Paradise Found

We are a bit behind with the blog now, due to how remote Castaway Island was - no phones, no TVs, no radio and certainly no internet: just lovely Fijian people to make our desert island stay a dream.

Firstly, the helicopter trip over was stupendous - it was great to see all the islands, atolls and sandbars as we flew in to Paradise. We had bare feet and very little else while on Castaway for three days and it really was just heavenly. Powdery white sand and clear blue ocean, with touches of green and only bright, colourful, tropical fish and an occasional sea turtle to share the water with.

The snorkelling was fantastic - right up until we saw the black and white banded sea snake!! No joking - it was the fastest we moved for days. We met an Aussie man on the shore who was picking up flotsam and jetsam that had washed in from the careless yacht owners and got chatting with him. He assured us that the snake was too small to have done any real harm but did admit that it was poisonous. When we saw the same chap at dinner later it turned out that he was the owner of the island - Sydney chef/hotelier Geoff Shaw.

We also met a lovely Australian family - Helen and Mike Star from Brisbane who have invited us for dinner when we reach their city. Aren't people really lovely? At night we were serenaded over dinner by the Castaway Boys - who sang an assortment of gentle Fijian songs (somewhere between Hawaiian and laid-back country music). We also got chatting with a couple from Hamburg who left the same day as us to go on to Samoa.

When we left Castaway the staff came down to the shore as we boarded the catamaran to sing Isa Lei - a Fijian farewell song. It was all quite emotional.

We had one night back in Nadi on the main island before flying on to Auckland, New Zealand on Monday. Auckland is a great city, very easy to get around and really nice people. Our hotel was right on the harbour with great views across to Devonport and beyond. We did get evicted from a pub in Auckland - but not for misbehaving (honest). There was a thunderstorm and the lightning set off the pub's alarm so we were tossed out in the rain while they waited for the Fire Brigade. It was all good fun and, unlike some other customers, we did go back and pay our bill rather than 'do a runner'.

It was only as we headed north on Wednesday that we learned there had been a tsunami out in the Pacific Ocean and that many people had been killed in Samoa and Tonga. We've no way of knowing whether our German friends are OK - we trust they are. We did email the Star family from Brisbane and they are safe and well.

Will update on New Zealand in a few days.

Jim and Lynne

xx

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