A Swell Time on Christmas Island ......

It’s not often you get asked to be a bit of ‘crash test dummy’ trying out a new product, but when Chris & Jess Bray offer a night out at Swell Lodge to test out their new eco-lodge, you find yourself willingly answering “yes please!!’.

It might look like this tent popped up overnight in the remote wilderness on Christmas Island, but it was in fact a project seeded by this amazing couple during their first photographic safari hosted on the island in 2013. The stars aligned with the Bray’s seeing the potential for a unique tourism venture coinciding with the imminent release of the National Park Expression of Interest for a development in the park.

Late 2016 they received confirmation they were the successful applicants with their development proposal, and 2017 saw a lot of jungle exploration, planning, designing and engineering to bring this fully ‘off-grid’ eco-lodge to life. And whilst at times this has led to angst, stress and all the challenges that building in a remote location on a very remote island brings, that planning and attention to detail has paid off in spades.

The experience starts when you leave town, following the shiny new ‘Swell Lodge’ signs out to the remote North western point of the island, where our spectacular Dales are nestled, a RAMSAR protected wetland boasting a number of springs and a waterfall. A padlocked gate makes you feel like you are entering an exclusive location, half expecting to see paparazzi pop out of the forest to capture your photo before heading into the private tree-filled zone – the gate sporting a sign to remind you to go very slow, as your vehicle will be sharing the road with the prolific crab life present in the rainforest.

A winding unsealed track leads you to the tent - a gabion wall, your first indication of any human development for kilometres in any direction. A very handy trolley allows you to load up your luggage for the short saunter to the tent, hidden most of the time due to the dense vegetation lining the trail – a small decline in the landscape and you have dropped to the lower terrace, on which the tent is perched.

A futurist electronic door lock winds back once you have pressed the code and you enter another world – the first thing that grabs your attention is the ‘wall to wall’ sliding doors that maximise the view of the rugged coastline – the light – the atmosphere. Outside is immediately inside – and you can’t forget the fact that you are way out of town, in a pristine wilderness - but the surrounding luxury of the lodge messes with your senses – in a good way!

 As a long term resident of Christmas Island, over the years I have camped out at Dolly & Lily Beaches, even South Point. We have carried our gear, sometimes for a couple of kilometres to enjoy the locale and make the most of being ‘away from it all’. Contending with robber crabs pinching you through the tent whilst trying to steal your food, sand getting in everything and of course – not being able to treat yourself to a fresh brewed coffee without the possibility of getting third degree burns from your fire pit, or not realising the sand settled at the bottom of your mug until you upend the remnants of your drink down the hatch.

This…. This is something entirely new! I am not sure I can explain it, but will give it a go.

Most of Christmas Island is undeveloped – the main township, spread over a few of the geologically-formed terraces, houses the community, a defunct resort/ casino on an Eastern point, a declining detention centre, a few plots of land hosting the phosphate export industry - effectively 10 minutes’ drive from Settlement and you are in wilderness, open and in some cases impenetrable tropical forest.

A number of tracks and trails allows visitors to venture to some of the most spectacular places on the island – with my tours allowing morning or afternoon tea at a lovely location, or a self-arranged picnic with visitors using the opportunity to take a dip in the ocean at a remote beach – an opportunity to relax at a location and take in the surrounds, but always with the plan to head back to the township to enjoy the services of their accommodation and local restaurants.

Swell Lodge means that you no longer have to head back to town – you stay out there, immersed in the wilderness of the Christmas Island forest. Civilised living - away from civilisation! Listening to the sounds of the rhythmic ocean waves, feeling the breeze, watching the moon rise as the prolific bird life wheels around you whilst sipping something chilled as the sun sets and just knowing that you have absolutely nowhere else to be - but to just ‘be’.

The tent is well- appointed – comfy bed and linens, lovely ensuite, bbq, good quality crockery and cookware, kettle and most importantly – a coffee machine! We made the most of it – trying to experience what we could during our stay. Eating our dinner and breakfast on the deck, enjoying a mid-morning coffee and a game of cards after an early morning dip at nearby Merrial Beach. Everything we needed to grab for – it was there! A torch supplied after we realised we had left something in the car, a reasonable sized freezer for our ice cream, a selection of good quality teas and my favourite – Vittoria coffee – to either use in the machine for a cappuccino, or with the plunger, also supplied.

