Ratua’s mysterious owner

A deserted beach in front of Ratua, a private island in Vanuatu. Photo by David Lansing.

Ratua is a privately owned island and I’d like to tell you all about the owner but I don’t know anything about him. Well, that’s not completely true. Frederick tells me he’s French and in his ‘50s and he owns a vineyard in France. There you have it.

Actually, the mysterious owner has left us a few other clues. In my villa is a little book with “the story” of Ratua, written by the owner, in which he reveals that “In 2004, we decided to sail around the world. After one year spent in the Atlantic Ocean we crossed the Panama Canal to face the immense Pacific and visit some of its archipelagos—the Galapagos, Marquesa, Tuamotu, Cook, Samoa and Fiji.

“In June 2005 we arrived in New Caledonia, where our friend Patrick Durand Gaillard had been living for 20 years. Patrick immediately told us about the Vanuatu archipelago, and one place in particular, a jewel-like island whose location was kept secret. Our voyage across started on July 6, 2005.

“From its southernmost volcanic island, Tanna, we sailed north to Efate Island, the capital and its port, then to Epi, Ambrym, Malakula and finally Espiritu Santo. One after the other each island put us under a spell; here time stood still, intact tribal communities had kept their ancestral ways, nature was unspoiled, consumerism had yet to reach this part of the world.

“Finally, nestled between Aore and Malo, south of Espiritu Santo, was our destination, Ratua. This stunningly beautiful isle, in its green setting, welcomed us, a preserved sanctuary, wild yet accessible. Right away we decided to adopt the island, and after a few meetings the local elders entrusted their treasure to our care.

“We pondered during the long hours sailing back to civilization on the necessity of preserving Ratua without concession, on how to live there harmoniously whilst avoiding its destruction.

“We created a living environment without compromising the integrity of the place by renovating forty houses in total respect of their ancestral architecture. Two years later, each house had been carefully blended in its vegetal surroundings so as to preserve the ‘emotions’ of the first encounter and the uniqueness of the place. All aspects of life on Ratua derived from this concept, transport on horseback, return of indigenous fauna, sea links using traditional crafts, and organic cooking.

“The life we aspired to required that we shed our usual consuming habits and learn autarkic living again without taking too much from our environment. Thus, our entire fishing and farming will be local. In our workshop, we work with coco wood, which, together with Natangora palm thatching, will be the base of our future construction. We use rainwater and plan to make our own coco-based soap, shampoo, lotion, and cleaning products. It is a start and maybe one day we will cease to buy industrial products and manage to preserve the best quality of life locally.

“We have cautiously, yet selfishly, disrupted this place, our duty eventually will be to give it back, and to this end we have to be vigilant, ethical. More than a profession of faith, our endeavour is a raison d’être.”

The mysterious owner doesn’t mention it in his letter, but 100% of the profits from the Ratua resort are donated to the surrounding island communities, supporting hospital construction and educational and cultural projects.

You’ve got to love the French.