HERE I AM (in English)

Well! Days seem to pass by in a lazy way around here. Everyday I think I will send news and everyday I see the sun go down and I have not even opened the blog. I must say that the sun goes down early here and at 6pm it is pitch black. Today we are July the 21st already and believe it or not I have been here in New Caledonia 10 days already . It feels like months to me.

I am sure some of you do not have a clue where New Caledonia is. Check Google Earth! It is a South Pacific country. Caledonia is a name given to this land by Captain Cook and his crew who discover it in 1774 because it looked at first as Scotland and Caledonia was the name given to Scotland by the Romans. The indigenious still today prefer to name their land "Kanaky" - land of the kanaks.

This island has been part of France for 150 years now but the Kanaks' tribal customs are still very alive here and many of you would not believe the way the Kanaks still live in their huts in the middle of the tropical forest with their very strong rites.

Why did I start the tour of the world here?, you ask.

I start here because of SOPHIE. I call her my SOPHIE SOLEIL. That child was born 15 1/2 years ago in our house in Issy les Moulineaux, a Parisian suburb and in a quite magical way I managed to help her be born safely so I thought that, symbollically, it would be safe for me as well if SHE was helping me to be born to my new way of life.

The night before my departure Steph had organised a lovely last supper with my children, grandchildren and some close friends and in the softness of the night we could bond and say goodbye and then.... On that Sunday 9th of July 2006 which would have been the exact day of my 40th wedding anniversary, I left! The 3 girls gently drove me to Roissy. And I had to leave them behind!

Nothing to say about about the trip except that it was the final of the world soccer cup and that Paris was on a high! (not for long but still)

Paris-Franckfurt: Happily there in Frankfurt I had ordered a wheelchair as I had only an hour to change terminals and you would have laughed to see the guy literally running along corridors and gates to make sure I could sit my ass in seat 46C en route for Singapore, then Sydney I managed to lose my phone between Thailand and Australia, but not my patience and that was good as I had to wait 10 hours in a sad transit room before flying with AIRCALIN to NOUMEA where Sophie, her mum JULIE, her stepfather Laurent and her brother Pablo (3 months) was waiting for me with the traditional lay of flowers.

Needless to say that after my 33 hours trip altogether I was extremely grateful to be offered a warm shower, a delicious dinner and a great bed!

The sun rises at 6 am here and so does everyone else and so I did only to be amazed by this wonderful view we have from the house (left).

The first week end I met someone some of you know: FABRICE. He was cooking here and there in Connemara and did 2 seasons in Roundstone, a lovely fellow with a great spirit indeed. After visiting China, Tibet and working a year in New Zealand here he was now as a gift !

At the moment on top of studying in a school about marine 's professions in order to obtain a diploma which will allow him to embark on cargos to travel the pacific region, he is working on weekends in a small tourist complex, Gîte Kanua taking people for canoes or kayaks trips and walk around a lovely little bay. He invited me to spend the weekend in his hut by the the tropical beach.

We left Nouméa on July the 14th and hitchhiked southeast. As you can see it was not too bad for a first stay in a "faré" and a first encounter with a tribe.

A clan is made of a same family. A tribe is a reservation where many clans live; Melanesians are very courteous and once you have been accepted by the chief, you are one of the big family. Thanks to Fabrice I was quickly included and very warmly treated indeed.

Back to Nouméa on the Monday as Fabrice had to go back to his school of "the sea", the following morning I went on a new adventure. I took a bus as soon as Tuesday to reach Poindimie, (pwan-dim-ee-eh) a journey of 320 kms and was welcome there by a friend of friend and her family. Paulo and Isabelle came from la Réunion as teachers here for 4 years, live in a beautiful old colonial house with their 2 very young children Mathilde (4) and Raphaël (2). What a beautiful stay! Thanks to them I could meet many natives, visit and enjoy on a market day the very isolated tribe of Wanaguette. Of course no roads but dirt roads all the way up through the most impressive scenery. There are many many Melanesian languages (32) as almost each tribe has its own language but everyone understands French so it was possible to share at quite deep level.

The vegetation is absolutely impressive as well (more than 3250 flowering plants!) The country is covered with indeginious forest we call " la brousse" with of course lots of coconuts, nioulis, and huge banyan trees .

When the French came and annexed the island they took the land and offered it to colons to work it while the locals were forced into reservations in high hills and scattered places and obliged to work for settlers, kind of free labor supply, as you can guess! It is only after the war (in 46) that they received French citizenship. But of course an independantist movement was founded and after some violents events in 84 the Kanaks are regaining their stolen land and are firmly walking towards their full independence They are from here for ages and their custums being still extremely strong they do not envy us and surely have no desires to be ruled by some white Europeens fools. I agree! Of course the missionaries turned them Catholics or Protestants but still have their own creed as well and their beautiful arts are prayers in themselves .

I came back in Noumea after that 4 days trip north and now feel ready to explore the islands of LOYALTY ISLANDS the weeks ahead. Check on your internet the beauty of those 4 raised coral atolls about 100kms of the main " grande Terre": Maré, Tiga, Lifou and OUVEA the paradise on earth . I'll tell you more next week.

Love to all!