women travelling alone

Hi,

I've just arrived back from Vanuatu and would like to post a warning to other women who may plan to travel alone. To avoid unwanted attention from local men in Vanuatu, it's probably best to say you are married. Unfortunately, Vanuatu is still a developing country, and many men there see marriage to an Australian woman as their ticket to a better life.
I was persued relentlessly by several men, all who seemed harmless and charming at first. It didn't take long for talk of their desire for Australian residency to crop up, along with their desire to persue a romantic relationship with me. They are certainly not shy! Sadly, these kind of overtures make normal friendship an impossibility between Vanuatu locals and single Western women.
Otherwise, a really enjoyable trip!

Susieanne.

At least you didn't agree to marry one! I know someone (a mother of 5, would you believe) who actually did, after knowing a ni-Vanuatu for less than 2 weeks. He took months to get over here to Australia, as he kept giving his airfare to his relatives, then lasted about 2 weeks when he did arrive - the cultural difference was too great.

The other good advice is to be very modest in your dress, anywhere but within the actual resort.

Thanks for the tip!!
I'm a western female heading over to Vanuatu for about 10 weeks this December and I hadn't thought about saying I was married to combat the unwanted male attention I've heard about.
Maybe I'll even wear a fake wedding band.

Thanks again!

Have fun on your holiday Gracie. But be careful.

That's a very unfortunate story, Ozziegiraffe! I think your friend was badly taken advantage of.

However, I do know a lady who met a Fijian guy at a resort in Fiji, and now they are very happily married. He seems to have adapted to Austraila, as far as I can tell. So there are some happy endings out there.

Susieanne, she wasn't a friend, just someone I met over the whole fiasco, and I think she should have had more sense.
Seriously, if you have 5 children, you shouldn't be giving them a step-father they have never met!

I have had a fair bit of contact with cross-cultural marriages, and they take a lot more preparation than that one had.

I am really sorry to hear about your experiences.....I do want to say though that although I think women alone should ALWAYS take precautions (lock your door at night if possible, don't walk by yourself down dark roads, beaches at night, etc., etc.) that I have spent about a year and half on and off in Vanuatu by myself on pretty much every island and have really had very few problems. Most volunteers I met would likely say the same, although there have been isolated problems, I know.

Saying you are married ['married finis'] is probably not a bad idea--it would cut off any potential possibility upfront, I suppose. And a simple "wedding band" would be recognized, too. But I have been really fortunate to meet many amazing niVans- both men and women- with whom I developed great, equal friendships. And to me, traveling in Vanuatu as a single woman was WAY easier than Fiji, Trinidad, Ecuador......I felt safer, and less hassled.

I would also point out that Vanuatu, especially the capital, sees a lot of cruise-based tourism. And many of these tourists are strolling around the city/beaches in bikinis and short shorts. NiVans NEVER dress that way--the women swim in their island dresses. So perhaps dress is something to keep in mind too...if you want a real chance to meet and interact with the locals, just be aware that it is a very conservative culture with respect to dress and that may help, too.

Have fun--and be safe-- in Vanuatu, ladies. It truly is an amazing, beautiful country.

Thanks for the comments, Darmoose. Your experiences are pretty much the same as mine have been, as a volunteer working in Solomon Islands, and as a regular visitor. But then, I have had the privilege of living with locals, rather than being a tourist.