South Pacific Cruise - Day 5 ( Part 1) - Vanuatu, Mystery Island
By Cruising With Honey - 17:23
Mystery Island
It was about noon, and we had been on Mystery Island for about three hours. I was sulking under a palm tree, alone. The youngest honeybees had monopolised Mr Cruising With Honey’s time, and my eldest (who is apparently allergic to sand and swimming and tropical islands) was sitting in her jeans and sneakers five metres away, turning a brighter shade of beetroot by the second, too stubborn to take a dip. Is this what family holidays are all about? Is it just my brood who don’t know how to fun together? Humph. I sighed audibly, feeling sorry for myself.A whiney voice to my right caught my attention.
“No, mummmmmmm, you have to stand UP and keep your finger on the button!”
“I am! I am! Here, I’ve taken five photos”
“MUUUMMMMMM no, you’re the worst! That’s NOT ENOUGH!!!!!”
There, a gorgeous young teen was posing, her mother, patiently trying to get that perfect Instagrammable holiday snap. #WishYouWereHere #Hot #Girl
“You look great!” exasperated the mum tried to reassure her offspring. “I’m not taking any more photos, they all look the same.”
“I HATE YOU!!!” The teen screamed. They both stormed off in separate directions, sending sand flying up into the humidity.
I looked back at my brood, reassured that, yes, I was having a ‘normal’ family holiday.
I looked around this idyllic island and the breathtaking view snapped me back to reality. Mystery Island was more than I expected. It was a place I had seen in my dreams. Pinching myself at how privileged I was, I shook away the annoyance and went to explore.
It might sound silly, but the one thing I truly wanted was to drink/eat a fresh coconut. After dropping off the school supplies, I lazily walked around the market stalls, picking up trinkets and marvelling at the hair braiding skills of the local women. Finally, a coconut vendor! Watching this man deftly hack at the fresh coconut with a machete (yes, he still had all his fingers), I greedily handed over my $3 and gulped at the refreshing juice. Coconut in hand I decided to walk around the Island, drinking in the natural beauty, my thoughts punctuated by the harmonies of the local people singing. I felt giddy, my senses overloaded.
Suddenly, I heard a propeller in the distance. Was I dreaming? Around me beautiful children started gathering, excited faces lighting up. The sound got louder and it was then I realised I had stumbled upon an airstrip. I pointed to the sky, “A plane, a plane!” Had I been transported to Fantasy Island and transformed into Tattoo? (But where was Mr Roark?) A twin engine Air Vanuatu landed right before my eyes. Certainly something you don’t see every day!
Since, my kids didn’t want anything to do with me, I spent the remainder of the day meeting the gorgeous kids and eating more coconuts - three in total. By the late afternoon, blue bottles had staked their claim and stung more than a few victims. Barking at my kids to get of the water, we proceeded to take the obligatory pics in the Cannibal Pot and hold the utterly delightful Romeo the Iguana. The tropical drizzle set in and it was time to bade Mystery Island adieu.
I can’t quite put my finger on it, but this little drop in the ocean cast a spell over me. It was serene and physically beautiful, but also has a certain mystique about it. Maybe that’s how it got its name...