10) Volcano! We passed the island of Ambrym at night. It is the home of two active volcanoes and we could see the sky above the mountains glowing red from the lava!
9) US impact - Luganville was built as a major US military staging base during WWII. The main road was built wide enough for four army trucks to drive down side by side. There are quonset huts and bomber wrecks in the woods. Apparently over 200,000 Americans passed through Luganville during the war.
8) Million Dollar Point - At the end of WWII, the US was left with a surplus of construction and military equipment. It would have been very expensive to ship it all back to the states. The remaining French government didn't want to buy it, and the US didn't want to give it away, so they threw it all into the ocean. It's now a popular scuba site.
7) SS President Coolidge - this Titanic-sized steamship was converted to a troop transport ship during WWII. On its way into Luganville, it struck two US mines and sank. It is reportedly the second-best scuba dive wreck in the world.
6) Local Market - not everything in Vanuatu was cheap. However, goods in the farmer's market were. We bought grapefruits for 20 vatu each!
5) Microfinance - we witnessed a celebration for Women's Day, where groups of women are given microfinance loans to startup small businesses. This is a popular and successful development aid program throughout the world.
4) Champagne Beach - the EYE Crew has voted, and this is officially the nicest beach we have ever seen. White, powdery sand, clear blue water, and natural springs flowing through rocks at one end.
3) Access fees - land is communally owned by villages, and each village charges an access fee to any tourist sites they may own. The Blue Hole, Million Dollar Point, Champagne Beach, and Millennium Cave each required payment and permission to enter.
2) Land diving - on Pentacost Island, the locals participate in the original bungee-jumping, except with vines gathered from the woods. They pick their own vines, and the goal is to have your hair brush the ground, thus ensuring a strong yam harvest in the coming year.
1) Hair - Vanuatan women wear their hair big and round. There are reports of circumferences of four meters!
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