Back again

Hello from Singapore again! Yes.. I've been back for about four days now, and have been stuffing my face non stop with Deepavali and Hari Raya delights. Also back with a mountain of back log in work too, but have not had the energy to get started.

Noumea is as hot and sunny as Singapore, but it is the humidity in Singapore that killed me. I was walking from the bus stop at AYE to lab on Thursday and almost fainted (!). Another contributing factor was the fact that I had no exercise at all for a whole month. I realise now, so much for a weight loss plan on the ALIS. All these times getting sick, it was merely so that I would remain the same as I was. sigh.

The jeans never lie.

Ok.. so what have I been up to during my six days in Noumea. Having lots of fun of course! But only in the evenings. I was drained physically and mentally after the cruise. Despite clocking ten hours of sleep everyday on the boat, I was exhausted. I guess you never really rest on the boat, what with the boat rocking al the time, so the body has got to be tensed in bed so one doesn't roll off the bunk. And also the constant background noise of the engine. In any case, I stayed with Celine for six days which was truly a good way to relax. On a typical day, I'd sleep till the mid morning or aftternoon, while she leaves for work at the IRD. Then I'll chill out in her lovely garden, just being by myself (the joy of solitude after three weeks of none!) or reading. Sometimes Annick (her housemate) will take me out to downtown Noumea and drop me at the museum or we'll go to the IRD to have lunch with her. It's nice to have these kind of holidays. I really don't see the need to rush from point A to B packing as many sights as possible. In any case, Noumea is a small town. I had seen all there is in six hours.

Its really in the evenings that I'm bright and chirpy, but Celine the poor girl has to go to bed early, cos unlike me, who is on holiday, she still has to work! So that's where her friends come in. We'll go somewhere, have kava at the Nakamal, or a drink at the bar and when she decides she's gotta go, leave me with her friends to take me back. We did spend the weekend out out camping in the 'real' New Caledonia.

Out of Noumea, New Caledonia is really a rural country, filled with nickel mountains, scrub bush, rivers and isolated lagoons. Out of Noumea, there are no street lights, only one main road on each coast leading from North to South, and three roads trasversing the width of the country. Tribes still live nestled within the hills, even though they are now 'modern'. We headed down south, to Thio on the east coast, where the soil is so toxic that the only kind of vegetation that is able to thrive there is endemic, not only to New Caledonia, but also only to the southern bit of New Caledonia. Imagine that!

I've checked out all four night spots in Noumea, packed to the gills with orange ang mohs. Military folks or expats from the nickel mining companies who are paid the earth to be persuaded to relocate to New Caledonia to work. It's like a perpetual holiday here for them.

The beach (Anse Vata) across the road from IRD is packed with french surfer boys. Loads of eye candy for both sexes! I can hardly need to point out that the average middle aged french woman is gorgeous. But not the above 50s who had largely spent their youth sun worshipping. In a word, they look erm... scary. Seeing them, I really take sun protection seriously now.

Anyway, I am waffling. Go to my flickr page and have a look at my holiday pics! Loads more pictures coming up, the scientific ones from the mission, and my trip to the islands.

Akan Datang!