After a long and gruelling flight from Vancouver,with a stop over in Los Angeles we finally arrived in Fiji at 5.15 in the morning! We waited for along while for our luggage,only to find that it was still standing on the runway in Vancouver!  along with other people's luggage. We  think that the Canadians had read our blog and were retaliating!We left Canada which was knee deep in snow and arrived in Fiji to 80 degree temperatures and high humidity,wearing our winter woollies and no access to summer clothes!  The Fijians are so happy and relaxed that they quickly banished our worries and reduced our stress levels. ( we got our luggage delivered to the hotel the next day)

We were picked up from the airport on the main island of Vitu Levi and driven to the Outrigger in the lagoon resort - on the way the driver filled us in with the history and culture of Fiji.We stopped in Nadi town to buy basics until our cases arrived- it is their second biggest town, but was only marginally busier than Pewsey! We stopped at the road side to buy bananas and mangoes-the driver bartered for us-we received 4 mangoes for 2 dollars(about 75 pence) and a bunch of sweet bananas for 1 dollar.

We quickly learnt to understand and appreciate Fiji time- that means do things in your own good time-definitely our style! The 2 most important words in Fijian are"Bula" and "Vinaka"- hello and thank you. Using those 2 words with a smiley face opened the doors to everything. On the arrival at the Outrigger we were greeted with beads, a cool drink and a refreshing minted face flannel, before being driven to our room in a golf buggy. Being honeymooners we were upgraded,given a bottle of champagne,salu and sarong to wear, and in each subsequent day received canapes and a glass of champagne. Each evening the beds were turned down and fresh flowers strewn everywhere- in addition to the daily tidying up of our mess.

Many of the staff live locally. We were invited to the nearest village to experience their every day life. "Uncle Jim",one of the elders from the village guided us. It is a very close knit community where everyone looks out and cares for each member of the village. It gave us an insight into how very poor Fijian people really are.They are self sufficient-anything left over is sold to bring in extra income. The coconut demonstration began with a young boy clambering up a tall tree and whilst balancing precariously,knocking down a suitable specimen. He descended even more quickly- he seemed at much at home in the trees as on the ground. An older boy used a machete to slice it,leaving the machete in the tree when he had finished with it. The young coconut was brought around for us to taste- the milk tasted really sweet. We offered the children some small change to thank them for the demonstration,which they collected in the coconut shell- they then sped down the road to buy sweets from a wooden hut. THEN we were invited into the chief's house for a kava ceremony. Brian was chosen to be chief( he was one of the oldest men and looked smiley-in other words he had grey hair) This proved to be avery important job. Sandy was the chief's wife-not quite so important. We led the party into the room,having removed our footware and sunglasses. We sat cross legged at the front,every one else had to sit behind us. Elders of the village prepared for the kava ceremony, whilst Uncle Jim explained the procedure and its traditions. What is Kava? It is a plant which is used to make people relax in true Fijian style. Yes it really works! As the chief Brian represented the visitors by performing the ritual  of the Kava which involved:- clap once, shout "Bula", take bowl in both hands, down it in one,say"Vinaka" and clap 3 times.  Sandy was invited to repeat the ritual!Afterwards we looked at their handmade crafts- necklaces, bracelets.... and purchased some, if Sandy had been left alone we would have brought the lot. Everything cost peanuts by our standards but was a lot to them . With Christmas approaching they were very grateful.We felt humble that we were making such abig difference to their lives. A n extraordinary experiencemade special by the fact that these were just ordinary people leading their lives and not putting on a show for the tourists.
In the evening we went to a firewalking demonstration (villagers from  aneighbouring island.) and then to a traditional Fijian dinner-very interesting buffet which Sandy sampled with closed eyes and with no wish to know what she was eating!we finished the day with Fijian dancers-terrific-what acultural day and what fantastic people.