Cool, refreshing and exotic. This was our day in Port Vila.
After much deliberation over which shore tour we were going to book, we were so glad we chose a goody. Vila has so much on offer and there is truly something that will suit anyone’s taste. On the ship there are printouts of all the shore tours that P&O themselves offer and arrange. Out of all the stops in the pacific, Vila must have the most on offer with 6 A4 pages of tours listed. Having been to Port Vila a couple of years ago, we had already covered the Blue Lagoon, Ekasup Cultural Village where you learn about the traditional ways and see the brave boys become men walking over the bed of hot coals, and to the Turtle Sanctuary. This time we opted to do something a little different and visit a private estate known as ‘Eden on the River’. This was the Waterfall Eco Tour and it was suitable for families. It was an early start to the day meeting our local tour guide at the Port at 8.30am. Our tour took us through the streets and out to the remote rural areas of Vila. We were able to see 1st hand the recovery process from the Cyclone which tore through, just over 5 months ago. We learnt that even though Mother Nature used her force and removed a lot on her path, within 2 weeks she miraculously recovered. The Ni-Vanuatu’s made a point of thanking us (tourists/Aussies/Kiwis) for our contribution in helping with aide. Even if we personally were not there helping with their recovery, they felt very strongly in thanking us all for our Counties efforts. A very humbling moment. I love how they just got on with it and were grateful for everything they have. Up this massive dusty unsealed hill, the road took us to the top where there was a sign pointing left to ‘Eden on the River’. Through the gates we are greeted by paradise. Green pastures and spots of colour from the flowers that are returning. We get out of the van and are welcomed by our 2 other local guides who work on the plantation. They speak about the owners (An Aussie and his New Zealand wife) who brought the Estate. Since then they have built tropical gardens and farming the land. The Cyclone went through their land but luckily their home was saved. Since then, they have been busy tidying up what they could. Their Plantation consists of its own rainforest and the river system runs through their land. Tropical waterfalls are the highlight and this is where we were able to go tubing. The fresh water was a lovely cool temperature and once acclimatised its beautiful in. Fresh water fish were also found at the entry into the waterhole. Large and small tyre tubes make for a fun time. Chloe, Dave and I were able to make it up to the waterfall and even swim under/behind its force. Josh was happy to sit in his tube and be pushed around the lake. (He is not a fan of cool water).
Even though he was not a fan of the water, Josh made a friend who he became attached to straight away, the owner’s dog, Snow. A big beautiful dog who was happy to stroll along with us down to the river and back up to the house when it was time to return.
As we made our way back to the house for our morning tea, the tropical weather took a turn and it poured with rain. It was fine for the most part as we were already wet from our swim but it was more a concern for our camera and bag which I covered with my towel. It soon cleared and the sun returned.
Morning tea was all the seasonal fruits from the plantation. There were even fresh picked peanuts. Lovely finger bananas, passionfruit, coconut, watermelon and my favourite were the grapefruit. The grapefruit comes in a variety of colours from yellow to green through to pinks but its sweet, nothing like our tart grapefruit here.
It was the conclusion of our tour and we returned to the ship by our mini-bus. It was just one of our highlights from our cruise.
Mystery Island is next… Stay tuned.
