Nouvelle-Calédonie & Réunion : Deux îles, deux mondes – Documentaire VU DU CIEL – GD

Nouvelle-Calédonie & Réunion : Deux îles, deux mondes – Documentaire VU DU CIEL – GD

There is the planet Mars. And there are also these
pink mountain landscapes in the southern hemisphere of planet Earth. The difference? A few signs of life,
a few traces of human presence. A sailboat in the distance,
a field of wind turbines. Some traces of a
sparse and complex human presence. We call it the territory. The territory, therefore, or the pebble,
since that is what New Caledonia is most commonly called. Many other words still say a lot
about this strange country, as if this confetti of a republic
at the antipodes of the metropolis had its own vocabulary. So, at the letter C, there is Caldoche. They are white and have inhabited these
mountainous lands for only a few generations. From the region. Most of them are breeders
and in their spare time they like to hunt the deer that are plentiful around here. They still have that
pioneering mentality and we feel very close to their Australian neighbors. A bit of the same look, actually. They conquered vast areas,
immense ranches in the four corners of the islands and they made the port
of Noumea their capital, in the far south of Grande Terre. Countless athletes by the sea,
morning and evening, a cathedral, beautiful neighborhoods,
beautiful buildings, very Western, very white, Noumea. At the letter C, always, Yacanak, which is also written
with two Ks like Kanaki. They are the first
inhabitants of the territory. More than villages,
they belong to tribes often deep in the forest,
particularly along this so-called forgotten coast. It was probably when he saw
these islets, these mounds of flat land above
the waves, through a telescope that James Cook said to himself: Hey, that reminds me of something, it
looks like Scotland. The west coast then on the Highlands side. And that is how
New Caledonia was born. By analogy between two
geographically opposed coasts separated by almost 20,000 kilometers. For the rest, the same great horizons. With a
big difference, all the same. The color of the earth. The territory is a large mountainous block
that weighs down with mines and efforts. From north to south of Grande Terre,
the mountains, disemboweled by heavy bulldozer blows, are cut into terraces. Nickel. Once discovered,
the ore changed everything here. According to In the years,
a tenth of the world’s nickel production came from mines
in New Caledonia. The price of nickel here calls
the shots. Things have been going so well in recent years
that ore mining plants are being built in both the north
and south of the country. This is the Gorot site,
billions of euros of investment, millions of tons of rocks
and minerals soon to be washed and sorted. And a long pipe that goes towards the sea
with a question in the background: How to combine everything? How to reconcile everything? In some places along the coast,
particularly in the west, the coral reef is only a
few hundred metres from land, such as here, towards Bourail,
in the Pauya passes. New Caledonia has a rich lagoon area that stretches nearly
800 kilometers from north to south. We would love to dive in,
but it’s forbidden. These tropical lagoons and coral reefs
are among the most extensive in the world. Here, unique flora and fauna. And there, there, an industry
in full development. Channels that must be dug are weighed
to soon allow ships loaded with ores
extracted from the mountain to pass through. Heavy industry versus the
heritage of humanity. Nickel versus coral. We never stop wondering. At the edge of the reef,
near the passes that were once impossible to find on rough maps,
there remain today the wrecks of ships that left loaded with nickel. Another visible trace
of this industry today. But to return to our
New Caledonian alphabet, Nothing. At the letter P, there is columnar bread. This variety of tree that grows along
the coasts and wants to reach for the clouds. Up to more than 50 meters
for the highest. An icon of the territory. Pine as well as the Isle of Pines. Two Two hours by boat from Noumea,
south of Grande Terre, and here is a little taste of Polynesia. We also sulk at a
strong and hardworking nest. Less austere than Grande Terre,
the Isle of Pines is a bit like the showcase of New Caledonia. The cover of the catalogs. But who would imagine that barely conquered
by the French, the Isle of Pines became a penal colony
during the reign of Napoleon III? The cemetery of the deportees burns
with the memory of these forced exiles. The convicts had escaped Cayenne
to find themselves even further from the metropolis,
in prison in the tropics, in the shade of the colonial pines. The stated objective was to populate
the colony of New Caledonia. Later, much later,
at the end of their sentences, other common law convicts
decided to settle in New Caledonia. The country seems rich. There is still everything to be done. The land is given. What a bargain! Even later,
the children and grandchildren of the first settlers were joined
by other French people, this time from Algeria, who had become French. They begin a new life in an
area previously free of conflict. Here, the mountains, the forest,
the immense farms. And then there, out at sea, a hundred
kilometers to the East, another world. Calm and seemingly voluptuous,
these are the Loyalty Islands. This is Uvea. An island, 25 years ago, at the heart
of what was called the events here. Another important word
in the New Caledonian lexicon. Uvea is an atoll. It’s beautiful to die for. This time, we could
easily believe we were in Polynesia. The island is also populated by Walisians
and of course Melanesians. The shadows and lights
of Ouvéa the Magnificent. Rebel island, cursed island, sacred island,
in which the celestial world is not absent. To the north and south of Ouvéa,
dotted lines of islets extend out to sea, to infinity. They are called the Pleiades. A word rich in both
meaning and poetry, pleade. In New Caledonia,
