New Caledonia’s French Twist

Of course you know New Caledonia. It’s the site of one of the world’s largest barrier reefs.

Not ringing a bell? Perhaps geography will help: New Caledonia is just north of the Tropic of Capricorn, halfway between Australia and Fiji.

Not clear yet? Maybe a history reminder will help: Capt. James Cook named New Caledonia in 1774 for his native Scottish highlands.

No? OK, try this: It was the place where the men of “McHale’s Navy,” the 1960s TV sitcom, talked about going for R&R.;

If New Caledonia is still a mystery, it may be enough to know that the climate in these islands is like early summer in Los Angeles (you’ll need a sweater at night), that French is spoken but the culture is definitely South Pacific, and that there’s an outstanding cultural center designed by a world-renowned architect on the main island that’s small enough to see in a few days.

The islands, all 7,367 square miles of them, are far enough off the beaten track that even some travel agents have trouble placing them. After the first agent told us that the international dateline affects only those travelers going west, we switched agents. With the help of the Internet and a Lonely Planet guidebook, we found accommodations.

My partner, John, and I came here for the Eighth Pacific Arts Festival last fall because of our interest in South Pacific cultures. About 2,000 people from 27 Pacific island countries participated in the festival and were joined by a few outsiders like us. After the 31-hour trip to get here, we decided to stay on to become more familiar with the islands. We would spend most of our three weeks in Noumea (new-MAY-ah) and then travel to two other islands.

Many of Noumea’s tourist hotels are in an area called Anse Vata, several miles from the city’s center. We booked a room at Ho^tel Le Lagon via e-mail and asked for a referral to a local travel agency that could help us with other arrangements. We would spend four nights on Ile des Pins (Isle of Pines) and three nights on Mare, one of the Loyalty Islands. What we found, to our delight, was a modern country with French flair.

We arrived at Tontouta International Airport, about an hour outside central Noumea, the capital and a city of 76,000. We went directly to our hotel in Anse Vata, a delightful residential area on the city’s south coast, at the southern end of Grande Terre, New Caledonia’s main island.

The Ho^tel Le Lagon (Lagoon), a 59-room hotel just a block from the water, turned out to be a great choice. It was centrally located, clean and modern. Our fifth-floor room had a long balcony with a beautiful ocean view. The best surprise: The room cost about $75 a night for two, less for a stay of a week or more.

To get acquainted with our destination, we explored the downtown area, especially its wealth of museums.

Musee Neo-Caledonien is devoted to telling the story of the South Pacific’s cultural history. Its permanent exhibits of artifacts predate Western exploration of the South Pacific, and it offers a comprehensive display of architectural remnants from traditional buildings of New Caledonia’s indigenous people, the Kanak. The Kanak, organized in clans and tribes, are Melanesian. They have dark, curly hair and look similar to Australian Aborigines.

The courtyard contains a mwakaa, a traditional Kanak sleeping house. Over a short, cylindrical building is a tall, conical roof topped with a spear-like wooden steeple carving to drive away evil spirits.

Musee de la Ville de Noumea is housed in the city’s old town hall, built in 1875, destroyed by fire in 1988 and rebuilt. It is a fine example of colonial architecture and contains a fascinating exhibit of life in World War II trenches. (More than 40,000 U.S. troops were here during the war.) Admission is free.

The Maritime Museum is nearby but was closed when we visited. So we went to the Noumea Aquarium, near the bay in Anse Vata. Water from the bay is pumped into eye-level display tanks, and marine life is viewed through television-screen-size windows, giving excellent visual entree. Sea horses, only 3 inches tall, with straight rather than curving tails, floated gracefully through the water.

But the crown jewel of museums is the 1998 Tjibaou Cultural Center, designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano, known for his co-design of the Georges Pompidou Centre (the modern art museum also known as the Beaubourg) in Paris. This one-story modernist structure is surrounded by several wood superstructures that look like gigantic tiaras. Tjibaou Cultural Center, named for the man many consider the consummate peacemaker during late 20th century Kanak struggles for independence, was financed by the French government and built to recognize Kanak cultural identity. Its changing exhibits include modern New Caledonia art as well as traditional South Pacific art.

The museum also houses wonderfully sculpted ancestral figures, some carved from single logs. One was topped by a 15-foot soaring bird; another looked much like a totem pole from the Pacific Northwest.

The museum’s lovely gardens are filled with indigenous plants--taro, coleus, banana, sago and yam, each labeled by name and use in traditional Kanak culture. We were so entranced by the structure and its contents that we returned for a second visit.

We sampled the local cuisine, of course. For about $5 to $10, hotels along the beach promenade offer a continental breakfast buffet--juice, hot drinks, croissants and breads. We grew fond of the restaurant at the Novotel Surf hotel, for its tremendous assortment of fresh fruits and for its tables on a glass-canopied deck overlooking the pool and, beyond, the bay.

You’ll find a couple of McDonald’s, but beyond that, fast food doesn’t exist here. French food and local beef, local deer, chicken and a variety of seafood were always on the menu.

Many hotels offer a traditional bougna (BOO-nya) meal for two or more people. Chicken or fish, potatoes, yams and other vegetables are covered in coconut milk to give everything a rich, buttery texture. They’re then wrapped in banana leaves, tied with palm fronds, and baked or steamed for hours over hot coals or in an oven. A bougna must be ordered several hours in advance but is well worth trying.

We sampled a variety of promenade restaurants, but one, San Remo, rated repeat visits. The seafood pizza and casserole of eggplant Parmesan were delicious and a bargain for less than $10 each.

