical garden, on the Havannah jetty, or in privacy of your

Shanti. Already there are small curtained massage rooms (along

villa. A wide variety of top French, Australian and New Zealand

with private dining alcoves) spilling down towards the sea and the

wines, along with champagne of course, enhances the inspirational

promise of more to come in her mantra ‘eat, pray, love’, which is

menu. If cocktails are more your style, sit back and relax in the

the meme of her mission.

lounge and pay tribute to the setting sun ... for another wonderful day. Phone +678 35 600.

The scenic 40-minute drive (on paved roads) from town is worth every minute and mile, aside from the views along the way; the food and atmosphere alone justify the trip. A fine addition to the

FRANCESCA’S

local dining scene and not to be missed. Open Wednesday to

Does the idea of dining under an upturned outrigger canoe top

Sunday for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Drop in at 5.30 for happy

your list of places you’d like to eat? Probably not – but Francesca

hour drinks before your meal. Phone +678 771 9898.

Grillo’s particular take on this experience will change your mind.

www.francescas.com.vu – CO

The design of her eponymous restaurant on the shores of Havannah Harbour on Efaté has been inspired by just that. The

L'HOUSTALET

main pavilion is under a thatched roof in the shape of a canoe with

It’s been around since before Independence and hasn’t changed

white-painted bush timber supports reminiscent of the struts inside

its menu. Why? Because when you’re on a good thing, stick to it.

a boat, with the notional ‘outrigger’ section forming what has to

Clement Martinez and his French restaurant are both Port Vila

be Vanuatu’s best looking open kitchen. It’s all gleaming stainless

institutions. This is the place the locals go to - seven nights a

steel with blackboard-painted walls featuring illustrations of various

week, 365 days a year.

The service is fast, efficient and fabulously old school French.

The aforementioned menu includes Vanuatu's best beef, the

Francesca's: The ambience is Med meets the Pacific and the

region's best French Onion Soup and unusual offerings such as

food is the perfect complement. The menu is in both English and

Flying Fox and Pigeon.

Italian reflecting Francesca’s heritage and her reputation as one of Vanuatu’s leading foodies.

L'Houstalet's salads and seafood are always fresh and the pizza and pasta tasty.

FOOD+DINING

47

If your idea of paradise is an idyllic tropical setting combining

lounge appearance. Today it has three dining areas - the original

enchantment, romance, elegance, and unspoiled beauty, then

bar area, an outdoor covered garden area and an indoor

The Havannah awaits.

airconditioned room full of the artwork of famed Walitian artist Aloi Pilioko.

Phone +678 22 303.

Whilst there is a wine and cocktail list, most locals go for the house red and white and it's good enough.

The restaurant itself has evolved from a barn-style bar and nightclub with comfy red chairs, giving it a sort of 1970s smoking

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

ERATAP BEACH RESORT The mutli-award winning Eratap offers waterfront dining in a peaceful out-of-town setting. For those that have travelled

beef is of course also available and cooked to perfection.

Eratap Resort’s beachfront restaurant is located a 20-minute drive south of Port Vila. Bookings essential for lunch and dinner.

Phone +678 35 560.

TAMANU ON THE BEACH Tamanu is located on its own white sand beach about 20 minutes from Port Vila. Gorgeous plantation style cottages dot the tropical gardens and the airy restaurant is a flurry of activity, particularly on Sundays.

Understated and elegant, Tamanu's menu is not extensive, rather they prefer to offer a daily specials board based on the overnight catch of fresh seafood.

The regular menu includes Beef Madras, Coconut Prawns, Vanuatu Beef Fillet, Tumeric-infused Bamboo Chicken Skewers and their famous Seafood Curry.

The most popular day for dining at Tamanu is Sunday lunch, when large numbers of expats and locals head out to enjoy a truly relaxing and memorable afternoon. Sunday lunch at Tamanu really is an institution. The gorgeous beach setting, terrific service, food and a fabulous wine list ensure it's a lunch people return to time and time again. Phone +678 27 279.

CAFE DU VILLAGE Le Cafe du Village restaurant and bar just keeps getting better and better.

Since new owner Simon Troman took over the reins, this Mediterranean-style Port Vila institution which has enjoyed pride of place on the harbourfront opposite Iririki Island for many years has become one of Port Vila’s best dining experiences.

The location is stunning with an absolute waterfront position which also serves as a wharf from which the Meridian sunset cruise departs each evening.

The menu retains a number of old favourites including the entree seafood chowder with crusty bread, there’s also a Spanish seafood soup with aioli and garlic toast and a few Asian goodies too, like pork and prawn spring rolls and Thai beef salad. Happy Hour is on weekdays-only from 5pm to 6pm and there’s a cheap lunch special (Fish and Chips, Burger and Chips, Calamari and the Pacific, Eratap is the Vomo of Vanuatu – timber and rattan furniture, pitched natangora ceilings and open air dining. The

Salad) on weekdays as well.

Cafe du Village also hosts a Village Market – a garage sale every

resort is simply stunning and their restaurant is open to day guests

first Sunday of the month from 8am - 11am. Don't forget they have

for lunch and dinner seven days a week.

coconut crabs (when in season) and lobster – straight out of their

Eratap's speciality is seafood, freshly caught out front and thanks to a Japanese chef, the Sushi is fantastic. For lunch, the large selection of offerings includes small bites, wraps, baguettes

cage in the harbour.

Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner from 8am until late – Tuesday to Sunday. Call for reservations +678 27 789.

and gourmet pizzas, salads and more seafood.

For dinner try the seafood platter or perhaps a curry. Vanuatu FOOD+DINING

49

FOOD+DINING The Republic and French onion soup The country’s oldest restaurant is a Port Vila institution. Here, the owner Clement Martinez reveals his part in the birth of the nation.

I

t would be extremely rare for a restaurateur to be able to say they played a role in the birth of a nation. But for Clement

Martinez, owner of L’Houstalet, the country’s oldest restaurant, it is no idle boast. The French-born chef and bon vivant vividly remembers the small, but real, part he played in the much-awaited birth of Vanuatu.

It was 18 September 1979 and would-be political leaders, church leaders and chiefs were meeting at the Condominium to draft the constitution for the new nation.

“They had been meeting all day and we were all waiting with bated breath, like Catholics wait to see the white smoke announcing a new Pope at the Vatican,” Clement says.

“Suddenly, it was 9pm, then it was midnight, and it was now 19

the official said: ‘Are you from Port Vila?’ ” Clement recalls. “When

constitution be drafted because representatives of the French and

he replied, yes, the official cried: ‘Do you know Clement and

British governments were due within days to begin the process

L’Houstalet?’ Imagine that – all those millions in New York and he

that would see the birth of the republic.

comes across someone who knows me and my restaurant.”

“At 3am, I closed my nightclub and went to see what was

Clement Martinez was born near Carcassonne in the war-torn

happening. When I got to the Condominium, they were taking

south of France in 1942. He remembers nothing of the war itself.

a break and there was still no result and one of the politicians

He spent a normal childhood in that region as the eldest of seven

recognised me and said: ‘Hey, have you got any of that French

children and his parents ran a hotel in the village, so the hospitality

onion soup?’ and I said: ‘Yes.’

industry was part of his earliest memories.

“Then the father of our nation, Walter Lini, came out and said:

He always wanted to be a chef and, after French training, he

‘Hey, how about some French onion soup?’ and I said: ‘Sure, how

went to England and worked in a hotel kitchen in Leicester for a

many are you?’ ” Clement returned to his restaurant to prepare the

few years.

soup and about 40 people joined him and supped on this classic French entrée.

“I then spent a year working for Air France in an office, waiting to become a flight steward, but that never happened,” he says.

Somewhere around 4am, all parties finally agreed on the

But the lust for travel was in Clement’s blood and he accepted a

draft constitution and, as the official plaque on the front of

position as catering manager at a hotel in Tahiti, where he worked

L’Houstalet proudly proclaims, it was “the first decisive step in the

for five years. In 1969, he was offered the position of catering

independence of the country”.

manager at the soon-to-be-opened Le Lagon, which was to be the

“I remember it so well, and they ended up staying at the restaurant all night,” says Clement.

It was undoubtedly L’Houstalet and Clement’s finest hour,

New Hebrides’ first international class hotel.

“I wasn’t that keen as I had a young family at the time and was established where I was but they said, come over and have a look,

historically at least, but this legendary Pacific eatery has known

it’ll cost you nothing, so I thought, why not?” he says. “I felt right

myriad fine moments since it first opened its doors in 1973.

away that this was a place I would like to stay.”

Clement remembers with relish how a friend from Port Vila had

50

“My friend told the UN official that he was from Vanuatu and

September and still nothing. We knew it was important that the

Clement’s early memories of the New Hebrides were of the

travelled to New York to visit the United Nations and check out

strange dual rule of the French and British and how the native

details of a grant that he had received.

people were unable to move from place to place without a Letter

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

to Travel from one or the other.

“And that stayed like that until 1980 – can you imagine?” he says.

Above left: Clement Martinez, owner of L’Houstalet, the country’s oldest restaurant and, above, the iconic building in the Nambatu area of Port Vila.

After intensive training of kitchen and front-of-house staff for Le Lagon, Clement was released from his contract after the French owner sold the resort to a Japanese company in 1972.

Like most chefs, Clement had always harboured a desire for his own restaurant and L’Houstalet was born on adjacent rented sites

“Now I am teaching their children, but I still come into the

in 1973, with one of the sites being a failed restaurant that came

restaurant every day to keep them all going down the path I want,

with the bonus of a fitted kitchen.

even though I retired four years ago!” he says with his infectious

“It was well out of town at the time and the road outside was just two tracks with grass growing between them – there was nothing else,” he recalls, with his trademark smile.

Describing himself as a provincial French chef, Clement says ‘L’Houstalet’ translates as ‘home farm stay’ and he feels strongly that, with his restaurant’s low ceilings, dark wooden beams and stucco walls, he has achieved the ambience he was seeking.

Once he had established his restaurant, he was keen to branch

laugh.

When discussing L’Houstalet’s longevity, Clement admits his menu has not changed for 30 years. He speaks fondly of his classic dishes – with none more famous than his flying fox (or bat) in a red wine and garlic marinade.

“Many, many years ago, a friend took me to his plantation at Devil’s Point,” Clement says. “He told me about the flying foxes, fired shots into a tree, dropping about four of them. My friend

out with a nightclub. “It wasn’t the first in Vila but I definitely had

grabbed these bats, wings, crap and all, and dropped them in a

the first disco,” he says.

large vat of boiling water. We then went further into his plantation

In 1987, Cyclone Uma destroyed almost everything in Port Vila PICTURES: Leith Campbell.

has 30 staff, with many of the original kitchen crew still with him.

and Clement was forced to rebuild. He finally closed his nightclub/ disco in 2000.

“It was so bad then,” is all he will say about that part of his enterprise.

Fast forward to 2017 and his restaurant still has the desired Gallic provincial, welcoming feel to it. It can seat 150 and Clement

and dealt with his cattle and heaps of pigs that were almost wild, which looked like they’d eat anything.

“We got back to the barrels of boiling water after more than an hour and I had forgotten about these flying foxes but my friend lifted one out by the wing. He then took a large knife, cut the bat and sucked out the innards, and I must admit I wasn’t too impressed.”

FOOD+DINING

51

Clement forgot this episode but, as his restaurant developed, he was determined to marry his provincial French cuisine and style with things local, and people kept telling him about eating flying fox/bat.

“I decided to put it on the menu and treat it like rabbit, which meant I would gut it, then marinate it,” he says. “This worked well but the locals kept telling me that it should be eaten the way it was, with its intestines etc.

“I agreed and tried it on the menu uncleaned, and I sometimes winced when people told me how nice the stuffing was.”

Years and years later, his flying fox in red wine and garlic is still a highly popular dish. “I sell several a day; it tastes like venison,” he says.

“People come here at least once a week, every week, year after year, and they expect that this dish or that will taste just as they like it, remember it, and that is my biggest challenge.”

There are 19 pizza dishes that long-term locals rave about, six pasta dishes, then the French influence kicks in with classics like the aforementioned French onion soup and garlic snails.

The menu is liberally sprinkled with beef and seafood dishes, including classics like a (reasonably priced) lobster Thermidor.

Although wild pigeon could be served pretty much anywhere, the flying fox in red wine and garlic with rice drags you back to the Pacific.

Cheeses and desserts, including chocolate profiteroles, are distinctly cosmopolitan but the staff is strictly ni-Van, knowledgeable and comfortable in their surrounds.

Clement Martinez, looking years younger than his actual age, is a nuggety, bouncy figure, who rightly enjoys the fact that his restaurant is something special – even legendary - in the annals of modern Pacific history.

By Tony Wilson

L'Houstalet expanded its indoor dining area to celebrate its 25th anniversary a few years ago. They still offer the same menu, however, including Flying Fox.

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

Café culture in the capital A caffeine addict goes on a café crawl to find the best coffee in Port Vila and discovers there’s plenty to choose from

is a must. Nambawan is right by the water, near the recently refurbished grassed waterfront area, and is always a hive of activity, with a market close by.

Nambawan is the café of choice for those involved in aid projects around Vanuatu. On their trips into town, they will stop at Nambawan and share war stories about how they managed to rebuild a village in a single day and still had time in the afternoon to

A

recite Keats to the sick turtles convalescing in the sanctuary. round two thirds of the world’s population drink coffee.

Chances are you’re one of them and when you go on holiday,

Located adjacent to the market, Chill is Port Vila’s only upstairs café. The tinted windows and air conditioning make this newly

your coffee addiction goes with you. Port Vila has a number of

renovated space a good place to rest after shopping. As a friend

cafés and restaurants with espresso machines, ready to provide

says – "I’ll admit it – I dread taking my toddler out for dinner. Dining

you with your fix. Each establishment has its own personality and

in public? Just forget it." However there is one place I know that

atmosphere, and I have been set the challenge to try them all. Or

has thought of everything to not only make mealtime easy, but

at least as many as I can handle in one day.

enjoyable. Chill restaurant, next door to the market house, has

Nestled by the water, just outside of town, Chantilly’s has

everything from portable DVD players to make-your-own pizzas

been a Port Vila institution for years. Its secluded location means

for the kids. There are colouring books and plastic cups – not to

it requires a five-minute walk to the north of town but, if you are

mention an array of sugary desserts that are fabulous as bribes for

looking for some peace and quiet with your coffee, it is well worth

good behaviour.

the trip.

Very busy people seem to frequent here, usually with maps and contracts spread out before them in the open foyer which enjoys good wifi access, before repairing to the waterfront deck or the

Au Péché Mignon is a little French delight. Located across the road from the market, it is a fusion of a fine French patisserie with the relaxed atmosphere of the South Pacific.

So if you too are a caffeine addict, you won’t struggle to find a

air-conditioned interior for good food as well as a comprehensive

coffee house here. Six coffees in one day was a lot even for me

wine list.

but, at the end of it, was I satisfied? Yes!

Nambawan is a true Vanuatu experience and coffee here

By Daniel Coombes and Tiffany Carroll.

FOOD+DINING

53

ISLANDS

83 magical islands

he 83 islands of Vanuatu are so varied in their culture and kastom, it's easy to think you are in a different country moving from one island to the next. Efate, home to the capital Port Vila, is the most populous and home to the country's biggest villages.

But step outside the capital and you will find dramatic differences in the people, the landscape and the traditions.

From the black magic of Ambrym to the magical beaches of the Banks and Torres group; the death-defying Nagol (land diving) on Pentecost to the dance festivals of Malekula; the World War 2 history of Espiritu Santo and the tribal cult of the John Frum movement in Tanna, each island is unique but equally irresistible.

Vanuatu has twice been voted the Happiest Country on the Planet; exploring our islands it's easy to see why. The most visited islands are Efate, Espiritu Santo and Tanna, but often it's the smaller ones (in population not geographical size) that

PICTURE: Vanuatu Tourism Office

capture visitor's hearts.

The islands of Shefa Province (left) are spectacular - as are the islands throughout the other five provinces of Tafea, Sanma, Torba, Malampa and Penama.

ISLANDS

EFATE

Sunshine and blue water on the doorstep The capital is spectacularly sited and charmingly original.

E

faté, while not the biggest island in the archipelago at 900 square kilometres, is home to the capital Port Vila and

supports the largest population in the country – around 50,000 people.

Most of Vanuatu’s commerce is conducted in Port Vila. It is also the location for most tourism activities and Bauerfield International Airport, which is 10 minutes from town.

The town is where you’ll find the shopping, supermarkets and points and hosts the fresh produce market, craft market and numerous of the better eateries.

There is also a huge selection of activities on offer around the harbour, from yacht charters to helicopter rides, both of which will take you around the harbour or further afield, including around the island.

