Bula Everywhere!

Bula!

We arrived safely into Nadi, Fiji, after racking up big-time frequent flier miles.  We spent our day in the ‘big city’ (12,000 people) wandering the main strip, rocking out to reggae and Usher from the elevated/open-air public bus, checking out a huge Hindi temple, and over-compensating for jet lag with 15 hours of sleep.

We just returned to Nadi from the remote northwest corner of Waya in the Yasawa Islands.  We definitely eased our way into our trip with a very comfortable 6 days at a “backpacker eco-resort.”  Some highlights:

• Snorkeling right off the beach in waters of a turquoise hue we didn’t know existed.  We saw lots of colorful fish, as well as a swarm of reef sharks (a school? a gang?);
• Our thatch roof bungalow with a hammock and outdoor shower;
• Reading for fun!  Holly and I each devoured half-a-dozen books this week – it turns out we prefer Bill Bryson and Nicole Krauss to Nutshells and casebooks;
• Drinking cocktails out of a coconut at sunset (that’s one check off of Holly’s trip bucket list);
• The choir from the local village (Nalauwaki) singing Christmas songs in Fijian (I always thought I hated Christmas music – it turns out I just can’t stand it in English...);
• Kava, the local ceremonial drink of choice, is a brown peppery sludge provided to all island visitors.  I was informed that kava is also an anesthetic after drinking 5 bowls of kava while chatting up the village mayor (Me: “How has the resort changed your village?” Mayor: “Yes, kava.” (So we drink more).  Me: “I know the woners say they wunnel all of the wofits into your willage, but is the wew school and wolar panel worth the change in your way of wife?” Mayor: “Yes, drink kava.”);
• Winning two bottles of champagne at trivia night (it definitely beat losing to a version of ‘Simon Says’ the night before, when I was a poor sport in blaming our defeat on the judge’s Scottish accent, and, according to Holly, looking like a “jackass”);
• Precious dramamine, which allowed us to sleep through the bumpy 3 hour boat-ride to Waya;
• Delicious food (lots of fresh fruit and walu bathed in coconut sauce), even though Holly couldn’t enjoy it for several days due to “belly-belly;”
• Fresh fruit, bright flowers, butterfly infestation, endless sun – tough not to relax and forget about the rest of the world.

Everyone (and everything) is extremely friendly here, which we feel is only welcome to a point.  Three examples:

1. We made new friends with a group (a pack? a horde?) of adorable elementary aged kids from Sydney, who have followed our every move.  They warn us when “proper waves” are about to reach our towel and fill us in on “cheeky little secrets” about other guests, but they ask far too many questions, such as “Ay mate, what does one does for fun on a honeymoon?”
2. While we enjoyed the hospitality and friendliness of the ever-present Nalauwake villagers (most of whom had abandoned traditional trades like fishing to instead walk across the island everyday to clean up after sunburned and dehydrated white people), we were less pleased with the hospitality and friendliness of the ever-present mosquitoes.  Holly sewed up the holes in our mosquito net after the first night, but the little buggers still managed to find a way in.  Granted, we’re probably too neurotic about insects, but we feel that our paranoia was validated after navigating around curious 9 inch dragonflies in the outdoor shower and spiders with visible pincher claws.
3. Even the hermit crabs are too friendly.  Emerging from the water after a Christmas morning snorkel, I noticed a hermit crab crawling up Holly’s side, meandering sideways toward her armpit.  I was too dumbfounded to say or do anything, but the look on my face cued Holly to shake it off.

Next stop: Sydney, in search of an American bar to watch the Holiday Bowl.