The flight from LA to Fiji was not too bad.....many SD'ers managed to get a whole row to themselves so we could lie down and rest, if not actually sleep. Those who were short (height-challenged?) had a much easier time of it! We had a long and tedious layover in Nadi waiting for our puddle-jumper flight over to Kadavu. When we did arrive, we hauled our gear across the street and the resort boat crew carried it out to the boat -- you guessed it, NO PIER! We all waded our way out to the boat, but it had come in a bit too far and once we were all aboard, the boat was grounded in the sand. A bunch of us jumped off again and got a thorough soaking helping to push the boat a bit deeper.
At the resort (again no pier) we waded our way to shore and began what would be, to me, an amazing experience.
No shore diving, as there were only a couple of large coral heads nearby that were in 15-20 feet of water, but they were good for snorkeling once the vis from a recent storm cleared up. The bure's were comfortable and had a seating area, beds, and bathroom. The ocean was maybe 50 or so feet from our porch, and we were on the west side of the island so we had the sunsets over the water. Watched for the green flash several times, but never saw it. With the generator shutting off and lights going out, the stars (and the visible Milky Way) were absolutely brilliant. The southern sky was a mystery to me, since the familiar constellations are not seen down there, but we did find the Southern Cross.
Kamala convinced the divemaster to keep us all on the same boat throughout the week. We did 2 boat dives per day, with a surface interval on Crab Beach in between. Coffee, hot tea, and cookies were offered at each SI, and that beach was excellent for picking up shells.....several of us got a bit carried away and brought enough shells home to make windchimes with.
The food was a mix of native dishes and more familiar fare, and I tried them all (even if it was just one bite). Not a lot of peas this trip -- those must be available only in their Springtime..... but the native dishes were tasty and whatever kind of fish we were eating, it was fab and their freshly baked bread was delicious!
Some SD'ers went to the school to introduce the children to computers one afternoon, and all of us went to take the school supplies and listen to them sing to us. We were late, but 20 children stayed after they were released, and those 20 young boys could really put out some sound! They sang for quite a while for us, and we were all charmed by them. We went to the meke (singing & native dancing) and kava ceremony one afternoon. It's interesting to see the segregation of their men & women at the public venue, but the children are welcome anywhere & everywhere. The kava has to be experienced. After the first coconut shell-full, your mouth is a bit numb so the second shell doesn't taste so bad! A couple of us had kava at that ceremony, again at someone's 21st birthday that we dropped in for, and again at our beach BBQ where we sat on woven mats and were serenaaded by the chief and a few other men. The waterfall trek was a bit strenuous, muddy, wet and rocky, but I think we all had a good time saying "we did that". The falls (there are 2, with a particularly steep climb to get to the second one) are a pretty scene, the waters cool and refreshing. Our guide jumped the first fall into the pool, and Carole bravely followed suit. 4 of us (all girls) climbed to the second falls and swam around, and let the waterfall pound on us for a bit. On the way back down, the other 3 girls all decided to jump the first fall, too. We scraped elbows, knees & butts getting there, but what a thrill! I think it was about a 20-25 foot jump. I stupidly wore my glasses since it was a bit treacherous getting to the jumping spot & I thought I could hold them onto my face entering the water......but bad things happen to stupid people and sure enough, my glasses came off and I'm thinking "I'll never find my way home, much less off this mountain!" Fortunately, our guide found them on the bottom of the pool and if they weren't such a modest people, I'd have done the hugs-and-kisses thing to show my gratitude.
The diving is hard to describe. Many sites were absolutely amazing, with hard coral coverage that carpets the area. Many PLF's, all different from the Caribbean. Very little in the way of large critters. We saw a couple of turtles, quite a few grey reef and white tip sharks, a school of barracuda and a a very few grouper, a couple of the biggest moray eels I've ever seen, and the MANTA's, of course. Quite a few of the reefs are bommies with old reef rubble at the bottom, with live corals near the surface at the safety stop. Sadly, human waste and debris are taking their toll on the west-side reefs. I'll have to get a book on South Pacific PLF's so I know what I took pictures of! Beautiful and plentiful, whatever they are!
We slept a lot, since the generators turned off rather early and there wasn't anything to do after 9pm. I was very well rested until the trip home!
I made several new friends, and I hope we can all stay in touch. I'm just a u/w photo hack, but here are a couple, until the gallery is ready!