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We made it to Fiji for our honeymoon adventure! It was quite an adventure—an hour flight from Raleigh to DC, a 2-hour layover, 5 hours to LA, a 3-hour layover, then 10.5 hours to Nadi, Fiji (with a dose of Ambien to help get through that flight). We were then picked up by a driver in an older, black Mercedes and driven 2.5 hours to the south side of the island. By that time it was 10am Fiji time, and we were supposed to be met by a boat to get us to the first island where we are staying, but we were told the water was too choppy for a small boat, and all 3 of the big boats were out on dive trips. So the driver dropped us at a resort called The Pearl, where we had a delicious breakfast (Ken had eggs Benedict, I had a breakfast burrito).
At around 11:30am, we were told the boat had arrived for us. It was a small launch outboard, and the captain piled our suitcases in the front and covered them with a tarp. He handed us each a raincoat, but down a bench, and told us to get settled.
I looked at Ken, laughed, and said, “It’s always an adventure with me, huh Ken?” I had done most of the arrangements with the help of a travel agent for this trip, so he didn’t know entirely what to expect. The ride was only about half an hour and a lot of fun, but at various points we each thought we were going to be thrown overboard or that our luggage was going to fly back and knock us unconscious.
When we finally arrived at our island and Beqa Lagoon Resort (pronounced beng-a), the entire staff was standing on the beach singing a welcome song and playing instruments. We were all smiles at such a fun welcome! They gave us each a flower necklace, a small coconut with cold orange juice, took care of our luggage, and led us to comfortable lounge chairs to brief us on the resort and schedules. We placed our orders for lunch, and then they led us across the property, over wooden bridges and lily ponds, to our bure (a little thatched roof bungalow).
The place is adorable—lots of South Pacific art, wooden furniture, a large Buddha on the counter in the bathroom,
and a mosquito net over the main bed. Out the one side of the bure you can see the sparkling blue water, and out the front you can see the garden. We even have a large front porch.
Lunch is eaten in a large bure communal style. We sat at a table of 10 Aussies, who were very friendly. This resort caters to divers, so almost everyone here has already been out diving and could tell us all of the amazing aquatic life we have to look forward to. There are also 2 separate U.S. diving trips here. The Aussies left today, which is a shame, because they are a lot of fun.
After sitting out by the pool overlooking the beach for a little and exploring the little resort gift shop, we came back for a nap and a shower before dinner. We both had mahi-mahi with a mango puree, and an apple and pear cobbler for dessert. The food so far has been very good and very healthy. During dinner, a few Fijian men playing guitars and a mandolin entertained us. This meal we sat next to an older couple from Tennessee who seem to be
very experienced divers who have been all over the world on dive adventures.
Following dinner there was a kava ceremony, which is a special ground root mixed with water into a drink that gives you the feeling of intoxication. Drinking kava is an old tradition maintained by the tribes on Fijian islands, and the locals take it very seriously. First, the chief of the village drinks a cup out of a coconut shell, followed by his “spokesman”, then the rest of the villagers (the warriors, the priests, and the fisherman). You clap once before drinking, hold the cup with two hands and drink it straight down, then clap three times—loudly! I had 2 rounds of kava, which has a little bit of a bitter taste to it, but wasn’t too bad. It made my tongue and lips feel fuzzy and numb. I felt a bit happy after the second round, which was much stronger, but nothing too crazy.
We went to bed fairly early last night to continue to try to adjust to the time difference (15 hours ahead of EST). We both slept amazingly well, and we rose at 7:30am in time for omelets, toast, and fresh
fruit (papaya!) for breakfast. We spent a bit of time talking to one of the staff people from the spa, who explained to us she can’t understand why so many people travel so far to come all the way to Fiji. She has a cousin in Tucson, Arizona, so we were telling her she should definitely go to the U.S. and see the Grand Canyon and New York City. She seems nervous about being able to navigate airports and the whole flying bit, but we assured her that there are plenty of people to help along the way.
We are both delighted with our trip so far, even though we have only been here for 24 hours. Very few bumps in the road, and the accommodations and hospitality are great.
And our wedding was great! We got married at The Gables restaurant in Chadds Ford, PA with just 20 guests—our parents, grandparents, siblings and their spouses, and 2 sets of our closest friends each. A female cantor married us with an interfaith ceremony in the garden of the restaurant, which was followed by a reception upstairs in the banquet room. The weather was perfect, the food delicious, the jazz trio fun, and our photographers easy going and unobtrusive. On Sunday, we did a “bride and groom take two” photo shoot at Longwood Gardens, a huge, beautiful garden and park outside of Philadelphia. Brett (our photographer) photographed us in front of flowers, fountains, a waterfall, skipping through grassy fields, under archways, and hanging over the balcony of a tree house. It was a very creative, fun, low stress way to have photos of just us in our wedding attire. We can’t wait to see them!
Although we were met with a little resistance from some older relatives and some confusion by those who do not understand anything but traditional weddings, we were thrilled by how successful our small wedding/big honeymoon plan turned out. The wedding was simple but elegant, meaningful, and focused on us and our love and commitment for each other, rather than what society and the wedding industry wants us to do. We were both very gratified and were actually able to enjoy our day.
Oh, and in addition to all of this, we’re moving to Baltimore in July! I accepted a research position at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, doing behavioral change research mostly focused on HIV prevention, but also malaria and tobacco use. My focus will be on projects in Asia and Africa, so there will be a bit of international travel (particularly to Tanzania). So on Monday we went apartment hunting in Baltimore before driving back to Raleigh. We found a place on the border of the neighborhoods Roland Park and Mt. Washington right in the city, leaving me with a 15-minute community in rush hour traffic to my office at the Inner Harbor. The apartment is in a funky high rise built in 1964, but everything has been upgraded. We’ll actually have a 3-bedroom, 2-bath apartment with a huge living room and a formal dining room, as well as hard wood floors. And it’s affordable! I start work June 21, and Ken will join me after the move on July 10. We’re especially excited because we’ll be very close to family again (1/2 hour to his parents, and hour or so from mine), my brother and his wife in DC, Ken’s brother and his family outside of Philly, and some old friends. And we’ll be urban dwellers! And have the opportunity for international travel through my job!
What an amazing way to start our life together as an official couple! We feel so incredibly fortunate.
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