We had heard that there was going to be a big parade at 0800. Today was going to be an exceptionally busy day, but we didn’t want to miss out on the public celebration of a big holiday, the 27th anniversary of the country’s independence. We were in town right at 0800. It turned out to be a ceremony, not a parade. Across from the produce market, in front of one of the government buildings, there was a small podium set up. There were a dozen official looking people seated behind the podium. In the street was a small squad of soldiers. The whole area was surrounded by police. The spectators mostly stayed on the sidewalk by the market. The ceremony began with the usual formalities flag salute, reading of a portion of the constitution, etc. Everything was in French, English and Bislama, so it took a while with the three translations. Then the president of Vanuatu gave a long speech. Not long after he started, it began to pour down rain. We feel sorry for those poor soldiers that had to stand in the rain. Here is a photo of the president greeting the soldiers before walking up to the podium.

We listened to the speech for a while, but we realized we were running out of time and headed to the other end of Lini Highway to run a couple of errands and eat breakfast. We walked back through the park, where the vendors were all set up and ready for business. There was already had a good sized crowd even though it was early. We passed by the produce market, where the ceremony appeared to be long over and done with. We headed back to Kosmos to grab our overnight bags and get her ready to be left for the night. We were buzzing with nervous anticipation about this trip to Tanna. First and foremost, we were leaving our baby. We have not spent a night away from Kosmos since leaving San Diego. The trip was kind of on the expensive side and we were not sure what to expect. Would the trip be a dud?

The island of Tanna is one of the most southern islands in Vanuatu. It has a population of 33,000. Tanna is famous for its volcano, Mt. Yasur, which is the most accessible active volcano in the world. We were making a super quick trip to Tanna to see the volcano. We had considered taking Kosmos, but decided the plane was a better plan for two reasons. One, the winds were coming from the wrong direction for the anchorage in Tanna, so it would be uncomfortable there now. Second, we didn’t have very much time in Vanuatu and we decided taking Kosmos down south to Tanna, then up to the north to Espiritu Santo would just take way too much time.

We were early to the dinghy dock, but the tour operator’s daughter was already waiting for us when we arrived. They whisked us off to the domestic terminal of the airport, a tiny, low single story building. We checked into our flight. We were very early, so we had a long wait. When it was time to board, we walked across the tarmac in a single file and climbed the stairs into a small plane that seated about 40. No security check, no confiscating liquids, no interrogation. Wow. If only all flights could be so hassle free. The flight itself was only 40 minutes. We could see all the whitecaps in the ocean below, reaffirming we had made the right choice by flying.

The airport in Tanna is just a single low building on a runway. It is on the west side of the island. There was someone waiting for us when we arrived. His name is Phillip. He was going to be our tour guide to the volcano and he is part owner, along with three of his brothers, of the bungalows we were staying at. We loaded into a five seat 4 wheel drive pick up truck with the driver. Our tour guide, his wife, 4 kids, two other hotel guests and another gentleman all loaded into the bed of the pickup truck.

We took a dirt road through the interior of the island to the east side. The road is bumpy and hilly, cutting through dense, fertile jungle and offering stunning views from all the peaks. It reminded us a lot of our tour of Nuka Hiva with Richard Dean. It was a pretty long drive. We passed a few villages, and like Epule Village, we could see a handful of small homes, most made with an odd combination of modern and traditional home building materials. We also passed several vehicles along the way, all of them pickups with just as many people crammed into the bed of the truck, if not more. Another thing you’d never see in the U.S.

We came to an area that looked almost like moonscape. It was a giant, empty expanse of ash and scattered rocks at the base of a big hill. It looks just like Dumont Dunes in California. Turns out the top of the hill is the volcano and the area below it that is void of foliage used to be a lake that had recently drained away.

We cut through the ash and picked up the road at the other side of the dry lake bed, turning off into the bungalows just a couple minutes after picking up the road again. It was about 1700 (5:00 pm). We were told we needed to set our stuff down quickly and make our way up the volcano right away.

There is a road that leads almost to the peak of the volcano. We had assumed we would be driven up there as a part of the tour package (even though ride up was never mentioned in the ad). It turns out the truck does not belong to the bungalows and if we wanted a ride up it would be an extra $15.00 for the driver of the vehicle, or our guide would happily escort us up the mountain by foot for free. It would be an hour long hike, so we opted for the drive.

The accommodation grounds are adorable. Someone has put a lot of love into making it a nice place. The buildings are made of traditional materials. The main house, with the kitchen and eating area, is near the road. There are several walkways lined with plants that lead to the individual huts. In between the walkways is a neatly kept garden that somewhat shelters the bungalows from view, giving a sense of being in a private place out in the wilderness. The ground is soft ash, which is not as smooshy as sand. It is gentle on your feet, like walking on carpet. Eric and Christi were assigned a room with a queen bed and a single bed. Jaime was assigned a similar room. There are a few bungalows in various stages of construction, as well.

It turns out the bungalows are only a few hundred yards from the base of the volcano road. The road up was pretty steep and rougher than the road from the airport. They must tear through tires and shocks out here. We were dropped off at the end of the road. There is a mail box there, which we think is funny. The only mail box on a volcano in the world. Too bad we didn’t bring any postcards!

Like the waterfall, there is a rope handrail that guides you up the mountain. It is a steep, but surprisingly short, walk up to the crest. We could hear the volcano rumbling as we approached. It is a deep, almost anguished sounding groan that reverberates through you. As we got to the crest”¦

To be continued”¦”¦.