Our time out at Swell Lodge passed way too quickly for my liking. You kind of wish it stood still so you could just keep drinking in the nature and the view. We were blessed to witness a few passing dolphins, and the occasional local fishing boat drifting past, looking for bigger catches at Egeria Point.

And with the end our of stay came the realisation that we had this amazing opportunity to stay on a part of the island that we wouldn’t have otherwise had the chance to – and also that I just don’t think our old tent pitched at a remote beach is going to ‘cut it’ again for our ‘off-grid’ experience!

Swell Lodge is now available for bookings and they have a July 2018 Special - book a 7 day stay and receive a free Sunset Canapes Cruise from Flying Fish Cove. For more details visit www.indianoceanexperiences.com.au for full packages including flights, or www.swelllodge.com for more details about the stay.

 

A 'Boy's Own' Adventure...

Climbing inside the 'Grandfather tree' at The Blowholes

A number of years ago, when the Christmas Island Resort Casino was still a going concern, my sister lived on the island. As with most folks, the island got under her skin and she has embraced any chance to visit the island. An opportunity arose in January this year to return for 11 days, bringing her 2 young boys. I'll let her tell you about her experience.....

'It has been 9 years since my return to Christmas Island, this time with my two boys aged 5 and 7 years old. The island, just as I had remembered it, lush green rainforest, relaxed living style, community minded, multicultural and beautiful clear water coastlines great for snorkelling.

Dipping at the Waterfall

I wasn’t sure how to keep my two young lads occupied or even interested on the trip (growing up in a bustling city glued to technology) but the natural surroundings, wildlife, trips to the jungle, snorkelling, swimming and places to see took care of it for me. They were enamoured with the wildlife, thrilled at the 4WD trekking to get to places, perfectly at home in the snorkelling beaches full of colourful fish, eels and the many assorted crabs.

 

They were fascinated with the blow holes, loved exploring the jungle on the walk out to the waterfall and made great local friends in their time there. 



Learning to snorkel for the first time at Ethel Beach



 I was excited to see them explore things for the first time and it took me back to my first time on the island nearly 20 years ago.       

Some restaurants have changed, some have gone, but the atmosphere of the Chinese/Malaysian food and culture remains with temples to explore and on occasion the singing of the prayers from the mosque down in the Kampong. Some great cuisine accompanied by the ever popular iced milo’s were a hit!'

Whilst families don't make up many of our tourism visitors, any who do make the journey feel that it has been a worthwhile investment to bring their children to the island to experience nature in all it's raw beauty and immerse themselves in an embracing multi-cultural community. Contact Indian Ocean Experiences if you would like package options. Why not also include a visit to our neighbour - the Cocos Keeling Islands? www.indianoceanexperiences.com.au

Robber Crab: Prince of Thieves

Christmas Island makes many a traveller’s bucket list due to the annual spectacular migration of our showy, shiny red crabs. As kids growing up and learning about the world from David Attenborough’s documentaries ( before google) many people attest that the segment they most often can recall is a small island completely overrun by red crabs - blocking roads, entering houses and filling gardens whilst on their annual migration to the sea. Little do people realise that Christmas actually has nearly 2 dozen land crabs, some very easily seen, others a little more elusive, but the single species that actually makes the greatest impression on our guests – the giant Robber crabs.

Known as coconut crabs at other locales around the Pacific and Indian oceans, their Latin name, Birgus latro, with latro meaning robber, thief, highwayman or brigand, is the perfect descriptive for these jungle thugs. Tasty or shiny seems to be their only prerequisites when it comes to identifying suitable bounty. Christmas Island has little to no crime so when things go missing from your yard, a tool carelessly left out, shoes missing from your back porch, most locals don’t instinctively accuse wayward youth and call the police to report their loss. They start a search, in the nearby vicinity, in hopes that if the thief has worked out their cache isn’t edible, they will leave it not far from the scene of the crime. Anyone who has been out to Dolly beach, with their carefully prepared picnic, quickly finds themselves surrounded and held at 'claw point' until they surrender their bounty. And if you don’t acquiesce to their request, they will simply help themselves. Many a visitor or camper has had to retrieve their gear from the forest, where the crabs may have scampered away to assess their haul. Our last trip involved retrieving a plate, a hat, and a thong from the jungle after our tent had been raided during the night (that was after they had harassed my partner all night in the tent, and resulted in us standing in the ocean to eat our breakfast as a number of thugs were still in the vicinity come morning).