In spite of being a working waterway and home to commercial shipping, inter-island boats and leisure craft, the harbour is clean enough for swimming and supports live coral and many fish.

The completion of a sealed road right around the island has

Vanuatu’s capital, Port Vila is stunning from every angle. The harbour is home to several islands including Iririki and Ifira.

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

PICTURES: Andrew Read, Vivid Vanuatu and the Vanuatu Tourism Office

most of the restaurants. The harbourfront is accessible at many

ISLANDS

57

made access to Efaté’s other attractions much easier. The roundisland trip can be done comfortably in about three hours.

Havannah Harbour on the north side of the island is definitely worth the drive and, on the way, you’ll find beaches, snorkelling and diving opportunities, restaurants and spectacularly dense greenery, as well as kilometre after kilometre of sparkling ocean and coral coastline ... and more islands!

It took me nearly 10 years to discover the real Vanuatu can be found right on Port Vila’s doorstep, in the islands just off the coast of Efate.

Lelepa, Pele and Nguna are all favourites of mine and all are easily accessible from Port Vila (most within an hour’s drive and boat ride) and all are surrounded by some of the best snorkeling spots in the Pacific and offer truly authentic Vanuatu experiences LELEPA To reach Lelepa, you drive around 25 minutes from Port Vila towards Havannah Harbour and take a 15-minute banana boat

Albert’s family lovingly prepares lunch and you’re encouraged to swim, wander the village and explore the island.

After lunch we take another walk to the crash site of a US WW2

ride across the iridescent waters. Organised tours are available

bomber and are then loaded back in to the banana boats to visit

every day except Saturday and include transfers, lunch, snorkeling

a remarkable cave that was once used as a hospice for villagers

equipment and tour guide.

suffering leprosy.

Albert Solomon and his family, fiercely proud people who have

“Since then, the cave became tabu because we believe the

opened their home to tourists and are keen to show visitors the

spirits still haunt the cave. I asked my mother and grandmother

real way of life, operate Lelepa day tours.

about this and they said it wasn’t safe to go inside – but I thought

The crossing is spectacular, with completely clean, ink blue water, flying fish and often dolphins.

Albert’s tour of Lelepa starts with an introduction to their

tourists might be interested to see it.

“So that is why we send the tourists inside first,” he laughs.

In the early afternoon we head to Albert’s secret snorkeling spot,

unique language and customs. After arriving at one of Lelepa’s

a little cove accessible only by boat. The water is breathtaking and

many powdery white sand beaches we’re invited to walk across

I overhear a tourist from Brisbane say ‘why the hell would ANYONE

the island to where Albert promises we’ll come to an even more

go to Thailand?’ And I think, yes, why would you?

beautiful beach.

On the walk through the island we learn about plants that

As the crow flies, Nguna is just around the corner from Lelepa by

500-year-old Namele Palms (the fronds of which are used at

boat, or about another 10 minutes drive along the mainland of

custom ceremonies throughout Vanuatu to signify tabu) and tall

Efate then a 20-minute boat ride across to Nguna.

trees with names carved in them.

“If we see a tree that we think will one day be good for making a canoe, we carve our name in it, so it becomes ours. No one else

Nguna is home to an extinct volcano and in recent years trekking to the craters has been attracting climbers from all over the world.

The beaches around Nguna may not be as picture-perfect as

is allowed to cut it down. But if we argue about who owns the tree

Lelepa or its nearer neighbour Pele, but the mountain climb and

– such as this one with many names carved in it – we just leave it.

breathtaking view from the top are just as special.

It is best not to cut it down and cause a fight within the village,” Albert explains.

We hear the importance of the Chiefly system, custom marriage, where their food comes from and how they survive cyclones.

The beach on the other side of the island is stunning; superlatives are a waste of time as none can describe the beauty

58

NGUNA

are good for curing toothache, headache and wounds. We see

Nguna is around 30 square kilometers and from the coast, it’s a rather steep ascent to the base of the volcano. You can walk, as we did, or arrange a local transport to cart you up the hill. Walking took around an hour and it was work, but we stopped for fresh lime juice and fruit on the way up.

Locals on Nguna use the crater of the extinct Mt Marow volcano

of this place. White powder soft sand, that amazingly clear blue-

as their main village garden, harvesting corn, yam, taro, kumala

green water and lazy palm trees leaning towards the water.

and other crops. It’s a fair hike from the village to the crater (our

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

group of 14 took between 20 and 40 minutes) but the locals do it

Lelepa is just one of the stunning small islands off the Efate

twice a day in half that time.

‘mainland’. Take the boat ride and tour the island all day to get a

The view is spectacular, although the locals don’t seem to

glimpse of true Vanuatu village life and great snorkelling.

notice. For them, it is a way of life – the crater offers the most fertile soil on the island, so hiking each day is akin to going to work.

At last count there were eight guesthouses, all operated by

breeding program. The islanders take conservation seriously and ask that no rubbish be left on their magnificent shores; in fact

Ni-Vanuatu, available for tourists to stay in. Most charge around

Evergreen Vanuatu provides a weekly rubbish collection service for

3000VT per person, per night, including meals. For this you will

the island.

get a gorgeous beachfront or village bungalow with mosquito net, candles and kerosene lamps, island style food and a truly magical and authentic island experience.

As such, the island is pristine with gorgeous gardens and villages and clean white sand beaches.

Snorkeling gear and kayaks are available on the island and guided tours of the village encouraged. As fishing is banned, the

PELE Ah Pele, the jewel in the crown …

The cliché untouched paradise rings true at Pele. The same

fish life is abundant and the coral is alive with colour.

The local village kids burst out of school and came down to our campsite on the beach. I noticed a few of them pointing and

group of weary travelers that had earlier hiked Mt Marow on Nguna

laughing at the silly white folk struggling to put up tents underneath

returned to the north east coast of Efate and again loaded their

coconut trees (a death trap to anyone with any island sense) and

belongings on to a banana boat, this time to head to Pele.

after a little encouragement, joined our kids for a game of beach

We’d seen the clear waters before and were almost blasé with our surrounds, but the closer we got to Pele, the more we felt we were in for a real treat.

Pele has been opened for business for a few years now so the welcome is a little rehearsed but none-the-less genuine and friendly. The beach is immaculate and the locals excited to share their home.

This time we would camp, although there are several

cricket.

For our children, the highlight of Pele was playing with the village kids. Ours were impressed to see the local kids thrive with home made island toys, and quickly turfed their iPads for games of hide and seek, soccer on the beach and climbing trees.

It truly was paradise. We were invited to the village, to see how life really is. To us, it was simple living – no electricity, no hot water and a strong sense of community. Everyone looks after everyone

guesthouses on the island. This sort of camping would quickly

else on the island, from sharing child rearing to communal cooking

become known as ‘glamping’ as the only work required of us was

and schooling.

to pitch our own tents.

The Pele islanders did the rest, from preparing meals to lighting campfires.

Pele is in a marine protection zone and is home to a turtle-

I’m convinced Ni-Vanuatu have got it right and their strong sense of community is a lesson the rest of the world would benefit from.

So if you can spare a day, do head out to the islands and fall in love with the real Vanuatu. – By Tiffany Carroll ISLANDS

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ISLANDS

SANTO

Breathtaking, Sensational Espiritu Santo The world has an abundance of pristine tropical islands, but very few have an extraordinary combination of adventure, history, beauty and mystery. Vanuatu’s Espiritu Santo has all of this and more, as Pacific Island Living columnist Rose Jacobs and her weather presenter husband Steve Jacobs from the Nine Network’s Today Show in Australia discover.

A

s the name suggests, Espiritu Santo is an exotic, mysterious and romantic destination. The exact meaning is in fact ‘Holy

Spirit’ but it’s also known as the ‘Island of Hidden Treasures’ and is Vanuatu’s largest island (just over 4000sqkm) and most visitors wonder why she isn’t Vanuatu’s capital, not just for her size but also for her beauty and her numerous activity draw-cards that make her so alluring.

Meet the locals and get on the road to explore Santo’s many treasures. Although Champagne Beach is our most famous, right next door is Lonnoc Beach which is equally gorgeous.

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

PICTURES: Craig Osment; Leith Campbell

just one visit here has left an impression for a lifetime for us. Santo

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The first thing that struck us about Espiritu Santo is how clean and well cared for the island is. The roads are wide, the beaches are respected and the main township of Luganville is warm and welcoming.

But for a remote tropical island sitting in the middle of the South Pacific, (a 45-minute flight from Port Vila) there is certainly no lack of fascinating adventures to embark upon.

DIVING Perhaps the most famous highlight of Santo is underwater. People travel from across the globe to experience a snorkel or dive at the legendary ‘SS President Coolidge’ which is like something straight out of an Indiana Jones film! It’s the largest, most accessible ship wreck in the world accessible to divers from shore and is like a ghost ship filled with remarkable treasures, frozen in time. You will lose track of time on a dive here, marvelling at the beauty and mystery as we did.

BEACHES Above the surface, you will be equally mesmerised. In our view, too often tropical islands are disrespected and are soon spoiled by too many tourists or locals with little knowledge of environmental sustainability. Thankfully Santo is not one of those islands. The beaches are pristine and the sand is chalky white. You would need more than a day to beach-hop around the island, in fact a lifetime still wouldn’t be long enough! A trip to Champagne Beach is an absolute must, named so because of the majestic, sparkling water.

It genuinely glows like a blanket of diamonds. Golden Beach at Port Orly and Lonnoc are also stunning.

CAVES We weren’t kidding about the mystery and adventure available on Santo. If hidden cave systems tickle your fancy then head to Millennium Cave for a trek through a 50-metre high cave filled with stalactites, stalagmites, bats and rock structures that will blow your mind. You don’t need to be a dedicated spelunker or potholer as cave explorers are known in the USA and elsewhere. You can set the pace, stopping for a picnic in the tropical rainforest or take a swim in the river or bathe in the waterfalls. This is recreational exploration at its best.

BLUE HOLES Never heard of such a thing? The Blue Holes of Santo are possibly

One of Santo’s remarkable blue holes which really are as blue as the picture suggests. Opposite: the overwater spa at Ratua Private Island, a half hour boat ride from Luganville.

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

one of the most magnificent natural features in the world! Imagine a fresh water swimming hole surrounded by dripping green rainforest, with volcanic gases bubbling up from the bottom of the natural pool, through limestone and coral, resulting in water so dazzlingly azure blue it’s hard to believe it’s real. Take your floaties, your snorkels, your cameras and your picnic lunch, because you won’t want to leave!

CUISINE Being an island, you can imagine that seafood on Santo is plentiful. Fishing is hugely popular here with an abundance of marlin, wahoo, Spanish mackerel, giant trevally and yellowfin tuna.

Even the most basic little café in the heart of Luganville can serve up a feast worthy of a five-star restaurant. Combined with the local flavours of coconut, or lemon, olive oil, fresh tomatoes and capers, the meals you will have in Espiritu Santo will be some of the best in your life.

REST There’s a spectacular selection of accommodation to choose from in Santo also. Lay your weary head down at Moyyan House by the Sea, a private beachside home with exceptional attention to detail.

Otherwise, a trip to Ratua Private Island Resort is like a magical dream. Imagine a perfect small island, decorated with aged traditional timber huts reconstructed from Indonesia, immaculately styled with rugs and soft linen and captivating cultural artworks.

A spa over the water, a table on the beach, a bar lit at night with candles and champagne chilled any time you want it, Ratua is extraordinary. For another alternative, you might like to try Hidden Cove Retreat, boasting private plunge pools on your balcony overlooking the beach. No matter which way you go, you won’t be disappointed.

But regardless of how much you discover during your visit to PICTURE: Craig Osment

Espiritu Santo, you will undoubtedly board your departing flight with a funny feeling in your tummy that you haven’t even scratched the surface of the island’s wonders… and perhaps no-one has yet.

This is an island filled with magical secrets and limitless beauty.

Let’s hope the Island of Hidden Treasures keeps on hiding her gems for as long as possible!

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ISLANDS

TANNA

The magic of Tanna There’s more to this island than a volcano – think pristine beaches, a rich culture and strong sense of community.

A

fter 36 hours in Tanna, flying home I have two things on my mind – a 1980s Australian slogan and Lara Bingle. I imagine

most people fly home with the memory of standing on the crater of the world’s most accessible volcano, or the smiling faces of the local people etched in their minds, but for me, it is a little different.

Tanna is only a 35-minute flight south of Port Vila but nothing can prepare you for the journey ahead. Arriving at White Grass airport, you are forced to disconnect from life as you know it. A small sign points to the baggage claim area, an open window separating the apron from the airport terminal. There is no activity; no one is in a rush here. The tourists shrug their shoulders at each other, realising this is an island where everything will happen, eventually.

pomp and ceremony; you must find your own truck and sit in the back. The adventure has begun.

Our first stop, about 20 minutes into the journey, is the local auto mechanic’s workshop. At first glance I think we have arrived at a drive-in cinema with rows of trucks lined up.

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

PICTURES: Justine Chilcott

Our bags collected, we walk outside and see Tanna for the first time. Trucks are lined up waiting to cart visitors away. There is no

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roads are not great on Tanna.

A few pounds of air in our fourth tyre and we’re away, finally on the open road. We pass clean villages, rainforests and jungles.

There are more churches per capita than surely anywhere else in

Loaded into the back of the truck, the drive this time is almost a disappointment – we are now experts at anticipating the potholes and minimising the whiplash.

We are not prepared for the sight, however, of the ash plains

the world and many local schools, but not another vehicle for the

or the volcanic ash that pours all over us on the way. Trees

next hour.

whimper under the weight of recent expulsions of ash and the road

Men hand-carve volcanic mud from the mountain to fill the monster potholes that collectively form the road. They are all

disappears. We could be on Mars for all I know.

Covered in mud (it has rained on the way, transforming the ash

smiling and seemingly without a care in the world. The bush knife

to a mask one would pay good money for in a beauty salon),

marks along the walls show kilometres of work and the road

we arrive at the base of the volcano. She is indeed awake and

teams, some with males as young as eight and as old as 80, take

seemingly hungry, like a tummy rumbling in the distance. Every few

pride in their jobs.

minutes the earth shakes and sounds of ‘ooh’ and ‘aah’ can be

The journey is long and the road at times has us hanging on for dear life, but that is irrelevant. I have already fallen in love with Tanna.

heard.

I feel terribly under-prepared; the only thing I have read on Tanna is a story from a friend:

The jungle clears and we hear the sounds of waves crashing

“What makes this natural wonder so accessible is a fluke of

before we see them. Our sanctuary for the night is before us. The

nature, meaning that it is unusual to be able to drive to within 10

guest house, like the volcanic mud used to fill the potholes, has

metres of an active volcano. But what makes it relatively safe to

literally been carved out of the mountains.

visit is local knowledge. The locals have lived with it for millennia,

The bungalows and main nakamal (restaurant) are made without

it is like living with a dangerous dog in the backyard, whose mood

western influence. Coral, pandanus, bamboo and natangura are

must be judged on the day to know whether, how close and from

the only materials used to construct the authentic houses in this

what angle he may be approached.”

little village.

The climb is not long but rather steep and finally we reach the

Plastic chairs in the dining room seem out of place, but are a

top. Mount Yasur welcomes us with an explosion of molten rock

welcome relief after the two-hour journey on the back of a truck.

flying into the night sky. It is a sight I will never forget. It is at that

Mary, the matriarch of Friendly Beach, as the property is now known, greets each guest with a giant, toothless smile and a glass of fresh lime juice. She is genuinely excited to see everyone and extremely proud of her village accommodation.

very moment, just as Mount Yasur fires another storm into the sky, that I think of Lara Bingle.

Where the bloody hell are you? This volcano, this island, is in our backyard, so accessible, so breathtaking; I can’t believe we have

“This is my home, this is my island. I love it.”

her almost to ourselves. I mean, seriously, we’re just three hours

Our room is exactly as it should be. Pandanus trunks are used

from Australia – is this the best-kept secret in the world?

for the walls, doors, chairs, shelving and beds. The floors are made

The drive home is in total darkness, a surreal feeling knowing

from Royal Palm Tree (aka Black Palm) and bamboo. The roof is

there is no road to follow on the ash plain, but we are not at all

made from coconut fronds woven on wild cane and attached to

afraid. My friend is right: the local guides know their stuff and we

the frame with pandanus leaves.

are in safe hands.

A heavy downpour later that night proves the Tanna people are

I don’t remember getting to bed that night; all I remember is

leaps and bounds ahead in construction techniques, as not a drop

being pleased we have chosen Friendly Beach. Being so close to

of rain spills to the floor.

the volcano, we are home, washed and well fed within the hour.

It’s four o’clock in the afternoon and time to head to the

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volcano, our only planned tour for our visit to this magical island.

