Geography

The Pacific Ocean is the largest geographical feature in the world, with an area larger than that of all land on the planet. Within the Pacific Ocean, thousands of islands exist and only a mere 500 are inhabited. There are three regions within the South Pacific, all are part of this journey: Polynesia, Melanesia, and Micronesia.

Polynesia encompasses the triangle between Hawaii, New Zealand, and Easter Island, while Melanesia includes the large island chains within the Western part of the Pacific, from Fiji to New Guinea. (Stanley)
Polynesia is primarily ocean with little pieces of land and is made up by Tuvalu, Wallis and Futuna, Tonga, Tokelau, Samoa, American Samoa, Niue, the Cook Islands, French Polynesia, Pitcairn Islands and New Zealand. (Wikipedia)

Melanesia is made up of larger islands that tend to be mountainous. Unlike Polynesia, here the populations and land areas tend to be large and are home to huge variations of cultures, people, and languages. The islands that lie within Melanesia include: Fiji, New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea. (Stanley, Wikipedia)

Micronesia includes the Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, Northern Mariana Islands and the islands of Palau. (Wikipedia) These islands are incredibly varied, and include limestone plateaus, active volcanoes, and coral atolls along with some of the most rich and diverse ocean life in the world. (Levy)

People and Culture

South Pacific islands host a variety of people and cultures. Approximately 6 million people live here and no where else in the world is there such a variety of people and cultures. There are a few traits that all of the people of the South Pacific are known for, that of their welcoming, humble, and laid back attitude. Because of this, the people are one of the major attractions to the South Pacific. (Stanley)

We are very much looking forward to discovering and understanding the people and cultures that are unique to each place we visit. We are sure to come across some fascinating individuals on our journey and hope to have some entertaining stories to share with you!

Levy, Neil. Micronesia. 6th Edition. Emeryville, California: Avalon Travel Publishing, 2003.
Stanley, David. South Pacific. Eighth edition. Emeryville, California: Avalon Travel Publishing, 2004.
'South Pacific' Wikipedia. 2007. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 18 January 2007 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Pacific