A legendary story exists about an army rifle going missing during a training session in the forest. Whether true or not, it highlights their indiscriminate thieving behaviour. One of my favourite stories is from our first Bird & Nature week event in 2006. Janos, our intrepid Abbott’s booby bird researcher and guide, had given his small group explicit instructions about etiquette around this rare and magnificent seabird. He subsequently laid out the gear he needed to tape a satellite tracker to the bird and then abseiled up to the canopy to retrieve his subject. Bird secured, he heads back to the forest floor, only to discover that one of his important pieces of equipment is missing, a large roll of silver tape. Bird now flapping and unhappy, he has to rifle through his pack to find another roll of tape, all whilst quietly berating the guests for not following his instructions about staying still so as not to distress the bird, and not touching anything. The guests all look at each other, slightly perplexed, as they know they hadn’t moved and no one had any reason to touch the equipment. They quietly watched the procedure of attaching the satellite tracker and Janos returns the bird to its nest high up in the canopy. As the guests are departing the nesting site, one spots a robber crab, hiding in a large log, proudly clutching its haul - a large roll of silver tape!

The island boasts two dozen species of different land crabs, many quite happily going about their business of scavenging, cleaning the forest floor and occasionally hunting each other for an easy feed. The robber crab, put simply, is the top of the food chain on Christmas Island. Like all of our land crabs, the robber crabs still use the ocean as part of their breeding cycle, the babies emerging quietly from the sea and using a shell for their first few months on land. Professor Brian Cox visited the island in 2012, to film a segment to include in his television series, Wonders of Life. When questioned why he was including robber crabs, he explained that robber crabs are one of the few species on the planet that experiences many of the planets physical forces throughout its life span – ‘How many animals born in the sea can also climb a tree?’.

Robber crabs do have the scientists a bit baffled, as they are known to have evolved at the same time as many of the crustaceans on the planet, but no one is sure why they developed their sense of smell to such a high degree.  Perhaps a leftover super strength olfactory sense essential to life in the sea.

For want of a better description, the robber crab looks like an overgrown hermit crab but they have evolved to no longer require a shell. They have the remnants of a tail that tucks back underneath them, and a solid protective exterior. They have soft, leathery looking skin between their joints for flexibility and their robotical movement, eyes on stalks and wandering scent antennae make them look like an alien out of Dr Who. The last thing you would expect to see in a tropical jungle landscape.

Whilst the staff at the National Park do their utmost to protect the robber crabs, signage and educational campaigns to try and cut down the road mortality, they do pose their own challenges when it comes to park management. Christmas Island has a number of introduced species – cats, rats and insects, that in their own ways have impacted on our unique environment. Pest control programs are regularly carried out, each one designed to target a specific invasive species, employing a number of techniques to deliver poison or trapping and each one in turn needs to be modified to cater to the amazing abilities of our robber crabs. Plastic dispensers to supply ant bait in yellow crazy ant super colonies were subjected to treatment akin to a gumball machine being violated by some rogue youth. Hanging the dispensers in trees just added another level of difficulty - but the outcome was inevitably the same. Toxic sausages to control the feral cats had to be suspended on fishing line from a specially designed gantry that thwarted the robber crabs ability to climb, and strung at a height that a cat could still eat the sausage. Cat traps, set up with meat to attract and trap the cat were inevitably found the next day with an angry trapped robber crab instead of the intended species. Old rubbish bins, tipped on their sides, with the cat trap on top stop the robber crab from being able to climb up and access the food, whilst still being at a comfortable height for a cat to jump up and hopefully be trapped. Swedish goshawk traps, deployed to capture and study our endemic raptor, laced with fresh meat to attract a goshawk, photographed in the field - naturally covered in robber crabs.

So, whilst your yearning for a ‘National Geographic’ experience on Christmas Island with our famous red crabs drives your desire to visit this rocky outcrop – it will no doubt be the Robber crabs that steal the show – and your heart (and maybe your flip flops).

Written by Lisa Preston

©

To book your Robber crab experience on Christmas Island visit my website at www.indianoceanexperiences.com.au

 

Roti - Can I?

Well, it's actually Roti Canai, pronounced Chennai, after the region in India where these flat breads originate from. But when I first saw that spelling ‘can I’ has always stuck in my head, as though it was always a good time to ask for one. Little else elicits more comments and likes on my facebook posts (even more so than my cat and renovation photos) than a snap of a crispy roti with a side bowl of curry. Friends, relatives and ex-Islanders who have tasted the delights of Christmas Island roti and no longer have regular access express their frustration and in some cases, direct abuse at me for showing such a photo.