A short flight took us to Ile des Pins. Capt. James Cook named this the Isle of Pines in the late 18th century for the native trees, which proved good for masts. A van driver met us at the tiny airport, and we set off on a paved road, past a forest through which we could see turquoise water surrounded by a ribbon of sparkling white sand. After 45 minutes, we left the paved road, went through a gateway made of geometrically carved logs, and arrived at Gi^te Manamaky. The owner, Madame Manamaky, lives right on the beach of the Bay of St. Joseph; next to her home are four small cottages and a dining room-kitchen. Instead of windows, the cottages have wooden shutters that open to admit the ocean breeze. And here was another bargain: Our tab was $50 per night for two. Breakfast was $5 per person, lunch $10, and dinner $15.

Madame had arranged for us to sail across the Bay of St. Joseph to have lunch, so at 8 one morning, we climbed in a pirogue, a type of outrigger canoe with sail that has been used by South Seas natives since ancient times. This one also had a small outboard motor used when the wind stopped for five minutes or more. A local family of four, spending the weekend away from Noumea, joined us. After wading through the crystal-clear water, we climbed in. The boatman hoisted the sail, and we set out slowly across the bay.

We moved so slowly that we could watch the sea life below, including colorful tropical fish and a few rays. During our three-hour trip, we chatted in English and fractured French with our fellow travelers and took in the view.

When we reached the shore, we found nothing but a small strip of white sand surrounded by jungle. The boatman pointed out a path up the hill, and we set off on a well-marked route through the jungle, where wild purple orchids punctuated the lush foliage. At an inlet with a small snack bar, two men directed us to wade across and follow another path to the restaurant. Fifteen minutes later, we arrived at a cove where a small house stood; this was the restaurant.

Each of the half-dozen outdoor tables was marked with the name of the party who reserved it. We found our table and admired the view of the bay, surrounded by ribbons of pristine beaches and swaying coconut palms, mangrove trees and pines. Soon, others arrived, and a three-course lunch began: salad, sauteed fish and boiled potatoes, and ice cream. We ate slowly, savoring the food and the view, then walked back to meet our van ride back to our gi^te.

We had plenty of time to shower and dress for Madame’s delightful dinner: green salad topped with shredded raw beets and carrots, lightly battered white fish, vegetables and buttered boiled potatoes, followed by a small serving of custard.

Swimming, sailing, hiking, lounging, eating and admiring the view kept us occupied at Gi^te Manamaky, but even in our indolence, we still wanted to sample another island.

We returned to in Noumea and from there caught a flight to Mare, one of the four raised coral atolls that constitute the Loyalty Islands, about 62 miles east of Grand Terre.

The staff at the Nengone Village hotel greeted us with fruit juice cocktails in the lobby, which overlooked a pool and, beyond, a cove that could have been a scene from “South Pacific.” Raised wooden paths connected the 15 rooms, each a modern, self-contained building. The rooms had a king and a twin bed, and shutters again let the breeze in. A small deck overlooked the ocean. Cost: $70 a night for two.

We aren’t divers, but we did snorkel. We saw a variety of tropical fish but no striped Jersey sea snakes, whose bite can be deadly.

We took a half-day tour of the island, on which we saw a whitewashed Catholic church dating to 1866 and a natural aquarium between the tiny villages of Tadin and Cengeite. The water ran so clear that from our perch on a cliff, we watched fish swimming below.

For our last night, we returned to Noumea and went to the Kuendu Beach Resort in Nouville. Six of Kuendu’s bungalows are over water (all were booked), and the rest are steps from the water. Our garden bungalow could have slept seven, with two queen-size beds in the upstairs loft, another in the downstairs bedroom and a sofa.

A complete kitchen was included, but we preferred Le Che^ne, the resort’s restaurant. We were not disappointed: We had roast quail and a hot apple tart, all surrounded by a riot of color from pieces of tropical fruit, a fitting finale to a sumptuous vacation.

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GUIDEBOOK

Getting to Know New Caledonia

Getting there: From LAX, nonstop service is available on AOM, and connecting service is available on Japan Airlines, Qantas, Singapore and United with a change of planes. Restricted round-trip fares begin at $1,000.

Where to stay: In Noumea, we stayed at the Ho^tel Le Lagon, 143 Route de l’Anse Vata, BP 440, 98845 Noumea, New Caledonia; telephone 011-687-261-255, fax 011-687-261-244, Internet https://www.edinetcal.nc/lelagon. About $75 per night for two, 20% discount for weekly stay.

On Ile des Pins, Gi^te Manamaky, Baie des Pirogues, Ile des Pins, New Caledonia, tel./fax 011-687-461-111. About $50 per night for two.

Nengone Village, P.O. Box 154, 98828 Tadine Mare, New Caledonia; tel. 011-687-454-500, fax 011-687-454-464, https://www.nengone.grands-hotels.cc. About $70 per night for two.

Kuendu Beach Resort, BP 404, 98800 Noumea, New Caledonia; tel. 011-687-243-000; fax 011-687-276-033, https://www.noumea.com/kuendubeach.

Over-water bungalows are $230 a night, and garden bungalows are $100 per night.

Where to eat: There is no tipping in New Caledonia. Locals consider it an insult to charge for hospitality.

In Noumea, L’Amedee, 153 Route de L’Anse Vata. Excellent seafood, gorgeous presentation. Dinner for two about $30.

Surf Novotel, 55 Promenade Roger Laroque, local tel. 286-688 Excellent buffet breakfast for two: about $20.

Le Che^ne restaurant, Kuendu Beach Resort, tel. 278-989. A knockout bougna dinner for two for about $40.

For more information: French Government Tourist Office, 9454 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 715, Beverly Hills, CA 90212-2967; tel. (310) 271-6665 or (410) 286-8310 (France-on-Call hotline), fax (310) 276-2835, https://www.francetourism.com. Also see https://www.noumea.com/indexg.htm or https://www.new-caledonia.com/eng.htm