Reports of community activities during Christmas and New Year 2015/2016, when everything closed on Tristan for four weeks for the summer holidays.

Event News

Summer Holiday Celebrations 2015/16

Tristan Summer Holiday - Christmas and New Year Celebrations 2015/16

Start from the top or go to the Latest Report if you want to see the latest bulletin of Old Year's Night

Tristan's Unique Christmas and New Year Summer Holiday

Life in the world's most isolated community is very distinctive. Here is a guide to the 2015/16 events and we will add photos and reports as they come in.

Quiet Sea Lanes

The last Christmas post arrived on 28th November and the two Ovenstone vessels (Baltic Trader and Edinburgh left on 7th and 11th December, carrying visitors, ex-pat workers and Islanders going for a summer break in Cape Town. So the village is quieter, with no ships due to call until MV Edinburgh returns about 20th January.

Christmas Festivities start with the Pensioners Tea Party

Report from Alex Mitham. Photos: Kelly Burns

Hasene held the Pensioners Tea Party on the 4th December at 15.00 in the Prince Phillip Hall. Thankfully it was not raining!

It was the last pensioners tea party before the island celebrates the 200th Anniversary. While I hope it was fun, it was also a poignant moment as the reason we are able to celebrate 200 years on Tristan is in no small part to all the assembled pensioners hard work and dedication to their community over so many years.

During the event Kelly Burns from the Tourism Department kindly organised the Bingo with Eddie winning many of the prizes. There were mutterings that he had a helping hand from God! (As he is a Lay Minister at St Mary's Church)

As ever a great deal of time and effort goes into organising the event which included:

Beverley Repetto, Desi, Anita and Lynette
who helped prepare all the food

Class 4 and 5 pupils helped to take around all the food

Desi, Geraldine, Anne-Marie and Anita managed the drinks

Food from the following:

Beverley Swain: chocolate slabs
Gladys Lavarello: chocolate cake
Jeanette Lavarello: sponge cake
Lorraine and Margaret Repetto: stuffed eggs
Judy Green: banana cake
Sylvia Green: fruit cake
Erik Mackenzie: lobster
Jean Swain: flapjacks

It even gave me an opportunity to try out the new bus and be the bus driver for a day with Geraldine acting as conductor.

Sheep Shearing Day - Saturday 12th December

Farming
All Tristan families are farmers. All need to spend hundreds of hours a year growing their crops (principally potatoes at their Potato Patches some two miles away from home, but with 'camping huts' adjacent for overnight accommodation and a venue for summer Braais.
The summer season really gets underway with Sheep Shearing Day held this year on Saturday 12th December. Almost the entire population migrated to the further end of the Patches Plain where the sheep pens are sited. Early chaos as every family isolates its own sheep (every person is allowed two sheep and new season lambs all carefully marked) from others, gathers them into their pen and sets to work with hand-clippers. The prized wool is later carded, spun and hand-knitted into garments – now into a range of garments in the 37 Degrees South Knitwear Range.

Here are a small selection of Janine Lavarello's Sheep Shearing Day photos which are all displayed,
together with a report on the day by Tina Glass on the 2015 Farming News page

Robin Repetto (centre in left picture) is drinking a bottle of Bushy's Isle of Man Beer -
to find our more about Bushy's Beer on Sheep Shearing day go to the Albatross Bar page.

St Mary's School Christmas Concert

The hugely successful concert took place on Monday 14th December. To see more of Dawn Repetto's' photos and a report go to the School Christmas Show 2015 page

Long work and shopping break

Outsiders who have never been to Tristan are amazed at the long break from Government and Factory work. 'Break-Up Day' this year is Friday 18th December when offices and departments close at noon and then work teams celebrate 'break up day' with departmental parties. Work at the factory and in Government departments doesn't resume until Monday 11th January.

Those abroad who revel in shopping until late on Christmas Eve and resuming by queuing for bargains at the Boxing Day sales will not revel in this life 'far from the madding crowd', but many discerning people will envy Tristan's traditions that place families, subsistence farming activities, attending Church and taking part in community activities above commercial interests.

The Island Store is not closed for three weeks, however, as it closes on Tuesday 15th December and re-opens on Monday 11th January. So families must be organised to have a full larder of provisions. But the best food is locally produced - see the Farming Section below. Nevertheless families also have access to the Government Freezer (where they hire walk-in compartments for their frozen meats and other foods) on six occasions during the break.