I recall a discussion at work after I had not long moved to the island. My colleague was trying to convince me of the virtues of roti and how it was eaten, tearing the bread apart and using it to scoop up the curry sauce served on the side. As I stared incredulously at her, my reaction was similar to those I have subsequently tried to indoctrinate into the cult of roti…’Curry? For breakfast?!’

But, like all things that you aren’t supposed to have too much of, these little flat breads full of flour, condensed milk, margarine and then grilled with lots of oil are moreish…..and dangerously addictive.

They are usually available at one of the Malay cafes in the Kampong, but over the years these businesses have changed ownership and premises, and opened and closed, and you may invariably find yourself in an illicit roti kitchen in someone’s garage, getting your fix. No signage, no advertising, no fancy seating or decor, but a 30 minute wait with a queue down the driveway as word had spread around the island that a roti ‘den’ was in operation.

But for many ex residents, our local food experiences form some of their favourite memories of the island - all stemming from our unique and preserved mix of living Malay, Chinese and European cultures. Malay cafes and food stalls serving a range of delicious mouth- watering dishes, with a queue for homemade chicken satays that would rival a waiting line for the latest iphone release. Little noodle shops in tucked away places, with barely a menu on display, but everyone knowing what day of the week it was and what was the only meal option being served. Our Noodle House being full of a lunch time, with a man behind the counter who literally squiggled your order in a hand drawn window on a sheet of paper, using no names or table numbers, and somehow your Bee Hoon miraculously finding its way to you. Another gent in long black pants and a collared shirt in the kitchen, manning 2 flaming woks, flinging ingredients in and tossing them all with gusto, then flipping them onto a dish in a matter of minutes – displaying  all the flair and grace of a gifted showman.

As a small and remote island, Christmas Island has always had its challenges feeding its populace. A small cemetery on the island full of poor souls who perished with beriberi during early settlement is testament to that fact. In an unjust irony, Christmas Island was settled for the mining and exporting of rock phosphate, a slow release fertiliser. But our topsoil is deficient of much needed nitrogen and it is therefore challenging, or impossible, to grow conventional fruits and vegetables. Coupled with a drier than usual tropical environment and a lack of infrastructure, we have not been able to establish farming on any scale that could afford us self-sufficiency, and we are reliant on much of our foodstuffs being shipped and flown in, at great expense.

In the early days of settlement, low paid staff were heavily reliant on foodstuffs supplied to them by the British Phosphate Company. These basic supplies were also a means to control the working populace. Misbehaviour and disobedience could see ones rations reduced - stale items and white rice, long shipped to the island and stored for months, providing very little nutrition and sustenance.

To supplement their diet, the labourers caught fish and hunted easy to catch imperial pigeons and our large land crabs, the Robber crab. The pigeons faced extinction with the unsustainable numbers being poached and the authorities had to take harsh steps, fining people if caught with the birds in their possession.

Another way was to establish hidden gardens. Fresh herbs, chillies, lime trees, banana palms and papayas would be secretly grown on the edge of settlements, or areas near where there was mining activity. These subversive gardens undermined the power the corporation had over its workforce and would be destroyed if found and its’ owner punished, possibly with deportation. To this day, dotted around the island are the remnants of these long abandoned gardens. Lime trees, chilli bushes and banana palms provide the present day island inhabitants with a bit of ‘jungle shopping’ and the occasional surprise bounty whilst out exploring.

In recent years, a scientific study established in partnership between a West Australian university, the Phosphate mine and private enterprise, has identified a solution to the nitrogen deficiency - growing crops of legumes and then ploughing them back into the soil, in preparation for growing other crops. A small lease is under development, with some crops being commercialised early 2016. An aquaculture venture is also under development, which will enable better hydroponic options, and a supply of freshwater fish.

As Christmas Island looks to diversify its economy to embrace tourism, we won’t be in a position compete with the gourmet food regions around Australia for some time yet. And whilst the residents wait to see what the future brings with these new ventures, we will no doubt continue to make the most of our unique food culture, embracing the roti, Nasi Lemak, Wanton Wednesday, Fish ball Friday, Pork Rice Saturday and Chicken Rice Sunday and be thankful that we have access to these tasty and varied food options in such a small and remote dot in the middle of the Indian Ocean.

 Article by Lisa Preston ©

A 'How To' on harnessing the 'Call of the Wild'.

