Fiji Life: Arts And Crafts Fiji Style

Bula! Back for day three of the Fiji experience. I really could be back there still with no problem. Ya know how some vacations you are really glad to be home and you need "a vacation from your vacation"? I know for me, Vegas is always like that. Not this vacation...I could truly have spent a month there.

Enlarge pictures to create more awe!

Monday June 13th

Inside and outside of our little beachfront bure. The number became an immediate and repetitive quoting of the Beatles - Number 9, Number 9, Number 9. Since every meal and every purchased beer or drink require the recitation of ones room number you can see how this got old by the end of the week. Nevertheless, it was a glorious home for 8 days a week, our Number 9.

This morning was a carbon copy of the relaxing morning of yesterday. The weather was perfect. the plan today was afternoon deep sea fishing for about 8 of us when the divers returned and lunch had been had. Oddly it appears that the Queen's birthday came upon the island as a surprise! Who knew? Since Britain really no longer had any reign over the Fijians (even though Queen Liz is still on their money) apparently everyone just now remembered the Queen's birthday and therefore the fishing was postponed until tomorrow. Curiously, there was no celebration that I saw to honor the event. There was however a impromptu hike to the waterfalls. Since the scheduled hike was two days later, Brandi and I decided to wait and partake in the native coconut demonstration this afternoon.

Shortly after lunch one of the guys found a site on his iPad (seems like everyone has these now) that we could "watch" the Mavericks Game 6 of the NBA Finals. Watch is a little broadly applied here as what we did was huddle around the iPad and watch the score change while scrolling updates below it told the action. Not the optimum way to watch your team win its first ever title but hey...we're fans! Of course the Mavs won and I felt really good for Dirk and the team. High fives and a round of beers (Fiji Gold, yeah!) for everyone.

The young man who gave the coconut demonstration lived in a village that was a two-hour walk from the resort. His only day off each week was Saturday. Fortunately he got a boat ride home each Friday night so it was only about a 30 minute trip. He was a cool dude and after today I dubbed him Coconut Man (mostly because I did not know his real name). He is actually on one of the post cards at the small gift shop and I got him to sign it for me the last day we were there (to be included in a later post).

The coconut demonstration was a cultural education in how they use all parts of the coconut tree. This day centered on use of the palm fronds and the coconuts themselves. As he spoke his hands were weaving a basket used to carry food from the jungle back to the village. I believe he could have done this in his sleep. It was really fascinating to watch. Take a look...

Notice the punji stick to the right...used later for husking the coconuts

Then we moved on to the actual coconuts themselves. First the drinking of the milk...

My wifes tries it...

And rates the taste!

Fresh green coconut meat looks and feels much like raw fish...slippery and slimy, but tasty!

Then he husked the mature coconuts...using the previously mentioned punji stick that he had sharpened with his machete! One wrong move and you could slice your arm wide open!

The mature coconuts have the firm white meat inside. He expertly shaved slices for everyone to try. The meat is surprisingly hard but tasted like the coconut you know and love.

This rope is made from the fibers of the coconut husk. It is very strong. This is a chief's symbol and is never touched by anyone else in the village. Obviously this one has been made for demo purposes. There are four cowrie shells on the chief's rope...they represent the main men of the village, the Chief, the Priest, the Warrior, and the Fisherman. This is the mayor and city council if you will.

At the kava ceremony two nights hence the Coconut Man will have selected one of the group to be the chief for the ritual. Whoever he chooses at dinner tomorrow night will have this rope and shells for the ceremonial kava night. I'm feeling chiefly so I do my best to be impressive to him the next two days! You will find out I was not so much.

CM then demonstrates his skill (after much encouragement from us drunken sailors) at climbing the palm tree and snatching a coconut. Man he went up that thing like walking on a sidewalk! Most of the men have very strong thighs and calves from doing this since youth. Notice the tree on the right. Those notches are where the climber hacks foot and hand holds with his machete the first time the tree is climbed. 

