Wood Carvings, Ranon, Vanuatu

Hello All,
We had a great time on the beach at Ranon Yesterday. We met a few of the wood carvers that make the Tam Tam drums and one of the guys, Ruben, showed us some work he had for sale. We told him we would think about it and took a walking tour of the rest of the village. As we were walking we ran into a guy from the village next door called Ranvetlam. It was about a 30 minute walk and on the way he climbed one of the coconut trees and got some down for us to drink. It was very hot yesterday so it was nice to have some coconut water. When we arrived at the village he introduced us to Mike, a young guy from England. He has been staying in the village for months taking the language and writing it all down and making a dictionary so it can be taught at school. The only way the language is taught right now is just the parents speaking it, so this way it can actually be taught in school. This is a program that the Vanuatu government is backing to keep the languages alive and well. It was very interesting speaking to him and he showed us around the village. Mike introduced us to the chief and he is also a wood carver. He showed us his work and it was awesome. I actually bought a piece from him and it is a work of art. We visited for a bit more and headed back.
We took a very nice swim in the bay on our return, wow that was refreshing.
Last night we went into the village for a Kava session with the village. They were all very interested in my trip and the boat and we visited for hours. It is one of the first times so far in Vanuatu that they seemed more interested in us and less interested in how we can make a few bucks on these guys. I hate to say it that way but I have had that feeling a few times so far. When we get through the Island Group I will write a blog on the Country as a whole so you can get a good idea about the people, the land and the culture.
We will head up to Pentecost Island this morning 12 miles away. The wind has been flat for days now so we will have to use the Iron sail. Speaking of weather, I don't talk about it much and that's because there is nothing to talk about. Sunny and calm here this morning, further outlook, Sunny and calm.
That's all for now.

PEACE