On The Coral Coast!!

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12th APRIL 2009 - RELAXATION AT BEACHHOUSE & ON TO MANGO BAY!!
I woke up at 8ish after having a cracking nights sleep…much needed I might add and the circles under my eyes were a little lighter than before! We went for breakfast (in with the price) and then checked in and out. We then explored the resort a little and laid by the pool. Such a nice place and I would have happily stayed there for the rest of my time in Fiji. It was right on the beach, there were log swings out over the sea, the sun was out and it was a happy place! There were loads of activities on and even a tv room for rainy days! It was a shame that we only had a couple of hours there which we spent laying in the sun! Apparently it was also the place where the second series of Love Island was filmed…not surprising considering how nice it was!

At 12pm we headed to reception as a taxi was picking us up to take us to Mango Bay. We bumped into 2 English guys from Mana whilst at reception and chatted to them for a while. They had only intended to come travelling for 4 months but had loved it so much they had decided to stay for 18 months and work in Oz! I thought my travelling trip was done on impulse but these guys were in a different league!! I may have phoned home and tried that line for April Fools had I not been worried that my mum would have a heart attack! Our taxi was 1 hour and 15 minutes late. I was not impressed and we got the ride free of charge! Fiji time was starting to take its toll on me!

We arrived at Mango Bay resort just before 2pm. Mango Bay seemed nice and the dorms actually had mosquito nets…wooooo!!!! That meant that the little blood suckers would not be able to feast of my flesh for at least one night during my stay in Fiji! There were only 5 of us in the dorm and so had our pick of the beds! We dumped our stuff, checked our emails for 20 minutes and then headed to the pool area.

It was a nice pool/restaurant/bar. I managed to grab a couple of loungers and then bumped into Thera from Robinson Crusoe. She was a lovely girl…excited about everything and really interesting! Done loads with her life and had a 20 year plan! Way too far ahead for me to think but good on her...she knew what she wanted!! I thought I was a happy person but she laughed at everything! Brilliant! She also tucked into some chicken flavoured dried peas…who ever heard of such a thing?!!

It was Easter Sunday that day and there were no Easter eggs. The Easter bunny had forgotten to visit and that meant no eggs for me!! I did have the option of scrambled eggs but it just wasn’t the same! To make up for the lack of Easter eggs, I enjoyed my 1st ice cream since Pancake Day! It was a-maz-ing!! Honestly, I was so proud of myself for staying off the creamy stuff for so long and it tasted so much better having laid off it for so long!! Definitely the highlight of my day!!

There were a few people around the pool. An amateur rugby team from NZ were also there acting the goat. They started a belly flop competition into the pool and a sumo wrestling competition. There were some howlers and some where I actually felt the pain for them! Provided us with entertainment anyhow!! As the afternoon drew on, the weather changed and it began to rain. We were in and out like yoyo’s as the weather kept changing…rain, sun, rain, sun!!

As the sun began to set, I went onto the beach and found a hammock to watch it from. Was lovely until it began to rain and I had to take my party for 1 inside. Still looked nice but not quite the same! After sunset, we headed back to the room to change for tea. I had a small bowl of soup as I wasn’t very hungry and then we headed into the movie room to watch Wedding Crashers as it was movie night at Mango Bay. Only saw it a few weeks ago but still laughed all the same…quality film!!

Film over and bed called. I closed my net around me to keep the blood suckers out and drifted off to sleep happy in the knowledge that I would not be eaten alive that night!!


13th APRIL 2009 - COCKROACH NIGHTMARE!!!
I woke up at 7.30ish after sleeping well once again. Everyone from our dorm already up and out except Nat who was happily writing her journal. After breakfast we said our goodbyes to Thera and went to the room to pack up our stuff. As I was packing up I felt something on my shin. I glanced down to see a huge shiny black cockroach scuttling up my leg. It was the size of a tennis ball and I was non too happy at seeing it there! I screamed like the girl that I am and tried to whack it off with my towel. Nat was about to jump on the bed as she thought I had seen a rat by the severity of my scream! I laughed afterwards but the experience was not a pleasant one! Almost gave me a heart attack!!

Once I had de-cockroached, we packed up and checked out before being driven to the top of the road to wait for the bus. We had to catch a public bus and had heard some bad stuff about them. It was just like hitch hiking though. You had to put your thumb out if you wanted one to stop! We were waiting for ages as all the buses were on Fiji time. After two buses ignoring our thumbs and driving right by us, we eventually flagged one down. There was no aircon, no suspension, smoke bellowed out the back and it struggled up the hills so much that I could have walked quicker. The noise of the engine was so loud too that I couldn’t even hear my music! It was an experience alright and I was wishing I was on a bicycle seat again! Only a short ride though and we arrived at Pacific Harbour after around 40 minutes.

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