Far away from home

Far away from home

Well, that beats the A12. If I were home, I would be drinking my morning coffee in our fifth floor apartment, watching and listening to the traffic on the busy street and the intersection below. The trains would pull in and out of Newbury Park tube station, taking thousands of commuters to work in busy and noisy central London. I'm not at home. Actually, I'm far away from home.

It's 5:30 a.m. and the sun has just risen. I drink fresh black coffee grown locally on Tanna – a volcanic island in Vanuatu. There is no milk, but I put a lot of sugar in it to make up for it. We noticed this on our balcony in Surfside in the Pango district of Efat, Vanuatu. A strong, cool breeze is blowing from the sea and the tide is out. Behind us the moon is still high in the sky, while to the left the sun rises above the horizon, turning the clouds a soft pink hue. The waves are breaking just a few meters below us.

“What more could we ask for?” Kia asks. “Maybe some milk,” I say, smiling.

The jet lag made us get up early. We arrived at two yesterday afternoon after a very long journey from London via Singapore and Australia. In total we spent about 24 hours on a plane and it took almost 36 hours from takeoff in London to landing in Port Vila across three continents. We were exhausted and in desperate need of a shower, but most importantly, we arrived safely with our luggage and, apart from some spilled rice and curry on my pants on the second flight, without any mishaps.

After taking off from Brisbane, I fell asleep and awoke shortly afterwards to turquoise reefs, sandy beaches and green islands below us. When I checked our flight route I assume it was New Caledonia, but I'm not sure. Our first glimpses of our destination were pretty dramatic, but it wasn't all blue skies and dreamy white sand. It was afternoon, cloudy and raining.

After a fairly long line at customs, a smile and a stamp from the officer, we grabbed our waiting luggage from the conveyor belt, quickly exchanged a few dollars for the local currency (Vatu) and headed out to catch a taxi to our accommodation. We found the island tropical, lush and green, warm and humid but with a cool sea breeze blowing over us.

When we arrived at the hotel there was a bit of a mix-up: we may have to change rooms for our third night, but Samantha, the Australian owner, tells us "don't worry". We trust her to do it right, so we went to our room. It's right on the beach, breezy and cool with a great view. The roofs are thatched and the decor is simple – just right.

We were absolutely shaken, so after a quick shower and a quick walk on the beach we decided to take a quick nap and get up for our dinner at 6pm. That didn't quite go according to plan. Twelve hours later we wake up after our “quick nap” and here we are – the farthest we’ve ever been from home. The first day of “our trip of a lifetime”. That's it. I can't fully understand it. This morning we sit on our balcony, watching the sunrise over the Pacific Ocean and smelling the ocean air. If this is a sign of things to come, then...well, what more could we ask for?

We are here and we are happy. It will take a while to settle in, but you know what? Don't worry. Let's go and have breakfast at the beach house.

Mission statement: Atlas & Boots

      .