Blogs from Vanuatu, Oceania - page 8

4 May 2010 We’re all jazzed up about our recent trip to visit Sandy and Justine in central Maewo. The four of us also joined with six volunteers from other islands, a grand total of ten volunteers. It was a good thing there were so many of us as we were helping Sandy and Justine put on a four day Kamp GLOW & BILD for the youth in their area. These camps address issues like leadership, communication, reproductive health, healthy relationships, and domestic violence. For those loyal to this blog, you’ll remember we went to a training on Ambae last August for the same program. Peace Corps Volunteers all over the world are hosting these camps in their countries of service. Sandy had everything about the camp planned to a tee. Food, beds, classrooms, supplies, ... read more

Hello to Sher’s loyal readers! I wanted to add a short note to her blog, hoping you’ll appreciate an “outsider’s perspective” on life in Vanuatu. As I write this, I’ve happily digested all my malaria pills, and can hardly believe it’s been more than six weeks since I saw Sher and Justin. My first impression of Vanuatu was hot, humid, hot, hot, hot. I flew to Port Vila via Sydney from Hobart, Tasmania, where my ship arrived after spending two months in Antarctica. My poor body was acclimated to temperatures below freezing, so Vanuatu’s heat and humidity was an extreme shock to my system. As Sher mentioned, I’ve traveled extensively, including a summer in rural Mexico. I lived with no plumbing and very limited electricity, teaching English at the local schools. Throughout my week in Vanuatu, ... read more

finally a blog. =) it's officially summer for this little gorilla. i'm hanging at my new house in pitt and will be settled in the next few weeks. i plan to work and take a geography class and relax. getting ready to head to frontenac to run the trails. take care - b 23 March 2010 My good friend from college, Jamie, came to play tourist and visit Justin and I in this past week. We now have been blessed with two rounds of visitors during our Peace Corps service and are grateful, especially given how far away from our homeland we are. Having visitors puts a new perspective on our life here; what we no longer regard as different or foreign (removing our shoes before entering any building, including stores and churches), what annoyances we ... read more

At the airport the guy on the desk said he new of a place we could stay, some new bungalows so we booked that for one night, then we got talking to the owner of one of the 2 expensive resorts on Tanna and a photographer that was going to take pictures of the volcano for a new tour they were setting up. They told us how there were no tourists at the moment, talked about the tour and somehow it ended up that Andy invited us along. The owner Huey kept saying we should stay at his place but we knew the price (about 300 AU per night plus), were we booked was (we thought) 40. In the end he said he would match our current price just to get people there, so we agreed ... read more

Vanuatu, check the map!... read more