Tuesday, May 18, 2010

On the Road to Manaro






On Ambae there is a volcano named Manaro that is not easily hiked, somewhat picturesque and has a few custom stories behind it. One story is that a small man used to dwell in the volcano and he was the volcano’s source of power but then the American came over and stole the man away for his strength and power and that is why America is a super power and why the volcano hasn’t erupted again. Another story is that there is a custom tattoo of 2 parallel lines representing the road to Manaro and those that possess this tattoo will be permitted in the after life to return to the volcano and dance on the top. When I heard this story I thought we gotta hike this and get the tattoo which many past volunteers have done before.

My dad the avid hiker agreed to come along as well as Ed and Beth. We drove out to the South side of the volcano and started from xx village. There we were greeted with flowers, coconut water and a welcome ceremony from the chief. We set off about 930am with a large group of locals and trudged our way up to the top. The view was non-existent since too much fog and clouds but it at least the temperature was cool. The Hike was strenuous and seemed to take forever, the guide kept telling us “just 10 more minutes” which really meant “another hour”. Finally we made it to the top and could look out to the lake and see steam rising. It was nice although no as spectacular as the view from a plane up above or to seeing an active volcano like on Tanna. So some may ask why get the tattoo since who would want to dance for eternity on a so-so looking volcano. But it felt like a rite of passage to make it to the top where so many other PC vols journeyed and with similar stories of struggling up and having a sense of accomplishment once completed. It’s kinda like a PC volunteer’s service. We all made it down by sunset and enjoyed some island food and kava at the village. They even performed some custom dances for us that were so neat to watch (not at all touristy but genuine). Now as I mentioned it is tradition that vols not only hike Manaro but as well get the custom tattoo. I somehow convinced my dad that he and I should get the tattoo. I’d actually convinced him months ago because I really wanted to share the experience with him. To me the tattoo wasn’t just about the hand stamp to some party on a volcano in the afterlife it represented to me the PC journey and Vanuatu. And it wouldn’t be me dancing for eternity but hiking with my dad forever. The tattoos were done by Bob who has done 24 PC vols before us. He used a orange tree needle and kerosene soot and ashes as the ink and dapped medicinal custom leaves to the area. My dad got his on his right calf on the outside and I got my on the inside of my right wrist. The lines are not exactly straight and precise but that what the road is like. The pain was bearable once the area went numb (haha). As we were getting the tattoos the villagers all crowded around to watch – Dad said we were their entertainment for the night. Around 8pm we finally made it back to Ed and Beth’s house and everyone was tired and sore. It was a quick bucket shower and straight to bed for us all.

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