Fiji: Day One Hundred and Thirty-Three (1 March)

Our last day on Fiji but we weren’t flying to the USA until the evening so we made the most of our remaining time. That included going in the pool until the rain came down again! Still at least we minded less having to be inside packing then.

By late afternoon it had stopped raining and we had a lovely buggy ride along the beach to the restaurant, where we had dinner before joining our transfer to the airport. The nice driver told us more about Fiji on the way.

On the flight we sat next to a Fijian rugby player who apparently is quite well known. His name sounded like Serenge and he was well over 6ft tall.

Happy Saint David’s Day

Barnaby

Fiji: Day One Hundred and Thirty-Two (29 February)

The year of my Big Trip was a Leap Year (2008) so I had an extra day to enjoy my Fijian paradise. We woke to another blue sky and it got so hot we had to go in the pool to cool down :-).

In the evening we had a Lovo Fijian Buffet for dinner (which was different but quite pleasant) and watched a Meke (traditional Fijian entertainment).

The stars overhead as we walked back to our bure were amazing. (Did you know the stars over the Southern Hemisphere are different from the ones over us ?)

Barnaby

Fiji: Day One Hundred and Thirty-One (28 February)

We woke up to another gorgeous day. I am beginning to like Fiji :-).


After breakfast we had a walk round the resort (parts of which we still couldn't get to because of flooding) and then sunbathed beside the pool.


In the afternoon we were asked to be guests at a wedding taking place in the resort, which was lovely.


This evening we did make it in time for the beating of the drums and lighting of the lamps round the pool and there was another stunning sunset.


Barnaby

Fiji: Day One Hundred and Thirty (27 February)

We woke up to a completely blue sky this morning. At last our tropical paradise island really lookes like one :-).

We spent the morning on the beach and had lunch on our bure balcony before having our first swim in the pool.

We weren't quite quick enough to see the 'Beating of the hali drums' at 6pm but enjoyed the Indian buffet for dinner. (There are lot of people of Indian descent in Fiji).

The day finished with a glorious sunset. (You have to take the photos quickly though because the sun goes down very fast this close to the Equator).

Barnaby

Fiji: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Nine - Afternoon (26 February)

In the afternoon, Miss Robb and her Mummy had a back massage and then we all went on a Jungle River Cruise. This took us along the Nadi river between the island and the mainland, which is lined with mangroves on either side.

Miss Robb's Mummy had really enjoyed doing something similar the last time she was in Fiji, when the weather was glorious. Unfortunately for us the sky was still rather grey and the water was churned up after the recent cyclone. It reminded us of the river Yarra in Melbourne (which the locals joke flows upside down because of its brown colour).

Barnaby

Fiji: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Nine - Morning (26 February)

Hurrah! This morning brought our first opportunity to sunbathe in Fiji.


I tried out the loungers and the hammocks on the beach. It was so quiet we felt we had the place to ourselves. Bliss :-).


Barnaby

Fiji: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Eight (25 February)

The sun still wasn't out this morning :-( but at least it wasn't raining so we explored the rest of the resort. I found a pineapple growing.

We were about to go to lunch when it started to rain again. Miss Robb's Mummy said, 'Not to worry; tropical showers only last ten minutes or so.' Five hours later it was still raining and we were getting hungry so we called a buggy to take us to the restaurant.

Dinner was a Mongolian BBQ. (Having never eaten one before we'd now had two in less than a week!) During it we watched a show by local dancers.

Barnaby

Fiji: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Seven (24 February)

The cyclone which brought the wind and rain to Auckland had had a similar effect on Fiji. There were so many pools of water on the paths we walked along the beach to reach the restaurant for breakfast.

It wasn’t exactly sunbathing weather so, after looking round the resort’s facilities (including an internet café and spa), we finished the game of Phase 10 we’d started back on South Molle in Australia!

Reading our books and checking our emails filled the rest of the day. It was quite nice to have a rest after moving on every other day when we were in New Zealand.

There was a choir singing when we went to dinner, which was lovely. We had a delicious and very filling buffet and got a buggy back to our bure.

Barnaby

Fiji: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Six (23 February)

We had a leisurely start to the day as our flight didn’t leave until early afternoon. We were lucky with our weather in New Zealand – only four wet days in the whole six weeks – but today was very windy and rainy.

Fortunately it was only a short drive to the car hire place. We said goodbye to Dora (our trusty steed since Amberley) and were taken to the airport. The kind people stamped my passport with an exit stamp (to go with the lovely entry one I had showing Christchurch cathedral) but I was sad to be leaving.

It is only a three hour flight from New Zealand to Fiji but they fed us dinner on the plane because we were not going to arrive until night-time (local time).

After we’d landed at Nandi airport, a minibus took us to a jetty as we were staying on an island resort off the main island of Viti Levu. From there we caught a little boat to Sonaisali, checked in and travelled by buggy to our bure ready for an early night.

Barnaby

Meet Morris

This is my buddy Morris.

Morris came with me on my Big Adventure to keep me company.

Morris has got his own blog, which you can link to from mine. (See the link at the bottom of my profile page).



Barnaby

Where in the World is Barnaby?

Question: Where in the World am I?

Answer: Year 2, Claremont Primary School

But this time last year I was somewhere very different. I had a special Round the World ticket that took me to South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and (the United States of) America. (Thank you Mr Sutton Smith for letting me have time off).

This blog is the story of my Big Adventure one year on. Now read on ...


Barnaby