Fiji .

A giant purple starfish was just one of the many underwater wonders.
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May 9, 2005

Bula! Today is day 3 in Fiji and the first time I've found an internet connection. So far, activities have primarily been lack of activity - lots of sleeping on the beach and hanging out by the swim-up pool tiki bars. Today we went scuba diving - the water here is fantastically clear and there are lots of colorful fish and coral. The dive guide kept picking up things from the ocean floor and handing them over: bright blue starfish, squishy sea cucumbers, sea shells. We also saw a shark, but only for a second... which is probably better than the alternative of getting too close of a view.

Bird of paradise flower from the tropical fijian jungle.
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Fiji Addendum

Final day in Fiji... The timing is probably good as my skin is starting to get quite crispy. (I guess "lobster-y" would be more accurate, but I do feel a bit like a bucket of the Colonel's original recipe.) We're in Nadi town today doing souvenir shopping... Anybody need a tribal mask? We also took a side trip out to see a famous orchid garden named "Garden of the Sleeping Giant", named for the neighboring mountain which looks somewhat like a very large sleeping person. The garden was started by Raymond Burr of all people. (Yes, that's Perry Mason.) The flowers were very pretty and like just about everywhere we go, admission included tropical fruit juice. This is going to be a very long day - We have an insane itinerary of a Wednesday morning 4AM flight and will be on to Hong Kong next.