Bula!

We've just arrived in Auckland after an amazing time in Fiji and we both agree that it is the closest place to paradise that we have ever seen. We spent our first 2 nights on the mainland in the Nadi Bay resort hostel which felt more like a hotel and had 2 swimming pools - luxury! We were both pretty tired after all our driving across the States so we took the opportunity to catch some sun, chill out under the mango and coconut trees and have a dip in the pool everytime we got too hot (often!)

After at least 24 hours of pure laziness we got itchy feet again so decided to walk half an hour into the nearest town which considering the heat was probably not wise (plus the bus was only about 25p, but at least we earned our dinner!) Everyone in Fiji is so friendly and everyone and anyone shouts Bula to you as you go past, even from the open windows of cars. This did however lull us into a false sense of security so we naively fell into the first (probably of many) rip off the tourist trap as we got dragged into a shop for a Kava ceremony. Kava is their local drink and they claim has many properties including against cancer but basically it looks and tastes like muddy water! The ceremony itself was interesting but afterwards we got the hardcore sales tactics for their locally crafted goods with all the money going back to 'their village' - we suspect it gets intercepted by a greedy businesman first! Anyway, Alex definitely learnt a few new tricks, most of which would probably be considered highly unethical in the UK and we left with some good souvenirs we wanted, and some we didn't!

From Nadi we headed out for the highlight of our trip on a 5 night island hopping boat trip where we got to stay on 3 different islands in the Yasawas. After a 5 hour boat journey to the north of the islands passing so many gorgeous islands ranging from a sandbar about 10m2 with someone sunbathing on it to quite large islands with sandy beaches and rocky cliffs we reached Coral View Bay. From the catamaran you transfer onto a small outboard boat where you are sat just inches above the water and transfered to the beach where you then wade the last few metres while being greeted by singing Fijians, guitar playing and shouts of Bula as all the staff await you on the shore. It's such a magical way to arrive somewhere.

On each of the three islands we had our own private bure (basically a little hut) either set directly on the beach or with just a little grass and a few palm trees inbetween. We got used to cold/lukewarm showers and on some of the islands they only get electricity for part of the day - getting ready for bed by torchlight after a few drinks is quite amusing. All of this just makes you realise how remote you are and adds to the fun of the islands. One evening we sat with some people we met drinking on the beach with one small pocket torch for lighting and that was it - everywhere else is pitch black and you can just here the waves lapping on the shore, proving that simple things can be much better than some flashy bar with an expensive dj!

The sea in Fiji is crystal clear like we have never seen before with amazing turquoise blues broken up by dark blues where the coral lies below. So we took the opportunity to do some snorkelling and then on our last day did our first scuba dive which was amazing. I was quite nervous but our trainer literally held my hand the entire way to make sure I was ok - Alex on the other hand was off on his own almost straight away - much braver than me. We only went down 6 metres and we worked our way out gradually from the beach but what we saw was amazing. It is like a completely different world down there. The colours on the fish were amazing and I don't think I could ever have even dreamed up some of the fish we saw. So we're looking forward to our next dive hopefully in the Great Barrier reef and have even treated ourselves to an underwater digital camera so we can get some good pics (obviously we still haven't grasped the fact that we our both now poor and unemployed!)

Each island was different and had its own charms. OUr third and final island was probably the most stereotypical fijian island with a white sandy beach all the way around which you could walk around in less than an hour. For those reality TV fans out there this was the island where they filmed Celebrity love island a few years ago, and it is even more beautiful than it looked on TV. Unfortunately when the TV crews left they didn't tidy up very well behind themselves and the pool was moved around the island to where we were staying but everything else was just left totally derelict, with a roof on the floor and the building rotted away - so basically a bit of an eyesore, but at least it is pretty hidden away.

Our favourite island has to be Naviti where we stayed in Coral View as it was here whilst watching the sunrise that Alex proposed! I guess I should have been suspicious when he agreed to get up at 5am in the morning but don't think he could have chosen a more beautiful place to do it. The sunrise was spectacular and we were able to just lie back in a hammock on the beach outside our bure to enjoy it.

So we were very sad to leave Fiji and have said it is somewhere we want to go back to in the future. After over a week chilling out we our now in full blown backpacker mode again ready to explore New Zealand.