It is typical to arrive at a far-away place and feel that one has lost a day traveling. In this case, we lost two, because we crossed the International Date Line along the way. Actually, the jet lag isn’t all that bad. We left LAX at 9:30 p.m. Pacific time (though that was near midnight for us on Central time). It took them a couple of hours to get us settled and fed. But then we each managed several hours of sleep before arriving in Fiji about 6 a.m. local time. We’re tired, but it could be much worse, and has been on other trips.
Much of what we have seen here so far reminds us of Rapa Nui (Easter Island) which we visited at about this time last year. It’s warm — 80s already this morning — and very, very humid. Palm trees look the same, but the “mountains” are steeper and more numerous. I’m sure we’ll find more differences as time goes on.
Fiji is an archipelago of several hundred islands, of which the island of Fiji itself is, by far, the largest. It is summer in the Southern Hemisphere, and the rainy season here. But that means a good, drenching shower near sundown each evening that usually doesn’t last very long. The sun is shining brightly this morning, with only a few high, cirrus clouds in the sky. The wind is almost still.
One of Fiji’s biggest exports is the spring water that is bottled here and sold very expensively around the world. Here, the same water comes out of the tap, so now we can say we’ve taken a shower in pricey Fiji water!
The resort at which we are staying is called “First Landing,” because legend has it that the first inhabitants came ashore for the first time on the beach where we are enjoying the sun. Those first settlers were “Melanesians” from somewhere in east Africa. They were later joined by Polynesians, who migrated across the Pacific from east Asia. Later still, the British colonialists imported many thousands from India to work in the cane fields. Today, the populatin is about 900,000, roughly 60% native Fijians (who are largely Methodists and reside in rural villages, as well as cities) and 40% Indian Hindus, who reside primarily in urban areas.
We arrived at our resort about 8 a.m. We are in a villa — our own little house with our own little swimming pool outside. We have a covered patio, main indoor room with kitchenette, spacious bath, and a bedroom with king bed. It’s quite nice. After getting cleaned up a bit from the long flight, we took ourselves on a walking tour of the grounds of the resort, ending with breakfast. Because of our early check-in, we had breakfast included today, and it was served until 10 a.m., so we had plentry of time to get to it. However, our internet access is slow and limited.
At 1 p.m. we had our first group meeting. There are 11 of us here on the pre-trip, and 5 more will join us in New Zealand for the main excursion. On first impression, this appears to be a good group of well-traveled folks. Most are retired, but not all.
After the orientation meeting we got on the bus to visit “The Garden of the Sleeping Giant.” Sleeping Giant is a rock formation in the mountains near here. The garden was created by Hollywood actor Aaron Burr (“Perry Mason”) who loved Fiji and built a home here. His hobby was orchids, and this garden has over 1,000 varieties.
Our next stop was a village with a volcanic hot spring that has started a business as a sort of primitive spa. The “changing room” is a clapboard building with wrinkled tin roof and old sheets for doors. Once down to one’s “swimmers,” as our Kiwi tour leader calls our suits, we stood around a bucket of warm slime and smeared it over our skin.
One is supposed to wait until the mud completely dries, but we cheated. Next, a dip in the “mud pool,” which was warm, but with all the ambiance of a farm pond. From there, it was into the “thermal pool” for a very warm dip into water that was only slightly less muddy than the mud pool. It was an experience, but it was certainly no Blue Lagoon in Iceland!
By the time of our “Welcome Dinner” in the evening, the lack of sleep was catching up. The meal was excellent, and the floor show was a group of Polynesian dancers, ending with the grand climax of a fire dance. One has to be pretty tired to nod off during a fire dance! We were in bed before 8:30.
Much of what we have seen here so far reminds us of Rapa Nui (Easter Island) which we visited at about this time last year. It’s warm — 80s already this morning — and very, very humid. Palm trees look the same, but the “mountains” are steeper and more numerous. I’m sure we’ll find more differences as time goes on.
Fiji is an archipelago of several hundred islands, of which the island of Fiji itself is, by far, the largest. It is summer in the Southern Hemisphere, and the rainy season here. But that means a good, drenching shower near sundown each evening that usually doesn’t last very long. The sun is shining brightly this morning, with only a few high, cirrus clouds in the sky. The wind is almost still.
One of Fiji’s biggest exports is the spring water that is bottled here and sold very expensively around the world. Here, the same water comes out of the tap, so now we can say we’ve taken a shower in pricey Fiji water!
The resort at which we are staying is called “First Landing,” because legend has it that the first inhabitants came ashore for the first time on the beach where we are enjoying the sun. Those first settlers were “Melanesians” from somewhere in east Africa. They were later joined by Polynesians, who migrated across the Pacific from east Asia. Later still, the British colonialists imported many thousands from India to work in the cane fields. Today, the populatin is about 900,000, roughly 60% native Fijians (who are largely Methodists and reside in rural villages, as well as cities) and 40% Indian Hindus, who reside primarily in urban areas.
We arrived at our resort about 8 a.m. We are in a villa — our own little house with our own little swimming pool outside. We have a covered patio, main indoor room with kitchenette, spacious bath, and a bedroom with king bed. It’s quite nice. After getting cleaned up a bit from the long flight, we took ourselves on a walking tour of the grounds of the resort, ending with breakfast. Because of our early check-in, we had breakfast included today, and it was served until 10 a.m., so we had plentry of time to get to it. However, our internet access is slow and limited.
At 1 p.m. we had our first group meeting. There are 11 of us here on the pre-trip, and 5 more will join us in New Zealand for the main excursion. On first impression, this appears to be a good group of well-traveled folks. Most are retired, but not all.
Our next stop was a village with a volcanic hot spring that has started a business as a sort of primitive spa. The “changing room” is a clapboard building with wrinkled tin roof and old sheets for doors. Once down to one’s “swimmers,” as our Kiwi tour leader calls our suits, we stood around a bucket of warm slime and smeared it over our skin.
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