- Personal space doesn’t tend to a concern of most Ni-Vans.
- When sitting next to someone while speaking to them, don’t be surprised if a Mama (older woman) places a hand on your knee (if you’re also a woman) or if a man puts his arm around you (if you’re also a man).
- Children will caress your hair, rub your arm, or lie in your lap while listening to you talk. These actions may seem strange at first, but will eventually become endearing forms of affection if you allow it.
- One note of history: when a Caucasian visitor first arrives on the islands, children may be afraid of him/her. This is because their parents use the scare tactic “The white man will stick you!” to make them behave. This stems from times when missionaries first came to the islands with doctors to inoculate the islanders against certain diseases. But don’t fret, if Caucasian visitors persist with niceties, the children are very quick to let their curiosity overcome their fears.
- Typically touching between sexes isn’t done in public, even if the man and woman are married. In many Western cultures, men and women sometimes pick and play with each other harmlessly, but in Vanuatu, that is only done in privacy and could cause you to become the hot topic on the Coconut Wireless.
- It is not uncommon to see two men walking down the road holding hands with their wives walking behind them, laughing and chatting. It may seem an odd picture to some, but this is merely acceptable contact between men; so don’t be alarmed if you’re male and a Ni-Van man comes to grab your hand while you walk down the road together.
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