I was having dinner with my friend Anne-Maree in November when she mentioned she and Lorraine had booked to go to Norfolk Island in February. I said if I had known that was on the cards I would have come too. About a week later she called to say she had been in touch with the agent and I could join them if I would like to. So, on 14th February we travelled to Norfolk Island on an Air New Zealand Flight from Brisbane. (Anne-Maree and I travelled to Brisbane the day before and Lorraine flew in from Melbourne that morning.) You need to go through the International Airport, check in 2 hours before the flight, and do the usual Customs and Immigration processes as for any other International flight. I noticed though that there was a special line for those going to Norfolk Island. Flights go from Brisbane on Tuesdays and Saturdays, and from Sydney on (I think it is) Monday and Fridays and from Auckland on one of the other days It felt strange filling out the declaration form to say you were travelling “From: Australia” and then “To: Australia”. At the Norfolk Island end clearing Customs was made quick and easy. Most of us had Duty Free bags but we were not even asked about them. (I had picked up a 1litre bottle of Laphroaig PX cask Triple matured Scotch whisky – which many of you may remember was one of the distilleries I visited on the Isle of Islay off the West Coast of Scotland in 2011.)
For those of you who have no idea where Norfolk Island is – except that it is “out there somewhere in the Pacific Ocean” - Norfolk Island is situated approximately 1, 600km north-east of Sydney, 890km north-east of Lord Howe Island and 1,100km north-west of Auckland. The Island is approximately 8km long and 5km wide with an area of 3,455ha. (The shape reminds me somewhat of Tasmania – except it is at a “bit of a tilt” as the North West corner is quite a lot further North than the North East corner. My friend Val tells me it looks like the head of a dog to her – so you make your own mind up.) Captain Cook discovered it on his voyage in 1774 and named it after Lady Norfolk – a close friend from England. He thought that the flax he saw would be suitable to make Sails and the Norfolk Pine for ships masts. That is why Philip Gidley King was dispatched there in HMS Sirius only shortly after arriving in Port Jackson with the First Fleet to Norfolk Island to establish a settlement there. (It turned out the flax was not suitable for making the cloth for sails and the masts were too prone to snap as the timber has too many knots in it.
It was a smooth uneventful flight (about 2 and a bit hours) with a TV screen on the back of the seat in front of you and lots of options to choose from, so most did that. I slept on the plane so did not see the island until we were about 3 feet from landing. Even then it was only a glimpse as I had an aisle seat and the people in the window seats were blocking most of the window as they strove to see as much as they could. Who could blame them as I was told later the view on approach was spectacular. Their time is an hour ahead of Eastern Standard time in Australia, so the Queenslanders had to put their watches forward an hour. Lorraine had not changed hers when she left Melbourne, so she was fine. They do not have “Daylight Saving.”
When we immerged from the “Arrivals” hall at Norfolk Island we were met by some of the locals employed by local Pine Tree Tours. (They have the contract to meet the planes and transport people to their accommodation it seems.) Some of their staff asked where you were staying and allocated you to one of the fleet of buses lined up out front. Each of them had a small trailer behind, where the luggage was loaded. We were also offered a complimentary half day “Orientation Tour” on Thursday Morning.
My friends always tease me that they can’t take me anywhere without someone knowing me. I always say it is not true, but before I even boarded the bus at the airport a woman came up and said “Are you Meg?” Her cousin Les is married to my cousin Anne. I had been at their place a couple of weeks before and mentioned I was going to Norfolk and Les had said “I think that is when my cousin Sue and her hubby John will be there.” So he had told her to keep an eye out for me. We had a great laugh about it later. We ran into them several times in the next couple of days.
My very first impression of Norfolk Island was of how well organised the locals were for tourists. As soon as the bus started to move – my second impression was of how badly maintained the roads are. There are potholes everywhere – and not just the odd one or two. I was surprised to find the airport is very close to the ‘town’ area – which is referred to as “Burnt Pine” – and that we were staying very close to the other end of it and were the first ones let off the bus. As we drove through town I was struck by the fact there are mostly single storey buildings with a few 2 story, but no high-rise. Neither were there any signs of a vibrant night life. To the contrary - the signs out front of the Leagues and Bowls clubs and a restaurant we passed all said “Dinner from 5.30pm”.
