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| Thread ID: 118029 | 2011-05-16 17:29:00 | PORT VILA, VANUATU Questions | SurferJoe46 (51) | PC World Chat |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 1202549 | 2011-05-16 17:29:00 | Any of youse guys been there? I'd like to get some info, not the tourist stuff - but what type of a place is it and is it some place that you'd live? Not planning a trip for myself, but I have a friend considering moving there - don't ask why when he could go to Belize better and be very accepted as a retired US ex-pat . On G-Maps it looks very small and a walk-around might take a day at the most . What gives about the place? Is it a nice place to live? It DOES look warmer and therefor not so overrun with penguins like Upsidedown Land . |
SurferJoe46 (51) | ||
| 1202550 | 2011-05-16 23:03:00 | en.wikipedia.org www.onlineopinion.com.au I'd never live there. Nothing but a spot of dirt in the middle of the ocean and no work. Not even cheap to buy a house. Unless you build one out of coconut fronds maybe. |
pctek (84) | ||
| 1202551 | 2011-05-17 00:30:00 | Kinda looks that way. I wonder if the Google Street View cars were there yet - or ever gonna be. |
SurferJoe46 (51) | ||
| 1202552 | 2011-05-17 03:51:00 | Any of youse guys been there? Yep, I have been to Port Vila (three times now), but have only spent a day there, was there on a cruise . On G-Maps it looks very small and a walk-around might take a day at the most . [/QUOTE] I don't think so (to do the town, you are looking at a few days if not a week or longer to walk around the hole of Port Vila), Port Vila is quite a big place, and the island is quite a big island . Have a look here: . wikipedia . org/wiki/Port_Vila" target="_blank">en . wikipedia . org and do a Google search, you should be able to find more about Port Vila . |
stu161204 (123) | ||
| 1202553 | 2011-05-17 16:50:00 | Hi Joe, I've spent over 4 weeks working in Vanuatu (main island of Efate). Its a great place. It's a lot bigger than "a day walk round". It's very much like most Pacific islands where the indigenous people are usually the poorer people. The immigrant population (mainly Chinese in Vanuatu) are the more affluent and own a lot of the businesses. Prices for land is really high, especially around the coastal areas well beyond the means of local people. It is also a tax haven for a lot of people that live there for 1/2 a year + 1 day (a lot of rich Australians). Import tax is really high (I.E. Coke cost around $US4 a large bottle or more than $US1 a can). Local goods are cheap. No shopping Sunday (everyone goes to Church). Like all other pacific islands everything is done on "island time" i.e. when they get round to it. "Island time" = normal time x 10, and the quality suffers. It’s very important that you get use to "island time" or you'll go mad. It makes for a great relaxing holiday but if you live or work there it is can drive you crazy. The local people are very friendly and would give you the shirt off their back. This also works the other way around though. If you buy them a drink or give them a gift they will expect you to do continue to buy them drinks, give them gifts or support them etc. Non local people can be put off by this type of behaviour. It's not a greed thing, it’s a cultural thing. Because they are so poor that no one owns anything of value and they all share (families, communities, church groups, etc) so those who are better off share with those who are less fortunate. Once you understand this and adjust for it they are the most wonderful people. Services; banking, medical, dental, roading etc are always behind compared to the "western world" but of sufficient quality for "westerners" to be able to cope. Like all Pacific islands the humidity eventually destroys everything if they are not well maintained. e.g. On one "bus" trip I could see the road through the floor of the "bus" (small vans they use to drive people around). Corrosion is a problem of high humidity and closeness to the sea. Oh and the local beer is just great..... |
porkster (6331) | ||
| 1202554 | 2011-05-17 17:08:00 | That's exactly the kind of information I am seeking . I needed to get the resident-human feedback and not the Chamber Of Commerce's version of the island . What's the food quality? Is it mostly local produce or a lot of imports from other lands? This part may be a make-or-break condition for my friend . I think his mental pictures of lazing on a hammock strung between two palm trees with an umbrella'd blue alcoholic drink in one hand and watching semi-naked brown skinned native girls frolicking in the surf is a little far fetched - so there's that to dismiss too . I'm just trying to damper the sunshine that's been packed up his tailpipe and keep him from a huge social- and mental imagery- faux pas . Youse guys personally got a small island for sale with that sort of atmosphere? - and NO - there shouldn't be any penguins on it either . It doesn't have to be very big but it should have a McDonald's . And a liquor store . |
SurferJoe46 (51) | ||
| 1202555 | 2011-05-18 20:01:00 | Locals exist on a diet of coconuts, fish, bananas, breadfruit and other jungle produce. They keep pigs and some even keep cattle. (Actually beef from cattle raised on Santos, another island in the Vanuatu chain, is said to be the best in the world and I agree but it's beyond the abilities of the locals to be able to afford it). There are 2 supermarkets (called Mache') in Efat, not the size of western supermarkets but large enough. They carry all the western style foods (there are a lot of tourist, tax dodgers and immigrants) but over all it’s a little more price than we westerners are use to (import tax strikes again). There is (well was when I was there) no local tax on earnings etc. Almost all tax is from import duty, although the local government owns the power generation, telecom, breweries, airport, etc. There is no McDonalds, KFC, etc. but it does have a local burger bar with its on big Mac burger (Two all beef patties, special sauce, lettuce, cheese, pickles, onions on a sesame seed bun) that’s far better and bigger than the real Big Mac and their yam chips are delicious. |
porkster (6331) | ||
| 1202556 | 2011-05-18 22:27:00 | Sounds like a set from 'The Adventures Of The Kon-Tiki', which was an old television show loosely based on the James A. Michner's book of same title. Anyone remember that show? Digression again - old guys are like that. |
SurferJoe46 (51) | ||
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