Southern hemisphere

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Update.
Last entry was LA. Well our experience of LA was limited to the freeway, busy, the airport boring and the Sheraton Hotel very comfortable. The latter was an unplanned pleasant surprise. After hanging around LA airport for some 3 or 4 hours, food crap, facilities non existent - Cardiff airport departure lounge has very much superior facilities. (Fiji airport has much better facilities more about that later) we discovered our flight had been postponed till the following morning (8 AM rather than the original 10 20 PM). By this time it was almost 5PM we went to the Air NZ desk and were told they were going to put us up for the night in the local Sheraton Hotel with vouchers for dinner & breakfast. Transport was provided and so we found ourselves in a luxurious room, huge bed, gigantic TV, bathroom etc etc at the Sheraton. Enquired about taxi to downtown LA ($50 each way so decided to stay in hotel (it was almost 7Pm and we had to be back at the airport by 7AM the following morning). Went down to the bar and had a reasonable meal (we were limited to $30 which didn't quite cover their restaurant menu (hardly covered the starters) after the meal we sat outside by the pool and had a couple of beers and chatted to an Australian horse breeder who was on his way to Kentucky to buy some brood mares. Then a bath, bed and up for breakfast (number 1) - croissants, fresh fruit, orange juice and coffee. Caught hotel shuttle to airport and were provided with breakfast number 2 - muffins and more orange juice. Boarded plane on time and took off as per schedule only to be provided with breakfast number 3 another croissant, more orange juice and coffee. We had the roomy seats by the emergency exit, which was good, as the Fiji flight was our longest so far.


This bit's out of sequence, but so what. On our night in Santa Barbara, Willy had fallen asleep and I was just drifting off, when suddenly he clenched his fist, raised his arm and thumped my leg - would have been quite hard, but fortunately there were blankets on the bed. It transpired that he'd been dreaming about football and had got into an argumanet with Alec Ferguson, and thought he was thumping him.

Politics - George Bush hasn't vsisted San Francisco and is the first US president for 100 years not to. No one seems to have voted for him and anyone we got into conversation with was eager to tell us that Bush is an idiot, that the US should never have gone into Iraq also that the US is always too eager to leap into wars and takes no account of history.

California is also an excellent place for non-smokers - it borders on the extreme. All indoor public spaces and outdoor spaces designated as public recreation areas (like camp sites) are non-smoking. Willy went through security 4 times at LA airport, removing his belts and shoes on each occasion, as he had to leave the departure area and go right back outside the airport to get a cigarette.








Arrived Fiji after lunch and as we had crossed the international dateline (and incidentally the equator) it was now Saturday afternoon. Picked up by our hotel shuttle and booked in. Fiji is a bit run down, most locals appear to live on small patches of ground, their houses pretty basic one floor with a smallish garden and inevitably several chickens (more about them shortly).

Hotel was very nice set in its own garden of 30 - 40 ft coconut palms with a nice little warm pool and only 30 rooms on 3 floors each with its own balcony. We stayed in the hotel eating at their restaurant very good and like everything else on Fiji very reasonable (approx 5 pounds for their main couses - they also served various drinks including a fantastic lemon and lime crush. Had a couple of local Fiji beers but wouldn't really recommend it) then bed it had been a long day.

We were the only people staying there after ther first night, so it was bit like hiring a villa with a complete complement of staff: probably the closest we'll ever get to the Posh an Becks life-style.



Sunday wakened at the crack of dawn (first at approx 3.30 by cockerels, everybody seems to keep hens, then at approx 6 by the dawn chorus (caucophony would be a better name - the main sound was a bird which I decided to call the screecher as this best describes its call). After breakfast we went for a walk to the local beach accompanied by the hotel's 2 dogs (Ruby and Peggy). The beach was almost deserted and must have stretched for a good 2 - 3 miles only people in sight were a few locals who were fishing (they wade out into the sea and use spears to catch the fish). Came across some weird liitle crabs only a cm long but with one huge yekkow claw at least half as long again as their body). Although fringed by palm trees their was quite a lot of litter - a feature of Fiji and the sand was a muddy brown rather than the sparkling white shown on TV adverts. Back to hotel then into local town Nadi for look around. Thuis only confirmed initial impressions of somewhere that had seen better days although being a Sunday probably didn't help. Visited the local Hindu temple impressive painting, staues of Hindu gods in incredibly bright colours then walked back into town where we bought a pair of shorts (double as swimming trunks which I'd left at home), T shirt for me and sarong for Wendy.

The island is a bird watchers paradies must have seen 20 to 30 different species the only ones I could definitely identify were Frigate birds, 2 different kinds of heron and the ubiquitous pigeon. As it s spring here the birds are incredibly active. Also being spring everthing is in or coming into bloom there are also numerous mango trees with the fruit beginning to ripen (see breakfast below)

Monday - another beach walk then lying around pool with occassional swims to cool off (temperature in mid 80's but very humid.we both have been bitten by something with numerous bites on legs and arms which are itchy as hell. Using antihistamine cream to relieve itching.

The highlight of the cuisine was the tropical fruit platter they served for breakfast - photo will follow when we find a pc with a USB port. It's baeautifully present with half a paw paw, which is dark orange, half a mango (orangy orange), bright yellow pinaeapple pieces, red water melon pieces and pale yellow bananas topped with a spring of mint and half a lime. It looks good, then when you squeeze the lime over it, you get the citruses lime smell, the fresh mint smell and the richer scents of the pineapple and the mango.

For anyone still having problems accessing the photos, we think you need to get into the blog, then click on "gallery", then on "usa" then you should see the first photo. If you click on it, you get the whole gallery (eventually). Let us know if you still have probalems and we'll get someone who's managed it to give proper instructions.

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Photos

Nadi Sunset
From hotel first night

Nadi Beach
Peggy the dog chasing Heron

Nadi Beach - dead shark
Looks pleasant doesn't he

Nadi - Wendy's breakfast
Allfresh local grown and tasting all the better for it