Champagne Bay: The Port of Happiness

Written: 2/5/2016

Today was AWESOME! Ken and I agree that it was the best day so far. Despite other days having snorkeling and turtles and horseback riding through the rainforest (we did that yesterday), today was the best.

Today, we were in Champagne Bay, which is a lazy little bay on an island of Vanutu that literally has no people living in the bay – they all live in a city about 45 mintues away. But for curise ships, they come in and set up. The women man the rows and rows of shops along the beach, and the men offer tours.  Ken and I walked in not knowing what to expect. We knew that the blue holes sounded cool  (big pools of water that are super super blue for some reason unknown to us), and we didn’t want to snorkel.

Just by walking around and being offered a million tours, we noticed that one person’s offer stood out. He mentioned a rope swing. We walked far away from the chaos to decide what we wanted to do, and we were both thinking the same thing: blue hole and rope swing.

So we went back looking for Waass, who had offered the rope swing. We were going to also ask him to take us to a blue hole. It had turned out, though, that during our dilly dallying (and shopping – we bought shorts for me to wear swimming), Waas had left with a different tour. We eventually found someone that was willing to listen to us, instead of try and get us to go snorkeling or to a coconut plantation. We explained that we just wanted to go to a blue hole and the rope swing. That’s it. We negotiated the price, the guy we were talking with called over a driver, and we were off!!

Our driver – Jean Pierre – was awesome. Super kind and friendly. As he drove, he would explain what we were looking at. What fruits we were passing, who owned the coconut plantations, how coconuts were prepared and exported, etc. We learned so much! It was a little funny, because every time we asked a question, he would slow the car way down to hear us. Sometimes even stopping in the middle of the highway. But the other drivers didn’t seem to mind, they would just go around.

Ken’s Thoughts: I thought that he gave us a very nice tour, and basic understanding of the island, and the culture, and the layout. Also about coconuts, the different plantations, and the import/export of the island. It was very pleasant.

Then he stopped on this little river with some guys sitting on some overturned dugout canoes. He got out and started talking to them. Then he came back and said that to get to the blue hole where we were going, we would either drive in ($5 admittance per person) or take a canoe in ($10 for the canoe per person). Well, that was a no brainer for us. We opted for the canoe, and Ken and I climbed in. It was the kind of dugout canoe that has a parallel connected log for balancing. Ken was in front, I was in the middle, and then the guy paddling was in the back. Jean Pierre said that he would meet us at the blue hole.

The ride in the canoe was amazing. The water was so clear, you could see all the way to the bottom, including all the fish. Nothing on the island can kill you (praise God!), so we were thankful to not have to worry about snakes or crocodiles or something. We could just enjoy the overhanging greenery, the lush forests, the clear and increasingly blue water, and – when the skies opened up – the warm rain. It couldn’t have been better. I felt like we had stepped right out of a fairy tale, or right into a romantic comedy placed on a post card. It was the best.

Then, we saw a little docking station a bit ahead, and we also saw – could it be!!!??? – and awesome rope swing! We were going to rope swing INTO a blue hole? Life doesn’t get better than this.  That was the catchphrase of the day.

Ken’s thoughts: Beautiful. The water was unbelievable, aquamarine blue. And it was just so peaceful, even though you could hear all the bugs and animals chirping in the brush around us. But the foliage was so thick, it really did feel like we were canoeing through the rain forest. Also, the canoe was clearly homemade, which I was very impressed by. Then, about half way through, when the rain kicked in, it was just so beautiful out there. And surprising, because the rain felt really nice. It was actually a fun experience, instead of cold rain back home. That’s my thoughts.

Then we climbed onto the shore. I put on my shorts to cover the worst of the sunburn from a few days ago, and stripped down to my bathing suit from my dress. Very quickly, Ken and I were in our bathing suits and ready for the water. We saw two people go off the rope swing ahead of us, so we new it was safe. The water was so clear, and so suddenly deep. We used a big hook to pull the rope swing in from the middle of the deep, royal blue swimming hole, and then pulled it over to the platform. Then you climb up a little ladder to a higher platform, hold on tight – and swing!

We swung about 25 feet out to the middle of the pool, and then dropped  about eight feet into the sapphire water. It felt SO GOOD. Oh my gosh, it felt good. There were a few people there before us, so we had to share the rope, but Ken and I both got a good number of swings in. The other girl – who was there even before us – said during her turn when she was on the top platform, convincing herself to jump, “You’d think after going a few times that it would be easy, but I’m not fearless like you.” Comments like that always make me smile.

Ken and I took lots of videos, too. I hope to eventually put together a “honeymoon” video to capture all these moments, so we’ll see how that goes.

We kept going on the rope swing until another group arrived, and we took that as our queue to exit. We both went a time or two more, than gathered up our stuff to go meet Jean Pierre.

Ken’s thoughts: I forgot how much work it takes to float in non-salt water after all of our days of snorkeling in the ocean.  I couldn’t believe how blue the hole was, especially in contrast with the deep rainforest colors around it. The spot felt so isolated and relaxing, that I really enjoyed it. Also, the family that was there before us was very friendly. I enjoyed sharing the watering hole with them. The swing was a ton of fun. Every time I go off a rope swing, the first time I go up a rope swing, my fear of heights kicks back in a little bit. But I had a really good time going off it. And I think the GoPro footage will be a lot of fun. That’s all I got.

Then it was back to the car to head home. We were expecting to go to two locations (rope swing and blue hole), but we felt like we scored having them two in one. Before we got in the car, Jean Pierre cut open for us a coconut that he had picked up during our drive up (he had pulled over and picked it up off the ground). It was crazy seeing the coconut opened. Something I love about traveling is seeing how food is grown. I didn’t realize that the coconuts that we buy in the store were originally covered by layers and layers of husk. Did you know that? Maybe. That’s okay, we both know it now.

