Snorkeler's Cove at Irikiki Island Port Vila

... falls were thundering down from a thirty metre high cliff face into some swirling pools below, with a perpetual blanket of mist all around the pools. We stood at a distance from the base of the falls but could already feel its power and force. Further, the face of a stone figure resembling the famous moai figureheads of Chile's Easter Island was visible amidst the white wall of cascading water and gave the place a kind ...

... van - one of those mini looking ones. Very funny night though.

One of the highlights was doing a tour out to a secluded island and doing some snorkeling. Got to visit a Turtle Sanctury and while we were there we though hey - why not sponser one. So TravelCafe is now the proud owners (sorta) of a turtle of the same name that was released back out to the wild. Pretty cool.

... revolves around pigs. As one taxi driver put it, "If you run over a man's wife, you will be ok, but if you kill a pig, drive away from there as fast as you can!" Its also really odd how they don't ever try and sell you anything, and if you need somewhere to stay, they direct you to a friend or relative's house all for free, often the people get nothing out of you, they're just happy to help. The number of times I could easily have paid double just because I didn't know ...

... and some people raised their hand.... The boat guy runs a tri-hull catamaran, we sailed out to this island (name unknown to me) and we were each given a life vest and told to jump in the water. Done, that's the water safety training and we spend the rest of the time snorkeling in the incredible waters and corals of south pacific. Is this peace corp or beach corp?

... the equivalent of a school sports day. Eventually I end up back along the main road to the beach. Through the archway of a restaurant I discover a travel magazine poster photo shot and I Indulge in the luxury of a coffee on the open terrace. Further along is, of all things, an Irish pub. From across the street I hear a women's vocal ensemble, they are so good that I decide to have a cool drink and a coffee and sit by them. By mid afternoon I decide ...

... rather than pen since ink doesn't resist the water more than a few minutes). On most days, one dives down to put the cards in the nearby mailbox which is emptied every afternoon. Just the kind of clever gimmick to excite the curiosity of gullible tourists, like us! I had already written my waterproof card to my parents, but hadn't been told of the ink problem until I arrived on the island. I decided to save 300 vatu and just visit the post office and then mail the ...

... operated all over the territory. There were two school systems, and two currencies in use in the same territory. This obviously led to a certain amount of confusion; some sharp tongues referred to the condominium as the pandemonium. There were for example French and British flags flying over the capital city of the territory. An official commission was charged with measuring flag poles to make sure than neither the Union Jack nor the Tri-colore flew higher than ...

... 6 years ago, there have been very few (if any) incidents of the bends etc. Sometimes the long decompressions can be boring though and the guides try to make the tourists play noughts and crosses for ice-cream! They are crazy about Magnums! I've been well and truly welcomed into the diving fold as the Dive Masters and Tim who runs the show spend a lot of time during our decompression playing tricks on me. They constantly take my fins, hold onto my tank to stop me ...

... to the edge of the crater. There's a lot of steam and not much else, so I'm expecting that there won't be too much to see but a little bit of bubbling lava, which is still cool. But hey, this is the world's most accessible (if you're not counting the flights and the drive I suppose) active volcano, the one that spewed a bowling ball sized chunk of lava that went through two tourists like a hot knife through butter, killing them instantly, not too long ago. I want some ...

... Mount Marum. Sixteen of us were brought on a four-hour hike through the jungle, along a lava plane and over boulders to the top of Ambrym Island. On of the world's most accessible volcanoes bubbling away in a crater approximately 1.5km across! Marita and I were the last group to leave, with our guide, Jonas, we walked at a nice and easy pace and made it to the top just as the smoke and cloud was clearing. Because the wind was quite strong, the smell ...