And now I introduce you to our travel Monkey. He goes with my wife and I on all vacations and has a blast! We try to get him a shirt for each site but in Fiji we had a hard time finding one to fit. My wife bought a small shirt she is going to tailor for him. Here he is just hangin out in a tree notch trying to pick up chicks!

And what better way to pick up chicks than hittin' the Bula Bar! This is how you get a free Pina Colada (with actual alcohol in it).

After another spectacular sunset and tons of pictures of it as it changed over the course of 45 minutes, we settle in to a dinner of fresh mahi-mahi and call it a night around 9PM.

Vinaka til we meet again...

Fiji Life: Nine, Two, Three That's It (Day 2)

Nine Villages

Two Tribes (3 villages in one, 6 in the other)

Three Small Resorts (ours had a max capacity of about 50)

That is the entirety of Beqa island. The population is roughly 1400. There is a LOT of wilderness!

This scene really made me stop and think of the show Lost***(read the end of this post before clicking this link)...

The basis for Lost is a commercial flight (Oceanic 815) was en route from Australia to LA. When it crashes on an unknown island in the south Pacific. Oh yeah, this could be it!

This is less than a 10 minute walk outside the resort

Bula! Back for another day in paradise. Here is day two on "The Island".

Sunday June 12th

Losing that day on Friday has really got me disoriented, along with the fact that some people insist on asking me what time and what day is it in Dallas. I finally tell them we are from the future since Dallas is a day behind us. This seems to disorient them and they leave me alone for a while.

It is Sunday and that is the first day of diving for the anxious group of bubble-makers. Fiji is reported to be the soft coral capital of the world and as such has spectacular color and formations under water. My wife's mission: take lots of pictures and try and capture some of this beauty.

The morning routine for the week (for me) has been established today. Wake up around 6 or so and lounge in bed as Brandi gets ready for an early breakfast and 4 hours out on and in the water. {This consisted of 2 single-tank dives separated by an hour surface interval and travel time to and from the dive sites.} I finally get up between 7 and 7:30 and take another review of the previous days pictures, get ready for breakfast and step out to this view...

A backyard I could get used to!

I make my way to the dining hall where my daily breakfast of toast, omelet, and either coconut pancakes or French toast awaits me. (Did I mention it was all made by someone else!!! The best.) After breakfast a little pool-side time while I updated my journal and had some casual conversation with some of the ladies who were not diving (one from our group was pregnant and couldn't dive, a couple young 25-years olds from Arkansas (not in our group) who take a vacation together somewhere in the world each year to celebrate their birthdays which are only a couple weeks apart, and a lady from our group who was not feeling well.) I would usually leave the pool around 11 or so to go back to the bure and sort pictures on the laptop and maybe take a brief nap in the hammock before lunch. This was just as relaxing and carefree as it sounds.

The divers return and Brandi wakes me from my nap. We get ready for lunch and head to the dining area. Even walking around the property was relaxing. We downloaded all the dive pictures after lunch as we were both eager to see the results. I have posted many of the dive pictures from this day on a separate page at the top titled Fiji Day Two Diving. For now here is a sample...

After lunch most of the group gathered by the pool for some sun and suds (Fiji Gold...yeah!). The breeze off the ocean was just often enough to keep us cool and the water in the pool was like 70-degrees so there was not a chance of overheating. About mid-afternoon some of the massage therapists (natives to the island) were doing complimentary foot and calf massages at the edge of the pool. Like yesterday...it was badass! Several of the group had lined up full body massages, hot rocks, the whole works. This is the main way the staff make there money. At anywhere from $100 to $150 for a 50 to 90-minute massage...there were plenty of takers throughout the week. (Brandi did, today at 4:30 as a matter of fact...I didn't) Some even scored 2 or three massages of different types.

Since the sun goes down so early you had to be ready around 5:30PM to begin lining up shots for sunset.

Dinner at 7 consisted of fresh fish once again surrounded by soup and decadent dessert. Only the outdoors is primitive...the meals are first class!

Another early night around 9PM and a walk back to our bure arm in arm under a very full moon. Only sad I could not get a decent picture of said moon.

