Melissa & Michael McCoy's "Goodness of Life" Trip

Nov 8-25, 2005

Aloha, Bula, Halo and Bon jour!

Michael and I returned from this amazing adventure just days ago. There is no doubt that we moved around a wee bit too much because what I find is that now I MUST go back and spend more time at “almost” each place we visited. (Click here for photos)

FIJI:
Our time in Fiji at the beginning of our vacation was short and very sweet. We stayed at the fabulous Myola Plantation on the Coral Coast which is a luxury villa with 2 plunge pools and a pool. The food was incredible and the service outstanding. We spent time with Karen and Ian, the owners and learned so much about “old Fiji”. It’s always a blessing to spend time with any and all peoples in the Fiji Islands to learn about what was and how it affects what is. The sound of the ocean washing over the reefs that run for miles along this coast was something like soothing back noise for the soul. The beach below Myola is narrow and the snorkeling at high tide reveals many discoveries. We also spent one night at Natadola Beach Resort and found it cute, with good food and the beach is one of the best in Fiji. Right out front you have snorkeling, boogie boarding and some surfing. The beach is huge and good for swimming. There is much construction going on here as it will be a big resort development with golf courses, in the not too distant future. Rumors are.. Four Seasons, Intercontinental and 3 more resorts to be built. Go now while still “native”. You can horseback ride on the beach.

During our time in Fiji I discovered the best sea shelling beach EVER. I am the consummate beach comber and I ogle over my shell “collections” (jars and wooden bowls all over my house) so when I discover a mother load of shells.. With “no one home” I get excited (no living creature in the shell). I am a cone lover (am I losing any of you) and get excited when I look at the unique pattern variations in one species of cone. Well, I like cowries too! I’ll be posting some pictures here of the gems I found.

NEW CALEDONIA
New Caledonia was at the top of my excitement list but did not live up to my expectation. It is only less than 2 hours from Fiji. The flight was fun as it was full of Polynesians from Wallis island (book early.. These flights sell out). They are a very colorful and “authentic” looking Polynesian people and at first I thought that is what the Kanaks looked like in New Caledonia. Not so... Arrival in NC was easy, customs a breeze and then there we were standing on the sidewalk wondering where our “greeter” was. It’s a real challenge to communicate when you do NOT speak French! It is the official language of the country as it is a French island nation, and they have done a pretty thorough job suppressing the native traditions (first disappointment). I can tell you that what little French I knew was polished to a top shine by the time we left the country (7 days later). That was fun! Voila! My inner “french” was satisfied. The other thing I need to tell you here is that 95% of the tourism in NC are Japanese visitors. Mostly honeymooners it seems. As we are “non smokers” and both the Japanese folks and fine French folks smoke (more than a little), you might consider bringing a gas mask along to wear while dining! I’m working on other solutions to the dilemma. I’m pretty tolerant but it got a wee bit out of hand on a regular basis. This is a “disclosure” notation.

Arciel Voyages found us and “voila” they spoke English. Off we went to Kuendu Resort. IN at 8pm and out at 8am. In general I’m not sure I would stay on the main island again except Le Meridien if I needed a big hotel fix. The next day we took a private Helicopter to Isle de Pines. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. While I am writing this I just got “goose bumps”. One of the highlights of the whole trip was this island and I must go back and spend a week, maybe during the Yam Festival in March (so I can experience some culture). The weather here is much cooler than Fiji which I found refreshing. The sun is HOT and the air is cool. Beware of SUNBURN... It sneaks up on you fast! REALLY FAST!

Isle de Pines has some of the most deliriously inviting turquoise waters I have ever laid my eyes on. When I would sit on the beach it was a totally different site as there are all these “pine” trees everywhere (cook pines I believe) and so the name “Isle de Pines”. We stayed at the Le Meridien in a Deluxe Bungalow on the beach. It was a villa set up with 2 rooms and I loved it. The most STUNNING aspect of the whole experience for me was the huge rippled sand bar that came to the surface at low tide. It was the size of a football field. In the day it was fun to walk out so far and be surrounded by “sand”. But it was at night that it was at its best, before bed, when the full moon beams swizzled across the sand bar as my toes dug in the soft sensuous w et sand and incredible star constellations painted the night sky. We were there for 2 nights and this is what I did at the very end of each night. It’s a WOW thing and will impact me for the rest of my life.The last night we had a real fun time with a San Francisco string quartet that were there playing for a private party. They had actually come for the New Caledonia Jazz Festival and this was a “gig” before the jazz festival. It was the Jerry Cohen Violin Jazz Quartet. It was great fun to enjoy them before dinner and then.. While I was twinkle toeing on “my” sandbar by moonlight, the after dinner violin music wafted out to sea and filled the air with sexy strings of music!

