Noumea-31st December 2010

We woke up at 7:30 this morning and Matt eagerly looked out of our window at the city that was next to us. We'd arrived in Noumea! We went and got breakfast and slathered ourselves in sunscreen then headed onto shore. Holy hot and humid, Batman! The captain had warned us that it was warm out there and could be approaching 32 degrees, but it was the humidity that was the killer. We were horribly sweaty not long after getting off the ship.

We got on one of the guided tour buses for a 1hr trip around the island. We stopped at a couple of gorgeous spots in the mountain ranges for photo opportunities and Matt got some great shots. What a view.

After the tour finished we went for a walk in town on our own, browsing the shops and seeing some of the sights. My personal highlight was being able to use French words to communicate. I adore foreign languages and have always wanted to learn French (as well as Spanish, and refresh on Italian), so being greeted by everybody with a "Bonjour!" and replying in kind was fun. And it was never a dull Bonjour from the locals, not like we say a dull "Hi." There was always that French suaveness and almost a sing-song way of saying it. I felt a bit silly going into shops and saying to the sales people "English?" before I asked my question, to ensure they could actually understand me. Most of them spoke enough English to understand and communicate enough. Then I'd finish that off with a "Merci!" and continue on our journey. French is awesome.

After melting walking through town some more we headed back to where the shuttles left from and caught one to the beach. After the hot, sticky, sweaty conditions we'd been wandering in the beach looked like a tropical island. Oh wait. It WAS a tropical island! The water was gorgeous - a tad cool for us sooks - but a welcome change from the heat. We stayed in the water for about 45 minutes or so then got the shuttle back to the passenger terminal.

We're back on the ship now. We had lunch on the ship and have had yet another glorious holiday-afternoon-nap and are now preparing to go and have some dinner, watch the sunset and get some gorgeous photos of it, then party and welcome in the new year!!

I have a good feeling about 2011. How can you not, when you begin it on a luxury cruise ship visiting stunning islands?