I’m sitting in Baufield International Airport (VLI). I didn’t get back to the blog last night, but I’m here now. As far as airports go, it’s not the greatest. I had hope this morning after reading that you could pay for entry into the lounge, but turns out that ended in 2024. I’m not a priority pass member and I’m not flying business so that means I’m stuck with the plebs. Plastic seats, expensive food & drink and probably the worst think is no air conditioning. I’ve grown accustomed to lounge access, but even when it’s not availed most airports these days have A/C and probably more comfortable seats, but I digress.
The flight in was slightly delayed, but we’re only slated to leave 10 minutes late and still arrive in Brisbane on schedule. It’s a 3 hour flight, but sometimes done a little bit quicker. Row 4 was all taken, but I managed to snag 13D which is an exit row, so I’m not complaining. Now that I’ve had my rant about the airport and updated you on my flight information I can get back to my holiday.
It’s Thursday and there was sun, very exciting! Having said that I still slept in, I was still in relax & recover mode, but I wanted to make the most of it. A bit before lunch I decided to walk down the road to the ‘Foro Store’ which was apparently a grocery store. It turned out to be a lot smaller than I imagined (thing small IGA, maybe in a country town) so there wasn’t a lot of options but I got some Vegemite, fresh bread and a few other things – enough to pass for lunch anyway.
After that I decided to take out one of the Kayak’s and spent some time paddling around Mele Bay right outside our hotel. Then I went for a swim, the water was warm but still refreshing. I spend a bit of time lying in the sun before heading back inside. It was an enjoyable afternoon. After that I enquired about a full island tour the next day and was told that wouldn’t be a problem, all organised for a 9.30 pickup.
I’m now on the plane from Port Vila to Brisbane. In theory, at least some of this flight has internet, but I don’t have it currently so it might be Brisbane Airport before this can be uploaded. So after sorting the tour I went back to my room, showered and rested. It was time for night 2 of my cocktail tour. I had a blue lagoon which I found rather disappointing and a tequila sunrise which In enjoyed, currently my second favourite after the pina colada the previous night. As it was sunny I did manage to get some excellent photos of the sunset – it was the only might where the sunset was really good so I’m glad I managed to see it.
After that I went back to my room with dinner which was the steak and pepper pie. It was delicious and I decided that I might have that again in the future. Then it was time for the FPS IC meeting to discuss initial preparations and answer questions for those who had been invited. It seemed to be a helpful discussion. After that, it was reading, TV bed. Here are some photos.
Still setting on the deck, and having just ordered dinner we’ve made it to Wednesday! This day was uneventful, I didn’t do much of anything at all! To be fair, it was drizzling most of the day so it wasn’t the nicest weather to be out and about. I really don’t think I did much. I slept, probably wasted time on my iPad, tried to make plans for activities I wanted to do for the rest of the week. I think I had coffee in my room. For lunch I had the lettuce, chicken and mayo sandwich. It was nice, it was a sandwich. In the evening I started my cocktail tour with a Pina Colada – it was good! I’d had normal fish and chips the night before, so I thought I’d have the grilled fish and chips at the pool bar. I wasn’t disappointed.
Wow, what an uneventful day. However it does give rise to a dilemma I have, especially with holidays on the shorter side. On one hand, I’m in another country, I flew 7 hours to get here, I want to explore, go about and do things. The other hand, I’ve just come of an exhausting camp, the few weeks before that were also exhausting, I want to eat, sleep, read and watch mindless TV shows. Yes I can do that at home. But it’s not as relaxing, it’s not away, it’s not the same. I don’t have a solution, but it is a tension I feel.
Dinner has arrived and I’m back in my room, so let’s make this a short post. No pictures sorry, but I promise the ones in the days to come are pretty good. Let’s see if I manage to pick the blog up again after I’ve eaten. Then again it might be a good airport / plan activity tomorrow…
It’s now Saturday, so I haven’t done a great job of doing any updates for most of the trip. In fact I’ve spend a surprisingly and refreshingly small amount of time in front of my computer. I have watched some TV shows on my iPad, but I’m pretty sure that counts as relaxation.
Let’s go back to Tuesday. Just before my flight was due to board I found an ATM and then got ripped off by the currency exchange people – I got VT6k for just under $100. By comparison the xe rate would have be at about VT8500. I guess that’s why the currency conversion place didn’t charge fees! I know the airport is a bad place to get currency (at least exchange rate wise), but the lead up to this trip was pretty rushed and I felt it would be prudent to have some cash. Anyhow, we boarded, not business this time, but I can’t complain about 4C with the whole 3 seats on my side to myself! I elected for no food and coffee. But I think I still dosed for a decent portion of the trip. I watched some of the Taylor Swift documentary but a lot of it’s a blur.
Immigration was quick and easy – Vanuatu is one of the countries that still does stamps, so I actually have a stamp in my passport now! As promised, the driver was waiting with a sign with my name on it. It was a slightly shorter drive that I thought, it took less than 15 minutes to get to the hotel. Meaning all said and done I was at the hotel pretty close to 1pm from memory. My room was ready which was nice. It gave me time to get in, get unpacked (I actually used the draws, which I almost never do) and rest for a moment before I dialled in for our Camping Ground review meeting.
The accommodation is nice. As I’m typing this, I’m sitting out on the back deck, looking over the ocean and sipping on a Pacific Island Ice Tea, I’m thankful for the blessings. I think I got the lowest quality room, in terms of view and amenities but it’s more than adequate for what I need. I liked the idea of having a kitchenette, but in hindsight I’ve used the kettle and the fridge – many hotels have these. I like the location, despite the fact that is is a bit out of Port Vila itself. I love the convenience of the Pool Bar and the food. The rooms are comfortable, albeit with too many bugs but I think that’s the climate. The internet is starlink and decently fast, even if I do get occasional instances of drop out. I digress. There are photos below.
The rest of Tuesday wasn’t much. Meeting. Nap. Dinner at the Beach Bar. Sleep. Holiday = started. Well this got long, silly me thinking I’d cover the whole holiday in one post! If you made it this far, well done – you get photos!
