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Published: September 22nd 2006
Greetings from Fiji!
Well, a little bit to catch up on! Firstly, I am now 29, thanks for all the texts and emails! Almost made up for no presents!! Well, Ju did get me a smashing card & two books I really wanted, hurrah.
So, we sailed from the South Island of NZ to the North, arriving with the van in Wellington. Suffice to say, the crossing was beautiful, if a little dull. Wellington was wet, as everyone had told us it would be! So, we carried on in TravelWhiting tradition and sampled the local culture. Or beer, as it's known at home. We explored Welly, did the cable car upto a decent lookout spot the next day and it was really nice, apart from being surrounded by 10 yr old girls (the type with ribbons in their hair who all want ponies) on the way up! We walked back through the Botanical Gardens, assured it was a short stroll back to town by the guide book. It took hours! But at least we burned off yet more calories and stretched our legs after 10 days of driving. Welly really didn't have the charm of Christchurch, so we weren't too disappointed to move on after 2 nights here. It might be the capital, but it's pretty forgettable (sorry Andrina!).
After a short drive, we met Simon & Andrina for lunch. We had met them on our travels in Cambodia (see the Hey Mister! Blog entry) and were looking forward to seeing some familiar faces. They had picked a beautiful little pub just south of where they lived in Masterton, but, horrors, had picked an outside table, as they are smokers!! No worries though, after 2.5hrs of yapping & catching up, we didn't notice the cold. Afterwards, we set off for Napier, apparantley a nice place to stop and admire the art deco buildings and stroll amongst cafes. Sadly, it was dark and belting it down when we arrived. We tried again to sight-see the next day, but the proper, English-style drizzle kept us in our van.
In search of sunnier skies, we headed to Taupo, where a beautiful lake greets you as you drive into town. And, hurrah, the sun burst forth, making the place a picture postcard setting. We did the decent thing after arriving - no, too early for beers - we went on another Jetboat ride! After the fun we'd had in Queenstown, being scared half to death, we couldn't miss out on another chance to get soaked & scream a lot! This jetboat takes you almost to the bottom of Huka Falls, right into the white water, so almost as terrifying as Shotover canyon, but not quite. After the adrenaline, Ju beat me at mini golf, again, despite my tremendous hole in one!
We were aware of how little time we had left in NZ so the next few days were spent cramming in as much as possible. We drove around the 'volcanic loop' which takes in 3 volcanoes which were used in Lord of the Rings, and they were pretty amazing, we took a ton of photo's as usual. Camp that night was made at stinky Rotorua, which smells hideous because of all the thermal activity. To the uninitiated, thermal activity is just mud pools and steamy holes in the ground. We amused ourselves at a place called Orakie Korako too, where the water is so hot, you could blister your fingers if you touched it. I touched it, duh!
I loved the Lord of the Rings films, so I dragged Ju to Matamata, or Hobbiton as the locals called it as that's where some of the film was shot. We did a fantastically geeky tour, looking at the hobbit holes (and sheep!) culminating in Ju banging his head on Bag End, the most important Hobbit hole in the film!
Racing onwards through our ever dwindling days in NZ, we saw the gloworm caves at Waitomo on an underground boat which was very, very cool, and then spent the afternoon quadbiking with an insane farmer called Bill! He must've been 80, but he left us for dead speed-wise, racing up hills, through mud & past startled sheep! Such fun!
Our penultimate day we spent driving around the gorgeous Coromandel Peninsula, lots of windy roads and cafe-towns, all while the sun was shining. I finally chucked out my skanky, five-quid-from-the-Mall-watch as the velcro had given up the ghost at last, and we had a glorious lunch at some old time cafe, before heading to Cathedral Cove, a beauty spot for a bit of a walk. Wow. It was stunning. More importantly, it took 45 mins to walk down to the cove and 45 more to get back!! it was well worth it, one of the nicest beaches we've seen on our trip.
Sadly, our last night in the van had come, we cooked for one last time in our little pikey home from home and drank the last of our beers. It had been the plan to cook every night on the van......however, we wanted to 'sample local culture' so we did most of our eating out!! The last campsite was a ramshackle old place, with flowers in the showers (yes really!) run by a mad old hippy. I spent half the night thinking he was going to come and push our van into the stream, don't ask me why!!
So, Auckland. Bashed by most Kiwi's as being 'rubbish' (Thanks - that's a helpful way to describe it to tourists!) we wondered what to expect. Dropping the van off was easy, as was the cab into town. It's NZ's largest city, so we had high hopes. Upon checking in to the hostel, i felt a pang of loss for our cozy van, as we hadn't had to put up with any yanks/aussies/other backpackers for nearly three weeks!! Turns out we'd checked in PartyHostel. After a few beers in the on-site bar, we headed out into Auckland for a few more. The next thing I can recall is sobering up at 2.45am after a conversation with someone called Trent. Ju & I hurried off to bed!! Exploring Auckland the next day wasn't rubbish exactly, more bland than anything. It just didn't have any redeeming features that would make you remember it. I think we have been spoilt by the awesome-ness of places like Sydney, Shanghai, Singapore, Cape Town to name but a few. We're city-tarts - expecting to be blown away by each new place, but Auckland is just, well, Auckland. Innoffensive. Beige. That sort of thing. Christchurch is far and away NZ's nicest city, in my humble opinion.
