Travelling to many countries by myself, with my wife and also with my 6 children has been a wonderful experience. It has included trips to Peru, the Galapagos, Cook Islands, Tahiti and Europe. Read about these travels that have included everything from budget travel to 5 star all-inclusive resorts.
South Pacific Blogs about travel in the South Pacific.
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Posted 05-20-2009 at 02:23 PM by Norm (Norm's Travels)
Iles des Pins – Isle of Pines
A day trip to New Caledonia's “Iles des Pins” is worth the trip although a 2 to 3 day stay would be that much better. It is only a 20 minute flight from New Caledonia's regional Magenta Airport on Air Caledonie. We left early in the morning so that we could enjoy a full day on this unique island.
Here are some great things to do while on the Isle of Pines:
Kanumera Bay – A protected bay with a spectacular white sand beach wrapping around it and its own unique island and small rock formations.
St. Maurice Bay – The location of some interesting Melanesian Totems and a memorial to the local people who died in World War II.
Vao Village – The only village...
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Posted 05-20-2009 at 01:49 PM by Norm (Norm's Travels)
My second day in New Caledonia was spent with one of the islands most popular and knowledgeable guides, Francois Tran from Caledonia Tour Company. We were picked up at our Hotel around 8am and started our trip by taking a short tour through the city of Noumea. After a short drive we were brought to a viewpoint that looked over the city and market of Noumea. It was at that point that we were given a bit of a history lesson on New Caledonia from ancient times to when Captain Cook first saw the island to the days of the United States protecting this strategic location during the Second World War.
After our 20 minute lesson in the sun we headed down the hill to the market for a short stop to look at the fish market,...
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Posted 05-20-2009 at 01:20 PM by Norm (Norm's Travels)
My first look at Noumea in New Caledonia was in awe as I flew over the UNESCO World Heritage lagoon which is the largest lagoon in the world. The turquoise blue waters were in contrast to the hundreds of islands that dotted the water. I could see from this viewpoint why New Caledonia is still a relatively untouched Gem in the pacific. While not all islands were covered in the typical white sand beaches of the South Pacific, plenty of them were.
Upon arriving at the airport we were greeted by Swine Flu masked inspectors that were screening everyone for the recent flu outbreak. I was surprised to see that the Americans (and Mexicans) were delayed about 40 minutes to fill out medical questionnaire forms. In the end they were...
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Posted 05-20-2009 at 01:18 PM by Norm (Norm's Travels)
New Caledonia located 1200 km east of Australia and 1700 km North of New Zealand has three distinct regions. The main island is a large island that would take 4 hours to drive from one end to the other. It is the island that contains the 100,000 person capital city of Noumea. Most of the Europeans that settled here live in or near the capital of Noumea while white settlers seem to congregate to the west shore and the indigenous Melanesians tend to live along the east shore.
To the south is the unique Island of Pines or “Isle des Pins”. This island is a forested with some beautiful beaches and of course, 5 star resorts.
To the East are the three main Loyalty Islands of Ouvea, Lifou and Mare. Ouveau is a beach paradise...
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Posted 05-20-2009 at 11:44 AM by Norm (Norm's Travels)
Auckland
Auckland is a large city with a very distinct skyline thanks to it's popular landmark the Sky Tower. I spent a day in this city which is all a person needs to do while visiting New Zealand. There are a few things to do, but a day is more than enough time to spend in this Capitol of New Zealand.
During my day in Auckland I walked along the marine coastline which was filled with hundreds of sailboats, water taxi's, cargo ships and harbour tour boats. It was low season so the $29 – 90 minute boat tours were offering the first 10 seats for $10 per person. Although I was tempted by the offer I didn't know if I would have enough time so I headed off for the iconic Sky Tower that hovers over double...
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