After a day or two roaming the main street of Nadi and catching up on some sleep in the hostel, I made a day trip with my Dutch friends, Nathan and Hans Van Dam. Feel free to laugh at him and his last name; I certainly did. We took a local bus 40 minutes down the coast to Natadola Beach, reputed to be one of the best beaches on the main island. On the final road to the beach, we flagged down a ride with two Germans, Yannis and Daniel, and their tour guide. The beach proved to be a bit disappointing, though we were some of the only ones in sight (good thing for Hans and his Speedo). After just an hour or two, we rejoined the Germans and negotiated a cheap, quick trip back to town. On the way, we did see a military roadblock with guards armed with semi-automatic weapons, though they didn't seem to be doing anything other than look imposing. For those of you not up on your Fijian current events, you should be ashamed of yourselves. If you were, you'd realize that there are high racial tensions between the native Pacific Islander landowners and the many Indians who own the majority of the shops, restaurants and other commercial entities. In the preceding year, the military overthrew the government and has instated an interim leader, though they claim that the coup had the peoples' backing. Either way, I think the takeover was bloodless, so it wasn't too bad. Maybe.
The next day, I made my first trip to one of the outer islands around Viti Levu, Fiji's main island. These outer islands are the idyllic images of outcrops of sand and palm trees surrounded by clear water that are conjured up when one thinks of Fiji. I decided to take a day cruise to Tivua (Mystery Island), partially a conscious decision and partially a de facto one, since a few of the other day tours decided to take the day off. It's ok, they're on Fiji Time. Haha. Cute. Now stop saying that all the time.
After picking me up at my hostel, the bus took us to the port and awaiting sailboat/cruiser. The dock turned out to be a great people-watching place with a blend of eclectic Asians, Germans, Aussies, Brits and a few Americans, all of varying shades of red, depending on how long they'd been on vacation. As we gathered on the boat, the crew got together and grabbed two guitars to enchant us with some typical island melodies (quasi-Hawaiian sounding). The cruise also included a breakfast (toast and tea) and a few juices. Outside the boat, the towering green mountains of the mainland looked quite impressive as we hugged the coastline before turning off towards our own private island. Completely encircled by bright white sand, reefs and crystal-clear water with a hint of green, the island immediately lived up to the image on the brochure. While some of the other passengers were lured away by the prospect of snorkeling gear rental, I seized the opportunity to move to the front of the boat and get a few pictures of us arriving at the island. I was also able to squeeze my way onto the first shuttle boat to the island from the lagoon, which was a huge move. Once on the deserted island, after a few key karate maneuvers directed at the old folks and infants and a challenging, moreso than expected, footrace with some Baby Boomers a little past their prime, I got my spot in the last covered chair under an umbrella on the island. My skin will thank me later for that.
The center of the island was full of palm trees and vegetation along with bathrooms, some tables for lunch and a volleyball court. To begin the tour, the workers selected a chief and a bodyguard for the day, a Canadian and Brit that certainly weren't tribal warrior material. In fact, if cannibalism still existed in Fiji, I don't think their juicy frames would have lasted the day. As a part of the ceremony, they made the traditional drink, Kava, which was implied to be safe, all-natural and alcohol free, despite it being a somewhat hallucinogenic drink very popular among the locals. It just herbs - it can't be bad, can it?
Apart from the brief insight into the tourist re-creation of the local customs and a BBQ lunch consisting of sausage, chicken, fish, potato salad, salad, bananas, papayas and a roll, there was very little to do on the island, which is exactly the point (of course I had to try at least a bit of each food, just to make sure it was ok for the other guests). I took a few walks around the island, each one only taking about 15-20 minutes and mostly sat back and contemplated life and other trivial topics while staring into the beautiful lagoon.
After about five hours on the island, we gathered our crew and headed back to the mainland. We were again accompanied by some traditional music and a rousing, "clever" rendition of "Oh When the Saints" including marvellously witty verses such as "I want to be in the number when...the rum makes your bum numb...the brandy makes you randy...the whiskey makes you frisky...the kava makes you (some incomprehensible, suggestive word that probably rhymes with kava)." Maybe someone recorded it on mp3 for everyone to enjoy. If not, sorry.