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

The next morning, our jelly legs carry us from our bungalow to

PICTURES: Tiffany Carroll

Then I notice most of them have three wheels. I assume the

breakfast, to the back of the truck. With Mary and her nephew Nasse as our guides, we’re off exploring the island.

Just when you think your last breath has been taken away, Tanna throws a curveball and a beautiful coastline, a panoramic view or a hundred laughing children cause you to exhale and you are alive again.

We visit hot springs, custom villages and the unsurpassed Port Resolution beach. I used to think Champagne Beach on Santo was the best in Vanuatu but I was wrong – Port Resolution hits it for six. So remote, so untouched, no sign of a P&O cruise liner here.

The village children run to the truck, laughing and dancing as we drive by. Sensing our journey is coming to an end, we are saddened at the thought of saying goodbye.

Another two hours in the back of the truck and the reluctance has diminished somewhat.

Our final night is spent at White Grass Resort, near the airport.

We arrive to a serene setting, but one which feels out of step on our journey. There is a beautiful restaurant, swimming pool, manicured gardens and well-organised staff.

A hot shower, fresh towels, sunset drink and undoubtedly Tanna’s finest dinner later, we realise we have had the perfect Tanna experience. We have seen the real Tanna, climbed the world’s most accessible volcano, swum at possibly the world’s most pristine beach, experienced village life first hand and finished off our trip in luxury, ready for our flight back to the real world.

Sitting on the plane, Lara is on my mind and so is that slogan “Wake up, Australia, Tasmania is floating away.” Except this story has nothing to do with Tasmania or Lara Bingle. It’s about all of us and what the bloody hell we’ve been missing out on.

Quite simply, I have had the time of my life. I just can’t believe it has taken me so long to get here.

By Tiffany Carroll

Tanna’s roads have been vastly improved since our first visit, thanks to foreign funded projects. The sunset views of the volcano however, make up for any rough track.

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ISLANDS

MALEKULA

Festival Season Malampa Province has lots to celebrate says Volunteer Services Abroad marketing adviser Ana Terry.

M

alekula, second largest island in Vanuatu, and appearing like a seated dog in the heart of Vanuatu’s archipelago, has

hidden gems waiting to be discovered by the adventurous traveller; to the south, secluded South West Bay and the magical Maskelyne Islands; while to the north the fabled ‘Dog’s Head’. These spots are remote, yes, but this is their quintessential magic.

Rolling off the tongue, ‘Malekula’ sounds something like an exotic cocktail and it promises just what the name suggests; something wildly tropical, flavoursome, and a great mix of adventure, relaxation and cultural encounters. If you’re keen on an outer island experience then Malekula, with its line-up of cultural festivals, alongside the launching of Vanuatu’s first cycle trail,

‘Malekula’ sounds something like an exotic cocktail and it promises just what the name suggests; something wildly tropical, flavoursome, and a great mix of adventure.

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

PICTURES: Ana Terry.

‘Collar the Dog’, is fast becoming a festival and event hotspot.

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The island is varied, with large areas of coral reef skirting its coastline, dramatic rocky outcrops, atmospheric mangroves, bushclad highlands and classic white sandy coral-formed beaches.

Snorkelling, trekking and outrigger canoe adventures abound.

And this variation is also reflected in its cultural diversity – with a population of around 27,000 Malekula is one of the most complex, culturally diverse islands in Vanuatu. On arrival at Norsup airport you will be greeted by the sign ‘We’ve got the Nambas!’. There are two main tribes; Big Nambas and Small Nambas – distinguished by the size of the penis sheaths traditionally worn by the men.

While Malekula has the unique ‘nambas’ tribes it also boasts staggering linguistic numbers – over 30 distinctly different languages are spoken. It’s been a linguist’s hot spot for decades – with language aficionados regularly visiting to study and record these unique languages and attempt to unravel the mystery of how so many different ones have evolved and co-exist on the one island.

MASKELYNES Remote and pristine South West Bay is a favourite anchorage for the yachting fraternity – its north-west facing aspect offers shelter and spectacular sunsets. Small villages are dotted up its gentle curving coastline, each distinctly nuanced with their own language and kastom culture.

To Malekula’s south are the mysterious Maskelynes. These are a small chain of low islands that pepper the coastline. The Maskelynes are a nursery to young ‘islands’, in the form of modest sandbanks that regularly emerge after a tectonic rumble, while to the east Ambrym’s broody bulk keeps sentinel with its flag of continuous smoke pluming up out of its twin volcanoes, Benbow and Marum. Ambrym’s volcanic activity is a visible reminder of Vanuatu’s dynamic geology.

In keeping with its geological energy there is an impressive line-up of festivals on offer in Malekula during the months of July and August which promise to be powerful, engaging and unique – regularly, returning visitors attest to their impact.

The Labo and Lawa Villages of South West Bay stage the explosively colourful Nalawan Festival. The festival includes pig killing (not for the squeamish) and grade taking ordination of a

Nalint Cultural Art Festival. The festivities include everyone in

village chief, while Lawa villagers commemorate the act of worship

the village – pikininis (children) and abu (elderly) all get involved.

to the gods of their ancestors before the first harvest of the crops.

Importantly, besides sharing their distinctive culture with visitors,

To the north in the village of Mae, the Big Nambas turn on the

the event is a reinforcement of their culture – it’s a unique chance for the visitor to witness this cultural revival.

Meanwhile, to the south, the community of Lamap in the Maskelynes celebrates their traditions and unique ways of coastal

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There is an impressive line-up of festivals on offer in Malekula

life with a two-day art and cultural festival. The festival includes

during the months of July and August which promise to be

an authentic pig exchange ceremony, dramatic re-enactments of

powerful, engaging and unique.

custom stories, craft-making displays, custom dancing, as well as

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

PICTURE: David Kirkland and Ana Terry.

tasting the delicious organic cuisine. In the evenings give ‘muddy

Maskelynes; Dugong (sea cow) spotting, visiting the Giant Clam

wota’ a shot (kava tasting) and enjoy the local string band.

Shell Sanctuary, and a four-day outrigger canoe trip – quench your

If you are after both an energetic adventure and cultural immersion then the Maskelyne Canoe Race and Cultural Festival

thirst for adventure and culture – indulge in the Malekula Magic Cocktail!

will do the trick. Most years the event is held on 30 July, Vanuatu’s Independence Day. It’s a fun day where locals and visitors alike

GETTING THERE

take to the water in an outrigger canoe race – with the distinctive

Malampa Travel booking agency provides information on

likelihood of getting wet! No experience required – just good

the festivals, adventure and cultural tours, and bungalow

humour and a willingness to give it a go.

accommodation.

Of course there are other treats in store while you are visiting the

Air Vanuatu flies daily to Malekula from Port Vila and Santo.

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ISLANDS

GAUA

Gaua island remote access Very few people have explored Vanuatu’s remote outer islands, but thanks to a tourism training program, additional flights and new accommodation, the Banks island of Gaua is hoping to change that.

H

ome to an active volcano, Vanuatu’s largest lake, stunning white sand beaches and a breathtaking waterfall, one must

wonder why Gaua hasn’t seen the flood of tourists some of Vanuatu’s other outer islands have.

The coaches of Skills for Tourism and a Department of Tourism

but a mail-run type flight schedule and limited accommodation

officer approached Maureen after hearing of her project and

offerings meant it was only intrepid travellers that got to share her

discussed her plans.

beauty.

Similarly, local Ni-Vanuatu people leave Gaua in search of employment and opportunities in the bigger centres of Luganville (Espiritu Santo) and Port Vila (Efate).

Maureen Frenda is bucking the trend however, returning to Gaua after working in Port Vila at the French café, Au Peche Mignon.

Maureen returned home to be with her family on Gaua and knew she needed to keep herself busy and try to earn an income.

Recognising her home island’s natural beauty and appeal to visitors, Maureen began constructing modern bungalows for local and international tourists.

As Maureen started working on her project, the Australian

Maureen attended tourism training, workshops and business mentoring sessions, together with two of her builders.

Her plans for building her bungalows in a modern style changed when she learned from her mentors that her bungalows could be built using local materials.

This is not only more cost effective and cyclone resilient, but also more in line with international tourist expectations.

“The training and workshops helped me a lot. I thought the knowledge I gained from working at the café was enough but it was not,” she said.

“Once I attended the training sessions I found there are a lot of other things in tourism which I did not know about. With the

Government-funded Skills for Economic Growth Program (TVET

training now I can do things which I never thought I could do

Program), commenced operations in Torba Province with the

before”.

objective of supporting local business growth through targeted

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skills training.

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

Maureen designed her own bungalows for her tourism project.

PICTURES: Ben Howard and Clare Skelcher

The answer is simple – infrastructure. The Banks group of islands are known by locals to be some of Vanuatu’s most beautiful

“I never missed any of the TVET tourism skills training activities.

Maureen now plans on building a restaurant to cater for the

From these, I learned how to design my bungalows and my

growing number of guests who are coming to stay at Chez

builders learned how to build them in a more local style and more

Maureen Bungalows.

able to resist cyclones.”

Maureen imports some materials from Vila and Santo which cannot be found in the main town on-site, and the rest she gets in Gaua.

Another obstacle which has slowed down Maureen’s business progress is the transportation of her materials from Port Vila and Luganville to Gaua. “The shipping schedule is infrequent and often unreliable”, she says.

However, despite these challenges, Maureen’s business is now reaping benefits not only for herself and her family, but also for the

Twenty eight accommodation and tour businesses in Torba province have received coaching and skill development support through the Australian Government’s Skills for Tourism initiative.

Nineteen of these business received national accreditation and are being marketed internationally via the Santo travel website.

Air Vanuatu operates services to Gaua Island and Torba province three times per week.

For more information on Chez Maureen or other Torba tourism businesses visit www.santo.travel/torba-province or call in to Air Vanuatu Island Tours.

wider community in Gaua. Her business is generating a profit and she now has five employees working for her.

Maureen also engages community members to undertake certain tasks which are too big for herself and her workers. She asked people from Lakawenta village to build her seawall and in

Gaua is home to an active volcano, Vanuatu’s largest lake, a

return she helped them financially, to build their community hall.

breath-taking waterfall and white sand beaches.

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ISLANDS

RAH

A spectacle you can bank on Shell out for a stay on one of the more unusual islands – especially on St Andrew’s Day in Vanuatu’s Banks Province.

S

t Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland, is remembered with a Bank Holiday every year in his home country. But in true Scots

style, banks do not have to close on that day and employers are not required to give their staff a day off.

In other parts of Europe, St Andrew’s Eve is traditionally believed to be quite magical, revealing the identities of future husbands to young unmarried women.

On the Vanuatu island of Rah, however, St Andrew is celebrated a little differently.

For more than 100 years, the people of Rah and neighbouring Motolava in the Banks group of islands have been coming together to combine kastom (custom) tradition with Christianity, celebrating The St Andrew’s festival on Rah is a three-day event, with visitors welcome to join in the extraordinary culture and celebrations. Villagers come together several days before the

spears to bows and arrows, plus superior hand-eye coordination and a bit of luck.

When the seas have given up their bounty, the fishermen and

anniversary to prepare a kilometre of traditional fishing nets, made

women head to the community kitchen on Rah and prepare a feast

from coconut leaves.

fit for a king – or a saint, as the case may be.

The community and visitors head out with the leaves at high tide two days before St Andrew’s Day, forming a semicircle facing the white sand beach. The coconut leaves act as a giant net, trapping fish close to shore.

Nothing happens for several hours until low tide, when the

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villagers, in knee-high water, begin fishing, using everything from

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

The fish are ‘volcano baked’ in a mound of volcanic rocks, a practice unique to the people of Rah. St Andrew’s Day begins with an Anglican Church service, followed by custom dancing, including the famed Snake Dance of the Banks, and lunch.

PICTURES: Michael Kanashkevich

the life of St Andrew.

While on Rah, visitors are encouraged to explore. It takes

The villagers, in knee-high water, begin fishing, using everything

somewhere between 40 minutes and a couple of hours to walk

from spears to bows and arrows, plus superior hand-eye

around the island.

coordination and a bit of luck.

The island’s Rock of Rah is the original home of shell money, an early currency used for trading in Vanuatu’s Banks islands.

Locals deposited their shell money at the Rock, where it was

Accommodation can be found on both islands, ranging from

protected by the equivalent of a local bank manager. Shell money

village stays to the as-good-as-it-gets Paradise Bungalows on Rah

is still used in the Banks islands, but mainly in custom ceremonies.

for around AU$40 a day.

Rah and Motolava are home to some of the country’s most beautiful white sand beaches, pristine coral reefs and a local culture that is alive and well.

Air Vanuatu flies to Motolava three times a week and transfers to Rah can be easily arranged.

By Tiffany Carroll ISLANDS

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ISLANDS

PENTECOST

The art of surviving Perfecting the art of throwing yourself at the ground and missing it.

W

e wipe the sweat off our brows and follow the path to the Nagol site, accompanied by the high-pitched singing from

the Rangusuksu school children. One hundred-vatu coins clatter into their fund-raising bucket, not nearly enough for a new school roof. Soaring trees anchor earth to sky and lend welcome shade.

Massive clumps of epiphytic birds nest ferns hang above our heads.

Brushing against a bush, I’m rewarded with the scent of invisible flowers. Our guide warns us to be careful, so we look down and tread carefully between snaking tree roots.

‘No,’ she touches my arm and points towards the sky, ‘watch out for falling coconuts.’ She’s barely finished speaking before the stillness is disturbed by a solid thump on our right.

It’s Easter and we are on Pentecost to see the Nagol land diving.

Pentecost island is home to the original Bungy Jump - the Nagol. Getting there is half the fun along bush tracks to a clearing and finally the land diving site.

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

PICTURES: Mikaela Nyman.

This is the original bungy jump. No safety harnesses, no high-tech

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cords or protective clothing, just a tower of sticks, fresh vines and

realise there are six levels, with several planks jutting out from

bare skin against freshly turned soil.

the lower levels and two higher up. At the very top there is one plank reserved for the chief to do the final honours. The singing

take a seat on crudely hewn benches at the foot of a hill cleared

and dancing intensifies. Up on the tower men start clapping their

of trees and shrubs. Above us, rising out of the muddy slope, is

hands, egging on the diver with their yelling. ‘Sounds like our car

an organic space rocket, a 35-metre high tower cobbled together

when you turn the alarm off,’ says my six-year-old. Whoop-whoop!

from branches and vines. Fascinated, we look up.

Whoop-whoop! The boys are disappointed that they don’t get

So this is it. This is where men will put their life at risk by jumping off the tower with only vines tied around their ankles. Or, to paraphrase Douglas Adams and The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the

to jump. I’m already dreading the prospect of finding tower-like structures in our garden after this trip.

According to folklore, a woman grew tired of her husband

Galaxy, this is where the art of learning how to throw yourself at

assaulting her and sought refuge in a banyan tree. Her husband

the ground and miss it has been honed to perfection.

climbed after her, but she leapt from the tree to escape him. He

A handful of men are busy lashing vines around crucial fastening points. The vines have to be cut the same morning, or else they will dry out and become brittle.

A breeze sweeps down, bringing welcome reprieve. The tower

jumped after her and died, while the woman survived because she had secretly tied vines around her ankles.

‘She tricked him!’ My six-year-old laughs, full of admiration. To prove their courage, the local men leap off man-made towers every

creaks and sways gently. Now I see the vines twisting from the top

year, from early April, when the first yam is harvested, until mid-

of the tower to nearby trees and anchoring the structure to tree

June. Ironically, women are not allowed.

stumps.

Another gust and it rocks and groans, like a giant scarecrow in

The two helpers have finished tying the vines around the ankles of the diver. He claps his hands, shouts a few words, and crosses

shackles. I wouldn’t be surprised if it came alive and started to

his arms. Only one tiny, but vital, part of his body enjoys any kind

wobble down the slope towards us.

of protection. We can see the bright red dot of his penis sheath –

A group of villagers swarm on to the hill. They start clapping and chanting in their local language, stomping their bare feet. White

or namba – before he lets his naked body tip forward and swandives into oblivion.

grass skirts, made from strips of wild hibiscus bark, sway and

A deafening crack echoes through the clearing, causing us all to

rustle. The air is thick with notes of mud and freshly cut wood.

jump, as the vines have stretched to their maximum, snapping the

Three men appear on the lowest level of the structure. Now we

plank. Within the blink of an eye the diver has hit the ground, chest first. Men run to the rescue and help untie him. The man gets to his feet and raises a triumphant fist in the air. The women resume their singing, or maybe they never stopped? Now their singing

78

From a stunning coastline to marvelling at the Nagol, Pentecost

drifts down to us louder, clearer. The audience cheers. He’s done

offers tradition and adventure.

it! He survived.

