NOUMEA’S SINGING NUNS KICK THE HABIT

david ellis

THERE’s a group of nuns in New Caledonia know how to bring a tear to the eye.

And it’s not because they employ tales of hard-luck to wring donations for the needy, nor how they preach to the faithful and otherwise.

It’s the way they sing. In particular a goose-bumpy version of Ave Maria that so powerful is its effect on visitors, that many rise to their feet rather than fall to their knees, at the harmony of the young singers.

And equally unusually, their song is not sung in a church with an organ as accompaniment, but in a clattery Noumea restaurant under a watchful life-size statue of Christ, and with just a simple guitar for backing.

These ladies are the South Pacific’s most unusual missionaries, a cobbled collection of young devotees from places as far-flung as their hometown New Caledonia, Vanuatu, Wallis Island, France, Africa and Latin America, who run their own restaurant called L’Eau Vive (the Water of Life) to raise money to help the needy of New Caledonia, and to train young aspirants to the hospitality industry.

Just how this unique operation came about goes back to France in 1950, when a Catholic priest set out on an unusual crusade to support the less fortunate in third world countries. With the blessing of the church he established the Travailleures Missionaires de L’Immaculate, a group of nuns who would travel the world to preach the word of the Bible and give help to the most in danger.

In 1977 some of the order came up with the idea of going a step further, setting up little restaurants that the nuns could run to make money, and which could provide customers with an opportunity to “discover evangelism.”

Today there are such restaurants in twenty countries on five continents; in Noumea around thirty nuns are members of the order, ten of them working each night in the restaurant to raise money and train islanders looking to become waiters, chefs and managers in hotels, resorts and restaurants.

The restaurant is a real ‘must do’ amongst regular holidaymakers to Noumea, it’s ever-changing menu offering a wonderful diversity of international dishes, local New Caledonia fare, and unique specialties of the countries from which the nuns come.

And there’s no worry about going short of a drink – these good nuns have one of the best cellars in Noumea.

At any time of the evening the nuns, who use only their first names and do not take the title ‘sister,’ may suddenly break into song, and always, simply always, at 9pm will perform their signature Ave Maria.

Dressed in their island ‘Mother Hubbard’ dresses rather than traditional nuns habits and wimples, heads adorned with tropical leaves and flowers, and with anklets of local nuts to click in tune with the rhythm of the guitar, the young singing missionaries hold visitors spell-bound as they take centre stage at L’Eau Vive.

The restaurant is just one of around 150 eateries in food-conscious Noumea, and as it gets busy most nights, it’s a good idea to book in advance: ask the tour desk or reception at your Noumea resort to do it for you.

Other restaurants and cafés in New Caledonia’s capital feature some of the South Pacific’s finest French cuisine, with food and wine products arriving daily from France by air and sea, and there are also others specialising in seafood, Italian, Chinese, Vietnamese, Indonesian and Japanese – and if a Mac Attack comes on, even the answer to that too.

As well as its many dining-out opportunities, Noumea also has a vast range of mouth-watering boulangeries – French bakeries – in which visitors can buy everything from croissants and baguettes to cakes, pies and tarts to go into a beach picnic with cold meats, cheeses and wines from the equally bountiful markets, delicatessens, cheese and wine shops, and supermarkets.

And for those on a budget or with a family, a way to save on holiday costs is by using these places to stock-up a self-catering apartment rather than staying at a hotel and dining out three times a day. For details of self-catering or hotel stays, see travel agents, go onto www.newcaledonia.com.au or phone (02) 9360 3933.