22 Oct 2014

Lepi Village Hospitality

Breakfast was at the leisurely hour of 0730 this morning after we had woken to find the Spirit of Enderby anchored in Thousand Ships Harbour beside beautiful Utuha Island. Soon after breakfast we were snorkelling right off the white sandy beach. This was a gentle introduction to the joys of snorkelling for some as they discovered some lovely corals, while the old hands ventured further offshore. A thoroughly enjoyable morning in the water and on the beach was had by all. Conor even saw a Moray Eel being valeted by both a Cleaner Wrasse and a Cleaner Shrimp!

With all back aboard, the ship repositioned a few miles to be closer to Lepi Village, our destination for the afternoon. Here the hills which are blanketed by thick forests, rise abruptly from the coastline. Dotted amongst the trees, a few gardens could be seen holding on precariously to the hillside. The performance by the Lepi Village culture group was absolutely fantastic and they had us all enthralled with their rhythm and action as they danced around with their bamboo pipes. Afterwards there was time to wander through the village where the hospitable locals showed us their homes. The birders spotted many interesting species in the forests surrounding the village, so a great time was had by all. At the evening recap, Conor shared some photographic highlights from the snorkelling excursion and Suzanne talked about the systems that have been put in place for the upcoming general election. We are now sailing for the eastern shores of Malaita and another action packed day.