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Friday, September 2, 2011

Bali Hai


Comanche-5 flew a scenic route from Vila to the northern island of Espiritu Santo…Vanuatu's largest island and simply referred to as "Santo".  Pre-departure formalities at Vila airport took some time. Paying for refueling, airport fees, and handling charges involved separate transactions each performed in an unhurried and pleasant manner that so typifies daily life in Vanuatu. Time consuming but throughly stressless…! 

Santo International Airport

An hour and fifteen minutes after leaving Vila behind we were on the ground at Santo International Airport. Neither large nor busy but its one return flight from Brisbane each week bestows international airport status on this former WWII aerodrome. Santo was a strategic military base during World War II, where up to 100 000 soldiers were based. During this time, James A Michener, then a lieutenant in the American Army, was stationed in Santo. Such was the effect of this place on him that here he wrote the legendary Tales of the South Pacific from which sprang the musical South Pacific. From Santo, Michener would gaze across the sea to a volcanic island, often with its summit shrouded in cloud and dream of "Bali Hai".  

After topping-off fuel tanks in preparation for the next flight leg and securing the Comanche aircraft for our 6-night stay at Santo, we piled into two vehicles and headed to our accommodation. www.moyyan.com Could there possibly be a better place to dream of Bali Hai.....?

Jan, Vivien, Sandra & Irene


Captain BAZ

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