There is No smoking ban in Saint Helena
Reported, December 12, 2011
It is famous that Napoleon Bonaparte exiled in 1815 at Saint Helena , until his death in 1821
Despite the lack of links with the outside world, Annabel says she doesn’t feel cut off, pointing out that there are landlines, television and the internet.
Food supplies are sporadic,True, but the internet bandwidth for the entire island is less than that of many individual households in the UK, and costs £6 an hour, while locals say the phone lines – all with retro four-digit numbers – run out of capacity at times.
In the Standard pub, the regulars puff away around the bar. There is no smoking ban here.
They agree that it’s only in emergencies that St Helena’s remoteness is really brought home.
“A friend of mine became seriously ill while the ship was back in the UK, ” says Geoff Stevens. “By the time the ship got back and took him to Cape Town it was too late. He died on board.”
For visitors, like Mike and Lynda Vincent, the remoteness makes St Helena special.
RMS St Helena ships freights and passengers
“You’re completely incommunicado. It’s one of the few places in the world where that’s the case. It’s definitely an attraction,” says Mr Vincent.
Attracting more tourists is the only plan for the island economy, but Jamie Roberts of the National Trust sees a paradox here.
“Remoteness is one of the major appeals. It’s one of the things that made me want to come here. There aren’t many places left in the world that can take you six days on a boat to get to.
“If people could fly here to the UK in seven or eight hours, it would definitely take away from the romance.”
Credits and more information:
http://news.bbc.co.uk./2/hi/uk_news/magazine/8465785.stm