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

PICTURES: Pavol Stranak.

We spill out into a clearing together with thirty-odd tourists and

As the jumping progresses, it becomes clear what a feat of engineering this is. My engineer husband is awestruck. This carefully planned structure would rival any Meccano construction.

It’s made the more impressive by the fact that each jumping plank is unique in its set up. No rigging and cord specifications exist, no standard operating procedures. No prior testing is possible. This is all based on generations of trial and error.

In all, fourteen planks jut out from six levels of the tower, each plank fastened with supporting wood and vines to its platform. The vines tied around the ankles of the divers are connected to the jumping planks. The vines are quite rigid and if they took the full impact of the fall they might break, or the land diver’s ankles might snap. Instead, this carefully calculated distribution of the load of the impact keeps the tower intact and the divers safe. It also means that as soon as all lower planks have been snapped off, the pathway for the divers on the next level up is cleared.

We marvel at the ingenuity.

Between each diver, men turn the soil with sticks and remove rocks. Others unwrap the next set of vines from their leaf packaging that has kept them pliable and start preparing the next jumper. Knives and teeth are used to slice the ends of vines into strings to be used for tying. The stiff vines with their frazzled ends remind me of the Tree of Life and the creatures in Avatar. Any minute now, and we will witness the vines seamlessly splice with one another. Instead there is a loud crack and another land diver hits the ground with a thud.

The spectacle finishes with the chief diving with arms crossed and back arched from the pinnacle of the tower. We hold our collective breath before the plank snaps and the chief hits the ground. He’s given a standing ovation.

By Mikaela Nyman

ISLANDS

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ISLANDS

ANIWA

Superb southern hospitality The ‘real Vanuatu’ is in the outer islands, where life is simple.

T

hey say the real Vanuatu can only be found in the outer islands and this is certainly true of Aniwa. Situated in the

southernmost province, 24km northeast of Tanna, it is also the perfect base for island hopping.

The northern part of the island boasts the magnificent Itcharo Lagoon and its calm, shallow waters are surrounded by white Close by, an abundance of secluded coral gardens offer ideal snorkelling, as well as providing a natural habitat for turtles.

A short drive from the airport – partly along the crushed coral runway – in the island’s sole vehicle took us to the lagoon. The only boat on the island carried us across the lagoon to the six

waters and uninterrupted views of the lagoon. Throughout our

island-style bungalows at Fatutu Beach, where we were greeted by

stay, all food was cooked on an open fire by women from different

locals who presented us with island leis (flower garlands).

villages. There was no power on our part of the island at all, not

Serenaded by a string band, we were then treated to a feast of local food prepared by some of the women in the villages.

80

The following day, we awoke to glorious sunshine, turquoise

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

even a generator.

Most of the produce was grown on the island. Lap lap, seafood,

PICTURES: Ben Howard and Clare Skelcher

sandy beaches.

seasonal fruits, freshly baked bread and homemade lemonade

The northern part of the island boasts the magnificent Itcharo

were some of the culinary delights.

Lagoon and its calm, shallow waters are surrounded by white

The only real signs of civilisation as we know it were the

sandy beaches.

occasional solar panel, a couple of bicycles, one satellite dish and two village shops.

For us, this was a once-in-a-lifetime trip. The people of Aniwa

provided hospitality at its absolute best.

By Clare Skelcher ISLANDS

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TOURS+ACTIVITIES

So much to do, so little time

hey say Vanuatu is a place where you can do as much or as little as you like.

With 83 islands to explore, there really is something for everyone here. For those who prefer to pack in as many sites and scenes as possible, here are a few ideas to get you started.

In Port Vila, there’s the Mele Cascades, Hideaway Island’s Underwater Post Office, Ekasup Cultural Village, Pele Island, The Secret Garden, glass-bottom boats and kayaks, the Cultural Centre and museum, snorkelling and SNUBA, buggy driving, round-island tours, golf, cricket, rugby, soccer, horse-riding … you get the idea.

The outer islands have even more. In Santo, there’s Champagne Beach, diving the SS President Coolidge, exploring the Millennium Cave, floating down Mount Hope’s freshwater river and cascades, visiting Fanafo Kastom Village, exploring the Champagne Coast’s Blue Holes and snorkelling over WWII ruins at Million Dollar Point.

Tanna is home to Vanuatu’s nambawan tourist attraction – Mount Yasur, one of the world’s most accessible active volcanoes. But there’s more to Tanna than a volcano, however impressive it might be. There’s the stunning Port Resolution, visited and named by Captain Cook in 1774, the John Frum Cargo Cult, the Blue Cave, Epai Kastom Village and black magic tour.

With world-class SCUBA diving, game-fishing and sailing throughout the islands, it’s no wonder many visitors take to the water.

The Vanuatu Tourism Office, located at Pilioko House in Port Vila and in Rue de Higginson in Santo, has information on visiting the less-travelled outer islands.

Experience the unique culture on Malekula, be Robinson Crusoe on Mystery Island or learn magic on Ambrym.

fox and lorikeet. All are friendly and all kid-friendly.

For mum and dad, take a tour of the Ernst family’s beautiful gardens at Eden. Lovingly tended over many years, Carolyn Ernst

EDEN ON THE RIVER

has put thousands of hours in to collecting rare and beautiful

Adventure. Animals. Freedom to roam. Cascading waterfalls.

tropical plants, fruit trees and exquisite orchids. The kids may even

Pretty much everything a kid could want? Yep – you can find it all

enjoy seeing how fruits and nuts are grown and play ‘guess that

at Eden on the River. Vila’s adventure attraction and magnet for

fruit’.

kids is set on the banks of the Rentapau River, about 20 minutes from Port Vila. Suitable for young’uns and grown ups, guests strap

VANUATU TOURISM OFFICE

in for adventure, taking on suspension bridges across the glorious

The VTO is the primary source for all tourist and travel information.

cascading Rentapau River. Finish the bridge walk with a short

Their comprehensive website offers detailed information on the

flying fox ride and the kids are ready for a quick bite to eat of local

culture and history of the country, provides accommodation

fruit and fresh juice followed by a fun farm tour. Pet the resident

options from backpacker and budget to mid-range and luxury, and

sheep, cattle, pigs, chickens and horses. Meet an iguana, flying

makes dining and entertainment suggestions from takeaway to haute cuisine.

The website also covers activities and services, offering advice

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From top: Paddle down the Blue Lagoon outside Port Vila; meet

on adventure and eco travel, fishing and watersports, shopping

the locals at a custom village, spend the day at Eden on the

and nightlife, conference organisation, events, weddings and car

River or visit the Riri River Blue Hole in Santo.

rental. Visit their website at: www.vanuatutravel.info

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

ACTIVITIES

75 years and still the best On 26 October, 1942, the SS President Coolidge, a former luxury liner turned troop carrier, hit friendly mines in the Segond Channel off Espiritu Santo. That day of mayhem would result in one of the world’s best dive sites and and booming tourist hotspot for Vanuatu.

I

t was a time in wartime history that would forever change the isolated and remote island of Espiritu Santo. With the bombing of

PICTURE: Courtesy Allan Power

Pearl Harbour in December 1941, America found herself engaged in WWII and entwined with fighting in the Pacific region.

The Allies desperately needed to establish a safe stronghold for the push into Guadacanal and further north and it was decided Santo would be suitable as a major weapons and manpower base.

Governed jointly by the French and British, the island had become a centre for copra production and little else. Many parts of the island had never seen white occupation and the rugged, ACTIVITIES

87

mountainous interior was little explored. There were a few

would change history. Little did they know a miscommunication

trading outposts and government offices sharing the island with

would change the history of Santo and wake up the sleepy island

villages that had enjoyed a virtually unbroken custom life that had

forever.

predominated for hundreds of years.

Almost overnight it is said, the island became home to

the SS President Coolidge, made her way carefully towards the

thousands of US military personnel. The sleepy town of Luganville

Segond Channel, between Tatuba, Aore and Santo islands. On

turned into a thriving island metropolis, with restaurants, cinemas,

board were over 5000 Army personnel, huge quantities of medical

bars and the odd brothel popping up.

supplies, field weapons and motor vehicles.

Each day, more and more troops arrived, no doubt believing they

88

On 26 October 1942 a converted luxury liner-come troop carrier,

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

Dawn broke clear across the turquoise waters at the very

“I was attached to the 172nd infantry, which was a Vermont National Guard unit. We had no idea where we were going but we saw land one day and found that we were at Noumea, New Caledonia.

“We spent three days there and on the evening of October 25th we headed out to sea, again not knowing where we going. When we saw land again, I went up to the bow on the port side and just as we headed into a harbour we hit a mine on the port side and then we hit another mine on the starboard side near the middle of the ship.

“The captain ordered all to abandon ship which we did by climbing down rope ladders they put down. The Captain ran the ship into shore as far as he could and by doing so we only lost the lives of two soldiers.”

It wasn’t until after safely making land the troops found they we were on the island of Espiritu Santo.

In 2016, Milton wrote to Wrecks to Rainforest tour operator and former dive shop owner Mayumi Green asking if a replica of his dog tags could be returned to the Coolidge and held on display at a new WWII museum in Santo.

Mayumi got all of Santo’s dive operators together to photograph the dog tags on the 3-inch gun, where MIlton recalls standing as the Coolidge hit the first mine.

The ship sank in less than a hour and it is now known to be one of the world’s best SCUBA diving attractions. The bow is in 18 metres of water and the stern in 60 metres.

Fast forward 75 years from the sinking and thousands have now explored her, with many divers returning time and time again.

Today Santo’s tourism industry is built on the back of the sinking of the SS President Coolidge. There are several dive operators and hotels in the main town of Luganville as well as boutique resorts along the island’s east coast and on neighbouring Aore and Bokissa islands.

The Coolidge is renowned as being the largest, most accessible shipwreck in the world. Shore access to a ship of this size really is otherwise unheard of.

If you would like to dive the Coolidge, contact Air Vanuatu Island Tours for packages to Espiritu Santo or visit the Espiritu Santo Tourism Association online at www.espiritusantotourism.com moment the President Coolidge entered the mouth of the channel,

By Tiffany Carroll, Tim Ritchie and Mayumi Green. Photos by Kevin

where she struck a ‘friendly’ mine which had been laid earlier in the

Green

year to thwart entry by midget submarines.

The Captain had never received advice the mines were in place, and he soon struck a second. The ship’s fate was sealed and within a short time of being run aground she was lying on the sea bed with all but two of her crew having safely abandoned ship.

One of the Coolidge’s veterans, Milton Staley, recalled the fateful day.

The SS President Coolidge hit friendly mines in October 1942, as she approached Luganville, Espiritu Santo. Her watery grave is a mecca for divers from all over the world.

ACTIVITIES

89

90

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

ACTIVITIES

Fashion, fillies and French fizz It’s the race that stops a nation – our small South Pacific dot of a nation, that is, and it’s a great three-day party not to be missed.

R

ace day in Vanuatu is more like a tropical version of the Australian outback’s Birdsville than Melbourne’s own

Flemington, but the party atmosphere beats both iconic events hands down. And like heat-seeking party missiles, Australians flock to Port Vila for a piece of the action every August. The race even lures Australian stewards and race callers – all for a good cause, of course.

As the only horse race in Vanuatu, the normally annual Kiwanis Charity Cup attracts 10,000 hardy souls to a makeshift course on the outskirts of town, right between the airport and the abattoir.

How convenient for the nags which run last!

On paper, it sounds like a hellish place, but the track is gorgeous and awash with colour on race day. Every year, an extraordinary group of volunteers transforms scrubby jungle into racing heaven.

In recent years, they have built a white wooden fence around the 1200m course.

Sure, the marquees might be more like tarps and the jockeys are often barefoot, but the French bubbles flow freely and the atmosphere is electric.

The party starts on the Wednesday before the Saturday race, with a swanky charity ball at a five-star resort, continuing on Friday with a Carbine Club sports lunch. As a Port Vila race week survivor, PICTURE: Craig Osment

I highly recommend attending both these events. It’s a great way to meet the locals, while raising money for worthy projects.

By the way, in recent years, the abattoir has given the race a home but the losing nags are not sent to the slaughterhouse next door!

By Wendy Hargreaves ACTIVITIES

91

BANKING+FINANCE

You can bank on familiar names

anuatu occupies a prime position in the South Pacific, no more than four hours from the east coast cities of Australia and less than three hours from Auckland, New Zealand. Many tourists arriving here for the first time have been attracted by the country’s friendly people, relatively trouble-free lifestyle, wonderful diving, beautiful beaches and coral reefs. But there is more to Vanuatu than that.

For a start, it has a tax-free environment. There are currently no income taxes for either corporates or individuals, no capital gains taxes and no death duties.

This environment can give new investors the competitive advantage they may need to compete successfully in the marketplace.

Vanuatu raises its taxes and revenue by the indirect means of VAT. In New Zealand and Australia, this is known as GST. VAT is one of Vanuatu’s principal sources of revenue, which is why tourists may find some prices higher than at home. The tax is levied on most goods and services at the rate of 12.5 per cent.

The other major source of revenue for Vanuatu is customs duties on imports, and these can range from zero to more than 70 per cent of the CIF value on some products, in addition to VAT. Another major source of revenue for government comes from the International Finance Centre, established by the then New Hebrides Government in 1971.

A relatively small number of people (about 400) are employed in finance centre activities but that number, representing less than 0.2 per cent of the population,

Port Vila is home to numerous international banks and financial institutions, all of which are willing and able to advise on tax and corporate governance matters for offshore business entrepreneurs.

96

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

is responsible for more than 10 per cent of Vanuatu’s Gross

both individuals and companies, recognising the importance of

Domestic Product.

mitigating risk while experiencing growth. You can ensure that the

Vanuatu is, of course, only one of many world financial centres.

highly skilled and experienced team will provide you with access

However, its major advantage is accessibility by Australians and

to the knowledge, experience and information needed for sound

New Zealanders, and its convenient time zone for South-East

decision making with regard to operational, legal and financial

Asian countries.

goals.

The Vanuatu Financial Centre Association is an established body

If you are interested in living or doing business in Vanuatu, please

of professionals whose members include the country’s leading

do not hesitate to contact AJC for a free consultation. Renowned

accountants, lawyers, trustees and bankers.

for their transparency and ontime delivery of professional services,

The association provides members for the boards of several government and semi-government bodies, and its views are

you can be assured that their advice will remain confidential. For more information, visit their website www.ajc-vanuatu.com.

sought when new fiscal legislation is being proposed by the government. The businesses belonging to the association usually

BARRETT AND PARTNERS

play a key role in assisting new investors to establish themselves

Whether you’re an established small business requiring a yearly

here. Their personal knowledge of how things work can cut many

audit or a foreign investor setting up a new business in Vanuatu,

days, even weeks off the time it could take to do these things

Barrett and Partners is a chartered accounting and consulting firm

when going it alone.

that you can trust to assist you in a wide range of services.

Information supplied by Lindsay Barrett, Managing Partner of Barrett and Partners, Chartered Accountants.

As one of the largest firms in Port Vila, B&P enjoys a reputation for providing efficient, high quality service to its clients, both locally and internationally. Besides operating a traditional accounting

AJC

practice, providing audit, consulting, insolvency and management

Established in 2003 by Paul de Montgolfier and Martin St-Hilaire,

services, the Firm, through its own trust company Trustees

AJC offers legal consultancy, onshore and offshore corporate

International Limited, is licensed to provide Corporate and Trustee

services, trust and asset management, audit and accounting

Services and Funds and Portfolio Management to its overseas-

services, and expertise in the legal and financial aspects of

based clients. If you are looking into starting an offshore company

creating a new business in Vanuatu.

in Vanuatu, B&P can create a tailor-made package so that you can

Whether you need to apply for VIPA, set up an international company, design a business plan, find a tax solution, register a

achieve your commercial goals with ease.

Established in 1971 by Lindsay Barrett, the firm has merged to

vessel or aircraft, require assistance for the sale or acquisition of

include partners Adrian Sinclair and Mark Stafford, both long-term

land, or perhaps you need accounting software implementation or

residents of Vanuatu, and boasts more than twenty staff. With its

investment advice, AJC offers the strategic capacity supported by

partners delivering over 100 years of experience between them,

the appropriate tools and state of the art information technologies

the highly skilled team provides invaluable knowledge in getting

for strategic growth planning.

things done in Vanuatu, saving you time and money in the process.

AJC is a correspondent member of DFK International, a major

When you do business with Barrett and Partners, you can

international association of independent accounting firms and

rely on their reputation and expertise, as well as their links to an

business advisers, where corporate compliance with the DFK

international network established over many years with major

Membership Criteria and International Standards is mandatory.

accounting firms of the world. Get in contact today and see how

With 50 years' worth of experience, DFK International has 300 offices worldwide creating added value for clients with cross-

they can help you run a successful business in one of the world’s most attractive island destinations.

