Yesterday I took on the task to get the washing machine running again. However, it didn’t work. So far I always needed to replace a certain resistor and the PCB was working again. This time there is software log up and I can crank it. Thus until Japan no washing machine.

This morning I started washing bed sheets and bed covers. I’ll get it done even without my beloved washing machine.

After a few urgent emails we went ashore. Tobias wanted to look for a PC and I wanted to see more in relaxed way of Port Vila and visit the museum.

Port Vila appears to me as a modern city although it has v elements of an not very developed city. Comparing it with Suva, Fiji is brighter.

Even the market for agricultural produce is brighter. Maybe it had to do with the bright daylight I feel that in seeing here.

Finding the ‘Musée National de Vanuatu’ was easy with my OsmAnd+ off-line map.

The museum looked with it’s painted scenes of daily life nice from outside. The name in the local language Bislama, shows where Bislama is strongly influenced from. “Nasional Musium Blong Vanuatu”
“Blong” means ‘belonging to’.

The museum is not big at all. One big hall is full of exhibits.

Figures made of wood reminded my to figures I saw in Polynesia. But what they have here and not in Polynesia, are “tamtams”. Big slit drums made from stems of bigger trees. They really sound good and the sound is pretty strong thus was carried over a larger distance.

Then I saw something, which looked to me like a music instrument made of bamboo but I could not figure out how it is played.

Just when I turned around, a museum guide smiled at me and said, “I know you!”. I was a bit baffled and asked “From where do you know me?” “From the hospital”, he replied and added, “You have a problem with a tooth”. So he remembered me pretty well and we started talking to each other. Suddenly, out of nothing, there was a familiarity between the two of us. I asked him about the music instrument, which I looked at before. He asked me from where I come and started playing the German national anthem. I was surprised.

He needed to attend some other visitor and gathered all of about 10 people around the place where he always gives his presentations and explanations. He explained a bit about the geography and the people of Vanuatu. When it came to art he demonstrated how the ornaments, which are often to be seen in a cultural context are dream m drawn. These patterns really required special skills and pactise

He also played two different types of old traditional flutes, which had a nice harmonic sound.

At the end he played the “bamboo-instrument” Ididn’t understand art the beginning. It sounded like a local song and showed a soft voice matching excellently the sound of the “bamboo-instrument”.

As I needed to walk back, I needed to say farewell. It took quite a while until I finally left the museum.

At the NAMBAWAN coffeeshop I had a snack, an iced coffee and a chocolate muffin while waiting for Tobias.

When we arrived at MaRe’s tender I was very astonished. Someone broke one lock and damaged the second one. However, the tender was not stolen. Difficult for me to understand that because I experienced the people here as very friendly. ‘Idiots without borders’ are to be found anywhere.

Under “Wikipedia Vanuatu” there are about 5 articles which give a good introduction to Vanuatu.