We flew to Christmas Island, , on Australia Airlines from Denpensar, Bali, Indonesia.
Christmas Island, is a very small Island, off the coast of western Australia. It is an Australian Territory, even though it is closer to Java, Indonesia.
The population with a blend of Chinese, Malay and Caucasians, (mostly from the Australian).
Captain William Mynors of the East India Ship Company, discovered this Island, on December 25, 1643. That’s how it got it’s name. Mining for phosphoreus is the main industry.
If you enjoy nature, you will see plants, trees and flowers, only found here.
If you like deep sea diving look for the red crab, it’s only found in the waters here.
Tours
We went to see Flying Fish Cove. This is a port, and there were a lot of yachts moored there. We went so see the Kampoiing, (Malayan for Village), and the Mosque.
Buck House is behind the Cove. It was the home of the Island’s Administrator. The gardens are a lovely, and we saw an old gun that was used to defend the Island.
The Grotto is a near the golf course, (a few blocks from the Settlement). It is a small cave that has a mixture of fresh and ocean water, on the floor of the cave.
The Dales has a lot of trails, (Hugh Waterfall and Marin Point), and a lot of water. We saw a few blue crabs.
There are a few beaches, (Dolly, Greta, Ethel and Lily), that you can visit.
At Margaret Knoll, we saw a lot of tropical birds, fruit bats, flying foxes and frigatebirds.
We drove to see the Blowholes. These are rock formations, that spurt water, when the water below gets to the boiling point.
There are two Chinese Temples at South Point. At the larger Temple we saw a show where people walked on hot coals.
Where We Ate:
We ate at the Season Place, (Chinese Food), Tracks Tavern, Golden Bosun Tavern, The Rockfall Cafe and on Christmas Day, we ate at the Christmas Island Club.
The Shops We Liked
At Booby Birds Shop, we bought some Island jewellery. At the Christmas Island Visitor’s Centre we bought some pottery and T-shirts. At Gold’N’Things we bough some perfume, that was made here.
We stayed at Captain Cooks Hotel. It is a small hotel that has 36 rooms.
Our room was air-conditioned, had a queen sized bed, a table, and 2 high rattan chairs.
The room was decorated in bright colors, like you find in India. We had a coffee/tea maker that was on a chest of drawers.
The closet was small, and we had to leave our jewelry and documents behind the desk.
The bathroom had a toilet, shower and sink. The mirror was very small.
In the lobby there was a Gift Shop and a Reservations Desk, (to reserve your scuba diving, tennis time, or boat to go fishing).
There was only one place to eat. They served a buffet breakfast and lunch, and at dinner, they changed the menu every day.
There was on swimming pool, so we sat on the beach, under a palm tree so we wouldn’t get burnt.
We paid $46.00 Australian dollars, for our room, and I thought it was quite a bargain.
Address: Christmas Island, Kiribati
Phone: 81230
If you want to chill out, and get away from telephones, TVs and newspapers, this is a place you will enjoy.
Thanks for reading my review.
I am going back here, and taking a vacation, today. I wish you all a happy holiday season and a magical New Year.
©LL2004