It's been really hot and humid here, so I'm thinking that I might try my luck with a Fijian haircut in town. Hopefully they don't mind sweaty American hair - how could they? Then I'm off for a quick trip to the Cook Islands on the way to French Polynesia. I'm a little worried because I haven't made any plans and have heard that French Polynesia is very expensive. Obviously not worried enough to do anything about it, though. Oh well.
The next day, I made my first trip to one of the outer islands around Viti Levu, Fiji's main island. These outer islands are the idyllic images of outcrops of sand and palm trees surrounded by clear water that are conjured up when one thinks of Fiji. I decided to take a day cruise to Tivua (Mystery Island), partially a conscious decision and partially a de facto one, since a few of the other day tours decided to take the day off. It's ok, they're on Fiji Time. Haha. Cute. Now stop saying that all the time.
After picking me up at my hostel, the bus took us to the port and awaiting sailboat/cruiser. The dock turned out to be a great people-watching place with a blend of eclectic Asians, Germans, Aussies, Brits and a few Americans, all of varying shades of red, depending on how long they'd been on vacation. As we gathered on the boat, the crew got together and grabbed two guitars to enchant us with some typical island melodies (quasi-Hawaiian sounding). The cruise also included a breakfast (toast and tea) and a few juices. Outside the boat, the towering green mountains of the mainland looked quite impressive as we hugged the coastline before turning off towards our own private island. Completely encircled by bright white sand, reefs and crystal-clear water with a hint of green, the island immediately lived up to the image on the brochure. While some of the other passengers were lured away by the prospect of snorkeling gear rental, I seized the opportunity to move to the front of the boat and get a few pictures of us arriving at the island. I was also able to squeeze my way onto the first shuttle boat to the island from the lagoon, which was a huge move. Once on the deserted island, after a few key karate maneuvers directed at the old folks and infants and a challenging, moreso than expected, footrace with some Baby Boomers a little past their prime, I got my spot in the last covered chair under an umbrella on the island. My skin will thank me later for that.
The center of the island was full of palm trees and vegetation along with bathrooms, some tables for lunch and a volleyball court. To begin the tour, the workers selected a chief and a bodyguard for the day, a Canadian and Brit that certainly weren't tribal warrior material. In fact, if cannibalism still existed in Fiji, I don't think their juicy frames would have lasted the day. As a part of the ceremony, they made the traditional drink, Kava, which was implied to be safe, all-natural and alcohol free, despite it being a somewhat hallucinogenic drink very popular among the locals. It just herbs - it can't be bad, can it?
Apart from the brief insight into the tourist re-creation of the local customs and a BBQ lunch consisting of sausage, chicken, fish, potato salad, salad, bananas, papayas and a roll, there was very little to do on the island, which is exactly the point (of course I had to try at least a bit of each food, just to make sure it was ok for the other guests). I took a few walks around the island, each one only taking about 15-20 minutes and mostly sat back and contemplated life and other trivial topics while staring into the beautiful lagoon.
After about five hours on the island, we gathered our crew and headed back to the mainland. We were again accompanied by some traditional music and a rousing, "clever" rendition of "Oh When the Saints" including marvellously witty verses such as "I want to be in the number when...the rum makes your bum numb...the brandy makes you randy...the whiskey makes you frisky...the kava makes you (some incomprehensible, suggestive word that probably rhymes with kava)." Maybe someone recorded it on mp3 for everyone to enjoy. If not, sorry.
It's been really hot and humid here, so I'm thinking that I might try my luck with a Fijian haircut in town. Hopefully they don't mind sweaty American hair - how could they? Then I'm off for a quick trip to the Cook Islands on the way to French Polynesia. I'm a little worried because I haven't made any plans and have heard that French Polynesia is very expensive. Obviously not worried enough to do anything about it, though. Oh well.
(The boat ride over to Tivua)
(On the isolated beach of Tivua)
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