Pitched as the perfect marriage of dreamy island life mashed together with a tiny slice of Europe, New Caledonia has always been on my list of exotic destinations I’d like to visit.
It’s not hard to imagine then, how thrilled I was then when I got the call saying I’d won a spot on the very first Travelscene American Express Fan Trip to Noumea, New Caledonia.
A three-day, two nights all expenses paid trip was precisely what the doctor ordered and I couldn’t wait to get on that plane.
Coincidentally, a friend of mine from Sydney Simon Handcock had also entered and won the Travelscene competition and together we impatiently counted down the days until our adventure in the Pacific.
Myself, Simon, Rechelle & Joel
Day 1
Even though we weren’t meeting at the airport till 11am, I was up at 8 finishing off my packing.
Three bikinis, three pairs of denim shorts and a pair of heels (just in case?) later and I was done and dusted.
After a quick call to Simon to make sure I hadn’t forgotten anything important (like my passport) I made my way to the airport, still in shock this was actually happening.
After all, it’s not every day you get to go overseas just for being a fan on Facebook!
It wasn’t long before I spotted Joel- with his ginormous, heavy Canon camera slung around his neck, he was hard to miss.
Next came Adam, our friendly Travelscene American Express trip co-ordinator, Simon still wearing his sunnies indoors and finally, Rechelle.
Checking in was an experience in itself. Simon and I had a crazy woman who kindly put us in the exit aisle before saying “If the plane starts to go down, just run around and scream!” The concerned looks on our faces must have registered with her, because she quickly added “What I mean is, you two look like fit, abled bodies in the case of an emergency.”
The plane ride with Aircalin was smooth sailing (flying?) all the way. Friendly staff, surprisingly yummy food and most importantly- open bar.
A few vodka oranges and some wine later and Simon and I were struggling to fill out our landing cards.
***
Noumea (population of 97,500) is the capital of New Caledonia, a French overseas territory in the southwest Pacific and only a three-hour plane ride from Sydney.
As we stepped off the plane, humidity slapped us in the face.
A touch too long waiting for our baggage in the un-air-conditioned airport and a cultural misunderstanding over a slogan on a t-shirt later and we were being shuttled to our hotel via mini bus.
The shuttle ride ended up taking just over an hour in the end but it wasn’t as if we didn’t have anything to look at.
Ginormous green mountains rolling as far I could see, luscious dense forests and finally, as we came into Anse Vata- beautiful water views stolen right out of a postcard.
As we quickly discovered, French is spoken everywhere and I suggest you have a couple of key phrases under your belt before you head over as very few people will attempt to converse with you in English.
After ironing out a few misunderstandings (my welcome gift bag from Tourism New Caledonia although extremely sweet, was addressed to Mr Tully Smyth) we were each given the keys to our rooms at the stunning La Promenade Resort and eagerly hurried upstairs to unload our baggage and freshen up before dinner.
All you can eat prawns and some holiday cocktails- Simon, Joel, Rechelle and I knew we were only here for a few days and were determined to make the most of our little time in paradise.
2 comments:
interesting & fun blog.
What an awesome blog - thanks!
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