Bula! from Fiji

Bula!

Fiji is beautiful!
Conor and I spent our first day walking around Nadi (pronounced Nan-di) -- all in all not the most happening place. There's absolutely nothing going on in this town. We got here early in the morning so were the first tourists and therefore subject to all the more pressure to buy things. If we didn't buy something or stop to chat with the locals we "weren't being friendly." Not wanting to give Canada a bad rep we gave them a chance but learned very quickly that there was an alternative motive to their friendliness -- they get you into their store only to offer you Cava ( the traditional drink here in Fiji) and you soon find out that you can't leave without paying them (obviously way more than you should). Or you feel pressure to buy something before you leave - all the while being stared down by about 6 Fijians. Good thing Conor is around because he has the backbone when I don't and refused to go into the store to get some guys 'business card.' Lucky.

Our Hostel is quaint but it does the trick. It has a great roof-top for catching the sunrise.
There seems to be some sort of pressure from everyone to do THEIR cruise or buy what THEY'RE offering. So it's definitely a lesson in sticking to your guns.

The next day our cruise started up. We learned a good lesson in 'Fiji Time' while waiting for our transfer. Dad, you wouldn't like it here -- it's hot and nothing is done on time...We were early because of your early life lessons, but paid the price in waiting an hour for our ride. Ah well. We were happy to find out that of the possible 40 people, there were only 11 of us on this cruise! It made for a more quiet, and personal experience. The cruise going out next is 25 people so we lucked out. We met two families from Australia and one dude on his own from Oz -- all of which either gave us advice on our trip or contact info for accommodation.

Our sailing safari was absolutely incredible. 108ft sailboat, turquoise waters, coral reef...paradise.
We lived in a Bure (native hut) on the beach -- the water literally steps from our hut. We were welcomed by a Cava ceremony (a legitimate one this time). The drink is made from a local root plant which is pulverized and then mixed with what looks like dirty water. Mmm. NOT! There's no alcoholic effect but it makes your tongue feel slimy and tingly. But you suck it up.

We snorkeled tonnes and saw just about any pretty fish you could imagine. We started off pointing them all out to each other but after a while it just got to be silly as everything was stunning. Today, on our way back from Barefoot Lodge we stopped to snorkel and saw a shark...awesome -- it made the trip ( along with everything else that was cool). I've never been swimming with a shark before, even if it was only 4ft long.

I tried scuba diving for the first time...wicked. After I got used to the feeling of equalizing my ears it was great. It's amazing to experience a whole new world under the water. No words can describe it. So serene.

After visiting a native village on the second day it was all about relaxation and snorkeling. Waking up early made more day available to take it all in -- like the sunrise at 5:45am. What a great way to spend our trip.

We have two more nights here in Fiji so to avoid having another not-so-hot experience downtown Nadi we've decided to go Skydiving tomorrow! To be honest there wasn't much else to do on a Monday.

Hope all is well with you, we're doing great.
Love, elke

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