My birthday passed in a flash (Ju got me the book i wanted 😊 ) as we had to get from Auckland to our next stop - Fiji. The flight was fine, no bumps this time and we descended into a beautiful orange & pink sunset. The plan was to stay one night at the Nadi Bay hotel and then catch a ferry to an island the next day. Well, we were shattered by our partying in Auckland, so we extended it to 2 nights at Nadi Bay, so we could get some sleep. The hotel was very nice, basic but set amongst palm trees and swimming pools with 2 bars & restaurants also on site. We were soon to realise that this is as good as it gets in Fiji! We spent the afternoon of that day walking around, having our hands shaken by Big Joe and pretty much the rest of Nadi - we were quite the tourist attraction?! Most Fijians, especially the men, seem to spend all day hanging around, loitering on street corners and generally looking shifty. It's a weird country.
Next day, our 'transfer' to our accommodation on Nananu Island began at 8.30am. We knew it was $30 per person, so were hoping for something comfy for the 2-3 hour trip to the boat dock. We got a battered old van, with plastic seats and a driver who could only grin as a form of communication! Unperturbed, we got chatting to the only other couple on board, Brian & Ann, two really nice yanks from Minnesota. Well, 2 hours turned into 3 hours. We stopped for petrol, groceries and to pick up some of the drivers mates?! soon it was four hours and we were getting naffed off, especially as it started to chuck it down. The sun had disappeared!
Eventually we arrived at the dock - the 'boat' looked like it was made of tin foil and was at least 100 years old. Think speed boat sized, without the speed. Or any kind of roof. Once the island's groceries were loaded (nice to see a company think of their guests first!) we crammed onto the tiny remaining space and our two hapless drivers set off across the bay. The trip was supposed to take 10mins, but with dropping off groceries at other jettys, it took 30mins. I do not like little boats, especially ones driven by idiots with no apparent experience, so i was not happy as the boat crash-landed onto the beach. There wasn't a pier or anything!?
We dragged our bags to 'reception' where a disinterested Fijian Chav checked us in. We had booked a beach front house, so were keen to have a look. Horror of horrors, it was disgusting. There was no lock on the outside of the door, the curtains smelled of fust and the shared kitchen? Euuch. The bathroom was the piece de resistance though. The sink hung from the wall, there was no curtain at the window and the shower was salt water. Cold saltwater. The hot tap had seemingly fallen off years ago. It had been replaced by a breed of slime so evil looking that scientists should test if for new forms of penicillin. The bed was made of one of those boxes we used at school in drama - eg a plywood box with slats on the top. I think they were slats, they could have been lolly sticks! The mattress? Well, I've seen thicker post-it notes.
We decided there & then to leave the next day on the first available boat!!
It got worse - the 'shop' stocked crisps and coke, so no chance of self-catering. The 'restaurant' had tables covered in fag ash and locals lounging over ripped table cloths. The evening meal was a local buffet and cost $25 per person, when the website had said $15. The tired look of the place - dirty sand, litter, unkempt public areas and mangy dogs - was a far cry from the website. I was so disapointed I could've swum back to the mainland. There were a large number of guests - 20 something germans & yank duuudes lounging around not doing anything. They're my most hated type of traveler, the ones who doss about all day and never SEE the place. Maaan.
We arranged to leave, they knew damn well we'd reserved for 3 nights, but they didn't bat an eyelid - they couldn't care less. I've been to much grubbier places, but never have I seen a place that was so ill cared for. It could be an awesome place with some paint, litter clearing and total demolition! It was so dirty we didn't shower or brush our teeth!! Neither would any of you if you'd seen the place!!!!!! yuck!
As a result, we are back in Nadi, but the nice place we stayed at before is booked out, so we're in a slightly less groovy place across the road. Don't get me wrong though, it's clean!! And the shower is a dream and I can confirm we both have clean teeth again. Tomorrow night we fly to the Cook islands for three days and if it's anything like Nananu Island, we'll be trying to get to the States quick as you like! Nadi itself is weird - the locals all want to say "bula' to you, which is cool. But then they want to shake hands, take you to their uncle's shop........etc etc. I've been offered about 200 taxis and one lot of drugs in just one afternoon today! It's culture shock after the 'first world' of NZ I guess. Still, the weather has improved loads, so once we finish on the net it's back to the hotel pool to read & chill before we fly tomorrow evening.
Fiji hasn't been what we expected. I would even put people off coming here if they were deciding on a holiday destination. God knows where they film Celebrity Love Island, but it aint around here! I have posted a message on the web about the dirty 'resort' we spent one night at, to try and warn people about going there!! Shithole!
So, another experience on the road, although we both feel like we've just wasted 5 days here, when we could've had that time in NZ or in the USA. Not had that feeling before on our trip, but it was bound to happen sooner or later!
Now it's to the Cooks, and 3 days later, the USA! To say we are looking forward to the US is a big understatement! Hoping to cover at least Chicago (got Killers tickets, yay! Hear the UK tour sold out quick....), San Fran, Sacramento, Memphis, Nashville, Houston, New Orleans, Denver, Yellowstone.....oh the list is endless!! But I'll say this, I'm sure it'll be better than Fiji................
Not too long til we return home, unbelievably, and we're determined to make the most of the last chunk of our trip!!! Hope everything is lovely at home, send us emails & try and stop people spending their hard earned on trips to Fiji!!!
Love Kelly & Ju xxx
PS Dion Dublin? Oh my god.......
PPS Uncle Max - Ipswich are just LUCKY at the mo!!!!!
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Travel Whiting
Julian & Kelly Whiting
Fiji is pants!
Top tip: never go to Fiji on holiday!!