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Around the World in 106 Days with Ray & Claire!! Part 25 – Noumia.
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Around the World in 106 Days with Ray & Claire!! Part 25 – Noumia
We were surprised to see the French flag here, but New Caledonia (with a population of just over 250.000) is a dependent territory of France. In fact, the island nation was annexed by France in 1853. The capital and our port of call was Noumea. In 1946, the area became a TOM, or TerritoireD’outremer, which it remained until 1999, when the status was changed to be a Special Collectivity of France. The second flag is the Kanak flag, but for now, the New Caledonians are counted as French Sometime in the future there might be a referendum as to decide if they are “leaving” France, but so far, no date has been set….but the UN don’t seem to be keen on colonialism these days.
The archipelago is now governed by a 54 member territorial congress, and the French state is represented in the territory by a High Commissioner At a national level, New Caledonia is represented in the National Assembly in Paris by two Deputies and a Senator. French is the main language spoken but Kanak (about 150 different dialects!) and Pidgin English is also used
The Western Pacific was first populated by humans some 3000 years ago. Two Kanak warriors posing with penis gourds and spears, c.1880
The first European to establish a settlement in the vicinity was British trader James Paddon in 1851. Anxious to assert control of the island, the French established a settlement nearby three years later in 1854, moving from Balade in the north of the island. This settlement was initially called Port-de-France and was renamed Nouméa in 1866. The area served first as a Penal Colony, later as a centre for the exploitation of the nickel and gold that was mined nearby.
In the 19th century cannibalism was widespread in this area – but thankfully it is not prevalent today!! King Jacques and his Queen
The name of New Caledonia was allegedly chosen by James Cook in 1774, as he found that some parts of the coast reminded him of Scotland. A typical Karnak House
New Caledonian soils contain a considerable wealth of industrially critical elements and minerals, including about one-quarter of the world's nickel resources. Mining is therefore a significant industry that greatly benefits the territory's economy. The discovery of rich mineral sources resulted in floods of miners from many different lands and New Caledonia has the 3rd largest nickel deposits after Russia and Canada
A coral reef about 5 miles offshore Our first sights of land after 2 days at sea
We were welcomed by a couple of jet skiers (who came a bit too close to the Ship for the Captain’s liking!!)
During World War II, Noumea served as the headquarters of the United States Military in the South Pacific
As can be seen from the street signs, we were very much in a French speaking area, with more than 90% of the population fluent in French. As Raymond failed his GCE French exam, he found that speaking loudly and clearly in English was also “acceptable”!
At the Notre Dame de Pacifique look out point has magnificent views of Noumeawith St Josephs Cathedral in the foreground
Local “Art” Local Art
Although the local currency is the French Pacific Franc, Australian Dollars, US Dollars, Euros and Sterling are also accepted. The rate of exchange varies considerably – and haggling is a normal way of life (even though they are more French than Melanesian)
In the 19th century, nickel was discovered and the income from the nickel mines and exportation of sandalwood has greatly benefited the lifestyle of the New Caledonians. Currently New Caledonian soils contain about 25% of the world's nickel resources (You can just make out the Nickel Plant in the top right hand corner of this picture)
The Concepcion Church is situated in the outlying district of Robinson and was built by missionaries in 1874. The little church has some plaques left to thank the Virgin Mary for miracles and it is a popular pilgrimage destination.
In a memorial garden nearby are three rocks • the 1stfor the Virgin Mary • the 2nd for the Ancestors • the 3rd for the Peace of Future generations
The local airport (which used to be a USAF Base during WW II)
During World War II, the French South Pacific colonies of New Caledonia, French Polynesia and the New Hebrides joined the Free French Forces. Assisted by Australia, the South Pacific colonies became vital Allied bases in the Pacific Ocean American Allied forces built up a major naval base in New Caledonia to combat the advance of Imperial Japan toward Australia, New Zealand, and the Solomon Islands
The Ouen Toro Lookout is also home to a World War II Memorial and offers excellent views of bays, beaches and small islands fringed by coral reefs.
Noumea’s salt water Aquarium is quite a mix of high-tech and natural displays including the prehistoric Nautilus and the fluorescent corals. The water is recycled from the nearby lagoon
Light is an important element in this aquarium and the tropical fish that are on display are all enjoying the same kind of sunlight that they would have in their natural habitat in between their native coral reefs.
The Noumea Aquarium with its naturally lit tanks is ideal for seeing a close up of the species that naturally belong to the New Caledonia Barrier Reef, which was UNESCO listed (in July 2008) just like the Great Barrier Reef off Australia. The New Caledonia Barrier Reef is the world’s largest lagoon.
This peculiar looking “fish” is the Nautilus which also features as a part of the coat of arms of New Caledonia. We saw one when we visited the aquarium (as shown later in the nest slide)
