New Caledonia

Images of New Caledonia.

Sent by Ibetto of Wallis & Futuna who was visiting New Caledonia.

New Caledonia - Lifou

Images of Lifou.

Sent by Ibetto of Wallis & Futuna who was visiting New Caledonia.

This is from Wikipedia : Lifou [lifu] is a commune (an overseas territory of France) in the Loyalty Islands Province of New Caledonia in the Pacific Ocean.

Lifou is made up of Lifou Island, the largest and most heavily populated of the Loyalty Islands, its smaller neighbour Tiga Island, and several uninhabited islets in between these two. All these islands lie among the Loyalty Islands, 190 km (120 mi) to the northeast of New Caledonia's mainland. At 1,146 km2 (442 sq mi), Lifou Island is the largest atoll in the world.

The town of Wé, on Lifou Island, is the administrative centre of the commune of Lifou as well as the provincial seat of the Islands Province.

New Caledonia - Maré Island

Maré Island : Nengone, the jump of the warrior, the beaches, and the hotel.

Sent by Ibetto from Wallis & Futuna who was visiting New Caledonia.

This is from Wikipedia : Maré Island (French: Île Maré) is the second-largest of the Loyalty Islands, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The island is part of the commune (municipality) of Maré, in the Loyalty Islands Province of New Caledonia.

The island is 42 km (26 miles) long and 16 to 33 km (10 to 20 miles) wide. It lies northeast of Grande Terre, New Caledonia's mainland. Like its neighbor to the north Lifou, Maré is formed of a raised coral reef, a former atoll that has been lifted about 120 meters. The interior of the island is the former lagoon, surrounded by a rim of higher land that was the ring of reef islets. Its fossil coral rock is honeycombed with caves, pools, and pits of all sizes, whose sharp edges make for difficult walking. Because of the lifting, the current shoreline is relatively recent and supports only short sections of nearshore fringing reef, unlike the extensive barrier reef found on the main island of New Caledonia, Grande Terre. The narrow beaches of Maré are often backed by cliffs.

New Caledonia - Ouvéa

Image of Ouvéa Island.

Sent by Ibetto of Wallis & Futuna who was visiting New Caledonia.

This is from Wikipedia : Ouvéa (local pronunciation: [uˈve.a]) is a commune in the Loyalty Islands Province of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean. The settlement of Fayaoué [faˈjawe], on Ouvéa Island, is the administrative centre of the commune of Ouvéa.

New Caledonia - L'Anse Vata Beach in Nouméa

The tourist beach of L'Anse Vata in Nouméa.

Sent by Ibetto of Wallis & Futuna who was visiting New Caledonia.

This is from Wikipedia : Nouméa (French pronunciation: [numeˈa]) is the capital city of the French territory of New Caledonia. It is situated on a peninsula in the south of New Caledonia's main island, Grande Terre, and is home to the majority of the island's European, Polynesian (Wallisians, Futunians, Tahitians), Indonesian, and Vietnamese populations, as well as many Melanesians, Ni-Vanuatu and Kanaks that work in one of the South Pacific's most industrialised cities. The city lies on a protected deepwater harbour which serves as the chief port for New Caledonia.

The population of the city (commune) at the 2009 census was 97,579 inhabitants (up from 76,293 inhabitants at the 1996 census). Including the suburbs of Nouméa, the population of the Greater Nouméa metropolitan area (French: agglomération du Grand Nouméa) at the 2009 census was 163,723 inhabitants (up from 118,823 inhabitants in 1996, equating to a 2.4% population increase per year). 66.7% of the population of New Caledonia live in Greater Nouméa, which covers the communes of Nouméa, Le Mont-Dore, Dumbéa and Païta.

New Caledonia - St Maurice Monument in Isle of Pines

The monument of St. Maurice in Isle of Pins (Île des Pins).

Sent by Ibetto of Wallis & Futuna who was visiting New Caledonia.

This is from WIkipedia : The Isle of Pines (French: Île des Pins; Kanak name: Kunyié) is an island located in the Pacific Ocean, in the archipelago of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France. The island is part of the commune (municipality) of L'Île-des-Pins, in the South Province of New Caledonia. The Isle of Pines is often nicknamed l'île la plus proche du paradis ("the closest island to Paradise") and is famous for snorkeling and scuba diving in and around its colorful lagoon. Many species of tropical fish and corals can be seen in the transparent water.

The island is located around 22°37′S 167°29′E / 22.617°S 167.483°E / -22.617; 167.483Coordinates: 22°37′S 167°29′E / 22.617°S 167.483°E / -22.617; 167.483 and measures 15 km (9 miles) by 13 km (8 miles). It lies southeast of Grande Terre, New Caledonia's main island and is approximately 100 kilometres south-east of the capital Noumea. There is one airport (code ILP) with a 1,097-meter (3,600 ft) runway. The Isle of Pines is surrounded by the New Caledonia Barrier Reef.

The inhabitants of the island are mainly native Melanesian Kanaks and the population is approximately 2,000 (estimated 2006) (1989 population 1,465).

The island is rich with animal life and is home to many unique creatures such as the Crested Gecko Rhacodactylus ciliatus and the world's largest gecko Rhacodactylus leachianus.

The pic Nga is the island's highest point, at 262 meters (860 ft) elevation.

The island was first discovered by Captain James Cook in 1774 on his second voyage to New Zealand. Captain Cook gave the island its name after seeing the tall native pines (Araucaria columnaris). It is said he never actually disembarked onto the island but as he saw signs of inhabitance (smoke) assumed it was inhabited. In the 1840s both Protestant and Catholic missionaries arrived, along with merchants seeking sandalwood.

The French took possession of the island in 1853 at which time the native Kunies opted for the Catholic religion. In 1872 the island became a French penal colony, home to approximately 3,000 political deportees from the Paris Commune.

New Caledonia - Côté Ouest

View of West Coast of New Caledonia.

Sent by Ibetto of Wallis & Futina who was visiting New Caledonia.

New Caledonia - Hienghène

Multiviews of Hienghène in New Caledonia.

Sent by Ibetto from Wallis & Futuna who was visiting New Caledonia.

This is from Wikipedia : Hienghène is a commune in the North Province of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean.

Cagou

This is another postcard sent by a friend in Poindimie, New Caledonia. It shows Kagu, as this friend said, "it is the emblematic bird of New Caledonia. It's very rare and only lays one egg per year."

This is from Wikipedia : The Kagu (French: Cagou), Rhynochetos jubatus, is a long-legged blue-greyish bird endemic to the dense mountain forests of New Caledonia. It is the only surviving member of the family Rhynochetidae, although a second, larger species of the genus Rhynochetos, the Lowland Kagu Rhynochetos orarius, has been described from Holocene subfossil remains.[2] It is almost flightless, and builds a ground nest of sticks, laying a single egg. It has proved vulnerable to introduced predators, and is threatened with extinction. The remote habitat and rarity of this species mean that little is known of its habits.

Poindimie, New Caledonia

This is perhaps the most interesting postcard ever received from the hard-to-get country. This was sent by a friend who lives in Poindimie in New Caledonia. I have to converse in French in convincing her to send me postcards fron her place. This is one of the two postcards that she sent me. Merci.

This is from Wikipedia : Poindimié is a commune in the North Province of New Caledonia, an overseas territory of France in the Pacific Ocean.