When we checked in to our accommodation (The South Pacific Resort Hotel) I was very impressed by the modern reception area, with a games room at one end of it and a huge pool and spa area (and signs directing you to the ‘hot tub’) that takes in one entire side of the very large reception lounge area. The staff were welcoming and friendly and presented us with a lei – but not of fresh flowers. We were also handed the key to our rental car and directed to it waiting for us in the parking area.
I noticed there were three flags flying out the front of the Resort. The Norfolk Island flag (which has a green outline of a Norfolk Palm on a white back ground as the centre panel with green panels either end) was in the middle with the Aussie flag on one side and the Kiwi one on the other. There were also several replica ships canon around the front of the resort. When we walked past the dining room I saw there is a magnificent model of the Endeavour which is about 4 metres long and with a mast as high as the roof, and some photo’s and books of and about Cook nearby. As we walked down through the gardens to our rooms I noticed there were a lot of tropical plants I recognised from home, some I recognised as being from much cooler climes and some I don’t ever recall seeing before, but the effect, with lots of green lawns, was quite lovely.
As I had not eaten on the plane and by now it was mid afternoon our first stop was for food. So after dumping our luggage in our respective rooms we headed off in the car to find something to eat. We quickly found Rumours. This was one of the best finds of the trip I think! It is just beside the local Mall, and has lovely coffee, great food, obliging staff and also a bar area with “Happy Hour” every afternoon. It also had a sign with a photo of a hen and a warning not to “feed the chooks” which are ferrel. We soon saw one of them, that resides close by apparently and comes around as soon as someone sits at a table. The island has thousands of them it seemed to me – all roaming wild. We were not the only new arrivals looking for a coffee and snack and although we may have been their first customers fresh off the plane that day the tables soon filled up with others.
After a very tasty snack and coffee, we explored the Mall. This is a freestanding hexagonal building that houses a large Supermarket, coffee shop (which was closed that day and indeed most times when we went there) bakery (which was closed that first day and closes every day as soon as it sells out – usually soon after lunch time) butcher shop, newsagent, travel agency, and pharmacy on the ground floor and has the ‘World of Norfolk Exhibit’ on the first floor. That only opens 9am till 11am Monday to Friday so was closed by then also. We all made purchases – some of food - and things we had just realised that we had forgotten to bring.
I was fascinated (and delighted) to see a sign in the Fruit and Veg section of the Supermarket that said only potatoes, onion, garlic and ginger were imported to the island – all the other fresh produce was grown locally, so we may not always be able to get what we sought as it was all seasonal. I bought some tomatoes and I have to say they were very tasty. There was not much in the way of fruit except bananas. (They were in abundance everywhere we went we soon found.) Another sign apologised for the lack of stock on some shelves but explained that the supply boat only comes on a 6 week interval and it was “due next week.”
Included as part of the paperwork for the car was a map of the island and a request to go to the rental office the following morning to complete the paperwork. It also told us that the speed limits were a maximum of 50kph, with built up areas 40kph and near the school and a couple of other places 30kph (they were signposted accordingly) that the livestock (usually cattle) have right of way, and that we were expected to wave back when the locals waved to us as we drove past them. They all waved – every time! Even if they were standing beside the road talking or tending their cattle – they waved as you went by. It was amazing how quickly you adapt to driving slowly. (Mind you with the potholes as big and prevalent as they are it would be taking your life into your hands if you went any faster anyway.) While we were out we drove around a bit to become familiar with what was where and find the place we had to go to for the “Welcome dinner” that night. We soon found that there were at least 2 of most things – supermarkets, butchers, bakeries, pharmacies, real estate agents, legal and accounting offices, banks, travel agents, shoe shops, petrol stations, chocolate shops, and hardware, with an abundance of coffee shops, café’s, restaurants, clothing, jewellers and souvenir shops. (That was in Burnt Pine – later we discovered that once you ventured out of there – there were more of most things tucked away in the small side streets.) The local population we were told was roughly 1,800 and it seemed to me they are well serviced in most things. (There are some exceptions, which we found out about later.)
