2004-June
See also: || 2004 || view slideshow
Kiwanis Race day is a huge event in Port Vila. Nearly a third of the
population gathers on the Elluk heights overlooking Port Vila harbour
to watch the finest horses in the nation show their mettle.
People went to some lengths to get a decent vantage. This group walked
in from the other side of the quarry and parked themselves at its rim.
I had just climbed down from atop a banyan tree (in a vain attempt to
get a clear view of the track), when I ran into my best friend in
Vanuatu, his wife and their child.
The boy, Willie, was lamed when a small cut became septic. Surgery
at the hospital only spread the infection, which eventually damaged
all the muscles in his thigh. This was the first time I'd seen him
any distance at all from his house. He was adamant about seeing
the horses, though.
Kiwanis Race day is a huge event in Port Vila. Nearly a third of the
population gathers on the Elluk heights overlooking Port Vila harbour
to watch the finest horses in the nation show their mettle.
I didn't catch what made these boys wince as they walked together
through the lot outside the track. Whatever it was, their verdict
was unanimous.
Kiwanis Race day is a huge event in Port Vila. Nearly a third of the
population gathers on the Elluk heights overlooking Port Vila harbour
to watch the finest horses in the nation show their mettle.
I was walking along the inner ring of the track when these four men
shouted out at me to take their photo.
Kiwanis Race day is a huge event in Port Vila. Nearly a third of the
population gathers on the Elluk heights overlooking Port Vila harbour
to watch the finest horses in the nation show their mettle.
These two boys walked a long way around the track to find a vantage
to their liking. They explained that they'd come without their parents,
and didn't have anyone's shoulders to rest on.
Kiwanis Race day is a huge event in Port Vila. Nearly a third of the
population gathers on the Elluk heights overlooking Port Vila harbour
to watch the finest horses in the nation show their mettle.
A rider charges down the opening stretch. He and a number of his colleagues
come from Tanna, an island which, not coincidentally, has a population
of wild horses.
Kiwanis Race day is a huge event in Port Vila. Nearly a third of the
population gathers on the Elluk heights overlooking Port Vila harbour
to watch the finest horses in the nation show their mettle.
I know the first time I saw a blonde-haired melanesian, I thought
their striking features were anomalous. I was very wrong. Like
Scandinavians, children's blondeness tends to fade with age.
Kiwanis Race day is a huge event in Port Vila. Nearly a third of the
population gathers on the Elluk heights overlooking Port Vila harbour
to watch the finest horses in the nation show their mettle.
I know the first time I saw a blonde-haired melanesian, I thought
their striking features were anomalous. I was very wrong. Like
Scandinavians, children's blondeness tends to fade with age.
Kiwanis Race day is a huge event in Port Vila. Nearly a third of the
population gathers on the Elluk heights overlooking Port Vila harbour
to watch the finest horses in the nation show their mettle.
Though the crowd trackside may not have any money to bet, the
interest level is high. People were packed 4 deep along a half
mile of the track's length.
Kiwanis Race day is a huge event in Port Vila. Nearly a third of the
population gathers on the Elluk heights overlooking Port Vila harbour
to watch the finest horses in the nation show their mettle.
Here, two riders thunder down the final stretch.
The expat population of Port Vila uses the occasion
of the Kiwanis Race day as an opportunity to dress in all their
finery. The options available to the rest of the attendees are
more limited.
This young girl wears her 'aelan dres' usually reserved for Sundays.
Kiwanis Race day is a huge event in Port Vila. Nearly a third of the
population gathers on the Elluk heights overlooking Port Vila harbour
to watch the finest horses in the nation show their mettle.
Two young men joke around in the parking lot outside the track. The shirt, by the way, is hand-painted. There is no Hard Rock Café in Vanuatu.
Imagicity | Photography - exotica, mundanity and wonders | © Dan McGarry
