Thurs 28 Apr. We arrived this morning at the island of Espiritu Santo (“Santo”), Vanuatu under a gray sky, and set anchor at 0900. The ellipticle in the mini-gym on the bridge once again provided a good view of the action. We had blissfully calm seas and light winds for the entire transit from Tonga, although some personnel still got sick either from the conditions or their scopolamine patch. Transit time was spent doing physical training (PT) or mission training, e.g. use of medical equipment, preparation for helicopter transport, etc. We were confined to berth quarters one afternoon during military exercises so we turned our berth into the “girlie” spa, and did a facial/hair make-over, gave each other shoulder/neck massages, and watched a DVD movie. I haven't had this much fun with "the girls" since my days living in the dorm at Mary Washington College. Any other spare time was spent reading or walking the flight deck to enjoy fresh air and natural light. Never in my wildest dreams did I see myself in the middle of the Pacific walking the flight deck of a Navy ship, nor preparing for helicopter transport to a remote medical site, which is my nursing assignment for Saturday and Sunday (more on that afterwards).
My brother John gave me a copy of Michener‘s “Tales of the South Pacific“ to read on this trip. Michener based the book on his time on “Santo” during WWII. The musical “South Pacific” is also based on the islands of Vanuatu. I just looked at the Project HOPE Public Affairs Officer’s (PAO) aerial photos taken from the helicopter when we first arrived this morning - this is definitely a tropical paradise. This is becoming a popular destination for wreck diving so I’ll be interested in seeing what the town Luganville has to offer when we have a liberty day.
In case you had trouble finding my photos on Flickr, here’s the weblink address http://www.flickr.com/photos/babs-pp11. And you can see the PAO's photos at http://www.flickr.com/photos/radder86.
Cheers to all!
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