Bart Bear's Blog

 

 Lifou is a different sort of island to others I have seen. It is an ancient coral reef that geological forces have raised up to around 60 metres above sea level. That means the island is almost completely flat and surrounded in most places by cliffs. There are no rivers on the island, all of its water comes from ponds and wells. Unfortunately, I didn't get to set foot on the island. Passengers had started to transfer to shore in the ship's tenders, but after the first few trips the wind strengthened, the sea got rough, and everybody was called back to the ship. You can see cliffs in most of the photos. From the ship, the most interesting buildings were two churches. The most impressive is Notre Dame de Lourdes. It sits right on the top of the cliffs outside Easo, where the cruise ships anchor. The other church is St Francis Xavier, built in 1898 and now badly vandalized. Next time I get a chance, I would like to see more of this island and its geology.