***If you have not seen Lost I recommend it highly. Series should be available on Netflix or Blockbuster. If you click this link above and you plan to watch the series DO NOT read beyond the Contents box. You don't want to spoil it.

Vinaka til next time...

Lost Reference No. 1 "Hey Guys, Where Are We?"

Bonus points if you can tell me the Lost character that uttered those words.

Bula! Back for more? Okay...off we go

Saturday June 11th - The Arrival (or Welcome To The Jungle)

So far this trip has had the feel of The Amazing Race, next to come would be Survivor and Lost all rolled into one.

When we exited the big boat into a smaller motorboat we then finally reached shore, or close to it (really, we got out in ankle deep water). The staff of the resort were there playing a lilting melody we would hear throughout the week, singing and clapping. Greeting us with island leis and cheerful rounds of, "Bula!"

Walking across the sand to the walk-way to the main hall it was nice to take in the natural beauty and pure absence of most things civilized. At the end of the walk-way there was a large bucket of water to clean your sandy feet in before entering the dinner area. The pavilion was all open air and the breeze was quite cooling even though it was just high noon. The smells were as clean and fragrant as you could imagine.

The host (I believe he was the only non-native on the staff) whose name was Nigel was originally from New Zealand by way of Australia. He had been in charge of the place for about four months. His briefing included giving us the meal times (6AM, 1PM, 7PM), the approximate amount of time out in the sun before starting to burn (12 minutes), and a few other ground rules (do not give any alcohol to the staff was one). All this lasted about 15 minutes giving the staff time to get our bags to our bures (rooms).

A quick trip to our beachside bure to get a little freshened up and acclimated to the distance from bure to dining hall, and we settled down to a nice lasagna lunch. The afternoon was all ours to discover, set up dive partners, explore, hit the bar and pool, you name it.

My wife, being the leader of the dive group had to coordinate that activity so I was left on my own for a while. I hooked up with a couple guys in our group (Walt and Dan) who had a keen interest in rugby. This is THE national sport of Fiji. Dan brought a rugby ball from home with him (which he ended up gifting to the kids in the village) and after we received a guided hike from one of the staff we showed up at the nearest village in time to watch their Saturday afternoon game of rubgy. The competing village had to walk almost an hour to get to the field of play. The entire village surrounded the rugby field.

We arrived at the village and as you might imagine 3 white-skinned men attracted a lot of attention. I could not get over the two satellite dishes in the village. They seemed very out of place. The goal posts for the rugby field were made of bamboo. The match last for an hour (longest I have sat on the ground in a while) and then we hiked back to the resort...amidst the sound of  pigs snorting in the brush (never saw them) and the sounds of birds and lapping water on the shore. It was quite the first day venture.

Back at the pool I ordered a couple beers (Fiji Gold Premium, very good) and my wife and I got complimentary foot and calf massages looking out over the ocean. Several of the group took advantage of this activity. Soon the sun would be setting (took some getting used to sunset at 5:45PM). The massage of coconut milk, honey, coconut meat, and a couple other things made me forget about the hike and sitting on the ground. It was greater than I can possibly describe. Good beer, a massage, ocean breeze, and unbelieveable view made for a good arrival day. The sunset shots were pretty good this night, some of the best there. A couple are below for your viewing pleasure.

We went back to the bure to change clothes and get ready for dinner. I got all the electrical equipment (computer, chargers, converters) all set up. Just a side note: those who brought their Mac laptops were screwed. First warning Nigel gave was do not plug in and turn on a Mac or you will have a useless piece of plastic to take home. Score one for PC's!  On the down side...I never needed my converter I bought for the trip.

Dinner was served at 7 and we had ordered the curry chicken. After all of this whirlwind activity I finally realized I had pretty much been up for over 36 hours. Those couple of beers earlier were like liquid tranqualizers that were now starting to take effect. My wife was exhausted as was most of the group. While waiting for dinner I almost nodded off 3 or four times and came close to just getting up and heading for bed. When the food arrived we only ate the chicken and holding each other up, made our way to the bure for the night.

Some more pictures for your enjoyment...click to enlarge

One of two boats that brought us to the smaller motor boats for our beach landing

Nigel giving us the instructions de jour. And the Bula Bar!