this country also called Canaki, it’s the world turned upside down. There are stars in the sea. Quite a bit of traffic. Before the entrance to the coastal road,
in the direction of Saint-Denis possession, there is quite a bit of traffic. Living on an island is
n’t always easy. It’s moving slowly. Especially since
the car civilization reigns supreme in the land of the 974. The traffic jam is now reaching the level
of the Galets River. Oh my!
So, be patient. The weather is not good. And as the
radio hosts keep repeating, it’s pretty much the same every day
on the coastal road. Hours locked in a car, with
the air conditioning and FM radio on, to stay informed.
We have to hold on. Everything is fine, traffic
tells us the DDE in the other direction. The DDE informs you
that there is a 5 kilometer. If we wanted to paint a dark picture, it would
look like a suburban life. But beware of such easy shortcuts. On the islands, as elsewhere,
it’s never all black or all white. So,
following the road that winds along the coast, we thought it would be a
good idea to give ourselves some basics, the fundamentals of Reunion,
so to speak. So, Grandin, yes,
the island is a victim of its own success. 800,000 inhabitants populate it,
soon to be a million. As a result, Saint-Denis de la Réunion
continues to grow in the middle of the Indian Ocean, much more than a
regional capital. Grand 2,
Saint-Denis belongs to this part of Reunion which we call the Bas,
in opposition, of course, to the Hauts. If the lows are synonymous with traffic jams
and galloping demographics, it is quite the opposite in the highs. And it’s even more true,
high up in the mountains. Here, the helicopter has become one of the
favorite means of transport for the inhabitants. No choice. In the most isolated parts of the island, everything arrives by air. Doctors, teachers, postmen,
nurses or even food workers, when several families pool their resources
to have 15 days’ shopping delivered in a large bag. Otherwise, it’s a walk, because
there is no road that leads up there. Once the helicopters have left,
the world of silence returns. Like immense natural amphitheaters,
two volcanic massifs shelter three cirques that were colonized by humans late in life. On some islets
there is no running water, no landline telephones,
no power lines. Without solar panels,
there would be no light or energy to power refrigerators, radios, or to
communicate with the rest of the world below, by the sea. These scattered islets are reached on foot
along paths cleared by the first inhabitants of the mountains,
those fleeing the slave traders. At least up there,
no one came looking for them. Such is life in this
spectacular, silent place, where sometimes it rains so much
that it seems as if the water will wash everything away. It is logged on the coast the Indian Ocean is in a bad mood. No doubt the fumes of a distant
cyclone running out of steam somewhere off Madagascar. The southern swell has not yet risen,
but the sea is white. It’s a trade wind day and it’s
still market day in Sainte-Suzanne. Where nothing is missing on the stalls. And it’s not a gust of wind
that’s going to scare the customer away. An ordinary day in the tropics. Everything is calm. But next door, things are going to get hot soon. It’s October. At the river mouths,
everything is ready for the new season. Already clearly marking its territory. And then, prepare the equipment so as not to
miss out when the new moon arrives, this little fish called bichic will arrive. Fishing for bichic requires
special know-how. The mouthpieces are
divided into several channels. Each channel belongs to families. There are sometimes hidden failures,
because the bichic brings in big money. At the same time,
these channels, like traffic lanes in a marshalling yard,
can only be observed from a simple graphic point of view. Otherwise, you’ve probably noticed that on
windy days, there isn’t a boat at sea. It must be said that here,
it’s already quite difficult to put these canals in the water in good weather,
so when the wind blows, you imagine the birch. This east coast is not too spoiled. When it’s not the wind or the torrential rain
, she has the right to the torments of the volcano. The Côte-Au-Vent is the most exposed
to the wrath of the Piton de la Fournaise. With all these eruptions,
all this lava flowing down to the ocean,
Reunion Island ends up gaining space from the sea and therefore growing. Should we
thank this volcano for that? Not sure, but nonetheless,
an island that is growing these days
is rare enough to be noted. To return to our
initial fundamentals, let us agree that in the family of tropical oceanic islands,
Reunion is an exception. The must is the iron hole. It looks very narrow,
but with just a little step back, it’s surprisingly huge. Who
would imagine that just a few kilometers as the crow flies from here,
the seaside is suffering from overcrowding
and traffic jams worthy of a Western metropolis? Saint-Pierre,
it’s 5 p.m., time for the evening bath. Here we are again in the stockings
and it feels very strange. We could almost forget it. But beaches, mosques and temples
are also part of Reunion. This shows how much
diversity here reflects the landscapes. Multiple and different. Yet another illustration:
when there is too much rain in the east, in the west it is necessary to water. The last surprise is this road, for the moment, given over to walkers and cyclists. Above the coastal road that goes
all the way around the island, there is a four-lane road that has been under construction
for years: the Tamarins Road. It must relieve congestion on the coastline. 32 km, for an impressive number
of bridges and tunnels to be built. A titanic project,
a challenge against nature. With this new road halfway up,
the downs will be a little less down. And as for the top,
they will perhaps become a little less inaccessible. A good thing? Well, we’ll see. Before arriving on the coastal road,
in the direction of Saint-Denis, there is a big slowdown
and this is due to the single lane. We were talking about the problems
that the city had encountered.

