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It was a novelty going on a flight overseas. We left Perth on the 10th September 2021 fora week’s more warmth on the Cocos islands which belong to Australia. We could buy duty
free as well which was a bonus.
The flight goes via Learmonth in the north west to refuel and then another three hours to the Cocos which are mid way between Indonesia and Sri Lanka.
The main island where tourists stay is West island which has approximately 170 inhabitants and not a lot of infrastructure. It is your tropical island paradise. You can get a good coffee on the Big Barge which was brought onshore and transformed into a small gift shop and
coffee shop.
The other island inhabited by Malays is Home island which houses about 600 inhabitants and was the base of the Clunies Ross family who ruled over the island for centuries.
Only one Clunies Ross now lives on west Island but has nothing to do with the running of the island. That is up to the Commonwealth government now.
West island is only 10degrees above sea level so I hope that it doesn’t disappear into the sea in the foreseeable future!
The other 25 odd islands are not inhabited but you can visit them on a large ferry or when doing the motorised canoe safari. The water is absolutely clear and a very pleasant temperature and the outiside temperature is a pleasant 30-32degress with a sometimes strong breeze which is very welcome.
The yatch club had no boats anchored at all and you can play golf across the runway and surrounds hen there are no flights. There are only two a week and you can hear them when they are landing.
It is a very relaxed place with a few possibilities for dining out and the Cocos club where they serve meals a few times a week as well as drinks.
We swam at various beaches and took the ferry over the Direction (uninhabited) island which just has hundreds of timy hermit crabs and palm trees and crystal clear water. We spent the day there.
The motorised canoe safari was a lot of fun. We landed at several different islands where we were served bubbly and snacks and Maurice won the crab race.
We were also given snorkels and masks and could float around a small island seeing turtles and a variety of beautifully coloured tropical fish.
We went with friends and we shared a lovely two bedroom house listening to the crashing waves every night. We could sit on our balcony and watch the ocean and we took our cocktails down and sat under a large tree every night to watch the waves and the turtles popping their heads up every so often.
We hired a car as it was a bit far to travel to the best beach on West Island.
One enterprising inhabitant produces all sorts of coconut products and he has the only outdoor restaurant and a small cafe right at the airport which was within spitting istance
of our accommodation.
On a Wedmesday night we could take the ferry for $5 return to Home island for a scrumptious Malay smorgasbord after another swim at a beautiful beach.
It is so laid back a place that on departure you can check baggage in at the little airport counter then you can go and enjoy yourself away from the airport. we could stay in our accommodation until we heard the plane land and then check out!
It was one of our most relaxing breaks and we would love to go back in a few years time.