Vanuatu

Not my favorite destination in the Pacific, although I likely might’ve felt otherwise had the weather cooperated and I had been able to get to the rim of the famed Tanna Volcano, on which you can feel it rumbling with molten lava spitting from its cone. While it literally rained from arrival to departure (2017), I made the most of my time here by scuba diving and walking the city streets.

Vanuatu’s scuba sites are unremarkable, with just 7-8 dive stops in the sound. The corals, fish and visibility were sparse, but Big Blue Dive shop made the best of what they have, and the staff couldn’t have been more accommodating.

Port Vila resembles most cruise ship port cities, complete with tacky perfume, jewelry and souvenir shops. The fruit and veggie market (see pic) was fun to browse through, as was wandering the local supermarket. The highlight was eating the local catch at an eatery overlooking the water.

The Iririki Resort looks better on the web than it does in person. Although the waterfront rooms were nice, the overall level of service needs upgrading. The casino staff were the laziest I’ve encountered, and the rest of the resort’s employees were mostly the same, with one bright exception: Lili, who is the heart-and-soul of the place. Without her the place would be moribund. Where to stay in Vanuatu? Havannah Vanuatu.

Democratic Republic of Congo

Country Information:  The capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo is Kinshasa. There are approximately 82 million people living here. The official language of the DRC is French with Lingala as a widespread trade language. The majority of Congolese practice Roman...

Belize

Family in Ambergris Caye Tropical and rainy Belize! Loved our time vacationing in Ambergris Caye! Belize gained independence in 1981 and has a total population of roughly 350,000.  Belize is the only Central American nation where English is the official language....

Germany

Family at Neuschwanstein Castle near Füssen in southwest Bavaria, Germany Family in downtown Munich in the Square, 2017 Country Information: The capital is Berlin, the main language is German and about 83 million people live here. Most of the population is Christian...