The last 3 nights were spent the Coral Palms Resort. The 2 best things about this resort is that we were able to stay in an overwater bungalow the last night which really saved the day. Very nicely appointed and it was like a completely different resort than the rooms on the beach/garden. The other highlight is that I have discovered that I CAN stand up and sing Karaoke! :) I loved the Frenchie MC and all the songs he played (with video). I had never been in a Karaoke bar before. This one was unique as it was open air facing the sea. I loved watching the cute Japanese couples sing, some fantastic Aussie people and even some French folks. We met one American gal (and Kiwi husband) and it was SHE.. Nancy.. That got me up. Lord, if she could get up and do it I could too. So there we were making fools of ourselves. It was fun. I will only enjoy Karaoke in foreign countries where no one knows me!

We never made it to the Loyalty Islands as this is suppose to be the real heaven of New Caledonia. New Caledonia is VERY expensive. The wine is very expensive and not very good. Michael went on one dive in Isle de Pines and it was “okay”. The diving in the Loyalties is suppose to be the best. We did kick around Noumea for a day and would be hard pressed to “recommend” much about it except... A restaurant over the water called the “Roof”. Fantastic and go for sure, lunch or dinner, if you will be in Noumea. We met the General Manager of the Noumea Le Meridien when we were in Vanuatu. If you are going to stay in Noumea, this is the resort to stay at for sure. Voila!

VANUATU
Vanuatu is only 1 hour 15 minutes from Fiji. If you have the time, you really should think about enjoying this country!

Vanuatu has Malaria.. It’s official although we hardly saw 2 mosquitos in 6 nights. We did NOT take any Malaria medication. This is a DISCLOSURE item.

Arriving in Vanuatu: I had to giggle because the “band boys” were dressed in their local dress which is much more primitive than Fiji. I have to report that they DID NOT wear the penisgourds, which may have been just a little too much to take after a long day traveling! :) Oh, if you didn’t know, that is the native dress in some villages. Actually, you may not have known THAT and... You may not have even known “what” Vanuatu is! I snuck on a computer in Vanuatu and Instant Messenger by brother. “Hi, I’m in Vanuatu!” He comes back to me “What is that?” “Silly, a country in the South Pacific near Fiji!” And so it went with more than one person. So, I hope I can shed some light on Vanuatu

Why Vanuatu? Well, I have at least 3 reasons and there have got to be more. The MOST ACCESSIBLE ACTIVE VOLCANO IN THE WORLD, on the Island of Tanna.

Yasur Volcano was 5 times more awesome than I ever imagined.
It is a 6 hour roundtrip with viewing. You drive across the island, across “ash dunes” and and then 15 minute walking distance to the rim. HUGE explosions, billows of spoke and red hot chunks flying everywhere (not near us of course). As darkness fell, the brilliant red streamers coming out of the 2 coughing vents was nothing less than SPECTACULAR. Tanna was an unexpected pleasure at White Grass Ocean Resort. The ONLY nice place to stay (3 Star). Basic “cute”, very comfy beds, spectacular views and sunsets (overlooks a rocky/beachy coastline) and so much more. The food was very very good, the staff friendly and efficient. They are putting in a swimming pool (great.. Since the ocean is not the easiest to get into) and fans in the rooms. From what I can tell, Vanuatu is not as hot as Fiji in gen eral in the summer. The sun was VERY HOT but the air was coolish, with the evenings being chilly (which I love). We stayed for 2 nights at White Grass Ocean and plan on a return trip of at least 4 nights. The pictures attached are our visit to the “Custom Village” as they call it. Custom means “traditional”. Different countries = different meanings.
It is a great 2 hour + experience, like stepping back in time a wee bit. They offer other tours on the island of Tanna including kayaking and snorkeling and another Village visit. All village visits have a fee as does the volcano. Overall, in Vanuatu, the tours can cost you as much or more than the accommodation!

We enjoyed just a few things on the main island of Efate. Cute little Breakas.com is about 8 bungalows on the sunset side of the island. We arrived at 8pm and left at 8am. Huts on the beach, outdoor-ish showers, pool, swim up bar (didn’t have time to use) and dinner served around the swimming pool. Food was pretty good and staff were super friendly with good service. THANK GOD for Aussie Wine that was affordable! Things were looking up quickly. I’m in love with “Jane”, a lorikeet baby bird with a broken leg. She lived in our food at breakfast (if you knew how much I love birds you’d forgive me). I want to start a “save Jane fund” as she was the cutest bird I have ever met and a great snuggler (they sneak in under your hair behind your ear... Ahhh!). I met people at Breakas that were staying there for 10 days. So, cute, affordable, easy to get to (unlike the outer islands which may require unique patience and flexibility).

