10th May 2021
Headline in yesterday's paper 'Hugging family and friends allowed from next week'. How utterly patronising. 'Allowed', I ask you! I never thought we would live to see such a feeble and condescending response to a blasted bug. Still, it could have been worse. They might have made it compulsory.
Also published was the list of countries you can or can't visit on the so called 'traffic light system'. 68 countries were mentioned in either red, amber or green categories. Considering there are 197 countries in the world it covers only about a third of them. So what about the remaining 129? Of the twelve 'green' listed (ie you don't have to isolate on return) some won't even let you in. Others require expensive tests prior to going and quarantine when you get there. That, together with outrageous hikes in air travel prices, makes the prospect of going to any of them entirely unattractive.
Left: Tristan da Cunha. I noted that Tristan da Cunha is on the 'green' list. Tristan, as it is known colloquially, a British Overseas Territory, is a circular rain-swept volcanic (active) rock, about 7 miles in diameter, in the middle of the South Atlantic. It has a population at the last count of 251. It is also home to a few penguins, the occasional albatross, a few sheep and the indigenous Tristan thrush. It boasts few amenities and the highspots (whoopee!), as mentioned on Tripadviser, are:
- Calshot Harbour
- Post Office and Tourism Centre
- Thatched House Museum
- Albatross Bar
- Tristan da Cunha Golf Club
Having done a little research I failed to discover a hotel or guest house on the island. So it looks as if you would need to bring your own tent or beg some accommodation from a local, plus remembering to pack some good waterproofs.....and perhaps your golf clubs. And a 1st aid kit.
It is undoubtedly a very out-of-the-way place and famous for some fairly disastrous geological events, such as the mega-eruption of the volcano in October 1961 which resulted in the small population being evacuated. Probably now due for another one. The top of the vocano at 6765ft is known as Queen Mary's Peak which appears normally to be covered in cloud, or smoke.
There is only one resident doctor, probably to be found in the Albatross Bar, and very limited medical facilities, so not a good idea to get too ill. The island's motto is "Our faith is our strength". I expect they need a lot of faith.
The island is not renowned for its famous inhabitants. Probably the the most famous being Conrad Jack Glass MBE (b 1961), presumably a descendant of Corporal Glass who founded the settlement. He was/is a police officer and former Chief Islander and the first, indeed only, islander to have written a book about the place. It is entitled 'Rockhopper Copper'. I must confess I haven't yet read it. There are probably quite a lot of 'Glasses' on the island.
TV, internet, mobile phone coverage and any other forms of communication are somewhat limited. The daily news is gleaned from the Tristan Times which is no doubt packed with local gossip and salacious scandal. I wonder if a little in-breeding is not the order of the day.
Tristan therefore appears to be an excellent and healthy holiday destination of choice for the more adventurous traveller or, some might say, eccentric. We are so fortunate that our benevolent Goverment has put it on the 'green list'. However, one slight drawback is that there is no airstrip on the island. The only way to get there is by ship, a 6 day voyage from Cape Town. The problem here is that South Africa is on the 'red list'. Oh drat!
I think I will just be tempted to go back to the fabulous Lulok Island (Google it) which, funnily enough, doesn't get a mention on any lists.
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