PICTURES: Valerie Fernandez.

border interests. AJC has the facility to access a wide range of internationally accredited and professional services but with

LAW PARTNERS

the added benefit of local expertise and experience for your

Led by principals Australian Jonathan Law and New Zealander

professional needs in either Vanuatu or overseas.

Vicki Joe, both long term residents and now citizens of Vanuatu,

AJC delivers business advice and innovative strategies to

Law Partners is Vanuatu’s longest established internationally connected firm of chartered accountants, auditors and business advisors.

Whether you're building a house or building a business, advice from Vanuatu's financial institutions will help smooth the way.

Originally Peat Marwick Mitchell and Co. in 1970, then KPMG, Law Partners has been operating as an independent firm since BANKING+FINANCE

97

Supporting Vanuatu’s rural communities Staff of the National Bank of Vanuatu get out and about.

and transport. The National Bank is well advanced in developing a significantly improved platform to support financial inclusion, and telecommunications are now well established for approximately 80 per cent of the population.

‘Mobile bankers’ within the branch network visit remote communities on motor bikes to provide services and at times travel long distances through rugged and demanding terrain.

E

To drive the bank’s constantly evolving services platform, a new ighty per cent of the population of Vanuatu live in rural and

Rural Banking Services (RBS) unit has been established to ensure

remote areas, and most are geographically marginalised

highly focused development of rural financial services.

from access to banking services. For example, on the island of

of innovative banking services leveraging from advanced

Ipota branch, communities travelled by ship or small plane to

technologies. Banking and financial literacy are included to help

Tanna or Port Vila to access banking services

rural communities develop savings habits that will in turn support

With a 27-branch network throughout the six provinces, the National Bank of Vanuatu does not simply provide banking services

their capacity to access the bank’s micro-loan product.

Rural communities deserve financial services that urban dwellers

in the urban centres – it is also the only commercial bank in the

take for granted and the National Bank is determined to make this

country that provides financial services to rural communities.

happen. In every way, the National Bank of Vanuatu is “Vanuatu’s

Managing Director Geoff Toone and his team are determined to ensure an ever-increasing percentage of the rural population have greater access to banking services. Geoff believes the life-blood of economic development in remote communities is access to financial services, supported by reliable communications, power

100

The RBS team’s mandate includes delivery of a wide range

Erromango, before the recent establishment of the National Bank’s

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

Own Bank”.

For further information on the National Bank, visit www.nbv.com.vu

By Brian Tosiro

recent years, with resorts expanding their accommodation and selling off apartments or bungalows to individual investors.

As well, developers are constructing and selling apartments off the plan in and around the main towns.

As prices have risen over the years, so have people’s expectations in terms of standard of housing and construction generally. Almost gone are the old days of weekend huts on the beach with no utilities. You are more likely to find beautiful, well-designed homes with swimming pools, for sale at between AU$400,000 and AU$1,000,000 – sometimes more.

The world-wide property boom from 2003 to 2007 brought its share of new investors to Vanuatu, many of whom bought land or developed small to medium-sized tourism projects and holiday homes.

After nearly 30 years of steady growth in development and capital gain, commercial banks offer the longest mortgages they ever have, and routinely accept registered land titles (and, more recently, strata titles) as security for their lending.

Despite the world-wide economic slowdowns we've seen on and off since mid-2007, Vanuatu continues to offer numerous opportunities in the real estate market and it is clear from actual sales, as well as enquiry levels, that activity picked up noticeably in the second half of last year.

In the tourism sector, Vanuatu has for many years swung from having not enough rooms to not enough flights. The pendulum has once again swung to the ‘not enough rooms’ side of the equation, as tourist arrival numbers continue to climb.

This has created the opportunity for investors and developers to build everything from holiday homes through hotels and bungalows to short- and long-stay apartments.

Vanuatu’s very strong laws establishing and guaranteeing property rights can underpin the local development process.

Even though Vanuatu’s foreign investment legislation guarantees the repatriation of funds, most foreign investors, from large-scale developers to ordinary property buyers, reinvest in Vanuatu what

Australasian networked Real Estate office in Vanuatu. The office is

they have earned here. And why wouldn’t they, since this country

proudly part of the First National Real Estate network with offices

offers excellent buying opportunities when compared with similar

across Australia and New Zealand.

property in Australia, New Zealand and New Caledonia.

In some ways, there has never been a better time to invest; it

Led by principals Catherine Boudier-Contant and Anne Donchos, First National Vanuatu has built a reputation for professionalism

is still a buyer’s market, as real estate recovers from a couple of

and providing a high level of service since opening. It is recognised

years of uncertainty.

as the top full-service real estate firm in numbers of sales and

However, as increasing confidence returns to the market, this

has proven to be exceptional in selling homes, land, commercial

situation may not last. If you are genuinely interested in Vanuatu

property, lifestyle and investment properties, businesses, islands

real estate, now’s the time.

and resorts. Their rental property division is considered a leader in

By Douglas Patterson

the region.

Boasting an experienced sales and property management team

104

FIRST NATIONAL REAL ESTATE

that specialises in all elements of real estate of various sizes and

First National Vanuatu opened in early 2005 and is the first

budgets, some examples of larger sales in recent years include

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

Chantilly's Hotel, Tamanu Beach Resort, The Grand Hotel and

Above: the picture and the name says it all – Waterfront Real

Kakula Island.

Estate is what this company sells.

Whether you are looking to purchase or sell a property, or need your investment property managed, the multi-lingual team at First National, who speak French, English, Bislama and Chinese, provide a personal service that is second to none. With extensive

invest in.

The First National Vanuatu team truly are the property and

knowledge of Vanuatu’s tax-free legal and regulatory systems,

investment experts of the region and are the ‘go to’ agent when it

the team are ideally placed to work with Australian, New Zealand,

comes to buying, selling or renting property in Vanuatu.

European and Asian developers who may wish to invest in Vanuatu, which is often referred to as the South Pacific’s Premier

LJ HOOKER

Financial Centre.

LJ Hooker is a recognised brand that many Australians, New

With an archipelago of 83 islands that offers picture-postcard

Zealanders and Ni-Vanuatu are familiar with and trust. It boasts

locations from pristine beaches to sprawling lush vegetation, many

the largest residential and commercial network in the region with

foreign investors have found that Vanuatu is an ideal location to

over 780 offices worldwide and opened its doors in Port Vila early REAL ESTATE+PROPERTY

105

in 2008.

Whether renting, buying or selling Vanuatu real estate, the team

to help you navigate through the real estate market in Vanuatu.

Actually, the whole team in the LJ Hooker office are happy, helpful

of highly motivated and friendly professionals at LJ Hooker has

and knowledgeable and ready to help you with any enquiries. If

the knowledge, skills and integrity to satisfy your residential and

you have already invested in a property, LJ Hooker can look after

commercial property needs.

your asset with regular maintenance, inspections and accounting.

LJ Hooker services all islands in the archipelago from its base in

Jude and the LJ Hooker team primarily work on referrals, return

Port Vila, and is working to open other offices in key locations such

business and enquiries from the easy-to-navigate LJ Hooker

as Espiritu Santo, Tanna and other growth areas around Vanuatu

website, so they must be doing things right as LJ Hooker Vanuatu

over the coming years.

is a very successful and reputable real estate franchise.

If investing in a tropical island property is something you’ve

Contact the team today to find out why ‘Nobody does it better’.

always dreamt of, LJ Hooker can make it attainable. Whether it’s a holiday retreat, family home, commercial property, business

WATERFRONT REAL ESTATE

venture or buying land for future endeavours, LJ Hooker’s bi-lingual

When it comes to choosing a real estate agent, most of us want

team will strive to find the perfect match for you.

the same thing – honesty, respect, experience and qualifications.

Jude Leske, the principal, sales manager and consultant, along with property manager Brian Stephens have the local knowledge

Waterfront Real Estate’s Francesca Grillo ticks all boxes. A qualified lawyer, real estate agent and multi-talented business woman, Francesca is the person to trust for your property investment in Vanuatu.

Marketing and interior design expert Monica Croccolo de Gaillande joined the team in 2016 bringing her spark and wealth of experience to the business as a long time resident and now Vanuatu citizen.

If you are looking for the perfect ocean front lifestyle property and secure investment, Waterfront Real Estate offers you a complete and professional service, including exclusive design and project management for tropical villas through their business GH Solutions.

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

Enquiries: property@ljhooker.vu

Phone: +678 775 4543

BUILDING+CONSTRUCTION

High standards match the best

ne advantage of building in Vanuatu is that the construction standards meet many of the rigorous requirements of Australia’s building industry. Being situated where it is, Vanuatu is prone to the occasional seismic event and also experiences cyclones from time to time, so dwellings must be constructed with a healthy respect for nature’s potential for destruction.

According to Francesca Grillo of GH Solutions, most clients want innovative architectural plans for smart, tropical design when building in Vanuatu.

Houses are routinely made of concrete – 200mm blocks reinforced and filled with concrete. The buildings are plastered inside and out, and a concrete ring beam around the top of the house holds it all together; that’s the earthquake-proofing.

Structural engineer Fred Looijschelder of Paua Management and Consultancy, also based on Efaté, takes a more detailed approach, as might be expected of a professional engineer who trained in The Netherlands.

“We build under a code,” says Fred. “Australian Standard 1170.2 is the accepted standard for earthquake and cyclone conditions.”

As one of a handful of structural engineers in Vanuatu, Fred is much in demand with the islands’ commercial developers and the sizeable expat community.

“Cyclone weather can cause both water and storm damage – the season is from November to March. Everything from the roof down has to be tied to the foundations, and reinforced steel, brackets, cyclone straps and cyclone screws are standard.”

Walls and roofs also need to be braced for wind pressure.

BUILDING IN VANUATU ?

•

We offer a comprehensive and professional service for your complete peace of mind • We develop innovative architectural plans for SMART, TROPICAL DESIGN suitable to all clients needs and budgets • We implement projects through proper planning and team efforts to deliver the best quality products at competitive prices and on time

PROJECT MANAGEMENT INCLUDES •

1. Since 2005, Waterfront Real Estate specialises in waterfront land, premium residential and investment properties 2. Our Vision is “to work for safe and clear Land Dealings and Development in Vanuatu” 3. Our Mission is to ensure “Your safe investment in paradise...”

4. We offer a complete range of services including purchase of Customary Land 5. We conduct Project Management for all your building needs through our business GH Solutions

Accounting and Building Permits • Liaising and Planning • Weekly Updates & Photos • Management of Trust Funds • Choice of Suitable Materials and Fittings • Engineer, Plans, Supervision & Cyclone Certificate

Located at Shanti Havannah Havannah Harbour +678 771 9898 francesca@ghsolutions.com.vu www.ghsolutions.com.vu francesca@waterfront.com.vu www.waterfront.com.vu

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

The traditional woven palm-leaf roofing material – known locally as natangura – is increasingly being used on new houses constructed for the expat community and on commercial buildings, for both practical and decorative purposes.

Many new walls are being constructed from coral rock. The better ones are built on reinforced footings, with the face kept as smooth as possible.

Ni-Vanuatu building teams often live on site, setting up virtual temporary villages complete with vegetable gardens and freerange chickens. This arrangement makes for an absence of daily transport and commuting woes. www.paua.co VANCORP Vancorp Constructions was established in 2005 and is led by Melbourne builder, Ryan Foots. Ryan has nearly two decades of experience in the construction industry in Australia and Vanuatu and manages a staff of five Australian expatriates and more than eighty Ni-Vanuatu staff.

Whether you are looking to build your dream home or business, Vancorp can carry out all types of work from maintenance to large-scale commercial work. Specialising in design, construction, consulting, renovation and contracting, the highly skilled and qualified team strives to deliver projects that are on time, within budget and at the required quality standards.

Their portfolio of large construction projects includes Warwick Le Lagon, Iririki Island Resort, Jewel Casino, Holiday Inn, ANZ bank, Grand Hotel and Casino and Tamanu on the Beach. With an in depth understanding of the complex requirements of these specialist buildings, Vancorp takes a holistic approach to the programming of works and believes the key to a project’s success is to identify all required actions and associated risks at the outset in order for them to be properly managed.

This includes ensuring that safety on-site is a top priority. The company has a comprehensive Occupational Health and Safety Policy in place and an induction programme on safety procedures is carried out at the start of each project, with regular updates on safety issues throughout the works. Employees and contractors are expected to adhere to the policy at all times.

If you are looking to build a property of the highest standard with top-notch equipment that includes bobcats, forklifts, tipper trucks, excavators and cranes, then consider Vancorp to bring your vision

PICTURES: Francesca Grillo

to life.

GH Solutions designed and constructed Francesca's Beach Club at Havannah Harbour (left). The building withstood the full force of category 5 cyclone Pam. BUILDING+CONSTRUCTION

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qualifications, include a law degree.

She grew up loving architecture and art, food and cooking but after a stint in hospitality on Queensland's Sunshine Coast Francesca moved to Vanuatu to combine all her talents.

The result is the successful GH Solutions, Waterfront Real Estate and Francesca's Beach Club at Havannah Harbour.

"I saw so much potential in building and real estate in Vanuatu.

The potential of the beautiful coastline of Havannah Harbour alone reminded me of European summer towns and islands – except better.

"I really believe this area of Vanuatu will take off – in fact it already has," she says.

Whilst Francesca does not practice as a lawyer in Vanuatu, she says her business offers more than most when it comes to building and construction in Vanuatu. Having a legal background, having built her own restaurant – she's a hands on adviser for all her clients.

Francesca's service includes everything from design to building, GH SOLUTIONS

accounting to management of trust funds, permits and planning.

Building in Vanuatu can be challenging for local and overseas

It's a comprehensive and professional service to ensure clients are

investors. Costing and timing of the project is a crucial aspect as

kept informed and up-to-date, offering peace of mind especially for

well as safety and finding trustworthy professionals for the job.

clients based overseas.

GH Solutions is the answer for building in Vanuatu, offering a comprehensive, professional and personalised service, from

VILA DISTRIBUTION HARDWARE

developing unique custom plans to delivering the finished product

Vila Distribution Hardware has been operating in Vanuatu since

at fixed competitive prices and on time.

1979. With nearly 40 years of experience, Vila Distribution is the

Italian business owner Francesca Grillo has over 20 years experience in design and building with 10 buildings completed in Vanuatu in the past 7 years, all standing safe and sound after

specialist supplier to the building and construction industry in Vanuatu.

Whether you’re a commercial business or private homeowner, all

category 5 cyclone Pam, including her own stunning restaurant at

you need for home improvement is available at this one-stop shop,

Havannah Harbour.

from building products to tools, garden, and outdoor furniture.

The team includes local builders with over 15 years experience

Plumbing appliances, kitchenware, homeware, small appliances

as well as qualified electricians, plumbers and engineers approved

and a picture-framing service is also available and special

by all local insurers.

orders can be arranged. A purchasing team can assist with your

Francesca's team is renowned for their skill and experience and works closely with clients to ensure total satisfaction with a highly personalised service.

Francesca herself is a powerhouse; her Italian charm is disarming but behind the petite exterior is a woman with countless

order and provide end-to-end management including Customs clearance.

To ensure customer satisfaction, Vila Distribution stocks only quality materials from reputable and reliable brands including Bondex, Stihl, Hitachi, Sika, and Dulux among many others.

Offering the best prices, free delivery within Port Vila, maintenance and special projects orders, you can bet that Vila Distribution will meet all your supply needs.

Top: Francesca Grillo (right) and her sister during the construction phase. Below: Vancorp Construction builds and renovates some of Vanuatu's biggest and best properties including the Shefa Pool Villa at Warwick Le Lagon Resort.

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

» DESIGN » CONSTRUCTION » PLANT HIRE » RENOVATION » CONSULTING » CONTRACTING

Vancorp Construction, Mele Road PO Box 6001 Port Vila, VANUATU Tel Office: 24436 - Mobile: 5543655 E: ryan@vancorpvanuatu.com www.vancorpconstructions.com

RETAIL+WHOLESALE

Shopping In Paradise

here are islands … and there are islands. Manhattan, for instance, is around 59 square kilometres, with a population upwards of 1.6 million (topped up by 47 million visitors a year!) – that’s 27,500 people per square kilometre. Efaté is huge by comparison, at 895 square kilometres, but with a population of approximately 50,000 is a little less crowded – 55 people per square kilometre.

So Efaté, or Sandwich Island as Captain Cook chose to call it during a moment of culinary inspiration – well, no, it was actually in honour of his patron Lord Sandwich – is a lot easier to get around than the home of the hamburger.

