Fiji, Nadi

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After leaving the plane we went the opposite direction to all of the other passengers and headed towards the connections signs. It wasn’t long before we were in the departure area with five hours to kill.

I’m amazed at how wide awake we were given that we travelled through most of the night. I also couldn’t believe how quickly time passed between our flights.

We used the time to work through our list of chores. First we called the New Zealand camper van hire company we wanted to use and chatted to them about our van options. I got the sales manager to drop the price of the 4 berth van by $6 per day which meant that it then cost similar to the smaller 2 berth (there was only about £1.50 per day difference in it) so we booked that up. I also called Qantas to try to sort out some flight change problems; STA travel had recently emailed us to let us know that Qantas had changed some of the flights we’d booked and they no longer connected. Qantas said they couldn’t do anything and we’d need to contact STA. STA had already said they couldn’t do anything and we’d need to speak to Qantas so I can see we’ll have yet another STA problem on our hands (I’ve already had one refund and apology from them and so far). Unfortunately for us it was late at night in the UK so I couldn’t sort it out any further.

I also called up the Ayres Rock camp ground and managed to book a cabin there. It was by far the cheapest option for us (actually it was the only affordable option!) so I was pleased we’d finally booked it as I think in December it will be busy.

After that, although it was only technically 9am, we ordered a massive meal of double whoppers at the Burger King. There weren’t really any other food options available which was weird - just a coffee shop and a drinks bar - so not only was it our only option, but it was exactly the sort of junk food we were craving after a our flight.

We found an English newspaper in the papershop which felt quite exciting (it was a week old but we didn't care), and I spotted a game of travel scrabble. It was still quite big but we felt we could carry it. We thought it might come in useful while island hopping and camper vanning around so decided it was a good investment, especially seeing as Matt has refused to play chess with me again as I won him yesterday (he beat me the day before but he seems to have forgotten that already!)

Then it was time to just sit and wait. Eventually at 1.30pm we boarded our flight and set off for Nadi. There was much less turbulence this time and once we’d watched a film and drunk some wine we were there.

Everyone at the airport was really friendly and welcomed us with shouts of ‘Bula‘; a new one to get used to just as we‘d got into the habit of kia orana (Cooks) and il orana (Tahiti). I’d been reserving judgement about Fiji as the guidebooks said you can get hassled by people trying to con you, and that women on their own weren’t safe there. We needn’t have been worried; everyone at the airport at least were welcoming and helpful. We exchanged some travellers cheques and then managed to find a free shuttle bus to our hotel which was excellent as we’d been expecting to have to pay for a taxi. Everything there seemed so well organised - there were heaps of people directing everybody to the right pick up points and answering any questions.

We’d chosen Tanoa International as it was close to the airport, and the port where our ferry leaves tomorrow. It was pretty cheap (£44 for the room) and had perks like air con which we thought would be appreciated after almost a full day of travelling.

It was what it was; a big resort with pool, shop and restaurant. Our room was spacious and clean, and having aircon made a really nice change as it was hot in Fiji even at 5pm. We even had two double beds in our room and a little patio area. Everything about it should have been great, but it just didn’t feel right. We’d spent too much time in small local run resorts and being in a big hotel just felt impersonal and awkward. But it did the job for one night.

As we were still full from the massive Burger King breakfast we didn’t bother with any dinner and just lazed around in our room. We had our first actual bath since setting off which was a novelty although in reality it was a bit too hot for one.

By 8.30am we were fast asleep and I swear that I slept the deepest I’ve ever slept for a solid nine hours.

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