Melanesian Adventure

This month of April 2012 I will cross the Tropic of Capricorn and ventures into Vanuatu, "the land that has always existed."

This culturally diverse tropical archipelago of 83 islands halfway between Australia and Hawaii is a diver's paradise, surrounded by coral reefs and crystalline waters.

Formerly known as the New Hebrides, the islands were ruled jointly by Britain and France from the early 1900s until independence was gained in 1980.

American forces arrived en masse in May 1942, saving the islands from almost certain Japanese occupation during WW2 - rusting relics of the war reamin just beneath the surface.