travel

Dry Welcome For

Noumea Tourists

A Regular Pim Department Reporting

THE INSIDE NEWS OF SOUTH SEAS TOURISM

And Travel.

From Fred Dunn, in Noumea When 1,200 Australian tourists aboard the Sitmar cruise liner Fairstar arrived in Noumea on Sunday, January 10, they found Noumeans in the throes of a quiet, Australian-type Sabbath.

ALL bars, cabarets, cinemas, all establishments serving liquor (cinemas have bars here) were closed for 24 hours effective from the hour of the ship’s arrival (midday).

This hari kari decision had been made by the Restaurant Association of New Caledonia to protest at a new law which comes into force in January. The stay of the Fairstar had been chosen for the “strike” to accent the protest.

The decision must surely rank as the year’s stupidest, because the greatest harm was done to the mem bers of the association themselves.

They certainly lost out on thousands of francs and an immense amount of goodwill.

The resented tax was passed by the Assembly in December and pro vides not only the collection of a tax on drinks consumed in the different establishments, but also an obligation to produce immediately when re quested by a tax inspector the ac counting books or register of the establishment.

The local newspaper, in reporting the “strike” said that “if it caused some inconvenience to the tourists, it had one good aspect . . . there were fewer drunks around town”.

Indeed there are many in Noumea who would like to see the bars closed every Sunday.

But many tourists, not understand ing the reason for the close down, were inclined to think that it was directed at the ship’s visit . . . and themselves. One beefy gentleman was heard to say loudly, “If they don’t want us here . . . why does the shipping company bring us here?”

Noumea cinema-goers were par ticularly furious about the shut down. The air-conditioned cinemas in Noumea are a veritable oasis and a couple of thousand people take advantage of it. In spite of a late radio communique announcing the closure hundreds turned up at the doors and had to return home.

Mr. Jean Brock, agent for the Sitmar line, reports receiving a tele phone call from the Tourist Bureau suggesting that the ship be re-routed and allowed to by-pass Noumea be cause otherwise the tourists might not be entertained. Mr. Brock cer tainly didn’t agree. An open bar is not the only entertainment Noumea can offer, and although there were no dear drinks and navel-waving Tahitian dancers on hand, the tourists do seem to have been entertained on this occasion.

The strike did not run its full time, the bars being opened for business as usual on Monday morn ing. But when Fairstar left on the Monday afternoon the tourists did not leave as much money behind as they might have, and probably some of them took away with them a strange taste in their mouths.

Noumea’s loss was Suva’s gain.

When the Fairstar left Suva after making it the next port of call her passengers had gone on a real spend ing spree.

On the morning of her arrival in Suva the purser reported changing £29,000 before running out of money. He estimated he could have changed another £15,000.