FIJI (Fun In Jungle Island)

Oh my god! Fiji was so amazing! My friend Jenna and I stayed on the mainland island, in a city called Nadi, which was EXTREMELY different from anywhere else I have ever been, but really very interesting. Fijians speak there own language, which sounds like a whole mess of languages mumbled together. Here is a quick lesson:
please: kerekere
cheers!: bula!
I love you: au domoni iko
...weird, right?

Luckily we realized that the US dollar exchange was great and better than AUS dollars (we got almost double the Fiji dollars for our US dollars) and everything there was super cheap. I loved this trip because well we were in Fiji, but we were there for five days with no previous plans and bookings, like in Byron Bay and Gold Coast ... there was no rush, no fuss and for the amount of things we saw, nothing felt too overwhelming.
Upon arrival we were greeted by everyone saying "Bula" (boo-lah), which is the equivalent of saying Aloha in Hawaii, meaning cheers, hello, how are you, etc. The first night we stayed in, contacted Mom, Dad and Steve and explored the resort, which was beautiful and very tropical looking. The resort staff were so friendly and helpful, as were most of the Fijians. We woke up the next morning and decided to explore the town market. We had the resorts taxi service take us to a restaurant with traditional Fijian food. Both of us had fish, cooked in coconut milk and green onions and spices, with a large side of cassava (a vegetable that has the texture of a potato, but a really different taste) and a small, spoonful size of homemade coleslaw...of course a bottle of Fiji water to drink. It was DELICIOUS! And because it was so cheap we didn't feel so guilty eating outside the resort. After lunch, we walked around town to their market and stumbled upon so Fijian men that invited us to our first kava ceremony. Kava is the root of a vegetable, dried out, ground and pounded into a power, and mixed with Fiji water. It is a huge part of their culture and ceremonially welcoming to people. It tastes like dirt and water, but it definitely tingles your tongue a little on the way down. Fijians drink kava to get a non-narcotic, natural "body high", free of anxiety and stress when enough is consumed... no wonder they are so friendly. That day we found some really great handmade crafts and bought some kava to hopefully bring home for everyone to try!
After the market we walked down to the Temple, although most Fijians are now christian. It is a tourist attraction in Nadi because of its beautiful architecture and color that stands out in the bland, dirty, run-down town. We didn't have the chance to go inside, but even looking from the outside you can tell it was sacred and an appreciated part of the Fijian culture. On the way back to the resort we stopped into a travel agency and planned our day tour to the Mamanuca Islands, the typical Fiji tourists think of. That night we were so full from lunch we stayed in at the resort and ate a small dinner and went to bed fairly early so we could hit the beach the next morning.The town beach (right) was nothing like the tourist beaches (above & below) you see in pictures, but much more beautiful than Rhode Island beaches for sure! It was unbearably hot so we didn't stay very long ... we did get a nice looking tan though. We saw the typical tourist beaches the next morning on our way out to the Mamanuca Islands. It was incredible and unbelievable. To be perfectly honest the pictures don't do it much justice. For the most part Jenna and I sat on this beautiful sail boat eating and drinking all we wanted and in complete awe of the crystal clear water and white sand on the beaches. We got off on the island where the movie Castaway was filmed where we got to snorkel and explore before lunch. The water was like a bath, but still cooler than the sun! Jenna and I took the liberty to have a silly photoshoot like two little girls playing dress up. We tried cracking open a coconut and failed miserably due to our lack of education on how to peel the out husk THEN crack it open ... it was amusing to watch though! The boat crew cooked the most delicious BBQ ... grilled fish, chicken, potato salad, pasta salad, regular salad, bread rolls, I can't even remember the rest. While we ate lunch we were on our way to another small island to visit a Fijian village.

When we arrived on the island the villagers were inside their run-down homes sleeping, trying to keep cool in the heat. They are the happiest people, but live with NOTHING! Their homes are made of cement bricks and roofed with scraps of metal. Inside their homes are blankets laid on the floor, maybe a chair or two, a stove for cooking and refrigerator if they are lucky. It is very sad, but humbling to see how they could live with the bare minimum, and be so happy and friendly.

Our final adventure on the day cruise was swimming around a sand bar in the middle of the ocean. This was so incredible! Once a day the tide is so low that one sandbar in the middle of the islands is exposed about 10 feet above the sea level. It was so amazing to see the corals, shells and plant-life that surrounds these islands and swim in the middle of the ocean! It was absolute paradise that ended with a beautiful sunset.

Our last two days were spent sitting by the pool, drinking frozen beverages and soaking up all the relaxation possible! The last day we were there we went to the Garden of the Sleeping Giant, a garden of various species of orchids and other plants. From a far the top of the mountain looks like a giant sleeping with a HUGE belly. Under his belly is where this beautiful garden is. Jenna and I walked around amazed at the colors, shapes and types of flowers and plants there were. We just kept saying "oh my god look at this one!", "no ... look at that!". I kept thinking how Mom, Nana and Auntie Pat would love to see this garden and smell, touch and talk about all the various plants :) ... so I took lots of pictures!

I was such an amazing vacation, I can only hope I will make it back one day when I'm not poor haha!

I miss everyone so much and will be home in 3 weeks!