Christmas Island, whilst being quite remote and not overly large, is proud to boast an endemic hawk-owl. These little birds have persevered despite introduced pests, feral cats and extensive clearing of habitat for mining. My first real sighting of the hawk-owl was during our very first Bird & Nature Week in 2006. Resident biologist and guide for the week, David James, escorted the group to a well-known hawk-owl hang out on our local golf course. The group waited in silence whilst David played a tape on a small player, projected through a megaphone. As I listened to the whirring, scratchy call being played, I leant over to a friend and quietly declared that ‘no self-respecting hawk-owl was going to fall for that’. Within minutes, we had a bird calling back. A minute or so after that, David put the torch in the tree and clear as day for all to see, there was a hawk-owl calling to its heart’s content. We got a very good view of the bird, with one guest making the comment that ‘that was all too easy’. Within 20 minutes of arriving we were back in our cars and heading back to town. I thought to myself that these little guys are very accommodating, this will be a breeze.



Christmas Island Hawk-owl (Ninox natalis) Photo: R Jackson

David’s contract had finished on the island, so for our next Bird & Nature Week, I was front and centre for the hawk-owl activity, with assistance from another guide, Nic Dunlop. Again, went to the same spot, within minutes had the bird and many happy guests. I was soon to learn in subsequent years and hawk-owl tours, that this was not always going to be the case. A bit of rain early in the evening, too much moonlight or holding my tongue on the wrong side of my mouth meant that they just wouldn’t respond to the playback, or in some cases, respond   but not come in close for a viewing.
 

After many, many times of listening to the call, trying for hours and tiring of fiddling with the equipment in the dark, I started mimicking the call. This was handy if the bird had responded and was sitting close for viewing, ensuring that it didn’t fly off before guests had a chance to see it. In some cases, I was finding that the birds were making an initial ‘settling in’ call that wasn’t on my playback, a series of gruff grumbles staking their territory, before they established their boobook type call. I found that if I mimicked that first call, the bird was more likely to stay and ‘chat’, then I continued with the boobook call to keep them interested.  

 Whilst almost always having to use the tape to initially get them to respond, I have noted if they are in the mood to acquiesce, that me mimicking them will keep them in position for viewing for a longer period. I find that by using my own call I can mimic their tone and volume more accurately, and mix up their call, like they might be doing ( our birds can have an extra hoot at the end of the call). It saves fumbling with the playback gear and the possibility of scaring the bird away if I don’t judge the volume correctly, or the Hilltop Hoods song, the next track on my Ipod, starts blaring inappropriately (Nosebleed Section follows Ninox natalis alphabetically on my device).

 

I have transferred this skill to some of our other birds on the island, allowing photographers and birdwatchers a better chance of seeing some of our birds. Our endemic white-eyes flit through the forest very quickly, but a little whistling call can bring them on to lower, closer branches whilst they investigate the call. Our very nervous Emerald doves take to the wing as soon as you get anywhere near them. I flushed one a couple of years ago but it luckily landed close by in tree. I could see it deciding if it needed to take off further into the bush and I indicated to a couple of serious Taiwanese bird photographers with me, to wait back. I mimicked the call I had heard in the forest many times and this bird settled on the branch and started calling back, its glorious iridescent emerald feathers shining in the sun, directly facing the photographers. I had a couple of very happy clients on that tour.



Hawk-owl in flight Photo: R Jackson

 Whilst I cant advocate for more or less playback for bird viewing, I really think you have to let yourself be guided by the bird. Once you can tap into their behaviour and their mood, I feel you can increase the level of pleasure in the viewing, for not only yourself, but your guests.

Indian Ocean Experiences offers Hawk-owl tours. Visit indianoceanexperiences.com.au for more information. Article: Lisa Preston

Christmas Island's iconic barges to retire

Rohani assisting with an asylum seeker transfer. Photo: D Robertson

They often made news headlines and graced more front page stories than the Kardashians, but the public is unlikely to know their names. They played a pivotal role and their iconic image came to represent a controversial part of Australia’s recent political and social history. Now, the hardworking barges of the Christmas Island Port, Sasha and Rohani, are due for retirement.

