April 25

Hey everyone, life is well in Vila. We're eating lots of meat and dairy, two things we sometimes crave on the island.

Here's some questions we've been asked recently:

Hey, tell us about Ni-Van life.  Do the have hobbies, like carving or weaving small items?  Where do they get their clothes?  Do they sew it by hand or get it from Vila?   Do they keep two, one or four outfits?  Where do their blankets and beds come from, or do they sleep on mats?
 
Do you need more stickers for the children?

Ni-Van life [I presume] is good, especially if you're okay with the communal living situation. Alex and I never realized how independent we were until we spent a couple of weeks in our village on Pentecost Island. They have plenty of food and they SEEM content with their workload and their diet. There are some folks (I think) that would rather be a high-roller in New York City than a subsistence farm in a village of 20, but I think you would find folks like that anywhere.

Hobbies - they weave baskets and fish for fun and drink kava and they have bands (stringband music nomo). People snorkel just for fun and kids play. I haven't met any stamp collectors or bird watchers. We've met a guy in our district that lives out in the bush and spends his days reading and drawing. Some people get way into church and some people like gardening and cooking more than other people.

They weave baskets and mats that are absolutely beautiful - amazing really.

Clothes are commercially-made, not sure how many outfits they have but, it's more than four, not as much as you and I, but enough that I wouldn't notice when someone got a new shirt. Blankets come from Vila, and I'm going to guess most people don't have beds. They sleep on three-inch foam mattresses that look like they were made in China, some people sleep on mats that they have woven.

yes, please send more stickers, they were a huge hit when we did our health talks with the first and third graders.