Day Two:

Friday, we woke up early thanks to the jet lag.  This is my favorite kind of jet lag though because it allows us to early wake up early and get a start on the day.  It is even more ideal with this weather because any sort of physical activity after 8 AM is probably unwise in the heat and humidity.

Andy went outside to take some amazing sunrise pictures and play with his camera while I started writing this blog.  When Andy came back inside, he showed me the pictures and then we headed out for some exercise.  Andy ran down the beach while I walked.  Even though it was before 7 AM, it was hot!  After awhile, I came across my parents walking near the Uprising hotel.  My mom said that they went to Anna and Derik’s bure to see if they were up.  They didn’t hear them stirring so continued their walk.  The joke of the day was that if they had been a little later, they would have heard more than talking…

I walked with both of my parents for a bit and then my mom went back to our hotel and my dad and I doubled back again to get another mile in.  Although the beach is very long, there are a couple of rivers emptying into the ocean that prevent you from easily getting to the other side and continuing down the beach.  Andy discovered this on his run as well and went running towards the road and came across a plantation of some kind.

Andy at sunrise in Fiji

After our exercising and showers, we met my parents for the continental breakfast that included some wonderful fruit, cereal and pastries.  There are a couple of birds that like to try and get into the oatmeal so it is sort of the breakfast entertainment to bust them when they are successful.  We tried passionfruitfor the first time and really enjoyed it.  The outside of the passionfruit is a light yellow color, but the inside is filled with a collection of what looks like dark seeds covered in jelly.  The taste of the passionfruit is almost like sour patch kids.  We all have come to love them and a new favorite drink for those able to consume alcoholic beverages is the passionfruit mojito.   For kicks, we also decided to follow in the footsteps of “Men at Work” and try the famous Australian spread, Vegemite.  In all of our opinions it is disgusting…kind of what you would expect yeast extract to taste like.

Later Anna and Derik met up with us at our hotel and we pretty much spent the day hanging out by the pool and ocean, reading, swimming, enjoying food and drinks and relaxing in chairs and hammocks.  It really doesn’t get much better than this.  Later there was the usual afternoon downpour and it was probably good we all went inside for a bit as our skin had gotten more sun than we had expected.  It is always crazy how easy it is to burn this close to the equator.  My mom is still talking about how she cannot understand how she fried herself.  It is quite easy to do here.

Thinking that there would be the Fijian fire dance at the Uprising, we walked over there for dinner.  The fire dance did not happen but the food was good.  I had some Fijian fish dish and Andy had fish tacos.  The fish dish came with tapioca which was more like a dry root.  It was interesting but not something you would want to consume often.  I think it is the same root that we found out the Vietnamese ate in the Kuqi  tunnels when we toured those a little over a year ago.  Sure makes you appreciate the variety in our diets.  The restaurant/common area at the Uprising was full of locals watching the Samoa/Fiji rugby match.  Rugby seems to be a religion here.  There were also some musicians playing local music which was reminiscent of something you would hear in Hawaii.

The common room at the Uprising was stinking hot so again, I was thrilled when a downpour started and removed the excessive humidity from the air.  We took a taxi van back to our hotel and Anna and Derik joined us since Derik’s parents (Dave and Vicky) were scheduled to show up soon.  We went to bed, but apparently they got in around 10 PM that night.  They had an even longer flight than ours as they came to Fiji through Australia.  On top of that, they had to drive to Salt Lake City from Idaho Falls where they are from.  I haven’t seen them yet, but apparently they were giddy when they got in and were thrilled with a keychain they had purchased in Australia to prove they were there.  We were all a little worried they were going to be haggard from the trip especially since they very seldomly travel outside of Idaho Falls, but it turns out the worry was unnecessary.

Day Three Fiji:

As I write much of Day One and Day Twos experiences, it is actually our third day in Fiji and everyone but me is out on a zip line tour.  Anna posted some video of the first time they did the tour.  It looked like a blast but it is not an activity for pregnant ladies.  I am happy to be sitting here in the cool air conditioning of my hotel room catching up on the blog.  Belén has made it apparent that she is here as well so we are just hanging out.

