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Bula,
Our Fiji trip was by chance planned out before we even arrived. Sitting in Christchurch airport waiting for our flight, we got chatting to an elderly couple who said they owned cheap hostels all over Fiji. They told us about Qamea, their favourite island (where this blog's photo is from), and how we should get up there asap. Once we landed in Fiji we went to their hostel in Nadi, Fiji's second largest city, and the main transfer point to many of the island groups surrounding the main island. Here we were introduced to many aspects of Fijian culture - fish and chicken suppers with yam like stuff that neither of us took a fancy to, fire-dancers, and Kava - a drink made by crushing up the root of a Kava plant into a fine powder and mixing it through water (think tea bag). Kava gives you a numbing sensation in your mouth and relaxes you, sending you into a deep sleep after enough of it.
The next day we left for the less touristy islands of Taveuni and Qamea, which lie to the north east of the main island. Unfortunately we didn't realise that in order to get there you needed to catch a 13 hour ferry. To make matters worse, the ferry was in fact a 20 hour ferry. It operated on "Fiji time" as did most things in Fiji. You can take the lack of organisation in two ways: get seriously angry or just not let it bother you. Charlie was more laid back than I was and didn't make a fuss. The ferry itself was nowhere near as bad as you might think. We loved the fact that you could hardly walk anywhere without treading on someone. All the floor space was crammed full of people sleeping. Once we arrived in Taveuni we were very relieved to get off the boat! Unfortunately I was very ill the following day and didn't get to go on the waterfall trip with Charlie.
Next up was Qamea, a smaller island a small boat trip away which was paradise. We ended up spending 5 days here and were very sad to leave. The island was a taste of real Fiji, hidden away from most tourists, and we loved it. We spent our days on the amazing beach and in the water, snorkelling, spear fishing, and swimming. Seeing the Fijians spear fish was incredible. They would free dive very deep and sit at this depth in wait for fish to pass then shoot them. They were bringing up some monstrous fish compared to our hand length fish. It was here that we saw our first sharks, 4 foot long reef sharks which were cool. We had a lot of fun in the evenings too; more Kava, lots of cheap drink, and good company. Charlie enjoyed meeting a busty German girl! It was here that we also met 'mum and dad', a middle aged German couple who we bonded with - mum cried when we left and gave us a kiss (on the cheek).
After the ferry back to Vita Levu, the main island we spent a few days on the south coast. Charlie did some surfing (which he is now obsessed with) and as a qualified diver I did an awesome shark dive. It was in a marine reserve a few km's off shore and I never imagined seeing so many different sharks. There were 3 species 12 feet or more in length, most notably the bull sharks (of which there were 35, most of which fully grown). I didn't know that bull sharks had attacked 4 people off the US coast and one off the Australian coast on the same week in which I did the dive and so perhaps I should have been a bit more scared. At one stage a huge female bull came so close to me one of the Fijians had to shove it away with a metal pole. By the way there was no cage - the only place in the world where you can swim without one with dangerous sharks.
Next was Beachcomber Island, the party island of Fiji, in the Mamanucha island chain. We spent 3 days here partying and lying on the beach feeling hung-over, as the 120 man dorm was not relaxing as you may expect.
We loved Fiji. The weather was amazing, the people were very friendly and welcoming, and we enjoyed the food and culture of the different places we went to. Mosquitoes and sunburn were the only things we didn't like. We're back in New Zealand now and will blog of our adventures here in due course.
Dom
- comments
gerard saliot fiji is very good place for spending holidays. People visiting the Fiji islands get special sightseeing, relaxation, and amazing water related activities. Country has natural and man-made sceneries which offer exciting activities and sights for the tourists.