 

The barges rose to notoriety in their role transferring numbers of asylum seekers from unseaworthy vessels, or after rescue by Australian Border Command ships, onto the safety of the jetty at Flying Fish Cove. Initially, when commissioned in 1994, their brief was to assist with stevedoring of the regular phosphate merchant ships and the Island’s supply ship. Their part quickly expanded when policy changes around refugees and immigration by the then Rudd Government, led to an increased number of people seeking entry to the country via boats.  At the behest of the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, the vessels were modified for passenger transport. Despite not being designed for the purpose, they took to their new occupation with gusto, sometimes transferring up to 800 people during a 24 hour period, and an estimated 40,000 people over 5 years.

 

The jetty, from which the barges are launched, also wasn’t initially designed for passenger transfers. The barge is lifted with a gantry crane until the deck is level with the jetty and then passengers can step across safely.  It was during this process of transfer and disembarking of asylum seekers that news crews and newspaper photographers got their footage and photos, which fed the seemingly never ending news cycle around boat arrivals, asylum seekers and their plight. The barges inadvertently provided the stage whilst picturesque Flying Fish Cove supplied the backdrop.

 

The barges are operated by a well-trained crew, mostly young, local Malay men. Following in the footsteps of their forefathers, many of these men are attracted to this very traditional local career, and in fact the very reason their families were settled on Christmas Island.

 

In the early 1900s, when the phosphate mine was established and started exporting ore, an elaborate wharf system was built. The Chinese workers, enlisted to work the mine, were not comfortable working ocean- side. With a strong affiliation to the sea and confidence in a marine environment, the Malay people were a natural fit for the job and were recruited from South East Asia to fulfil the necessary shipping roles, which included stevedoring, ship handling and diving, a requirement to maintain the Island’s deep mooring system.

 

The Malay community was initially settled near the Flying Fish Cove area, close to the original wharf, an area now colloquially known as ‘Kampong’, a Malay word meaning village. A number of ramshackle huts and buildings shaped the original ‘township’, eventually making way for high density housing in the form of multilevel, concrete apartments, based on a design blueprint adopted from Singapore. The close proximity to the ocean for work also provided their playground.

 

Many Malay folk can attest their earliest childhood memories involve fishing off the Island’s cliffs and the jetty with siblings and family. An early introduction to the ocean, and handing down of local knowledge, gives the Malay children a confidence in the marine environment that others can only acknowledge and admire. Children are adept with fishing rods, and until recent changes adopted around skippers tickets and legal age limits for operating boats, a number of young children had dinghies with small motors. They spent the day transferring their friends between the large moorings out to sea, looking for the best fishing spots, or helping their fathers by driving the family fishing boat onto the trailer at the end of a successful day out on the water.

 

Cyclone Gillian, whose destructive visit in March 2014 damaged a number of trees, provided an opportunity to revive the traditional sampan building, a hand- crafted timber boat carved from a single tree trunk. A couple of felled trees supplied the raw materials, with a number of the elders in the community involving their children and grandchildren in the finer art of fashioning a boat. The larger sampan is sturdy enough to support a small outboard motor; a design that that has stood the test of time and can be adapted to accommodate the modern comfort of a motor.

 

When the iconic vessels where commissioned, there were three women in the employ of the then, CI Marine Department. Rohani, whose father had worked as a stevedore on the Island, was the first woman to work in the department. Sasha, a lady who settled on the island for a few years, was encouraged to commence a stevedoring career, spending 3 years in the role.  And Fatimah, generally referred to as the ‘coffee lady’, was also skilled in stevedoring. Her name adorns a smaller vessel used by the CI Port.

 

Kelana Arshad, Rohani’s younger brother, is continuing the tradition. 8 years ago he established (in partnership) Complete Stevedoring and Freight Services. Second generation island-born, Kelana built his experience and knowledge through a sequence of jobs on the island, before fate delivered an opportunity to establish his own business. He now provides employment and training for a number of local people.

Arshad Sidek and forward gang mooring a ship. Circa 1960's. Photo supplied by Arshad Family

 

Two new barges will arrive early February, however Sasha and Fatimah will continue in their roles until the new barges are fully commissioned. A few locals have expressed their support for the Rohani to be archived in an open grassy area in Drumsite – a mixed residential and industrial area on Christmas Island. The proposed site already houses an old locomotive and other machinery used in the Island’s past; an outdoor museum growing over time.  

 

In keeping with tradition, the local Malay community were canvassed to provide names for the new barges, Berani (meaning Brave) and Percaya (pronounced Perchaya, meaning Believe) were settled on. At a cost of $2.4 million, they will play their important part in servicing the people of Christmas Island, and perhaps in their own time earn the iconic status of their predecessors, if for less controversial reasons.