Break Up Day - Friday 18th December

Photos of parties after work finishes at noon from Dawn and Marie Repetto

Left: Post Office and Tourism Team enjoy a Champagne Breakfast Above: The H'Admin Team gather in front of the Administration Building; another view below.

Left: Electrical and Plumbing Team on the move

The factory had a braai which was visited by all the expatriates on the islands.
The factory team then told their guests of the tradition to have a dip in one of the tanks above the harbour.
Marie Repetto's photos show the following taking the plunge:
Above left - Delia and Marie; Above right - Doctor Madho and Marie; Below left - Darren with Ben and Brigid;
Below right Karl with H'admin Alex Mitham (nice blouse Alex, but shame about the hair!)
Luckily it was a warm summer's day which took the chill off the water.

More of Marie's factory party photos: Above - Steve posing before his dip
Below: The braai and food being enjoyed by Kayleigh.

Mechanical Team's break up gathering

Above: Communications Team joined by others outside the Internet Cafe

Left: The swimming pool was a popular place to cool off

Pub and Internet Cafe 'Opening' Hours

Perhaps the greatest surprise to those who don't know Tristan is the fact that the Albatross Bar (known just as 'The Pub' will open until 17th December and will not re-open until 11th January! Nevertheless most homes are well-stocked with drinks. The Internet Cafe will be open until 17th December and will also re-open on 11th January 2014. Internet access will be available for those able to access Government offices or who have wireless access in their homes.

Health

Surgeries will continue at Camogli Hospital on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays 8.00am to 10.00am. The Doctors will be on call and continue any necessary home visits as usual.

Church Services

Church Services are always well attended and people often arrive an hour early for Midnight Mass at St Mary's and may bring their own chairs!

St. Mary's Anglican Church held a Carol Service on Sunday 13th December. They will hold a Midnight Mass and Blessing of the Crib at 11.30pm on Christmas Eve, and a Morning Service at 8.00am on Christmas Day. Services will be conducted this year by Islander Lay Ministers Lars Repetto, Eddie Rogers and Carlene Glass-Green as priest Rev. Denzall Snell is on leave in South Africa.

St Joseph's Catholic Church will hold a Midnight Mass at 11.30pm on Christmas Eve and a Morning Service at 9.00am on New Year's Day. Services are all run by Islander Lay Preachers Dereck Rogers, Anne Green and James Glass.

The crib in St Mary's Church

'Big Eats'

Christmas Day lunch is usually 'Stuffed Roast Mutton', and the most sought-after meat is from mountain sheep. Gangs of men climb the almost vertical mountain cliffs in late December, on the Base, between 2,000 – 4,000 feet above sea level sheep graze in wild flocks on lush grasses. Dogs and men gather the sheep into small mountain pens, the sheep are sheared, and prime animals are selected for slaughter, butchered on the spot and carried down ready for the 'Big-Eats' of Christmas.

Every family rents space in large walk-in freezers to store large quantities of imported and home reared foods. During the extended Christmas holiday the Government freezer will be opened on set occasions for Islanders to access their supplies, or take more meat.

Dawn Repetto's photos above show Stuffed Roast Mutton coming out of the oven, left, and on a plate, right, ready for eating on Christmas Day afternoon. Mutton is stuffed with Tristan potatoes and herbs including parsley.
Below are two tables laden with food at other festive meals on 20th December (left) and 4th January (right) from Dawn.

Excursions

The extended holiday is also an opportunity for Islanders to visit and stay at The Caves or at Stony Beach, where a wild cattle herd grazes. Often Islanders go out in a dinghy or RIB on a good day for a spot of fishing to add some fresh fish or crawfish to that in their freezers. Many stay at their camping huts at the Potato Patches and enjoy swimming or fishing on Runaway Beach.

A Summer Scene on Runaway Beach

Dawn Repetto's photos taken on 28th December show islanders between Christmas and Old Year's Night, beach fishing, swimming and relaxing in the sun. Swimming is only safe in rock pools, which abound on Runaway Beach and keep out sharks and swimmers from strong currents. Nevertheless you need to watch for octopus, known here as 'catfish', that lurk in the pools.

Old Year's Night

The Administrator invited everyone to the Residency for drinks between 6.00pm and 7.00pm. Afterwards all men of 18 years or more were invited to the residence of the Chief Islander.

The famous Old Year's Night Okalolies again made the night spectacular and unique - see the Old Year's Night 2015 page for more.

And finally -

On Monday 11th January 2016 Government and Factory employees returned to paid work having concentrated on their farming, household and social activities during the long break.