Port-Christmas

Port-Christmas, officially The City of Port-Christmas (French: La cité de Port-Christmas or La cité de Port-Noël) is the former capital city of the Republic of the Southern Indian Ocean Islands and currently capital of the province of West Kerguelen. The city proper has 1,991 inhabitants (2014), which makes it the largest continuous populated area in the commune of Péninsule Lorenchet, which has 2,032 inhabitants.

Located on the northern tip of the Péninsule Lorenchet, Port-Christmas is the largest city of the province of West Kerguelen with over 22% of the provincial population living there. Historically, Port-Christmas was the most important city of the island as it provided the direct transport connections by sea to Réunion, though nowadays on the national level its importance has been overtaken by Port-aux-Français.

Provincially it belongs to the region of North Kerguelen, of which it is the economical centre, though the central hub of the region is Port-Foch. It is also the political centre of the province, with the Parliament of West Kerguelen located within the city.

Etymology
The name "Port-Christmas" or "Port-Noël" is derived from the name Christmas Harbour, given to the area by discoverer when he landed in the bay on Christmas Day 1776 during his third voyage in the Pacific. The name was made official on Christmas Day 1792 when a group of American whalers and sealers founded a temporary village located on the Halage d'Estaing.

Geography
Port-Christmas is located on the northern tip of the Péninsule Lorenchet along the Baie de l'Oiseau and the Baie de l'Hirondelle, with parts of the city located on the Halage d'Estaing in between the two bays. The city is said to lie between three, namely Cap Aubert, Cap d'Estaing and Pointe de l'Arche des Kerguelen.

Flora and fauna
The city is located on the slopes of the low, grassy hills of the Péninsule Lorenchet. The open areas between the neighbourhoods are dominated by grass and low shrubbery, with only a rare example of a pine or oak tree amongst the flora, often relatively isolated.

Road
By road, the city is connected to the rest of the island by the Rue de la République 2 highway, which runs along the majority of the north coast with connections to Port-Joffre, Port-Couvreux and Molloy and terminating at Port-aux-Français.

Rail
Port-Christmas' single railway station, Gare de Port-Christmas, serves as the terminus station of the Blue Line and Green Line.

The Blue Line provides a direct connection to Port-Couvreux and Port-aux-Français with transfer possibilities to Port-Joffre and La-Société-de-Géographie. Trains depart four times a day, at 5.58 a.m., 10.22 a.m., 15.00 p.m. and 19.45 p.m.

The Green Line provides a direct connection to Port-de-l'Île d'Ouest and Côte de la Vallée des Sables. Trains depart four times a day, ten minutes after the departure of the Blue Line trains.

Bus
There is one bus line in Port-Christmas, which runs a route from the Arche des Kerguelen through La Mer and past the railway station to L'Halage before making a circle through Bas and Milieu before returning to the train station. The bus runs an hourly service.

Ferry
Port-Christmas is called at by the following ferry services:


 * Traversier d'Amsterdam to: Île Saint-Paul and Île Amsterdam;
 * Traversier des Vents to: Port-de-l'Île d'Ouest, Île de l'Est, Île de la Possession, Île aux Cochons, Prince Edward Island and Marion Island.