The village of Port Resolution is so pretty. Small huts made out of palm fronds and bamboo dotted around a grassy square where the locals were always seen playing a game of football or volleyball. We found one hut that advertised itself as a restaurant so 8 of us yachties crammed in there for lunch much to the surprise of the cook, Sarah. A simple and rather expensive meal for what it was but worth it to experience being in one of their buildings.
Walking through the village to the other side of the island, dodging the chickens and pigs is a lovely beach. The waves come crashing in and the boys took the opportunity to befriend some locals kids and use their surfboards. The kids were most curious of these 8 white faces peering at them and speaking in a funny language. We got by with gestures and feeding them sugar free sweets. One of the older kids had brought with him a handmade bow and arrow so we took turns firing it much to the amusement of the kids as none of us were that good. It was so refreshing to see children of all ages playing together with no adult supervision needed, no manufactured toys just a fire, handmade bow and arrow and a couple of broken surfboards for entertainment. None of the kids were older than the age of 10.
Another day we went on a mission to find the hot springs created by the nearby volcano. One you need to pay a guide to take you but we found a smaller one right on the beach that you can go to yourself. Taking eggs with us we plonked them in the pool and watched them boiling away, tasted good!
From the hot springs we spotted a village up on the hill and made it our mission to navigate our way there. A couple of wrong turns, a near attack by dogs, a river crossing and we made it up a rather steep path to the village. Wow. What a view! The villagers have started a business renting out small bungalows to tourists. There was no one there when we visited but a perfect location for a holiday with a difference. The tourist village is right next to the village where the locals stay. As we entered the village we were greeted by smiling faces, eager to find out how we made it to their homes and loaded us up with fruit and veg for our troubles. Such hospitable, friendly people we have not found elsewhere. They really do live a basic lifestyle with no electricity, no goods from the Western world and the babies hadn't seen a white face before (proven by them bursting into tears anytime I tried to pick them up and give them loves). We loved this place and arranged to go back the next day laden with food off Orion that we were never going to eat before entering Australia.
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| One of the bungalows they rent out |
We made the repeat journey laden down with tins, like pack mules we entered the village and immediately the villagers (who had obviously been waiting for us) jumped up from their mats and gave us each a coconut to drink complete with straw made from the inside of a spring onion. Nature's own straw and it worked a treat! We were ushered onto a mat and they started demonstrating how to weave a basket, a hat, a fan and a bowl. Whilst this was going on, one very cute kid called Geoffrey was waving around a very sharp looking knife, an interesting choice of toy. Weaving finished, we were given a tour of their village and surrounding gardens. These guys have it sorted, gorgeous views in every direction, living off the land and using 2 solar panels to generate power when necessary.
Tour finished we went back to collect our woven goodies and they presented each couple with a big basket of fruit and veg. So we came back to the boat with 2 hands of bananas, 6 christophene, 2 chunks of sugar cane, bunches of bok choi, sweet potatoes, papayas, limes as well as a fan, a basket, and a bag. Begging has not got to the people of this island yet and I hope it never does. These are proud people that seem relatively untouched by the outside world when it comes to materialism and a common theme of their culture seems to be 'b'long everi wan' (Pidjin language - "belongs to everyone").
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