While the recreational consumer may find more in NYC, there’s still plenty to keep a tourist or local occupied on our little island. We, too, can do Rolexes and restaurants but we can also do reefs and resorts. It’s rumoured that some people actually come here to do nothing – naught, absolutely zilch, zero. And there’s no better place for that either. But if an urge strikes from nowhere – to get aerobic or stimulate the mind with some culture or pick up a few baubles or go for a cruise or a take a drive around the island or prepare your own lunch – following are a few suggestions.

EAT LIKE A LOCAL The Port Vila supermarket chain is exotically and derivatively known as Au Bon Marché. There are five branches but the best is at Nambatu, which is at the top of the hill on the southern edge of town. While not quite on a par with La Grande Epicerie of its Parisian namesake, this is a good supermarket. Well stocked with French, Australian and New Zealand wines (not available between midday Saturday

ELEGANCE | QUALITY | STYLE

ARTISAN JEWELLERS SINCE 1981

Visit our sales office and showroom in Port Vila Find us on Facebook and Instagram www.vanuatubijouterie.com

and Monday morning), they also have air-freighted French cheeses and hams, tinned confit de canard, terrines, saucisson sec, fish and fresh meats, as well as clothing, stationery and household goods.

For the best selection of wines, try Vila Distribution. Opened in 1979 to service a predominantly French market, it stocks fine French wines and liquor. It has expanded to be Vanuatu’s exclusive wholesale and retail supplier of Moët & Chandon, Heineken, L’Oréal, Vittoria Coffee and French, Australian and New Zealand wines. Vila Distribution supplies hotels and restaurants throughout Vanuatu but also welcomes personal shoppers at their Tebakor retail store.

Residents are invited to join their Vila Vino Club, where locals meet for monthly wine-tasting nights. With English- and Frenchspeaking staff, dedicated account managers and delivery available, Vila Distribution is Vanuatu’s most prestigious wholesaler of quality products.

For retail supplies, get down to the Vila Bottleshop at the northern end of town, where they have a great selection of wines and spirits.

Vanuatu beef is sensational and one of our best exports. It can be bought at Bon Marché but Boucherie Traverso is the place to pre-order a large fillet. This shop is an Italian-inspired mini market, with a good selection of pastas, herbs, spices, fresh fruit and vegetables, as well as wine and delicatessen items.

For truly organic, cosmetically untouched fruit and veggies, go to the local produce market in the middle of Port Vila. This large, open building right on the harbour is shared by different local villages on a rotating daily basis, so the produce varies each 24 hours.

The women wear bright ‘Mother Hubbard’ dresses, which look like floral mini-marquees among the displays of coconuts,

designer. With years of experience in art and design, four years

watercress, wild raspberries, trussed live crabs, huge bunches of

ago Estelle turned her hand to designing jewellery when she and

exotic flowers (of the heliconia variety) and the local staple, yams.

husband Tal purchased the long established Vanuatu Bijouterie

The presentation is often a work of art in itself, with the produce

business in Port Vila.

sold in baskets woven from coconut-palm fronds or laid out on

Since then, Estelle has used her flair and passion for Vanuatu

banana-leaf mats. Adjacent to this is another outpost of Bon

and Melanesian culture to design often copied but never matched

Marché.

unique artisan jewellery combining traditional Melanesian art with

VANUATU BIJOUTERIE Local girl Estelle Milfirer is a woman of many talents. Multilingual,

All her work is custom and hand made in Vanuatu; her team led by master jeweller Michael Mayue has a combined experience

an esteemed cook, social media maven, mother, artist and

of over 80 years in jewellery making and together they source

amateur radio controller, she describes herself simply as a

the very best Tahitian pearls, gemstones, silver and gold to make rings, necklaces, bracelets, earrings, charms and bangles that are highly sought after throughout the Pacific and Asia.

The Port Vila produce market is ablaze with colourful flowers

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Estelle is a passionate supporter of Ni-Vanuatu business and

and restocked with produce daily. Check out the Vanuatu

purchases as much local product as possible to use in her

Bijouterie jewellery showroom and factory (above right).

designs. She also proudly invests in staff, employing an all Ni-

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

PICTURE: Craig Osment and Tiffany Carroll.

the art of fine jewellery.

Vanuatu team of apprentices, carvers and master jewellers.

A regular and award winning exhibitor at the biggest jewellery

particularly beautiful base for a jewel encrusted bracelet along with tam tam amulets. The tusks are polished and dipped in gold at the

fairs in the region, Vanuatu Bijouterie prides itself on being unique

ends, some with gemstones added, others with her hand picked

and exquisite. Quality is assured with rings, pendants, earrings,

Tahitian black pearls. They are a collector's item and a status

necklaces and bracelets made to order.

symbol.

Estelle's designs are inspired by Vanuatu – not simply the

Estelle works closely with clients to ensure each item is as

stunning hues but local architecture and symbols as well. Her

individual as its discerning buyer and she encourages buyers to be

charms include nakamals, Mother Hubbard dresses, coconut

involved in the production process.

palms and marine life. She says she never stops looking for inspiration.

The full circled boar tusk is unique to the Melanesian culture and cultivated exclusively in the islands of Vanuatu. It takes 8-20 years of cultivating the pig to achieve full circled tusks.

In the South Pacific, boars grown for tusks play a very important role in the lives of the local people. They are a token of wealth and status and are used as essential currency in the Melanesian

Vanuatu Bijouterie's gallery and showroom has a large viewing glass so visitors can see her designs being crafted on site. It's a great store to visit, learn more about the history of Vanuatu jewellery and browse the ever changing range of items.

Open six days a week, the showroom is located in the Nambatu area of Port Vila, and has an outlet next door to Bank South Pacific.

View online at www.vanuatubijouterie.com or on Facebook.

culture. The boar tusks sourced by Vanuatu Bijouterie are a RETAIL+WHOLESALE

117

ASCO MOTORS AND AVIS The first shipment of Toyotas arrived in Vanuatu in 1958. Since then, thousands of Toyota cars have been sold throughout Vanuatu under the trade name Asco Motors. The company’s major shareholder is Toyota Tsusho South Pacific Holdings Pty Ltd (TTSPH) and fully supports the Toyota, Yamaha and Avis brands.

It operates two branches, in Port Vila and Santo, providing motor vehicle support to key industries such as tourism, agriculture and construction.

The company is a fully integrated supplier of automotive products which markets new Toyota vehicles, quality used vehicles, genuine Toyota parts, and full service and panel facilities.

In addition Asco Motors stocks and sells a full range of Yamaha marine products, Fisher & Paykel white goods, GT Radial Tyres as well as Motolite Batteries.

The dedicated Asco Motors team provides a benchmark standard for service support throughout Vanuatu. The service and panel operation ensures consistency and carries out responsibilities for all vehicle warranty, training, technical information, fleet management, lubricants and material supply, including quality tyres and batteries.

Asco Motors has a long-term commitment to Vanuatu community, employing over 75 people in a wide variety of positions. Asco Motors has a fully developed training program aimed at continuously improving the skills of its people. The company also believes that corporate social responsibility is a fundamental part of normal business operations and supports the local communities by contributing to sports development, disability groups and environmental clean ups.

Since 2009, Asco Motors has also owned and operated Avis, a highly successful, worldwide car rental franchise with approximately 5,500 locations in more than 165 countries. It is renowned for quality service and customer service excellence.

For more information about purchasing or renting a car, visit www.asco.vu.

EUROPCAR With over 60 years’ experience and around six million drivers, PICTURES: Craig Osment and Alan Kennedy

Europcar is a global leader in car rental. With a presence in more

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

than 140 countries worldwide, Europcar recently opened up its first franchise in Vanuatu and offers short and medium term vehicle rental solutions for its customers.

Europcar Vanuatu is registered as Key Holdings Ltd which

Left, from top: Air Vanuatu has been servicing Vanuatu for 30 years; cruise ships are regular visitors to Port Vila and outer islands; local Toyota distributor, Asco Motors.

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

AGRICULTURE Farming and horticulture A tropical climate, fertile soils and an organic approach combine to produce some of the world’s finest beef, cattle, copra and coffee.

Only one third of Vanuatu’s total cultivable land is presently farmed, although it is still has an agriculture-dominated economy with copra, cocoa and kava dominating the economic sector.

Since 2003, the agriculture sector has grown at an annual rate of 3.3 per cent compared to 2.8 per cent growth for the economy and an average population growth rate of 2.6 per cent per annum.

The domestic market for agricultural products is quite limited.

While at least 75 per cent of the population reside in the rural areas and depend on agriculture for their livelihood, productivity, particularly in the subsistence sector, is quite low. The export of traditional commodities and high value commodities, including those that are organically grown, has great potential. In order for these commodities to penetrate these premium niche markets, the volume of production must be increased. The challenge is to increase efficient and sustainable production, and improve market access.

The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) aims to build an agriculture sector that is robust and competitive, one that contributes to improved economic growth and trading opportunities, food security, reduction of poverty and improved livelihoods, ensuring also that the benefits derived are equally distributed between the rural and urban populations.

Vanuatu Agricultural Supplies is the country’s only agricultural specialist store, located in Port Vila and Santo. They offer everything from pumps and irrigation supplies to stock feed, small and large farm machinery, garden water systems and seeds, tractors, generators, desalination systems, solar systems and safety equipment. Vanuatu Agricultural Supplies is the trusted, preferred supplier to the cattle industry, NGOs, government

PICTURE: Francesca Grillo.

departments. Phone +678 22376.

AGRICULTURE

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AGRICULTURE Going Nuts in Malekula!

Tamanu oil is once again in production on the island of Malekula, nearly two years after Cyclone Pam. By Ana Terry and Don Hunter.

T

he tamanu tree adorns miles of coastline in Vanuatu and in particular on the island of Malekula in the Malampa Province.

It’s extraordinary how a small nut growing wild on the coast of a quiet South Pacific Island can make such a big impact on the health and well-being of the local community and hold a place in an ever demanding international market.

For centuries Ni-Vanuatu have taken advantage of the tamanu oil’s powerful skin healing properties. Used as a daily cosmetic to keep skin supple for young and old, Tamanu oil has no equal as one of the planet’s most versatile and healing natural lubricants.

At Malekula Cultural Centre curatorial staff confirm the use of tamanu oil is intrinsically linked to an epoch of oral story telling where custom knowledge and family tree lines and relationships are told and retold.

The method of tamanu oil extraction remains unchanged through the generations and pre-dates the birth of Christ.

The nut, no bigger than a conker chestnut, is harvested during the relatively cool and dry ‘winter’ months in the South Pacific from June to August. The nuts are gathered after they have fallen to the ground.

Once a thin skin is removed the nuts are split and laid out in the sun to cure for several weeks. The curing process is essential to the production of high quality tamanu oil.

Once harvested, locals either sell un-cured or cured Tamanu nuts to Malekula-based Nuts and Oils Vanuatu depending on time available to them for the curing process. Uncured nuts are

is the absolute key to the efficient oil extraction.

“Pressing the nuts creates friction that in turn generates heat.

delivered to the factory at Lakatoro where they are cured outside

Burnt tamanu oil not only loses many of its valuable qualities but

on large portable racks during the day and under infra-red lamps

also does not smell too good, so care is need in this process,”

at night.

press operator Mark Simon says.

Factory operations manager, Tensly Daniel, explains that to

Tamanu oil once pressed is redolent of comb honey in colour

check the stage and quality of the curing, they split the nut in half

and consistency and now enters the final stage of primary

with a knife.

processing.

“What we are looking for is an even golden brown colour. Any variation indicates poor or incomplete curing. Of course, dealing with Mother Nature, the exact time as to when curing is complete varies from tree to tree, year to year.”

Once curing is complete the nuts are graded for quality assurance and depending on demand, they are either further processed or stored for later use.

The next step is the seemingly simple but delicate process of

132

cold pressing the nuts. What looks like a giant meat mincer in drag

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

Passed through a series of sieves, the oil becomes noticeably lighter in colour and more transparent – a liquid gold.

Nothing goes to waste - the solids captured in the sieves are then ladled into settling tanks where, after several weeks, the ultra-fine result settles as a semi-dry cream with the consistency of toothpaste.

This tamanu nut cream is ideal for the topical treatment of various skin conditions and is used extensively to treat horses with

‘Queensland Itch’.

One of the curiosities of tamanu oil production is the leftovers – rats love the stuff. They gorge themselves on what appears to be a free meal – but it’s their last supper – the end result is fewer rats!

According to Nuts and Oils Vanuatu owner Bruce Hannent, once the pure virgin oil is ready for distribution, this is the most dynamic and unpredictable part of the operation – thanks largely to the diversity of markets and high demand for tamanu oil.

“The largest volume of tamanu oil is sold in bulk into the US market where it is used by pharmaceutical formulators who

Paradise, where a small team then takes over the manufacturing for a boutique market here in Vanuatu and Australia.

One of their biggest sellers is their hand-made soaps. Tamanu oil is blended with locally sourced coconut oil and other naturally sourced ingredients to create a diverse range of health and cosmetic products.

Malampa Travel booking agency coordinates tours of Nuts and Oils Vanuatu’s processing facility, either on demand or as part of a larger package.

Air Vanuatu flies daily to Malekula from Port Vila and Santo. Call

add their own value by blending with other ingredients to make

in to see the team at Air Vanuatu Island Tours in Port Vila or get in

products for the ever-growing cosmetic market,” Bruce said.

touch at tours@airvanuatu.vu to book your trip to Malekula.

“They are a greedy mob, they would purchase every last litre of tamaunu oil if we let them!”

The real added value for Nuts and Oils Vanuatu is when the oil is

Tamanu oil is blended with locally sourced coconut oil and other

used as a base component for local cosmetic creams and soaps.

naturally sourced ingredients to create a diverse range of health

Oil is shipped in bulk to their Port Vila facility trading as Oils of

and cosmetic products.

AGRICULTURE

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

HISTORY

Digging up the past Three thousand years of history on Aneityum, Southern Vanuatu. Dr Stuart Bedford, The Australian National University.

T

he small island (160sqkm) of Aneityum is Vanuatu’s most southern inhabited island. There are in fact two other islands

further south, Matthew and Hunter, but nobody lives on them and they remain in an on-going territorial dispute between France and Vanuatu. Aneityum, or at least the small offshore island commonly known as Mystery Island (local name is Inyeug), is one of the most visited places in the archipelago. Tens of thousands of tourists every year, arriving by ship, descend on to the small island for a day of snorkelling, relaxing on the beach, local entertainment and food. Few venture the several kilometres by small boat to Aneityum Island itself, which is a pity as it is one of the more interesting islands of the archipelago, whether you have only a day or a week to spare.

The island boasts both a rich cultural history and a spectacular

Left: Anelcauhat Harbour and Mystery Island from the summit of Inrero. Above: Lapita pottery. Whole vessel excavated from the Teouma site on Efate that is currently part of a large display at the Vanuatu National Museum.

HISTORY

135

natural landscape. If the natural environment is your thing then

of 3000 years. Over the past three years the Australian National

there are a whole host of walks, ranging from a few hours, to a

University and the Vanuatu Cultural Centre have been running a

three-day round island tour. It is a walker’s paradise, famed for its

research program at Anelcauhat, focusing on unravelling aspects

unique flora and particularly its orchids. The seven hour return trip

of that history. The project, funded by the two institutions and

from Anelcauhat, the largest village on the island and opposite

the Australia and Pacific Biological Foundation, is titled ‘Lapita to

Mystery Island, to the highest point of the island, Inrero at 852m,

Liturgy’ as it has primarily focused on the very first colonisation of

is a must on a clear day. From the summit you can see the nearby

the island by people now generally referred to as Lapita peoples,

islands of Futuna and Tanna and enjoy spectacular views over

and at the other end of the time scale the very early European

Anelcauhat Harbour and Mystery Island.

settlement of the island and more specifically the extensive

The more ambitious round-island trip can be comfortably made over three nights with a well-defined track around most of the

Lapita sites are found throughout the Southwest Pacific from

island. Some locals have done it in a day, leaving before sunrise

Papua New Guinea right across to Fiji and further east to Samoa

and returning to the same spot just before dark. However, taking

and Tonga. From the main Solomons chain to the east they

that option you would certainly miss most of what there is to see

represent the first people to arrive on these pristine islands. They

and the chance to enjoy some chewed kava with the locals in the

brought with them the skills to make a very distinctive pottery often

evening. For the less energetic, snorkelling and just hanging round

decorated with elaborate designs. Archaeological research started

at the beach are always an option.

on Aneityum in 1964 but Lapita was not found on the island

Aneityum also has a fascinating history that covers a period

136

Presbyterian mission station that was established from 1848.

