March 6 - Praying for the people of Vanuatu

We’ve been slagging Oceania a lot in this blog.  In fairness, we will give credit where credit is due.  The housekeeping staff have been great.  Margaryta and Rizy clean our room at least twice a day. The restaurant staff now knows us by our first names now, and the head waiter has talked to chef so that  Marg and Trudy are now receiving Gluten free options for their meals, including desserts.  He comes over several times during the meal to ensure everything is OK. The onboard communication has also improved, and we have been kept informed on what was happening in Vanuatu.

Midmorning, we heard the sad news that the Vanuatu government would not accept the provisions from the ship, and they had denied it entry to the port. It seems that the military has taken on the responsibility for the recovery effort and is giving highest priority to restoring essential services, such as power and running water. I had read that the Australian government was sending in a military squad with heavy equipment to assist in the recovery effort.

From our cabin, we did get to see the main island in Vanuatu from about a kilometer from the shore. I’m beginning to think we’re like those passengers on cruise ships during the beginning of Covid, who sail around the seas looking for a port to take them in.

The weather has turned very tropical. It is very hot and humid. The reprise from the rough seas was short lived.  We are starting to see swells in 2½ meter range.  This makes it very hard to walk and we’re all like drunken sailors staggering around all over the place. 

Marg is continuing her bridge class.  She has done well in the practice hands.  Soon they will start to teach the bidding rules and conventions.

While Marg was at her Bridge class, I went to see a lecture on the dynamics of isolated villages, in particular Pitcairn Island.  This island of about 50 inhabitants is visited by supply vessels about six times a year and is there only contact with the outside world. Internet and satellite TV is spotty at best. Unfortunately, due to this isolation sexual abuse of children became normal and accepted.  It was only recently that the British government has stepped in a convicted some of these monsters.

Marg was all smiles tonight at dinner. For dessert the chef had prepared for both her and Trudy a flourless chocolate cake. It is one of Marg’s favourites. It made my baked banana pudding look bland.

For the evening’s entertainment, we had second performance by Annie Francis. It was mainly songs from the 60s, but it ended up with a song about yodeling.  It was very strange.

Speaking of  a strange coincident, earlier this morning Marg told me that she had been thinking about her Dad and how he would have loved being on this boat, listening to the ragtime jazz band that was playing in the late night lounge. Then in the afternoon, I saw a Facebook posting from Kari saying how she had been thinking about her gradfather and missing him. Connected by that strange bond between mother and daughter, even halfway across the world.