Anyways, he shucked and pulled back all the husk, then cut it straight in half and let us drink the milk and eat some of the meat. It was SO GOOD, and this coming from someone that’s had a coconut every day for the past few days. Delicious.

Then we got into the car to head home. Jean Pierre kept being a fantastic guide, telling us about what we were passing, slowing down to hear and answer our questions. It was great. Then he saw a little stand on the side of the road, and he asked if we wanted to try an orange. Yep! We definitely did.

He pulled over, and got out and bought us an orange that was bigger than a softball. It seemed a bit more like a grapefruit, but really, was like nothing we had ever seen. He cut it open for us with his mini machete, and we ate it and got juice everywhere, and it was so good. Then he asked if we wanted to try a passion fruit, and he picked one off the ground and split it open. We said we definitely did, and we scooped out the innards of our giant passion fruit halves with our tongues. Similar to a pomegranate, you eat the seeds of a passion fruit. But unlike a pomegranate, they’re all loose and floating around the inside of the fruit. It was delicious, and we were so happy. This day couldn’t get any better.

But wait! There’s more!!

A short drive after that, we saw a large fruit stand. He asked if we wanted to pull over, and we said: Yes!!!! So we pulled over, and looked at all the fruits. He asked what we wanted, and we said we weren’t sure, and we trusted him. He picked out three coconuts, and cut off the tops so we could drink out the milk – so good! Now THIS was the best coconut I’ve ever had! Remember, I’m becoming a coconut expert. Then he broke them open and we ate the fleshy inside. We were thinking we were satisfied, but after a quick poddy break and a chance to realize that there was still a bunch of fruit over there we wanted to eat, we asked if we could get more. So we went back and got a big thing of bananas and a pineapple.

He suggested that we drive up a bit to the shade (he had seen me re-applying sunscreen like the irish leperchon I am), so we got into the car, drove up to the shade, and got out of the car to feast on our new fruit. I swear, the bananas and pineapple were not even the same fruit we have back in the states. They were explosions of flavor! The pineapple was SO juicy and sweet – not at all acidic. The banana was like banana ice cream on steroids. I image Ken will explaint he flavors in a bit more flavor, so I’ll leave that to his part, but let me just tell you: they were great.

Then we got in the car and drove back to the beach. Jean Pierre was a great guide! I recommend looking out for him in you’re ever in Champagne Bay.

Ken’s Thoughts:  The passion fruit, the bananas, and the pineapple were the best I’ve ever had – probably the best I ever will have. I was honestly very blown away by them. I was so glad that our driver took the initiative to stop and try the fruit, since we had been talking about it in the car. Also, the locals were really friendly and let us use one of their restrooms when we were taking a while at the fruit-stand. Oh, I forgot about the coconut. That was also the best coconut I’ve ever had. I left the fruit-stands feeling totally satisfied. I couldn’t believe how sweet the pineapple was, and how it wasn’t acidic at all. I could have eaten a bucket of that stuff. I had no idea real bananas tasted like that. I think that’s about it.

So now that we were back on the beach, Ken went to scope out the food while I went to the bathroom. When I found him again, he was excited about the lobster. There were tables and tables full of boxes of live lobsters and crabs – and people kept walking up with more of them, as if they were just caught. Ken had picked out a good one, and they took it right from the box to one of the cooking fires behind the tables. We watched as more people came and chose their shellfish. There was one lobster that probably weight about the same as Natalie (my sister in law). Maybe not quite, but it was huge. Ken estimates that it was about 20 inches from head to tip of tale. I really hope someone got that one, but we were stuffed from gorging on fruit. We still got a pretty big one, though! After it was done cooking, it was bright red. I didn’t realize lobsters change colors when they’re cooked! I thought there were red lobsters and black lobsters. But nope! The black lobsters turn red. Crazy sauce.

Anyways, when our lobster was done cooking, the laid in on a big banana leaf and cracked it open for us, then wrapped it up in the leaf with some lime. Then Ken and I found a nice place on the beach overlooking the beautiful  bay to eat our delicious lobster. I know nothing about lobster – I think this may have been my first lobster – but I thought it was dang good.

We were feeling pretty satisfied. There wasn’t much to do on that lazy beach, and even if there was, I don’t know if we would have wanted to do it. Instead of seeking out another adventure, we grabbed to Vanutu beers, sat our butts in the sand, and soaked in the world’s best honeymoon until it was time to get back on the tender and head back to the ship.

I love being married to this guy. It’s so much fun to share these best days with someone that I’ll have forever to relive the memories with. Especially someone so attractive. J Life is good. 

Ken’s Thoughts: Our day closed just as the whole day went, just that it was hard to believe any of it was real because it was so good. I knew I wanted to have fresh lobster on this trip on one of the ports, and when I went over to the shellfish area, I was very excited to see the quality and quantity of their lobsters and crabs. They had two of the biggest lobsters I’d ever seen, but they were a bit out of our price range (and hunger level), but we picked out a still huge lobster for a very reasonable price. And they cooked it for us right there on the spot, cracked it open, squirted lime juice on it, and served it to us on a giant banana leaf. I don’t think I’ll ever have lobster as good as that again. It’s the best food I’ve had in a long time – that lobster was unbelievable. Because it was so fresh out the ocean, it tasted like it was pre-seasoned perfectly with sea salt. There was just a ton of it, and it was all mouth-watering. Albeit, very messy.  After that and disposing of the remains, Lila suggested we get beer, and it couldn’t have sounded better. So, plopping down on the white sandy beaches, each with a beer in hand, looking at the post-card worthy view, I’d easily say this was my favorite port day that we’ve had. It was all really special. And I enjoyed every minute of it. I’d say those are my thoughts.