Port Vila was a great stopover/provisioning spot. Plus due to the wind we had extra time for some fun. After cleaning up the boat with fresh water we relaxed a bit. Alex from SV Blue Beryl swung by as he headed to Customs. Our plan had been to skip Customs here as we had a cruising permit from Port Resolution, but on his return Alex explained that our permit was only valid for the Southern islands. Huh. New plan, Carl and I dinghied over to customs to begin the process. It was not too much of a hassle and other than almost leaving without our new cruising permit (the official thought we were going to be in Port Vila a few weeks and would checkout at a later time), it went smoothly.
We wandered around town in the afternoon walking past a sports arena, the national museum, and checked out our options at the grocery store. I also grabbed a Vodafone SIM card.
The next day we hit the town again, Carl and Roxy headed for the museum while I grabbed some lunch. Soon a text came asking how soon I could get to the museum. On my way! Once there I learned the urgency was because a museum guide, Edgar, was going to provide a private presentation on the history of Vanuatu and the differences/customs of each island. This including learning about one island where cannibalism wasn’t outlawed until 1969 and the practice abolished in 1974. Eck, and more info we found disturbing was that the natives claimed the white people tasted salty while the locals meat had a sweet flavor. History lesson complete he begin making sand art while telling us a story it a sort of poem format. Actually he ended up making two drawings, each one was completed in a continuous line without lifting his finger. Quite simply amazing. Not done yet, he played a native type of flute, before pulling out a large musical instrument with a hundred or so bamboo tubes of different lengths. The Vanuatuan national anthem filled the room as he slowly shook the tubes to form the notes. How special. Following the presentation, we learned he is traveling to Santa Fe, NM in 2025 to be a guest speaker and that he has a book that he wrote on the various sand paintings and stories of Vanuatu. We walked away amazed that we had the luck to meet Edgar and for him to spend so much time educating us.
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