It was a very hot humid day, with a few light showers. When we went back to our rooms I was dismayed to discover there was no air-conditioning! (I later found out there is not air-conditioning anywhere except the 2 chocolate shops! Power costs are too high for widespread use.) Only one ceiling fan per room, a very small fridge that was bereft of cold water or ice – although they did have a suggestion that all water should be boiled before drinking and provided a jug to put it in when you had done that. There was also a small ice tray – but again it was empty. I immediately set about organising some water for me to drink as I drink a lot of water – and usually just the local water from the tap wherever I am. (I think it is one of the best experiences of travelling anywhere – drinking the local water! Mind you these days with all the processing that is done to water, the taste is getting to be less defined than it used to be and often just tastes of the chemicals.)
My room ran east west, and the ‘view’ was to the west. The curtains had all been pulled back to let the breeze in and so I could see the view as soon as I entered, but it also meant the afternoon sun had plenty of time to ‘warm’ the room for me. (The others had a room that ran north/south and it was always much cooler than mine due to the sun factor.)
My view was to the airstrip to the west. I was surprised I was so close but in the entire time we were there (11 days) I only recall hearing a plane take off once. I guess I was always busy doing something else when they came in – always around lunch time. From here I could see that they had needed to do some cutting and filling of hills and valleys to make the airstrip possible – which you are not aware of when you are on it. It was built during the second World War to provide refuelling and a staging spot for the allied aircraft fighting in the Pacific. (Although it meant many locals had to be relocated and inconvenienced at the time, it has been a boon to the Island since the end of the war as it has allowed the Tourist Industry to take off. It is by far the biggest industry on the Island.) To the south I could also see one end of what I later found out is Phillip Island. It is practically denuded of vegetation after pigs and goats were left to roam freely for years. (They are now actively removing the weeds and replanting local species.) The bright red of its exposed soil and rock is a stark contrast to the green of Norfolk Island. There was a break in the clouds late arvo so I could get a taste of what was to come as far as sunsets were concerned.
The Welcome Dinner that night was at The Bounty Lodge at 6pm. I have to say we all struggled a bit to eat a 2 course (entre and main) hot buffet dinner when we were all so hot. There was just enough rain to prevent use of the outside seating area, so we were all confined to the indoor seating. If there were fans I was not aware of them. We did manage to find a table with two couples and some spare seats in front of one of the doorways so did get a bit of breeze from there. I normally drink red wine as does Anne-Maree - she is my ‘fine wine’ drinking partner at home. However, they have none of their reds chilled – they are all served ‘room temperature’ – which that night would have been in the mid thirties I would guess with a high humidity reading - so it was far to hot for that. She and Lorraine settled for a “G and T with lots of ice” and I went for “the coldest dry white you have” – which turned out to quite lovely, though I never did find out what it was. (They, like most places we went to, stocked a mixture of Aussie and Kiwi wines.)
The food was delicious and there was plenty that I could eat without a problem – I have multiple allergies and intolerances - to food and drugs - so eating can be a ‘challenge’ some times, but not that night. Anne-Maree does not eat fish or seafood but they coped with that well too. It turned out one of the couples at our table was staying at the same place, so we saw quite a bit of them over the next few days. I thought there might have been some entertainment after the meal, but there was not. So after what seemed like a lot of ‘chatting’ we left and went home – only to find it was only 7.45pm!!!! All of us could have sworn it was much later – more like 9.30pm. Maybe that was because the staff had cleared everything away and were obviously ‘packing up’ for the night.
When we walked in to the Resort, the reception was no longer attended and the lights were mostly out. Although we were all tired after the days travel, we thought it was a bit early to go to bed, so watched some shows Anne-Maree had brought on an external hard drive and she connected to the TV. (There is some TV reception, my friends got SBS but I didn’t, we both had ABC, Channels 7 and 10, and Imparga showed most 9 programs. – but not all of their associated channels - and reception was seldom good.) She had also stocked up on ice earlier so we were able to enjoy a cold nightcap as we did so. We had all had busy times to get there so were very glad to be in such a relaxing atmosphere, and we could feel all of us getting into ‘slow gear’ even then. We knew we were in for a wonderfully relaxing holiday.