Made Fiji!

I'm back from the Coral Coast, and two more days of paradise! On Thursday, I'd planned to catch the 8.30 bus into Nadi, but due to Mr. Wriggle features and the Fan of Doom, I was up early and had had breakfast in time to take the bus an hour earlier. I then had plenty of time to buy some bread (my meals for the next 3 days!) and find the next bus I'd need to catch to take me to The Beachouse. "Who's the driver today?" I enquired, as I didn't know where I would need to disembark, to which I heard the reply "I am, don't worry!" Of course, everyone here is so laid back and all operate on 'Fiji Time', which by this point, my clock was automatically in time with! Off we set over the island, past the green of the hills and the blue of the skies.

By lunchtime, I'd reached The Beachouse and I wasn't disappointed. It was more pricey than the dorms in Nadi, (but still damn cheap!), I could see why people had recommended it to me. The dorms were small but spacious, immaculately clean, set in pretty gardens and but a minute's walk to the beach, where I found a pool and a variety of hammocks to laze in! Once again, my tale gets a little boring here as more swimming and sunbathing occurred! I also repacked my backpack yet again, ready for my flight to New Zealand tomorrow. Well, I've heard a few tales of "$200 fines" at customs, so I just had to double check that all shells and the like weren't stuck in a corner or a pocket somewhere! Seriously, I would suggest anyone with organisation/tidiness issues should live out of a 65 litre bag for a prolonged period of time - it WILL cure you!

Yesterday, I had another easy day, first napping in a hammock by the beach, then paddling in the sea with some more new friends; Adam (US) and Fran & Phoebe (UK). Thanks to Adam for bumping into me with his kayak - yes, I have dived with poisonous sea snakes and sharks, but I still scream out loud when someone creeps up on me! I was hoping to see a kava ceremony at the resort last night, but after waiting for over 90 minutes and still no sign of action, I thought that was taking 'Fiji Time' a little too far, and so I hit the hay!

The beach at The Beachouse

This morning, I took the bus back to Nadi. It was more cramped than the one on Thursday and it wasn't all that enjoyable. However, good practice for South America I guess! I was losing patience, even though I'm incredibly chilled out these days, especially when there was a little lad on there being a kid. By that, I mean he was making goat noises at a speed of about 3 'baaaaaaas' every 4 seconds. I was glad to get off 2 hours later! So, here I am back in hot, humid Nadi, with another hour to kill before I can back to Horizon for one last night. I've got to be up at 4.30 am tomorrow to set off to the airport, so I am hoping that I'm not back in the Wriggle Bunk again!!!

Fiji's been great fun! I'm sorry that maybe my blog entries haven't been quite as interesting as usual, but I'm sure there are a few of you out there who are grateful for shorter posts! I've really enjoyed being on 'holiday' for the first time since leaving the UK. Now, I know you all think I'm on a year long holiday, but believe me, this travelling lark is tiring, challenging, hard work at times! It's been nice to just laze around for a while! I can honestly say, as I get nearer and nearer to the six-month mark (yikes!), that this is genuinely, honestly the best thing I've ever done, and I really don't know how life back in the UK will ever be the same again...

Anyway, next time you hear from me, I will be in New Zealand and thirteen hours ahead! That's due to Daylight Savings, so I'll need to watch out for when the clocks go back sometime this month! Bizarre! Plus, I need to watch out for when the clocks go forward in England too! Weird! So, first stop Christchurch and then I'm hoping to head north to Kaikoura to swim with wild dolphins. It's a tough job, but somebody's got to do it! ;-)