hey

Halo from Vanuatu
This is the first oportunity I have had to get blog out - getting on line costs quite a bit so... it will be short
Phil and I are having a great time - the weather is warm to hot and fairly dry...
Our first night in Port Vila was below average with all the dogs in the area barking all night... all night, mostly it was one telling the story with others offering encouragement (kind of like what I think Alcoholics Anon meetings are like) and then another would take up with a story... now I know it, dogs do talk... but I wish they didn't!
The next night they did the same but we were more tired so got more sleep but not what we need. I have only had one of those.
We went around Efate Island on Thursday with Rob & Barb Meier - it was great though the road was appaling in places and I forgot to take my camera (it was camouflaged on the sleeping bag!). I included a picture from the air of Havannah harbour where the US Pacific Fleet was stationed in WWII - quite a place.
The people are lovely - warm, friendly and safe to be around. The local food is quite nice.
We have been snorkeling at Hideaway Island...- the fish are stunning and our trip out a bit where the fish around us were sometimes a metre long easily rivaled the Barrier Reef trip of a few years ago.
I also got to deliver the 2000+ condoms that St Stephen's people collected to the Family Health Centre - they were very pleased with us!
I was scheduled to preach at a church in Port Vila but they never got to me... this despite assurances that it had been set up from the NZ end. Apparently this is not the first time. Oh well, we got a rather long-winded thingee in the Bislama tongue instead...
The flight to Espiritu Santo was great with the aerial views quite spectacular. Talua Ministry Training College is well-run and the first of the seminars seemed to go quite well with very thoughtful responses from the students.