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• WHAT'S
NEW ?
The "Web'zine" of Isle of Pines |
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WHALE SONGS |
Isle
of Pines is the focus for three weeks’ study
into humpback whale songs. The research, by
Queensland University doctoral student...  |
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Information Office Point
I : Just 50m. in front of the church,
in the village square, Vao, is Point I. It is staffed
by a well-travelled Kunie, Marie-Jeanne,...
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In search of publishers ...
The
author of several books, Hilary Roots, has lived on the island since
1975. A New Zealander by birth and journalist by trade, she continues
her research and writing about her adopted island.
For more information contact ... |
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WHERE IS ISLE
OF PINES ?
Known as Kunie
to its Melanesian inhabitants, the island is part of the French-Pacific
territory, New Caledonia. Situated at the southern tip of this archipelago,
it sits almost astride the Tropic of Capricorn at 167¼ longitude and 22¼
latitude south.
Island panorama... |
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DISCOVER THE
ISLE OF PINES
No stress,
no night life, a relaxed pace and with time of little significance ...
that’s island life, island time !
Forget
your usual ways and the demands of a busy existence, let yourself be
part of an unhurried world, surrounded by natural beauty - your stay
will be refreshing and memorable.
To be kind
to yourself and make the most of Isle of Pines, you should consider
staying at least 3 days.
If you
like discovering nature, taking long walks, swimming, snorkelling, diving,
meeting local people or simply lying on magnificent, deserted, white
sand beaches, then you could easily spend 5 to 10 days here and still
find plenty to do.
Tourist
activities ...
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INHABITANTS
- THE KUNIE PEOPLE
(kanak web site)
Olobatch,
a traditional dance group formed from the combined Kéré-Comagna
tribes, is the island’s ‘star’ group at present. Its
dancers, some 30 children and adults, have become roving ambassadors
for the island. Since the 8th Pacific Arts Festival held in Noumea in
2000, they’ve danced at the 9th same festival in Palau, Micronesia
in 2004 ; they went to Paris in 2005 and on a two month tour of Europe
in June-July 2006.
The
island is less populated than previously and
remains extremely protected by the tribal system. After
such a turbulent history, it’s understandable the Kunies guard
their land closely. Isle of Pines has become an indigenous reserve and
the land is neither for sale nor for rent. |
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“
The most beautiful island on the planet” !
“ Such a lovely spot of God’s creation ” ! ...
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Extravagant
claims one might say, surely advertising pushed to the limits.
But no.
The
first enthusiastic words came from Guiseppe Ambrosino, the Italian
captain of a large cruise ship, The Fairstar, that spent more
than two decades sailing the South Pacific from the 1970s to the
90s.
The
second line, uttered under completely different circumstances,
was the journal entry of Andrew Cheyne, the first British sandalwood
trader to reach Isle of Pines’ shores 165 years ago.
No
matter what period of history, such praise is still valid even
today.
Japanese
people know the small 14 X 18 km island as ‘the island the
closest to Paradise’, thanks to a film based on a book written
by Katsura Morimura in 1964.
For
a better view of this picture
-->
zoom |
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| Kuto
Bay © Photo Pierre-Alain Pantz |
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Closer
to the present, world champion wind-surfers of both sexes from
such diverse origins as the United States, East and West Europe,
Australia and New Zealand, were competing on Isle of Pines and
suddenly dropped their sails, literally stopping their race, to
wonder in awe at the beauty of the water and the surrounding islets.
Two
thousand years after the birth of Christ, in the age of rapid
air travel, commercialism and the internet, is it really possible
that a beautiful and yet accessible land can still exist unspoilt
?
This
web site leads you to discover a truly privileged spot in New
Caledonia, where nature is the master of dreams.
For
a better view of this picture -->
zoom |
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Kanumera
Bay & Kuto peninsula © Photo Pierre-Alain Pantz
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Oro
Bay © Photo Pierre-Alain Pantz - Editions Solaris (see :
www.solaris.nc)
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©
idp
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08/02
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