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

until 2012. It was this find that inspired renewed research. Like

In 1848 the Presbyterians arrived under the leadership of John Geddie and thus began one of the more ambitious missionary projects of its time in Melanesia. The population of Aneityum at the time was around 4000 people and the plan was to train Aneityumese teachers to further spread Christianity throughout Melanesia. The mission station at Anelcauhat was the earliest and most extensive mission settlement in Melanesia at the time.

Remarkably two of the early mission buildings, which were made of local stone, are still substantially intact apart from their roofs.

One of them is Geddie’s third house which was completed in 1852 and the other is the third church built at the mission (the current John Geddie Memorial Church is the fifth on the site) which was at the time the second largest church in the whole of the tropical Pacific.

A whole series of missionary buildings were ultimately built across the island, the remains of which mostly comprise of foundations only, but all can be visited as local communities are well aware of their locations. Conversion was initially slow but by the time Geddie left the island in 1873 everyone was said to be a Christian. Traditional rituals were banned and sacred objects were denigrated. Sacred stones were often offered to the missionaries as a sign of submission to the church. A remarkable reminder of this was the discovery during excavation of a large pit of sacred stones that was uncovered within the missionary compound at Anelcauhat. Tragically, with introduced diseases the population on Aneityum plummeted to below 400 by the 1890s. The missionary dream and expansion project came to a crashing halt.

Our wonderful host over the many seasons of research was Kenneth Keith of Island Breeze Bungalows. He seemed to be able to accommodate our team of up to 20 people with ease, always most Lapita sites it is located on a higher beach terrace parallel

providing a varied and interesting menu. There are two flights a

to the current beach at Anelcauhat. This was a prime location at

week to Aneityum (Tuesday and Saturday) which is ideal for those

a sheltered part of the beach, near a water source and close to

in Vila who fancy a long weekend break with a difference or for

the rich marine resources. The Lapita site is now buried by up to

others who have more time on their hands there are lots of things

one metre of later deposits and perhaps not surprisingly, as this

to do during a week or longer. The flights are usually the large and

was the same sort of location that initial European colonisers also

very comfortable ATR to Tanna and then a 20 minute flight to the

preferred, the Presbyterian Mission station sits right on top of this

airstrip on Mystery Island in the versatile Twin Otter. A short boat

earlier site.

trip lands you on the beach at Anelcauhat. Our large team was well

Aneityum was the first real centre of European settlement in

looked after by Air Vanuatu who put on extra flights and managed

Vanuatu with the trader James Paddon setting up his business

to squeeze on all our extra luggage both there and back. Thanks

at Anelcauhat in 1842. Sandalwood, timber and whales were the

Air Vanuatu.

PICTURES: Dr. Stuart Bedford.

initial attraction. His trading station and the sheltered harbour became a regular stop for any passing ships, including those with missionaries aboard who were looking for a place to establish the church.

Samoan missionary teachers from the LMS (London Missionary

Anti-clockwise from top left: Geddie’s third house, completed in 1852. Geddie’s house today with excavation crew. Kenneth

Society) were the first to settle on the island from the 1841. They

Keith, owner of Island Breeze Bungalows, with the morning haul.

were followed by Catholics who came in 1847 but left in 1849.

A pit of buried sacred stones uncovered at the mission site.

HISTORY

137

PEOPLE

It’s the people that make Vanuatu great

ne Trip Advisor review after another says what makes Vanuatu so unique in the world is the people. The warmth of the Ni-Vanuatu people is renowned around the world. They are quick to smile and welcome you and their genuine affection for visitors, particularly children, is unmatched.

Vanuatu still has a strong French connection thanks to its colonial past, with French still a formal language of Vanuatu along with Bislama and English.

Expats from Australia, New Zealand, Asia, Europe and the Americas add to the melting pot of culture, cuisine, architecture and style that is Vanuatu.

Over the following pages we share personal stories and photo albums of the

PICTURES: Vanuatu Tourism Office

Vanuatu people; our families, work life and funny tales.

Vanuatu’s children are cheeky, happy and very keen to meet visitors and share their way of life.

PEOPLE Allan Kalfabun An island boy raised by his grandmother packed a single suitcase and set off to make his mark on the world.

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IFIRA ISLAND, VANUATU Allan Kalfabun, son of a police officer grew up on Ifira Island,

in the Port Vila Harbour. He has one brother and two sisters. “My grandmother raised me and life was good.” This photo is with his hard working mum Timaima Lauto on the island around 1979.

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LEITA WEDDING I am very close to my mum. This is her on her wedding day at

Erakor Island in 2007. I went to primary school on Ifira island and called the island home for 25 years.

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ISLAND BOY TO THE BIG SMOKE I wanted to see the world, so after many years working for the

National Tourism Office in Vanuatu I packed a single suitcase and took a job in Sydney. Wow! What a culture shock – but I loved it.

I worked for Sportsworld Tours (now Specialist Holidays) and the Mirvac Group as Sales and Marketing Manager. I now work at the Vanuatu Tourism Office in Port Vila as the Marketing Manager.

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KUIPERS FAMILY I met the Kuipers family during a Round Island Relay in Port

Vila. After many years of friendship, they are now my second family. I’m on their Christmas list for sure – every year I have Christmas with them. Their home is my home. This was Cheryl, my Aussie mum’s 60th birthday. There’s George, Catherine, Cheryl, me, Richard, Joana and Wolfgang. Missing from the shot are Elizabeth and Cyril.

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SCHOOL DAYS AT ONESUA, PORT VILA I loved writing poetry at school, we found some old stuff at

the anniversary of the school a little while back. I always worked hard and wanted to achieve good things. You reap what you sow!

This photo is our year seven class photo. I finished my secondary schooling in Fiji before returning to Vanuatu to work in finance – but I hated numbers and eventually got into media, working at the government-owned newspaper and then Radio Vanuatu.

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MY SON CLAUDE In 2001 I adopted my son Claude. He too has lived in

Vanuatu most of his life, but calls Sydney his second home. He is photographed with my god daughters Adriana and Bella.

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

PEOPLE Mackenzie Family Geordie Mackenzie has had the best of both worlds. Village life in Vanuatu and a second family in Australia.

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JUST A NORMAL VILLAGE BOY Geordie Mackenzie was born at Hog Habour, East Santo,

Vanuatu before being adopted by the Prenter family of Australia.

This photo was taken by Geordie’s ‘Aussie brother’, Ian Prenter.

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A NEW LIFE BEGINS Geordie and friend Gary Blake (now a prominent lawyer in Port

Vila) pictured at Bauerfield airport before departing to Australia to begin schooling with Geordie’s ‘Aussie family’, the Prenters of Victoria in 1968.

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AN AUSSIE BUSH WEDDING Ian, Geordie’s Aussie brother and his wife Alison on their

wedding day in Albury 1970. Left to right: The Prenters - Hugh, Janet, Ian, Alison, Geordie.

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GROWING FAMILY Geordie and Votausi Mackenzie with their growing brood of

youngsters, four sons and a daughter, managed to carve out a successful family business for themselves. The family now owns and operates Pacific Polytanks, Fibreglass Vanuatu and Lapita Cafe.

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SUMMER HOLIDAY Family trip in Australia on December 2007. A nine-day drive

starting from Brisbane to Cold Coast, Sydney, Wodonga, Geelong, Terang and Melbourne. They then flew to Launceston, Tasmania to visit mum and Edith.

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FAMILY CELEBRATION Geordie, Votausi and their four boys.

Left to right: Shaun, Jason, Votausi, Geordie, Kevin and Anthony.

Shaun now works in Air Traffic Control for Airports Vanuatu Limited. Jason is studying info mechatronics (engineering) at QUT in Australia. Kevin completed year 13 in 2011 and is now working with his mum’s business, Lapita Café. Anthony has just completed

residing in Launceston with her husband Bob. Ian is an ex- teacher

year 12 at Malapoa College.

residing in Wodonga, Victoria with Alison. Mum is 98 years old.

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AUSSIE FAMILY TODAY Left to Right: Edith Prenter, Ian Prenter, Janet Prenter and

Geordie at Ian’s home in Wodonga, Victoria. Edith is a nurse

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THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

BOOMING BUSINESS Geordie pictured with Votausi and some of his staff outside his

successful business Fibreglass Vanautu.

PEOPLE

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PEOPLE

‘I am the weather’ Holiday destinations are for relaxing and Vanuatu is Very Relaxed. Whether you’re a tourist or a local, there’s not much to stress you … unless an absence of authority causes you concern.

a lack of desire to restrict people unnecessarily, Vanuatu rules!

Because … err, well, it doesn’t, if you get my drift.

You won’t find your local pub or bar festooned with signs warning of the dangers of drinking, smoking and gambling while the state creams off most of the revenue raised in these venues.

You also won’t see any parking meters but you’ll always find a parking space; you won’t see any traffic lights but you’ll mostly get through an intersection without being T-boned; you won’t see a bicycle lane; there are no speed cameras; there are no random breath tests; there are no posters with minatory warnings and

T

o a resident of both Sydney and Port Vila, there are some

photographs of threatening-looking policemen pointing radar guns

obvious differences in the two lifestyles. Port Vila is a sub-

at motorists; you won’t be constantly distracted by electronic signs

tropical, cosmopolitan holiday destination in the South Pacific

reminding you to “click clack, front and back” or to “watch out,

with an ancient indigenous culture and a freewheeling, simple and

pedestrians about”.

relaxed approach to life. Sydney is a sub-tropical, cosmopolitan

There are pedestrians about in Vanuatu. They walk on the

holiday destination in the South Pacific with an ancient indigenous

roads day and night, and it is difficult to see them in the dark.

culture and a heavily regulated, complicated and censorious

But motorists seem to be sensibly observant and don’t scoop up

approach to life.

their neighbours on the way back from a kava bar, just as they

I suspect that age has a lot to do with the difference – I mean

appear to regulate their own speed based on the road conditions

the age of each country’s legislature. Australia has had a couple

(sometimes barely passable) or possibly because most of the

of hundred years to accumulate a couple of hundred lineal metres

family is riding unrestrained in the back of the ute.

of statute books, while in Vanuatu, after only three decades of

In fact, everyone seems to rub along together just fine, using

independence, the place remains relatively lawless - if law is

little more than that increasingly rare commodity in the first world

measured by the actual number of laws on the books or a relative

– commonsense. It’s amazing how well things can and do still

disinclination for enforcement.

work without constant state-sponsored interference, nannying and

Whether it’s lack of time, inertia, sub-tropical torpor or simply

social engineering.

Indeed, in more than 30 years’ acquaintance with Vanuatu, I have only once had a random encounter with the local police. That

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The sign at Erakor jetty makes perfect sense, if you want the

was last year when I was stopped for a car registration check.

ferry, you kill the gong... which means bang the tin bottle!

They do take being registered and roadworthy seriously, although

Transport is laid back (cente) and there’s always a rainbow.

given the extensive rust perforation of some local vehicles it’s a

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

miracle that they haven’t just folded up flat-pack style on the spot.

Likewise, I’ve only seen evidence of my local municipal

service may be unsophisticated but it is never out of action due to

authorities once when some men in a corroded Datsun arrived

electrical failure, understaffing, computer error, OH&S concerns or

at my gate suggesting that a donation to their election campaign

because of ‘unprecedented delays’.

would be a civic-minded thing to do and who was I to disagree

I’m not advocating total anarchy; there are useful regulations

– there were five of them. Unlike Sydney, where there’s a by-law

here, too, one of the better ones being Australian Standard 1170.2

against every human activity.

which will ensure your house is built to withstand cyclones and

My 90-year-old father-in-law has been collared and fined twice for having an unleashed poodle in the park, just in case it ran

‘seismic events’, as we call earthquakes back in Australia.

It’s overbearing authority and redundant laws which separate

off and eviscerated a council ranger doing his duty while fining a

Australia from Vanuatu. For instance, I doubt that there’s a law

ratepayer for playing ball games or riding a skateboard, flying a kite

here like the one in Brisbane that supposedly requires taxi drivers

or sitting at an unlicensed outdoor table … or pretty much anything

to carry a bale of hay in their cab boot. Quite why, I have no idea,

that might be mistaken for fun.

but I assume it dates from the days when cabbies only had one

Here in Vanuatu, there appears to be a distinct lack of nugatory,

horsepower at their disposal and were duty-bound to keep it well

mindless and archaic legislative leftovers, possibly because

nourished. Or the Victorian law that stipulates, under threat of a

there aren’t as many under-utilised public servants with febrile

fine, that light bulbs can only be replaced by licensed electricians.

imaginations dreaming up ever-more ridiculous ways to prevent

If it serves no purpose, why not repeal it?

taxpayers from enjoying themselves.

This dearth of prescriptive edicts is reflected in other examples of South Pacific simplicity. Maybe because labour is relatively cheap and Vanuatu is still a country seeking to employ people rather

PICTURES: Craig Osment, Andrew Read

ferry from the other side of the lagoon. This method of getting

But the problem with rules and other ‘lifestyle enhancements’ is that they accumulate and, before you know it, rather than convenience you get complication and the litigation nation.

Perhaps the best example of the distance between our first

than replace them with machines, we don’t have to deal with the

world expectations and the reality of good old-fashioned customer

frustrations of the automated life we ‘enjoy’ in Australia.

service happened when my wife – the human isobar who must be

We don’t have to use card-operated barriers to access car parks

constantly abreast of meteorological movements in case a change

or speak to disembodied voices to activate machines or get lost in

of wardrobe is called for – rang the Vanuatu weather line. When

digital dead ends when making phone calls to loops of tape.

the phone was unexpectedly answered by a live human being, she

Vanuatu simplicity is typified by a famous example of Bislama

apologised for having dialled the wrong number and explained that

in action on a sign next to the jetty on Erakor Island, opposite Le

she wanted “the weather”, to which the voice on the other end

Lagon resort.

portentously responded: “I am the weather.”

It says: “Sipos yu wantem ferry yu kilim gong” and right next to it is a gong which you ‘kilim’ with a metal bar to summon the

No wonder it was declared the happiest place on the planet.

By Craig Osment PEOPLE

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PEOPLE

Tall in the saddle

PICTURE: Tiffany Carroll, Nangam family and Craig Osment

Tom Nangam is an inspirational success; this modest Ni-vanuatu man from Tanna with limited formal education has carved an international reputation as a horseman with innate talent and exceptional skills.

Tony Wilson saddles up and meets the legend.

T

om Nangam is definitely Vanuatu’s Mr Equestrian. It is not a title he would have chosen for himself, but it fits comfortably

on this handsome man’s shoulders and, honestly, there’s not much about horses that Tom doesn’t know or can’t do.

He has been the long term champion jockey at the iconic

The Bellevue Equestrian Centre is operated by Tom and his extended family, including brothers and cousins and his children.

The centre offers lessons and trail rides to visitors and locals.

PEOPLE

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Kiwanis Race Day since its inception, he is renowned internationally for both his skill at breaking wild horses and training them, add to that he is the nation’s only trained blacksmith, and together with his brother owns two equestrian centres. Throw a saddle over that lot and you won’t get much of an argument about the Mr Equestrian tag. What is equally impressive as his prowess with the noble beast is how he got to where he is today, as a 50-something-year-old, from extremely tough and humble beginnings.

Tom’s life began in Lenakel in Tanna, the first born of a large family, with three brothers and four sisters. Like many Tannese in the ‘60s, and even through to today, the Nangam family were subsistence farmers – a tough life offering little more than hand to mouth existence.

“It was a hard life and there was just no opportunity for me to go to school at all,” he said. “I’ve never really learnt to read and write properly and in those early years all I knew was the Tanna language; I couldn’t even speak Bislama, let alone any French or English.”

Tom came to Efaté as a young lad and in 1972, as a 13-yearold, he began working for the Sodap company at Rentabau doing general farming and labouring duties.

He said he had a tough but fair Australian boss, Bill Hol, and initially he found the language barrier a real struggle. “I learnt to

becoming known and, still in 1976, he was approached by the

say ‘yes’ and ‘no’, and I said ‘yes’ more often, but most of the

French family that ran Club Hippique (the adventure park and

time I ‘talked’ with my arms, trying to make myself understood,” he

horse riding venue), the Nodys.

said.

Working Monday to Friday for a few thousand vatu a week, Tom managed to learn Bislama after the first year on the cattle farm.

Being a cattle property, it meant Tom was instantly involved with

and they offered me more money and the chance to do exactly what I wanted to do, so I joined them,” said Tom. It was the beginning of an 18-year relationship with Club

horses and immediately it became apparent to all around him that

Hippique and, as each year went by, Tom’s abilities grew, as did

he was blessed with natural talents once astride a horse.

his reputation.

“Mr Bill taught me a lot about horses and eventually he let me ride in a few agricultural shows, and I absolutely loved it and even at an early age, I started winning.

“He even let me ride a bull in a rodeo, but it was the horses that

“I learnt more and more riding techniques and competed as often as I could, and in those days there were many competitions.”

