Learning about Norfolk.....

We had a half day island tour booked as part of our package and were looking forward to learning all about this little island. But first we had the morning to ourselves so decided to start our day in the Kingston and Arthur's Vale Historic area.  

This Australian Convict site has been on the World Heritage List since 2010 and is an amazing place to visit.  We lost a few hours here wandering around the many old buildings and before we knew it we had to drive the 10 mins back to town to meet our tour bus.

On the bus we were driven around and across the island learning more about its history as we went.  Our driver, Larry, was a descendant of one of the Bounty mutineers.  His forefathers were one of the original eight families who arrived here from Pitcairn Island in 1856.  These descendants of the original settlers make up a third of the population today and all are very proud of their heritage.  

They even have their own language, a mix of Old 18th century English and Tahitian.  It is called Norf'k and is taught at the local school.  While the words look a little different from English it is fairly simple to work it out, Welkam tu Norf'k Ailen - is Welcome to Norfolk Island and Si yorlyi morla - means see you tomorrow, to share just a couple of phrases.

Once on board it was time to take a proper look at the island complete with a commentary from Larry.   We started out from the centre of Burnt Pine and stopped along the way at Queen Elizabeth lookout for the best view over Phillip Island, Nepean Island, Cemetery Bay, Emily Bay, Slaughter Bay, Point Hunter, the Lone Pine and the whole of Arthurs Vale and Kingston.   A truly amazing sight!  

Coming down from the lookout we drove through Arthur's Vale and Kingston seeing some of these beautiful buildings close up. Quality Row are some of the original homes of the last British Settlement and even today still have government employees living in them.  Others are museum pieces only.

From here we drove past the Golf Course, Cemetery Bay and the historic Norfolk Island Cemetery, learning about many of the people buried there, on our way to the Bloody Bridge.  This single lane stone bridge is famously named for the time when convicts killed and hid the bodies of two of their guards in the stonework.  Most unfortunately for them the blood seeped through and they were discovered meaning the culprits were found and met their maker sooner rather than later.

Heading away from the coast we were driven up one road where the locals have had a bit of fun with the naming of their properties.  One resident called his house Blue Roofs and since then one by one others on the road have joined in with many 'Roof' names gracing the front fences.  Though I do think the empty block called ' No Bloody Roof' should take the prize.

Stopping on Mt Pitt we were all enthralled by the spectacular 360 deg view from what is the second highest point on the island. The highest point is Mt Bates, (219m above sea level) but there is no road up to it.  Instead you drive here up to Mt Pitt (218m) and walk across the summit track which takes about 40 mins to do.  Of course once there you have to walk back but it is a fairly easy walk and one that shouldn't be missed.  We did do this another day.

We stopped at the historic St Barnabas Chapel where we were able to go inside and see the beautiful timber ceilings and stained glass windows.  Previously known as the Melanesian Mission Chapel this lovely church is open each day inviting visitors to drop in and learn more of the islands history across the years.  The chapel is still used today as one of the parish churches for the Church of England.

Leaving the church we were driven to a lovely old homestead in the middle of the island where we stopped for a delicious afternoon tea of scones, guava jelly and cream.  The old house is in fact owned by the tour company for just this reason now and we were able to wander the beautiful gardens and see inside the old house before getting back on the bus to return to town.

Other things we learnt on the tour were that Norfolk Island is a volcanic outcrop that formed about three million years ago, it has a sub tropical climate meaning that the weather is fairly mild all year round, never too hot or too cold.  About a third of the island is National Park or Reserve land with lots of walking trails through beautiful rain forests.  

Some other snippets of interest are there are no traffic lights on Norfolk Island.  Speed limits are 50kph, 40 on the main street and 30 in the school zone.  There are stop signs though and they do have policemen to make sure you all follow the rules.  

The phone book is about the size of a small paperback novel and the only one in the world to list people by their nicknames. You have to see this to believe it.  Too True!  Shops open until 5.30pm and close on Wednesday afternoon, Saturday afternoon and most close all day Sunday.  We made sure we had enough milk!

Another amazing fact is there is no local milk or cheese on Norfolk Island.  With all the cows we saw you expect there to be a thriving dairy industry.  This is not so, as a few years ago when the rules changed and all milk had to pasteurised it proved to be too expensive for the locals and so milk production ceased and now they are a beef industry.  All milk and cheese products are imported from NZ and Australia with UHT milk being what most people use.  One litre of fresh milk in the supermarket is $6.89 instead of $2.30 for the UHT variety.  Guess what most people buy!

Arriving back in Burnt Pine after a fabulous afternoon we said goodbye to Larry, visited the bakery and bought a family pie for dinner that night.  All this fresh air and exercise had done me in and it was home for a quiet night in and an early night.  We had to be up bright and early the next day as Bill had booked a bird tour with a local lady.

Si yorlyi morla..........