Fiji
Solomon Islands
Vanuatu

Samoa
New Zealand

We caught the flight from Nadi to Honiara at 10:00 am. The views from the plane as it leaves Fiji are superb, as it flies over a myriad of tiny golden coloured atolls scattered in a turquoise sea. We arrived in Honiara just after midday. It took about 45 minutes to get out of the garden shed which passes for an arrivals terminal (although this should have been replaced by a new building now). You have to go through immigration, argicultural control, then wait for the luggage to arrive before finally passing through customs. Everything seems to be carried out at a very relaxed pace.

Henderson Field, the airport, is 8km from the centre of Honiara, and on the way to Lucy’s sister’s and brother-in-law’s we had our first experience of the Solomon Shuffle. The roads in the Solomons can be described as a series of potholes that just happen to be going in the same direction, and the cars veer wildly around the road as they try to find the path of least resistance and damage inducing bumps.

We passed the new terminal, which should be opening in the middle of March and looks a vast improvement on the existing arrangement and several churches which were overflowing with Suday worshippers. The centre of Honiara defies description and probably merits the title of ugliest city in the Pacific, it is a ribbon town that sprawls over about 5 miles and shows no sign of planning or zoning. If there hasn't been any rain then it is just a dustbowl and if there has been rain then it is like a river of mud.

Late in the afternoon we went to the beach closest to Honiara, Benigi. Although there are beaches in Honiara it is recomended not to use them since there is a shortage of public toilets! Benigi is the home of two of the many WWII wrecks that litter Iron Bottom Sound. It is a black sand beach which shelves away steeply from the shore. It is not a particularly pleasant beach to swim at and I was bitten several repeatedly by sea lice. Not worth the $10 custom fee.