TheGlobe-Trotters

TheGlobe-Trotters

Thursday, February 11, 2016

We Came, We Saw, We Beached, Again

 

We Came, We Saw, We Beached, Again

I just went for a walk around the wide promenade deck, and could not help but marvel at the magnificent vista surrounding our ship. We are at anchor in Tadine Bay, located off the coast of Mare’ Island (pronounced Mah-ray) in New Caledonia. The waters are a pallet of colors ranging from black, to deep blue, to green, and to completely clear. The nearby island is a rich green dotted all over with tall swaying Norfolk Pines, and the sky is an azure blue filled with puffy white clouds.

Our ship swings lazily to and fro from the anchor chain while darting from the vessel in a rhythmic and mesmerizing procession is a flotilla of our tenders sailing in an endless chain back and forth from the shore. It makes no difference if there are any passengers on board, the little craft’s job is to spend the day in a never-ending dance that is carefully orchestrated and timed to the minute. But the dance continues ashore, where Crystal has hired each and every available taxi, bus or van to maintain a continuous shuttle to Yejele Beach, which is roughly 10 miles down the coast from where we are anchored.

WAIT, what is wrong with this picture? Well, for one thing, this is the fourth stop dedicated to simply sitting all day on a beach in the tropical sun, heat, and humidity. There is nothing else offered! A large percentage of the passengers never even bothered going ashore, and of those who did, most go look, perhaps take a quick swim, and then return to the ship. Because this island is home to over six thousand people, it actually offers a number of potentially interesting sights. So, along with our friends Bill and Jayne, we decided to skip yet another beach and to rent a taxi of some kind and explore the island on our own. Sounds easy enough, doesn’t it!

Well the brochure we went down and got last night said “Limited taxis are available on the pier, but it is not advisable to take taxis.” Our question was simple, what did that mean? So, I went to the shore excursion desk and asked that very question. The young lady looked puzzled by my question and then admitted that she had no idea what that meant. After consulting some higher authority in the back room, she returned to explain that we would be going to an island and therefore they could not vouch for the infrastructure. Now you tell me what that meant? All we have visited on this trip are islands. This morning we received our daily ship newsletter and we now have a new song: “It is recommended to all our guests not to take a local taxi, or any other type of transportation that was not arranged in advance.”

Not to be deterred, we saw to it that we went ashore on the first tender, and having done so, we inquired from the shore manager where we could find a taxi. He directed us around the corner, but then returned and informed us there were no taxis on this island. Now I am not the brightest bulb in a room, but when he told us this, we were standing on the pier surrounded by taxis of every conceivable shape and size; so on the surface this made no sense! All of these vehicles, however, had a Crystal sign in their windshield. So we walked over to the local market and found someone who spoke good English, and he informed us that every taxi on the island had been hired for the day by Crystal, and that no taxis would be available for us! So much for our efforts at being a tourist interested in the local culture. Without any other option besides walking, we reluctantly boarded the bus to the beach.

After about 15 minutes we arrive at Yejele Beach, which was dazzling by any standards. The beach was however lined as far as the eye could see with thatched huts hawking every imaginable trinket. Unlike yesterday, we saw no toilets, nor did the ship bring any beverages to the party. It was, just a beach! After about 15 minutes, we boarded a van back to the pier, getting off early so we could walk around some. Unfortunately, other than the Post Office and the local market, everything else was uphill and inland. They actually have a college on the island and an airport, but all were too far to walk, and so we returned to the ship to enjoy a “day at anchor” swinging to and fro.

Jim

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