Lilly pad ponds were in front of many of the garden bures

The rugby match between the blue team and the red team...I think red was home team. The village school in the two-story building in the distance. All grades.

An in-bounds play! I think.

What rugby scene would be complete without a good old fashioned scrum!

Some of the scenery in the clearings walking from the village

Sunset one

Sunset two...one of my favorites

I will be posting a page in a tab at the top of the blog with sunsets from the whole trip.

Vinaka once again and I'll see ya on the other side...

Fiji: The Beginning

First the geography lesson. 

The big picture. The pink circle above the tropic of Capricorn is the Fiji island group

Here is the big island of Viti Levu. Nadi airport on the west side of the island and we bussed along the southern coast to Pacific Harbor to catch a boat.

Finally the island of Beqa and the Beqa Lagoon Resort.

Now that you're oriented


Bula!

From the returning world-weary traveler.

The problem with a trip of a lifetime is that you really want to share the experience with friends and family, co-workers, and anyone who will listen. The reality is, it is impossible to translate the emotional and maybe even spirtual intensity of the actual being there. Plus the added bonus of those who were not there ending up feeling like they are being in that vacation-torture-hell-Guantanamo experience of watching family home movies of YOUR vacation. Sure way to put people to sleep based on their tolerance level for such things, right?

Tough!

I had a stunningly fabulous time in Beqa (pronounced Benga). For that you will have to endure several posts of my trip. The nice thing about the internet and blogging in general, is that when you have had enough you can simply stop reading the words and looking at the pictures...for as long as you like and pick back up whenever you want. Hopefully I can excite you enough to want to visit one of the far reaches of the world and see a glimpse of unfettered paradise. Ready?

Here we go...

Thursday June 9th. Departure (or leaving behind all that is civilized).

If you have seen the movie Planes, Trains, and Automobiles this trip will bring that visual of travel fun to mind. This however was Plane, bigger Plane, Bus, Boat. Three hours from DFW to LAX, 5 hour layover, 10 1/2 hour flight to Nadi (pronounced Nandi), Fiji, (loss of one entire day Friday June 10th), 3-hour bus ride to Pacific Harbor boat launch, 45 minute boat ride to the resort on Beqa island. Minus the layover...a little over 17 hours of various travel methods. Arrive in Nadi Saturday June 11th...where the hell did Friday go. I lost a day of my life!!

To whit....(enlarge all you wish to)

The Big Board in LAX showing our Air Pacific flight 811 to Nadi (what was that flight number on Lost?)

Plenty of time in LA to watch the Dallas Mavericks win game 5 of the NBA Finals

Greatest plane in the world the 747-400 jumbo jet - top floor last row before the exit door. Sweet!

Who thought you could even do this anymore post-911? A picture of one of our group in the cockpit.

Amongst all the music and welcoming to the island...a somber warning of the Giant African Snail invasion. Never saw one...and I so wanted to be the first to report the advancing threat!

Oh yeah, I love this plane! If you enlarge this, we sat in the last row of the top level before the break in the bulkhead...about 7 feet in front of the next row! Can you tell I have never been on one of these before...acting like a kid!

Two hours after landing in Nadi, we board the Bus From Hell. My wife is the one in the middle holding it together. A three hour tour my ass! And it was numb most of the ride.

The interior countryside from the coastal road is quite rugged and undeveloped...and hard to photo in a bus that is like an amusment ride...that. never. ends.

My wife took a picture of yours truly on the left with another member of our group. Notice my stunning red flower and the pooka bead necklace. (Wait'll ya get a load of my skirt!)

The bus ride has mercifully ended and now...the 45 minute boat ride where we have been warned to be prepared to exit into ankle-deep water! I changed from my tennis shoes to my flip-flops on the boat. Very smart.

We are quickly approaching our home for the next 8 days (or is it 7? that international dateline has me confused for a week). Paradise

Tomorrow a little more from this longest day ever in my life...including the falling aleep-as-dinner-is-served excitement. Til then...Vinaka