Untamed Wilderness: an Expedition from Papua to Fiji

The bustling port city of Sorong in West Papua is known as the gateway to the crystalline waters of Raja Ampat, the world's most biodiverse marine habitat, home to over 1,500 species of fish and 75 percent of the world's known coral species. In town, the Buddhist pagoda of Sapta Ratna stands tall on a hilltop overlooking the harbour. Local fishing boats come in with their catch at the bustling Pasar Jembutan Puri fish market

Rabaul, the former provincial capital, has quite a remarkable location. The town is inside the flooded caldera of a giant volcano and several sub-vents are still quite active today! The fumes of the volcano Tavurvur can be seen continually and the town suffered greatly during the last major eruption of 1994 when some 80% of the houses collapsed due to the ash raining down onto their roofs. Rabaul has a Volcano Observatory sitting atop the town’s center, monitoring the 14 active and 23 dormant volcanoes in Papua New Guinea. A small museum opposite the bunker used by Yamamoto during World War II shows exhibits relating to Rabaul’s local, German, Australian and Japanese past from the 19th century to Papua New Guinea’s independence in the 1970s.

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Njari is a small island almost entirely covered in trees with just a small sand spit at its eastern end. A labyrinth of reefs and coral heads make an approach only feasible from the north. The small beach invites one to relax, but swimming from the beach is almost impossible as the corals are too close. To enjoy the underwater world one has to enter the water from a small boat, a little distance from the shore, where an amazing array of fish and coral will be visible. Two hundred and seventy nine different fish species have been seen during a single dive; the fourth-highest fish count ever recorded. An indication of why this island is considered a top spot for snorkeling in the Solomon Islands.

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Wild, uninhabited, and historical, Kennedy Island is a tiny piece of land in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Part of the remote Solomon Islands, the island is situated 15 minutes away by boat from Gizo, which is capital of the Western Province. Kennedy Island was formerly known as Plum Pudding Island, after an incident dating back to World War II. An incident involving one of the most famous figures in history.
John F. Kennedy, a lieutenant at the time, was a castaway on the island with his crew when their torpedo ship, PT 109, was sunk by the Japanese troops in August 1943. It is said that the future president swam dragging an injured crewmate by holding the strap of his life jacket in his teeth until reaching the island. He and his crew fed themselves with coconuts for two days before being found by Solomon Islanders. JFK even kept a coconut shell from the island on his desk in the Oval Office throughout his presidency.
For our history buffs, some artifacts dating from the crew’s passage can still be found on site. An island marked by history in short, but not only. Discovering Kennedy Island is an experience not to be missed for diving and nature lovers. The waters that surround the island are a submerged world of great richness and variety of colorful fishes and corals.

Honiara is the capital city of the Solomon Islands on the north-western coast of Guadalcanal Island. It is the hub of all activity in the archipelago which has recently undergone an ‘urban boom’. Discover the cities beautiful landscapes and the significance of the city in the World War II.

As world-famous beaches go, Champagne Beach is one of the big hitters. In 2003, CNN ranked it number nine in its list of top 100 beaches, and independent travel specialists permanently include it on their lists of 50 best beaches worldwide. It's one of the world's greatest natural beauties: picture-perfect beach white sand, turquoise water, and nothing - save for the occasional cow or curious turtle - around. With only coconut plantations and a few friendly locals to keep you company, this might just be the island of your dreams. The glorious name "Champagne Beach" was given to the island in the 17th century, when Pedro de Quirós believed he had reached the famous unknown southern land or the “Tierra Australis Incognita” (or Australia as we now know it). He believed the effervescent bubbles of volcanic origin that bubble up from the crystal-clear waters were reminiscent of the bubbles of Champagne. Additionally, the coastline is shaped like an Art Deco Champagne saucer, so the name stuck! The beach is located on the largest yet least populated island in the 40-island Vanuatu archipelago, near the village of Hog Harbor on Espiritu Santo Island. If you want to venture beyond the beach, then Espiritu Santu is also famed for its blue holes. The island is home to some of the clearest waters on Earth, benefiting from natural filtering from underground limestone caves.

Unlike Espiritu Santo with its raised coral reefs and white sand, Ambrym is a volcanically active island with dark sand beaches. Ambrym is known as the island of magic and is the source of five local languages that all evolved on Ambrym. This handful of languages contributes to the well over 100 languages of Vanuatu. Some of Ambrym’s magic takes place in the lush greenery of the local community of Ranon. Here the people perform a very special and traditional ‘Rom’ dance. Participants prepare their masks and costumes in secrecy and the dance is reserved for special occasions.

North of Nadi through sugarcane plantations and past the Sabeto Mountains is Lautoka, nicknamed the Sugar City for the local agriculture and its big processing mill. With a population of around 50,000, it's the only city besides Suva and, like the capital, has a pleasant waterfront. It's the sailing point for Blue Lagoon and Beachcomber Cruises but is otherwise unremarkable for tourists, itself having few hotels and fewer good restaurants. Locals recommend the city as a less-expensive place to shop for clothing, but note that it can take as long as 45 minutes to drive here. Legend has it that Lautoka acquired its name when two chiefs engaged in combat and one hit the other with a spear. He proclaimed "lau toka" (spear hit) and thus the future town was named.