Mar 26, 2018 - Bula!

I must have said Bula two hundred times today. That is the Fijian word for hello and you can hardly pass a local without reciprocating the friendly Bula he says with a smile on his face. It feels quite genuine, although it occurs to jaded tourists like us that it is to the advantage of everyone we encounter to keep us happy. They ask us lots of questions about our lives and appear to be interested in what we say. Conversations often end with a hand shake. We spoke to a number of boat tour agents today as we researched how best to spend our...

Mar 25, 2018 - finally back on land

After twenty hours in the air, it's great to be back on the ground, especially in such a lovely place. We landed at 6:30am and airport staff was ready for us. Immigration was quick and easy and our bags were checked for agricultural items that could bring disease into the country. It was great to see all of our luggage, although mine was the worse for wear, missing the strap and two of the locks. It was also wet and I remembered seeing rain streaming down the window as we waited for the plane to take off in Los Angeles. My bag must have sat...

Jan 25, 2018 - Fiji - Great Coral reef and bustling city Suva

Short day in Fiji (arriving 7 AM, departing 2:30 PM) as we have to leave early to make it to Russell, New Zealand our next stop. Mel and I decided to check out the town for an hour since our snorkel tour wasn’t until 9:15. Suva City is the Fiji commercial center and our ship docked amongst the containers. We got a free shuttle to “Jack’s” souvenir shop which put us in the middle of town. Shop didn’t open until 8 so we walked around the town to get some flavor of the place. Lots of people hustling to get to work by 8 AM. Definitely...

Jan 24, 2018 - Fiji

History: There are 330 islands that make up the Fijian archipelago. The nations capital is Suva on the island of Viti Levu. The famous mutiny of the British ship HMS Bounty occurred in these waters. The island is very beautiful with emerald clad hills and stunning coral reefs. People very friendly, no hats can be worn in the villages except for the chief, woman’s knees can not be exposed, and it is an absolute no no to touch someone’s head. Heading to New Zealand.

Jul 11, 2017 - Farewell Fiji...Hello Melbourne

As I reflect on the Fiji portion of our trip, couple interesting points of note: 1) The country, which was colonized by the British many years ago, still feels very English in its culture - drive on the left, Queen's english spoken, significant number of residents from another English colony, India (almost as many as Fijians). 2) The country, and certainly the island of Vinata Levu, is far more mountainous than I realized yet none of the mountains are the result of volcanoes (at least according to our taxi driver). We couldn't see this...

Jul 10, 2017 - Hermit Crab Queen....Helen

Last full day in Fiji today and it was as it should be - very relaxing. Shea and I had a nice walk on the beach in the morning, and aside from getting harassed by a local or two to ride their horses early in the walk, were left alone. Kids continued their neverending pursuit of the elusive hermit crab and came away with a handful of good ones - of course, they will be staying here despite Helen & Yates protests as I'm sure my friends in Customs would not take too kindly to transporting live animals across country lines. On the point of...

Jul 9, 2017 - Golf at Natandola Bay

Had an opportunity to play Natandola Bay today - home of the Fiji Open and a course designed by Vijay Singh. While they plan to play the tournament in August and the views are spectacular (see pics), they still have PLENTY of work to do to make it tournament ready. Highlights included the 400 lb pig on #2 tee box, the children who so kindly grabbed our tee shots from the green on #4 (par 3 hole) and handed them back to us when we arrived at the green and the locals on #5 fairway who were laid out by the left side bunker with their dogs...

Jul 8, 2017 - Bula Bula

So if there was one word in the Fijian language that I could master, it would be Bula. Apparently, this word means "hello" "goodbye" and everything in between and is literally uttered at each interpersonal interaction. Needless to say, the Fijians are constantly engaging us and could not be nicer or more willing to please. To that end Joana, one of the ladies working the Sunset Bar, has taken a personal interest in our family and has gone out of her way to make sure the kids are happy and Shea and I have everything we need. If you were to...

Jul 7, 2017 - Back at the Beach

First day at the Intercontinental was as we hoped for - sunny, warm 86 degrees and no humidity. That being said, while the beaches and water are beautiful, I'm still not sure it is better than the white sand of 30A. Everyone woke up fairly early and we hit breakfast - one of the nice features of the hotel is that breakfast is included (about the only thing) and the spread is an impressive one ranging from eggs and bacon all the way to curry chicken and Japanese dumplings. After breakfast the kids hit the pool and I snuck in a workout -...

Jul 6, 2017 - Traveling to Fiji

Time to get out of the cold and into the sun. This morning we flew from Queenstown to Auckland (with about 2000 British & Irish Lions' fans as they go back to Auckland for the final test) and then Auckland to Nadi. We took Air New Zealand which was quite a pleasant travel experience - flight attendants very friendly (unlike the ones on our American Airlines flight to Auckland), all the seats had TVs so the children were entertained and they even provided a meal on the Auckland to Nadi leg. Once we got to Nadi, we had to work our way through...

Jun 20, 2017 - Return to Fiji

This time of year for the last few years we have escaped the cold weather to travel to the Oceania Area Championships This year they are in Suva where we spent some time last year for the Melanesian Champs. I am looking forward to returning, not so much for Suva itself but for all the friends we will meet again there. Fletcher will be attending the Congress while I will be officiating for the Field Events.

Jun 2, 2016 - Dravuni Island

The next morning we arrived at Dravuni Island- this was our favourite place in Fiji. A tiny island that you can walk across in ten minutes with 200 people living in a simple village. Izzy and Theo loved the school. The children were so friendly and just ran off at lunchtime to do what they wanted. The islanders played music and set up craft and clothes stalls for us. We spent a long time just sitting in the village watching the men sing while they shared kava. Theo learned to snorkel and Izzy took to it like a dolphin! We saw some...