Bokissa Resort Island off Espiritu Santo was a real find. It had a really nice beach, fantastic snorkeling right off the beach (I even watched a bunch of really big blue parrot fish milling around the rocky area in front of our “waterfront” bungalow). Great swimming with deep delicious water. The diving just right off shore was some of the BEST hard corals I’ve ever had the joy of diving in. Lots of color, staghorns and flat corals and oodles of Anemone Fish and just lots of fish. We wished for a dugong sighting but it didn’t happen. Next trip! A Dugong is like a Manate. Big fluffy sea mammals that bob up and down at the surface and eat lettuce! Well, something like that. We dove on the SS President Coolidge wreck. We were doing 3 dives that day so we did not go deep on inside. It was amazing though. We got down far enough to see portholes and gun are as. The other diver with us swam through the Promenade and saw rifles, helmets and other artifacts. Russell’s eyes were like saucers when he came out of the water. We also dove on Million Dollar Point which is basically a junk yard underwater (long story). For those who might desire to know, the SS President Coolidge was sunk by accident. We ran into two of our own mines. The waters around Espiritu Santo and the many many islands in the area are like a huge protected lagoon and we had up to 100 US ships there at one time. The SS President Coolidge was not informed that they should enter another way into the bay and BOOM. 5000 men lived and 2 died, the Captain and the Engineer. They ran the ship on shore and offloaded everyone and as it sank, it slid down the very steep underwater slopes of the island. It is so steep, that it felt very eerie on our dive accent, nothing gradual to focus on. It was almost straight up. In any event, it was thrilling and maybe, one day, I will overcome my fear of small enclosed ar eas when diving and dive in the ship. Although we were not able to go on any tours while at Bokissa for the 3 nights, there were many interesting tours to choose from. One was a river trip and you saw huge turtles and snorkeled in other pristine reefs. Everyone that did it raved about it. A couple people did see a Dugong. I would go back for a week. I would also stay, once again, in the family bungalow that is exactly on the water with a pretty big deck and fairly private. It’s actually a Deluxe Beach Bungalow with an extra room if you bring family. It is a PERFECT couples accommodation. Right on the water.

Aside from great hospitality on the part of Grant from Destination Pacific (ground operator) and Brian the GM at Iririki (who showed us his property), the only other experience we had was... THE SINGLE MOST DELICIOUS LOBSTER/PRAWN LASAGNA of my life at Tamanu Resort. We had some time to kill in between flights within Vanuatu (be ready for cancellations, delays and hours in between when going from one island to another). Tamanu Resort has 5 very cute plantation style bungalows. The restaurant is rumored to be the best on the island. Right on the beach and sooooo delicious. Great wine list (they do good wine and bread in Vanuatu due to French influence in their history). I would actually like to spend a couple days at this cute little property next time I go to Vanuatu (which should be in 2006).

To sum up Vanuatu, I would go back in a heartbeat and add some new islands. Pentecost is where they do the original “bungy jumping” which is actually “land diving”. It is also where the friendly “men” natives wear those stunning Penis Gourds when they do their dancing so, yes, I must go there! For the culture!
And then there is Epi island which is rumored to have the friendliest Dugong in Vanuatu and a cute “guest house” run by Ex-patriots. And there is one more.. I’m not sure you can go there but you can see it.... James Mitchner’s.. Bali Hai island, a peak shrouded in clouds. Ohhh.. There’s those goose bumps again! Vanuatu has so many islands you will NOT believe it. Big ones, not just dots. I’ll find the name of the Bali Hai one later.

BACK TO FIJI
One night in Fiji so why not experience the “new Westin” which is the old Royal Denarau (Regent). Things are still under renovation .. Lots of construction. We stayed in the Westin room with a Heavenly Bed. Oh my gosh I did not think I would ever enjoy a bed so much in Fiji! They are giving Vatulele a run for their money in the best bed department. Fiji is changing FAST. If you want old Fiji, get out of town and to an outer island. However, as a “resort destination”, Denarau is moving up in the world. We site inspected the Sofitel Fiji which opens Dec 15. They will have the biggest pool in the South Pacific on Dec 15 (move over Outrigger Fiji). They will have high speed internet (oh thank you God) and wait... Oceanfront suites with jacuzzis spa tubs on the balcony! We also site inspected where the Marriott is going in at Momi Bay. Slated to open October 2006, we’ll keep you posted on the most amazing new resort to open in Fiji (big resort).

Dining Tip at Denarau: Cardo’s at Port Denarau. Make reservations early for a waterfront table. Great lobster and pizza. And, after all these years going to Fiji, I discovered just how beautiful it is looking over these waters to those mountains.

After all these years, I am still in LOVE with Fiji where my heart and soul were stolen many many years ago. Her changing faces just give me more facets to love. Fiji, it’s like coming home to a lost love. I arrive, I breathe the air and peace of mind sinks in.

I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it.
We look forward to hearing from you to share all of our experiences. Hiapo has just returned from Tahiti, Cindy and Julie have just returned from Fiji.
Mike was in Vanuatu in October. Many more of us are traveling in 2006 so we not only KNOW but can share the feelings and experiences that are so important in helping you plan your dream vacations.

We are here for you for your Hawaii, South Pacific, Mexico, Caribbean, Europe, Cruise and beyond travel needs.

Mele Kalikimaka Houli Makahiki Hou (Merry Christmas and Happy New Year)

Warm and Sunny Regards from Maui,

Melissa McCoy