Chapman's Reef

It was a longish ride to Chapman's Reef via Sasson island, with a "shortcut" over a shallow sandbar. Both dives were great: loads of life and on the second, a huge whale shark. Magnificent. We saw it when we jumped in but lost sight of it until about 40 minutes, when it returned. I swam right up to it, within a couple of metres, and finned furiously to keep up with its languid style.

Also saw loads of barracuda on both dives. It was like swimming in an aquarium - the water was transparent, not blue. Also saw a giant parrot fish, biting big chunks of coral off the reef.

We did our surface interval on neighbouring Ao island - visited a little, one-room school in the village, very cute. The kids were great - full of smiles and laughter. We walked to a huge tree - must be 100s of years old. Legend has it that white traders tried to cut it down but it healed itself overnight when they didn't finish the job. We continued on to a cave previously inhabited by a fierce warrior, who came down the New Hanover coast "eating people". Eventually, he was killed by a local warrior even greater than he. The walk in was over jagged limestone - awful! May've broken third toe on left foot but it's not slowing me down too much.

We stopped on Sasson on the way back. Clem played back the video he'd taken of the cave, including me "falling over" - great laughter from all: Damas from Sasson, "Rasta", Eduard and Blaise from Tunung. We were also entertained by little Ditdit the puppy and his "owner", the boy Manu (Manuel) chasing each other.

There are interesting mountains at the end of New Hanover - Suilik and Suilava: a sacred place with stone-embedded giant's footprints, stone plates and bowls, etc.

In Tunag, the local language spoken throughout New Hanover, "Calaro luai" means "thank you very much". "Malakis" is the word for the magic of Meli. There are 12 totem clans of New Hanover: e.g. "Sui", like a small kingfisher, "Malanang" the eagle for Tunung, while Sophie's clan is the hornbill.

Return of the old powers

I managed to get email working via the satellite phone! Apparently everyone who's been here for the last 18 months has tried to do this without success.

Clem talked last night about a man called Meli on New Hanover, to whom have returned the "old powers". He can chop is arm (left only) with a bush-knife (machete) and it heals again immediately. He wont pass the secret on to other young men because he doesn't think they'll use it for good.

Clem didn't believe in these things until now. It was witnessed by a Catholic church elder, who condemned it as from the devil. Clem questioned this, if used for good. Meli lives in a remote mountain village on New Hanover, so is unfortunately too far away for us to visit. Clem would like to, but last time he went there, "he almost died".