This morning Andy and I got up early and took some more sunrise pictures.  Afterwards, I went for a walk while he swam for a bit.  Later we met my parents for breakfast during which my mom tried to decide whether or not she should go on the zip line tour.  Apparently it hinged on if Vicky was going so when Derik’s parents both decided to go, she went.  It is another beautiful day and I am going to go find a hammock and indulge in my latest book Three Cups of Tea which I am thoroughly enjoying.

More later…

I did as I said I would and after backing up some photos and this blog by sending it to my gmail account, I went down to a nice hammock in the shade and enjoyed a chapter or two of Three Cups of Tea before slipping into a late morning nap.  When I woke up, I was a bit hungry so I walked the 20 yards to the restaurant and enjoyed a Fijian fish dish that I think was more of a ceviche cooked in lime and coconut juice even though the menu didn’t say that.  I was a bit hesitant about eating it, being pregnant and all but I figured the fish was fresh considering we were 30 yards from the ocean.  It was very tasty and I was glad that I had chosen to eat it.  I also ordered a wonderful Greek salad that had some kind of fried squeaky cheese on top.

Halfway through the meal, Andy and everyone else returned from the zip line tour and joined me.  Everyone enjoyed the zip line tour and view of the jungle and said I would have loved it.  I said hello to Derik’s parents, Vicky and Dave who I hadn’t seen in awhile.  Andy liked the zip line tour and explained that it was a circuit of eight zip lines through the jungle.  Somehow it was constructed such that no palm tree was actually drilled into, yet was safe.  Andy thought it was cool to be able to see the Fijian jungle and thought that the zip lines were fun.  He had been on zip lines in Mexico that were higher and more exciting though but he said the jungle was really cool in Fiji.  We hope to explore it more if we come back to Fiji again in the future…being pregnant, I wasn’t eager to go exploring knowing all of the strange bugs and things that live in the jungle.  Our friend, Joelle, back home actually contracted elephantitus while doing the EcoChallenge in Fiji a few years back.  I am sticking to the beach this trip.

That afternoon, it rained again.  Especially since everyone else got to experience the jungle, I was feeling stir crazy since I had not seen anything besides our beach since we had arrived at the hotel.  I twisted Andy’s arm to join me at the Artisan market as a way to pass the time during the rain and do a bit of shopping.  Most of the shops had cheap-looking jewelry, sarongs and t-shirts.  We did find one cool shop that supposedly sold authentic Fijian masks and wood carvings.  An Indian woman started explaining to me what the symbols on the masks represented.  They all had a turtle (good luck) and then there were various combinations of symbols of cannibal days including neck breakers, brain bashers, cannibal forks, the chief’s home, etc.  I found a mask that I liked on the outside of the shop and then entered the interior of the shop to show Andy.  He had been talking to the Fijian owner of the shop, a large woman with a giant fro.  She explained to me that this shop was Fijian and did not sell the cheap stuff that the Indians sell in other shops and on the streets.  Next, she showed us some more masks and we settled on a slightly larger one that appealed to us.  After negotiating on the price and picking out the matching neck breakers to complete the set, the stop owner rudely ordered the Indian helper to wrap up our selection.  Andy went to the ATM to procure the cash needed to finalize the transaction.

Back at the hotel, Andy discovered the best palapa ever and we laid on it by the ocean and enjoyed the sea breeze.  It is the best palapa ever because it has a wooden base that can be made comfortable with cushions provided by the hotel.  Also, the thatched roof of the palapa covers almost the entire base all day long so there is no need to shift positions with the shifting daily sunlight.  Finally, from the palapa you can enjoy a view of the ocean and the island off of the coast as well as a view of the pool if you turn in the opposite direction.  In short, it is awesome!  We laid in the palapa for awhile and I enjoyed a fruit smoothie while Andy took some sunset pictures that turned out really well.

That night, we met everyone at the restaurant at the Pearl for dinner.  My stomach was a bit upset probably from a slightly different diet, so I stuck to some amazing calamari and some plain saffron rice to help aid in it’s recovery.  It was a fun meal and we were glad that we had been able to be a part of it.  Derik’s parents are a kick in the pants and we enjoyed hearing stories from Derik’s childhood.

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