Rain Challenge on Grande Terre New Caledonia
Having Tahitian shell necklaces from Nadège, Christelle, Dyonita and Fabien pending on my front, a Farewell cocktail from the Beachcomber bar resting comfortably in my belly, and with a wide lasting smile on my face from the fresh impressions of snorkelling just hours ago with humpback whales in crystal clear tropical waters, I arrived in New Caledonia’s International Airport with Padi on my side. It was midnight, and it felt strange to have lost a whole calendar day after crossing the dateline in the “wrong” direction. Moreover, we had no reservations for transport or accommodation, so we were bound to improvise. Lucky enough, we met a warmhearted person who enjoyed chatting with us for hours before lending us a rental car for the week. His name is Mark Levy, and I can’t imagine to have discovered New Caledonia without his help and his fascination to share the hidden beauties of his generous country with us. He gave us clear instructions on how to reach a wild campsite used by hunters on the shores of the magic Tontouta River in the middle of the night. Can there be any better first impression of a new country than being woken up by birds’ concerts and the morning sun in a save place on a heavenly bit of land?
Travelling inland through the vast and hilly bush on red dirt tracks is like diving into ancient times. In the South we hiked on some fantastic botanical trails to discover sceneries reminding us of the prehistoric Gondwana era. Then again, we were surprised by the differences of the tropical eastcoast and the rather dry, prairie-like westcoast.
To dive into Melanesian culture, we first visited Renzo Piano’s Cultural Centre of Tjibaou, and then spent a day with the chief family of the Werap tribe in Hienghène. Of course we had to respect the local custom by officially asking chief Martial’s permission to visit the land of his ancestors, and after handing over a couple of chocolate bars, he happily accepted and hosted us with a tasty traditional Bounia meal. That’s how we got to taste their energetic and holy Igname (Yam root) for the first time. As we were suffering heavy rainfalls for days, we were glad to spend a night in a traditional hut, but even more glad to mount our tent in the middle of the night, when all kinds of biests tried to fight for more attention than the heavy raindrops crawling through the straw roof. Unfortunately, the tropical depression had a great impact on our discovery trip. One after another, we had to cancel kitesurfing in world-class Poe beach, scuba diving among huge Gorgones in Hienghène, driving scenic roads that were blocked by floodings, and the options to visit a traditional agriculture fair or a coffee festival were postponed. To take a good rest, we once decided to sleep in a hotel. It turned out to be a real flop as the quality of service and the food did not satisfy at all for the price we paid. We believe we were unlucky with our choice.
Overall, we had much fun and got a great insight to the beauty and the potential of this stunning island. We believe, New Caledonia is a great destination for individual travellers who prefer eco-friendly tourism to mass tourism, appreciate and respect well preserved nature and can manage high costs of living. In return, local people are extremely friendly and anticipate help whereever they can, the French engineered roads are in great shape and allow enjoyable cruising, and there are many comfortable picnic-places to have a break and breathe the clear air. We figured out that New Caledonia has nearly as much inhabitable area as Switzerland, but with 220’000 inhabitants only 3% of the Swiss population!
For more pictures of New Caledonia Main Island, click slideshow .
Having Tahitian shell necklaces from Nadège, Christelle, Dyonita and Fabien pending on my front, a Farewell cocktail from the Beachcomber bar resting comfortably in my belly, and with a wide lasting smile on my face from the fresh impressions of snorkelling just hours ago with humpback whales in crystal clear tropical waters, I arrived in New Caledonia’s International Airport with Padi on my side. It was midnight, and it felt strange to have lost a whole calendar day after crossing the dateline in the “wrong” direction. Moreover, we had no reservations for transport or accommodation, so we were bound to improvise. Lucky enough, we met a warmhearted person who enjoyed chatting with us for hours before lending us a rental car for the week. His name is Mark Levy, and I can’t imagine to have discovered New Caledonia without his help and his fascination to share the hidden beauties of his generous country with us. He gave us clear instructions on how to reach a wild campsite used by hunters on the shores of the magic Tontouta River in the middle of the night. Can there be any better first impression of a new country than being woken up by birds’ concerts and the morning sun in a save place on a heavenly bit of land?
Travelling inland through the vast and hilly bush on red dirt tracks is like diving into ancient times. In the South we hiked on some fantastic botanical trails to discover sceneries reminding us of the prehistoric Gondwana era. Then again, we were surprised by the differences of the tropical eastcoast and the rather dry, prairie-like westcoast.
To dive into Melanesian culture, we first visited Renzo Piano’s Cultural Centre of Tjibaou, and then spent a day with the chief family of the Werap tribe in Hienghène. Of course we had to respect the local custom by officially asking chief Martial’s permission to visit the land of his ancestors, and after handing over a couple of chocolate bars, he happily accepted and hosted us with a tasty traditional Bounia meal. That’s how we got to taste their energetic and holy Igname (Yam root) for the first time. As we were suffering heavy rainfalls for days, we were glad to spend a night in a traditional hut, but even more glad to mount our tent in the middle of the night, when all kinds of biests tried to fight for more attention than the heavy raindrops crawling through the straw roof. Unfortunately, the tropical depression had a great impact on our discovery trip. One after another, we had to cancel kitesurfing in world-class Poe beach, scuba diving among huge Gorgones in Hienghène, driving scenic roads that were blocked by floodings, and the options to visit a traditional agriculture fair or a coffee festival were postponed. To take a good rest, we once decided to sleep in a hotel. It turned out to be a real flop as the quality of service and the food did not satisfy at all for the price we paid. We believe we were unlucky with our choice.
Overall, we had much fun and got a great insight to the beauty and the potential of this stunning island. We believe, New Caledonia is a great destination for individual travellers who prefer eco-friendly tourism to mass tourism, appreciate and respect well preserved nature and can manage high costs of living. In return, local people are extremely friendly and anticipate help whereever they can, the French engineered roads are in great shape and allow enjoyable cruising, and there are many comfortable picnic-places to have a break and breathe the clear air. We figured out that New Caledonia has nearly as much inhabitable area as Switzerland, but with 220’000 inhabitants only 3% of the Swiss population!
For more pictures of New Caledonia Main Island, click slideshow .
posted by anh-dao at 9/27/2007 06:29:00 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home