Well what an arrival! After a long journey, which was amazingly smooth and felt shorter than I had anticipated, unexpectedly good food which included chick pea and lentil salad and 4 films, then 4 seats all to myself so 8 hours of sleep, I arrived in paradise! As I sat at the airport for my first experience of Fiji Time (a long wait) I watched the sunrise over palm trees and exhaled the stresses and nervousness of my journey!

After a short (luckily) bumpy ride on a bus with no windows or doors and where im sure no 4 wheels ever touched the ground at the same time I got to Hostel number 1 - Aquarius - chosen for its name - my star sign and the fact it has hammocks on the beach, I was pleasantly surprised! A whole 12 bunk bed dorm all to myself with 4 showers and 4 toilets to choose from at the price of 5 pounds! I indulged in the free breakfast of fresh fruit, pancakes Fiji style and coffee with sweet milk (yum!) and set about my day of lounging in a hammock on the beach!

By the afternoon the head fuzz of jet lag was setting in and trying to stay awake was the main objective; walking on the beach with a 4 legged companion - Scooby and more fresh fruit, followed by a spirited game of volleyball, in whch I was the entertainment - im crap!!

bed time came early probably beacuse of the jet lag aided by malibu and pineapples and a few games of the much loved travlling staple - s*** head! After 12 hours of sleep I woke to the lively dawn chorus and watched the quirky yellow beaked and red bottomed fijian birds hop from thatched roof tops.

Another indulgent brekkie and then had to move accomodation - only to the one next door as Aquarius was full - the new place is much the same, with the added bonus of a book exchange and a roomate - spookily shes called Charlie!! after giggles and chats I learned our name means 'Free spirit' and we headed to the beach for another relaxing day.

That evening we decided to go and crash a kava welcoming ceremony we'd seen advertised at another place few minutes walk down the beach - they didnt seem to notice we werent guests and it was a great evening - fire throwing Fijian men and Kava - a grim tasting muddy puddle looking drink made from the root of a plant that makes your face numb - like being at the dentist and has mild hallucinagenic effects - of which I luckily felt none - just the need to sleep!

We got back to our dorm to find 3 american guys had moved in! they seemed nice but I was asleep within about 4 minutes of getting back to the dorm!

So, im going to sign off now, my fingers are starting to hurt and im sure your getting bored - im off on the feejee experience tomorrow for mud pools sandboarding and fun - will write when I next can

Lots of love Charly xxxx