Deux îles françaises vues du ciel, entre beauté brute et fractures contemporaines. ✋ Pour découvrir plus de documentaires voyages 👉 http://bit.ly/4mHkEDB Abonnez-vous 🙏

00:00 – Introduction – Les Caldoches, colons de la montagne
02:40 – Les Kanaks, mémoire et tribus
04:09 – Mines de nickel et économie du « Caillou »
06:08 – Lagons menacés et paysages classés
08:21 – Mémoire du bagne et diversité du peuplement
11:57 – Réunion : embouteillages et densité
13:27 – Les Hauts : vie isolée et transport aérien
14:49 – Cirques, forêts, mémoire de marrons
17:58 – Volcan actif et nouvelle terre
20:36 – Mélanges culturels et vie quotidienne
21:04 – La route des Tamarins : un chantier colossal

🔹 La Nouvelle Calédonie vue du ciel : les mots du Territoire : On l’appelle le Territoire. D’autres mots encore en disent long sur ce pays. Comme si ce confetti de République aux antipodes de la métropole avait son propre vocabulaire. Ainsi à la lettre C, il y a Caldoche. Ils sont blancs et habitent ces terres montagneuses depuis plusieurs générations. A la lettre C, il y a Canaque qui s’écrit aussi avec deux K… comme Kanakie. Ils sont les premiers habitants de la Nouvelle Calédonie. Ils chassent, pêchent et vivent dans des tribus : l’autre facette de cette Nouvelle-Calédonie qui rappela tellement à James Cook l’Ecosse de son enfance qu’il la nomma ainsi.

Aujourd’hui, le territoire est un gros bloc montagneux qui pèse son poids de mines et d’efforts…

🔹 La Réunion vue du ciel : des hauts et des bas : 800 000 habitants peuplent l’île de La Réunion. Bientôt, un million.
Face à cette démographie galopante, l’île française de l’Océan Indien commence à souffrir des mêmes maux que les grandes concentrations urbaines d’Europe : route congestionnée, urbanisation croissante. Au prix d’un immense chantier en cours, la Route des Tamarins devrait d’ici quelques années désengorger la circulation sur l’île de La Réunion. En attendant tout n’est pas encore perdu : dans les Hauts » de l’île, accessibles au prix de longues marches – ou bien en hélicoptère lorsqu’il s’agit d’approvisionner les populations des Îlets -, une autre vie plus douce et plus calme règne. Bien loin du tumulte des Bas » en bord de mer.

Du village de Mafate au Piton de la Fournaise en passant par St-Pierre et St-Denis, voici le carnet de route aérien d’une île qui n’a rien d’uniforme.

A découvrir sur Terra Nauta
Au-dessus des Antilles : entre volcans, plages et falaises https://youtu.be/B50_VOvtYv0
Polynésie Française : voyage au cœur de Tahiti et des îles oubliées https://youtu.be/9-DnvsG_nPg
Marquises : les îles les plus isolées de la planète https://youtu.be/vH3WNTOQ0ck
Les révoltés des Australes et les lagons de Bora Bora https://youtu.be/0zvTdsXrCF0

“LES ÎLES PARADISIAQUES VUES DU CIEL”
Épisode 9 et 10
Réalisé par Yannick Charles
Tous droits réservés

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