Tom has very fond memories of 1980. “My first child Margaret was born. It was also my first overseas visit when I was invited to

were my first love and that is still the same today. I just felt special

Sydney to work with some horses after people had seen me at

around them.”

Club Hippique.

‘Mr Bill’ returned to Australia and Tom went to work for the Lingrison Air company in 1976.

“I was doing the same job, working with cattle and horses, but I had good teachers for the horse riding and now I was working with horses every day.

“It was also the Kiwanis’ first race day at the golf club, which I won and oh, of course, we became independent,” he said with a cheeky grin.

There were to be other trips to Australia, where people used his renowned skills for short training periods at their stables. He

“I was starting to learn how to break the wild horses so they

also formed a long term and successful partnership with Marco

could be ridden, and Efaté was full of them, in fact there are still

Traverso, winning numerous Tusker Cups at the annual famous

many, many wild horses in North Efaté, especially on the plateau

race day on Traverso’s horses.

above Tanoliu.”

Already Tom’s skills in the saddle and in the training ring were

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“They wanted me to join their riding school and train wild horses

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

After 18 highly successful years at Club Hippique Tom resigned and took his family back to his roots, in Tanna.

“I wanted to help my family and we built a tourist bungalow at Lenakel and then I helped train my brother, and we also established an equestrian centre called the Lenakel Golf Resort.

My brother still manages it and it remains popular with tourists.”

Having established the successful business in Tanna that

It is also ironic that Tom was at last beaten in the Tusker Cup at the Kiwanis Race Day for the first time.

“I fell,” he said, with an apologetic shrug of his shoulders. “But that’s alright, because Wayne went on and won the race.”

Tom said he is very appreciative of the help of many people,

involved his family, Tom was able to make a comfortable return to

especially Marco Traverso, that have seen him achieve what he has

Port Vila and resume his horse training duties with Marco Traverso.

done without any formal education and transfer his amazing skills

In the early ‘90s Tom also journeyed to Melbourne, where he spent time learning the ancient craft of blacksmithing, which

with horses into two viable businesses that allow him to continue with his greatest passion.

included the making of horse shoes as well as the fitting of them.

He also feels very strongly that with a still abundant supply of

He remains today the only trained blacksmith in Vanuatu, although

wild horses, much more could be made of equestrian pursuits for

using those skills is a challenge due to the lack of specialist

tourists, that Tom believes could employ many more Ni Vanuatu

equipment available.

and give this country yet another unique tourist attraction in the

The Nangam fame in horse craft had also spread to Europe and he accepted an invitation to spend some months training at a highly regarded riding club in Belgium.

He spent six months there in 2004, before returning for a further three months the following year.

After his European experience, investors and supporters gave

Pacific.

This is an extremely likeable, humble Ni Vanuatu – completely in tune with what he has achieved without any formally taught skills.

He should certainly be put forward as a role model for anyone in this nation struggling without opportunity. But when it’s all boiled down one gets the very definite impression that Tom is more at

Tom a small area of land at Bellevue to establish his own riding

home with horses than most humans, where his rare God given

school and the Bellevue Ranch Equestrian School was finally born

talents rise right to the top.

in April this year.

It has proved a hit with tourists and Tom is proud to be sharing the riding training and horse breaking duties with his 20-year-old

Tom is still on hand to lead trail rides and offer lessons to

son Wayne Tom.

children and adults at his Bellevue centre.

PEOPLE

149

WEDDINGS

Marriages made in Heaven

etting married in Vanuatu is a decision more and more couples are making, due to the idyllic locations, gorgeous weather and, just as important, affordability.

A Vanuatu wedding can be an intimate beach ceremony for two, a black-tie sit-down dinner for 400 or something in between. The choices are varied and, luckily, with experts on hand and in residence, a perfect day is all but guaranteed.

To get married in Vanuatu you need to give municipal authorities at least three weeks' notice, then a simple checklist is all that is required to plan your special day.

First, book a local wedding coordinator to look after all your planning. Next, choose the location for your ceremony – private beach, lagoon, private villa, waterfall or resort. Wherever you choose to hold the ceremony, your event manager will make sure it is decorated to your taste and budget.

Decide on what type of ceremony you want. In Vanuatu, civil, religious, commitment and renewal ceremonies are all offered.

Vanuatu is awash with tropical blooms, so the floral arrangements are a breeze.

Similarly, hair and make-up are not a problem, with several internationally qualified hairdressers and beauty therapists in Port Vila.

PICTURES: Tamanu on the Beach.

There are also a number of experienced wedding photographers, including Valerie Fernandez from Wedding and Events Photography and Leith Campbell from Top Shots.

Wherever you choose to hold the ceremony, your event manager will make sure it is decorated to your taste and budget.

The Havannah’s professional wedding coordinator will organise

renewals if that’s what you’re thinking), a fully catered reception

the perfect tropical wedding for the happy couple. The special

for up to 60 guests, a licensed bar, a wedding planner and private

wedding package comes complete with minister or celebrant,

island honeymoon accommodation. Where your dreams become

photographer and wedding fare.

reality. www.oysterisland.com HAVANNAH HUES

Vanuatu has it all – the locations, the food, the accommodation and a team of specialists ready to assist.

If it’s that easy, why wait? All you have to do now is get the question popped and hop on a plane!

For a list of wedding organisers, visit www.vanuatu.travel

The Havannah Resort is by far one of Vanuatu’s most exclusive resorts; its beauty is unrivalled, the service you receive whilst staying is second to none, their beachfront is something that you will never forget, crystal blue waters and perfect white sand, it really is truly breathtaking.

If your idea of a paradise wedding is an idyllic tropical setting

THE WORLD IS YOUR OYSTER

combining enchantment, romance, elegance and unspoiled beauty,

Why not do something that will really surprise your friends and

then The Havannah, Vanuatu, awaits. You’ll find this intimate,

family and take the Oyster Island option, off Vanuatu’s big island

beachfront resort in an unrivalled location at Samoa Point, just 25

of Espiritu Santo. This gorgeous self contained island resort is a

kilometres from Port Vila and set amidst flame trees and tropical

short drive from Santo airport and offers the perfect island getaway

gardens.

environment for a unique wedding. Your guests will be delivered

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The Havannah’s professional wedding coordinator will organise

by a small boat after a two minute trip from the mainland and

the perfect tropical wedding for the happy couple. The special

then stay in an array of overwater bungalows which enjoy some

wedding package comes complete with minister or celebrant,

of the most spectacular sunset views in the Pacific. The resort will

photographer and wedding fare. The wedding coordinator ensures

help you arrange themed or traditional weddings (or simply vow

your day is just as it should be – perfect. From the flowers to the

THE ESSENTIAL VANUATU SECOND EDITION

WHERE DREAMS COME TRUE Warwick Le Lagon, Vanuatu where wedding dreams come true.

Overlooking the cobalt waters of Erakor Lagoon, the overwater deck is purpose-built for romantic weddings, allowing the perfect backdrop for any wedding. The stretch of white sand on the Beach Terrace is the ideal location for an open-air reception under the stars with a choice of marquee. Destination weddings are made easy with Le Lagon’s onsite wedding planner who will tend to every need. A range of fully air conditioned accommodation options for wedding guests with facilities including pools, kids club, non motorised water sports and resort activities make for a memorable getaway for all. Choose from a selection of wedding packages and make every wedding dream a reality at Warwick Le Lagon Vanuatu. www.warwickhotels.com/le-lagon-resort A WHITE SANDS WEDDING With the re-opening and refurbishment of one of Port Vila’s most iconic resorts and restaurants, Tamanu on the Beach offers one of the Pacific’s most spectacular venues for a beachfront wedding.

The renewal of this boutique resort has included the building of the country’s first purpose-built wedding chapel where the area’s famous sunsets can be captured as a stunning backdrop for photography. There’s dining pavilion seating for up to 65 and accommodation for up to 50 guests in their 15 charming beachfront plantation villas, including a honeymoon plunge pool warriors to the music to the reception, there is almost nothing

villa. Be among the first to experience the all new Tamanu and

they cannot organise for you. Their attractive honeymoon and

make your special day memorable for everyone. The resort

anniversary packages offer a completely romantic experience.

specialises in catering for weddings, couples and is adults-only

The Havannah, Vanuatu is a romantic retreat exclusively for

except for school holidays. www.tamanuonthebeach.com

adults. Children under 16 are not catered for.

Tel: +678 35600 Email: reservations@thehavannah.com Website: www.thehavannah.com

OR PERHAPS A ‘PRIVATE RESORT’?

If something a little more private and exclusive is what you’re looking for then Paua Private Villas can arrange for the celebrations

SAY ‘I DO’ AT HOLIDAY INN

to take place in a private beachside villa on the spectacular

Whether it’s a celebration for two or a gathering of family and

Whitesands coastline just 20 minutes from Port Vila. They offer a

friends, Holiday Inn Resort Vanuatu is the island destination to

range of luxurious villas with all facilities and are able to cater for

say your ‘I dos’. The resort’s facilities and venues cater for various

up to 60 guests for the reception either within the main house or

sized weddings and its experienced team pride themselves

in a marquee on the lawns beachside. For your guests there is a

on offering a personalised service that is second to none. The

range of nearby and adjacent villas to choose from or the nearby

Resort Ceremony Cabana, with Erakor Lagoon as a backdrop,

Tamanu on the Beach resort for further accommodation. The

provides the perfect tropical setting for the exchanging of vows.

houses feature private absolute beach frontages, inground pools,

From an intimate dinner, relaxed poolside party or a formal affair

on-site staff and catering on request. Paua has an experienced

at the Erakor Ballroom, the options are limitless. Holiday Inn

team of planners at your disposal too, should you need them.

Resort Vanuatu even caters to the traditional Vanuatu wedding

Paua Villas are rated five-star on TripAdvisor and can provide

experience, where a bride and groom can be brought to a

testimonials from their many contented wedding couples.

ceremony by traditional canoe to the sound of a Melanesian

Email Christiana : info@paua.co or check the website at:

warrior blowing a shell conch. www.vanuatu.holidayinnresorts.com

www.paua.co WEDDINGS

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SERVICES

Inspiring spa spaces

ove over Bali – Vanuatu is emerging as the destination of choice for those wanting to relax, unwind and indulge.

Spas are popping up all over the country, from the authentic Thai Massage opposite The Grand Hotel and Casino to the renowned Warwick Le Lagon Resort’s Oasis Spa and Moyyan House by the Sea in Santo.

With a large resident expatriate population and more discerning holidaymakers coming to Vanuatu, it was inevitable that a sophisticated spa scene would develop.

Designed as in intimate sanctuary, Oasis Spa features some of the largest and most luxurious private spa rooms on the Island, About 20 minutes outside Santo’s capital Luganville is Barrier Beach. This is where you’ll find Moyyan House by the Sea. This small resort right on the beach recently opened a new day spa which to locals – and those lucky enough to travel to the island – has given the Santo experience a new high.

This place smells good enough to eat, which Moyyan puts down to the quality of their products.

There are also several local masseurs in Port Vila; enquire at the Mama’s market located on the seafront next door to Nambawan Café for contact details.

So, now you know, there’s no excuse not to simply lie back and relax – that, after

PICTURE: Andrew Read

all, is the essence of what Vanuatu is all about.

Ratua's completely private, over-water spa encourages total relaxation. With views like this, it's impossible not to relax.

CLUBS

Join the local social scene

ne of the reasons Vanuatu has twice been named the happiest country on earth must be for its strong sense of community. It starts in the villages, where the extended family and communal care is a way of life. This sense of community and family is not lost on the expatriate population, many of whom are involved in local charities and sporting groups, as well as various international business groups, such as Lions, Rotary and Freemasons, and the local Kiwanis.

The International Women’s Group, too, is a well-respected charity that raises money for projects that improve the lives of women in Vanuatu.

Sporting clubs are equally well supported, with many being more social than physical. Among them are the Port Vila Golf and Country Club and the Vanuatu Cruising Yacht Club, which holds monthly meetings, fortnightly yacht races and offers a variety of services to visiting boats.

Other associations welcoming visitors and members include Alliance Française, SKAL, the Chamber of Commerce and Hash House Harriers.

VILA VINO Vila Distribution’s wine club Vila Vino started in 2009, with wine enthusiasts meeting once a month for wine-tasting events. More than 150 members enjoy French, PICTURE: Andrew Read

Australian and New Zealand wines along with discounts at Vila Distribution and Vila Distribution Hardware and birthday wine gifts. To join email vildis@vanuatu.com.vu

The Vanuatu Cruising Yacht Club holds monthly meetings, fortnightly yacht races and offers a variety of services to visiting boats.

BUSINESS DIRECTORY

A guide to Vanuatu’s business services and a thank you to our sponsors

he publishers would like to acknowledge the editorial assistance and financial support of many in the Vanuatu business community in the production of this book.

Without the following sponsors and supporters, this book would not exist and Vanuatu’s attractions and services would remain unknown to some.

Hopefully the contact information on the following pages will be useful to residents, visiting business people, new expatriates, and visitors and tourists alike.

In no particular order, our sincere thanks go to: • The Grand Hotel • The Ministry of Public Utilities • The Department of Agriculture • The Office of the President of Vanuatu • Air Vanuatu • Vila Hardware • GH Solutions • Vancorp Construction • Waterfront Real Estate • Eratap Beach Resort • Top Shots • The Havannah • Law Partners • Vila Vino • Fr8 Logistics • Asco Motors • Avis • DHL • The Vanuatu Tourism Office • Paua Villa Rental • Sarangkita Oceanfront Retreat • Vanuatu Agricultural Supplies • Photogenic Public Relations + Communications • Pacific Island Living magazine • Vanuatu Food Safari • Vila Bottle Shop • Francesca’s Beach Club • First National Real Estate • LJ Hooker •Thailand Massage • Europcar • Ratua Private Island • Vanuatu Bijouterie • Healthwise • Vanuatu Investment Promotion Authority • Pacific Advisory • Tamanu on the Beach.

Experience Vanuatu neverbefore before Experience Vanuatu... ... like like never Experience Vanuatu ... like never before

www.eratap.com

t: + 61 433 235 982

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www.eratap.com 235 982 www.eratap.comt: + 61 433 t: +61 433 235 982

Exclusively for adults and located just 30 minutes’ drive from Port Vila, The Havannah, Vanuatu is an oasis of tranquility and your perfect romantic retreat. With only 17 luxurious villas set amidst elegantly landscaped gardens, you can be assured privacy and personalised service, Havannah style.

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Beachfront Villa Rentals

RENT A CAR AND DISCOVER THE HIDDEN PORT VILA LOCATION DE VOITURES

DISCOVER PARADISE YOUR WAY EN ROUTE POUR VOTRE PARADIS T +678 26 517 F +678 26 516

europcar@vanuatu.com.vu www.europcar.vu

Paua offers a range of spectacular private, absolute beachfront villas in the Whitesands/Narpow Point area of Efaté.

On-site staff and en-suite accommodation in-ground pool plus private beach available. In-house catering, airport transfers and concierge advice on request.

Paua for your perfect ‘private resort’ holiday or function. Paua villas are also ideal for weddings which can be professionally arranged.

Contact Christiana or Toga.

T: +678 775 1793 or +678 775 1792 or +678 26 108 E: info@paua.co W: www.paua.co for villa details

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Contact Jude Leske and the team today to find out why

“Nobody does it better”.

Enquiries: property@ljhooker.vu

Phone: +678 775 4543

PHOTOGENIC Photogenic is Vanuatu’s only public and government relations consultancy service. With 17 years experience in Vanuatu, Photogenic can assist with product launches, issues management, writing and editing, staff training and media management.

T: Vanuatu:+678 77 47 153 T: Australia:+61 417 512 233 E: tcarroll@photogenicpr.com

ELEGANCE | QUALITY | STYLE

ARTISAN JEWELLERS SINCE 1981

Visit our sales office and showroom in Port Vila Find us on Facebook and Instagram www.vanuatubijouterie.com

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THE ESSENTIAL

VANUATU SECOND EDITION

Vanuatu, the unspoilt jewel of the South Pacific, is not only a favourite holiday destination it’s home to a vibrant economy and a rich culture. It is a land of opportunity.

Twice declared the happiest place on the planet, the country is a land of abundance and beauty which is spread across 83 islands and a land mass of over 12,000 km2.

Independent since 1980, the French/British colonial heritage provides a stable government and a cosmopolitan expatriate community which respects the traditional values of the Ni-Vanuatu owners.

The Essential Vanuatu is not only a souvenir of a memorable holiday, it is also a guide to the economy, the culture, the business and financial services, construction, government, history, food and agriculture, geography, real estate, accommodation and facilities for anyone contemplating a life or doing business in one of the great tropical paradises.