Having spent the first few days of our Vanuatu adventure on the island of Efate relaxing and catching up with Oli at Gaston Chocolat, it was time to head to Malekula. As the plane arced around and began it’s final decent, the azure blue water stretched out below us, lapping at the white corral sand beaches that rimmed the lush emerald green of the island. I felt little rushes of excitement for what chocolatey adventures lay ahead.
After seven years living in New Zealand it was high time I visited some of the beautiful neighbouring Pacific island nations, famous for snorkelling and diving, surfing, relaxation, and more recently, cacao. Being early August it was still technically the middle of winter for New Zealand, so what better way to shake off the winter blues than head to Vanuatu for two weeks? On this beautiful Pacific archipelago we were lucky enough to meet up with a good friend of mine, Olivier Fernandez of Gaston Chocolate. He greets us with open arms at Port Vila airport, his cheeky grin and sparkling blue eyes a welcome sight after a surprisingly long trip from New Zealand.
The Adventures of Elle Coco 