Everything We Hoped For: Rakiraki Day 2

We were up at 7:15 to go diving, after a little confusion about what time it was. They live here on “Fiji Time,” which means there is no time. There was no clock in our room, and we were not sure about daylight savings time and so on, so I walked to the car to check the clock there (it turned out to be 6:45). On my way to the car, a mango bigger than my fist almost hit me in the head. I felt it whiz by my face. Wow! We headed out for diving, following a sign we’d seen on the road the night before during our big drive. Guess what? The dive shop is not on the road with the sign. Seriously, you guys, I was trying to be positive, but this was ridiculous. We ended up at Wananavu Resort, a few miles from the beach where we were supposed to be. All ended well, because the guy who works the activities hut at Wananavu (which, incidentally, is not our hotel) called the dive shop and arranged for them to pick us up from Wananavu’s jetty on their way to the dive site. People in Fiji are unbelievably nice. That guy was under no obligation to help us, but he ran up and down between the beach where we were and the radio at the top of the hill 3 times until he worked it out for us.

I am sure it is a little sad to read about our troubles here in Fiji, but never fear: The negative vibe stops now. From the second we got on the boat, the day went perfectly. There were only 3 other divers on the boat, plus a divemaster and a boat driver. Terrific ratio! One of the other divers was a guy named Loren, an American originally from Michigan who’d worked in bottled water quality control (Dad!) and got headhunted to do that job for Fiji Water (yeah, they make that here!) as his semi-retirement job. He was really nice and friendly, as were the other divers and the divemaster, Bob. The ride to the dive site was a simple 15-minute hop over gentle waves, nothing like the voyage to the GBR. We suited up and got in the water. The water was a perfect 85 degrees with gentle current, and we had an expert guide. We did a short swim to a place called Breathtaker, where we literally just grabbed onto rocks (not coral!) and watched the world go by. We saw dozens, if not hundreds, of different kinds of fish, each more colorful than the last. The coral itself was gorgeous – bright colors, countless varieties. We saw 5 or 6 sharks cruise by, but don’t worry…like everyone else in Fiji, they are friendly. We hung on at Breathtaker for probably 10 minutes, just taking it all in, and then Bob led us to shallow waters where we explored further. This dive was wonderful, perfect. It was everything I wanted the GBR to be.

The diving in Fiji is the reason I got into scuba diving.

We got back on the boat for our surface interval (the time during which you let nitrogen dissolve out of your tissues) and enjoyed shortbread cookies and fresh papaya. During the surface interval, Bob gave me some great tips to improve my diving. He was really concerned with making sure that we learned more about diving and had a good experience. I thought that the second dive could not possibly be as good as the first, and I was right…it was better. This time we went to a place called Bulamaker, where there were even more different fish and even more colorful coral. We went through 4 incredible underwater tunnels on this dive, and I stayed down for a personal best time: 55 minutes. I stuck with Bob, and he showed me some awesome fish and corals that I might not have noticed myself. I took some terrific photographs on these dives. They were much like Snapper Ledge in Islamorada, FL, in that I just pointed the camera and shot, and 80% of the time it was a good photo. I couldn’t believe how much longer I was able to stay under with Bob’s advice. The diving in Fiji is the reason I got into scuba diving. It reminded us that diving is, above everything else, fun. It is an amazing experience. I can’t believe I am saying this, but the GBR is actually my least favorite dive site so far. Maybe we went to a sub-par place on the Reef, but honestly, from what I saw, there is no comparison. The visibility in Fiji was not even as good as it was in Australia, and it was still leaps and bounds better. I was so thankful that we were able to go diving today!

After we dove, we came ashore on Volivoli Beach, which is where we were supposed to go in the first place. Oops! Volivoli is the northernmost point on Viti Levu (the big island in Fiji), but only sometimes – there’s a sand spit beach that’s only there at low tide, which is when we arrived from diving. I feel like I should be honest with everyone here about the beaches. I think people have an idea that Fiji is beautiful white sand beaches everywhere, as far as the eye can see. I know I thought that before I started planning this trip. In fact, nothing could be farther from the truth. There are actually very few beaches in Fiji. The beach at Volivoli is very coarse yellow sand, and most places where the water meets the land, it is more like a swamp or estuary. There are white sand beaches a few places, including Nananu-I-Ra Island, where we dove, but if you are looking for miles and miles of perfect white sand beaches, you should stick with Hawaii, Florida, and the Caribbean. There are beaches on the south coast of Viti Levu, but they are “underwhelming,” according to Loren, our friend from the boat. Anyway, back at Volivoli, we hopped off the boat onto the sand spit, and Loren kindly drove us back to our car at Wananavu. On the way, he told us about living in Fiji. He doesn’t live in a Fijian house, he lives in a Western-style condo. He told us that Fijians don’t consider themselves third world; they know they are different, but to them, that’s just how their houses are, e.g., no furniture. He said that the houses we saw could very well have been houses of teachers, businesspeople, other professionals. It is interesting to know, but I will stick with the US way.

Back at the hotel, we’d missed lunch, but they offered us “ham and cheese sandwiches.” It was a terrific surprise that they meant “grilled ham and cheese sandwiches,” because we were just talking about those in the Blue Mountains the other day. Also, everything’s better with grilled cheese. They also gave us sliced fresh mango, very likely the one that almost hit my head earlier today. The mango was like none I have ever had – ripe, sweet, heavy, perfect. We chatted with the hotel owner, who is of Indian descent. He told us that 30% of the people who live in Fiji are Indian or other Asian (as opposed to native Fijian), which surprised me. I mentioned that a few people in NZ and Australia had warned us about going to Fiji because of the coup that happened here in December. He laughed and said that the December coup was, and I quote, “a bullshit coup.” Maybe it was the way he said it, but it was the funniest thing I have heard in days. He said that the first-ever coup in Fiji in 1987 was violent, but since then, there have been bloodless coups. I am glad we decided to come here despite the warnings! He told us that almost no tourists come to the north shore; most of them go to resorts in Nadi or on the south coast (the “coral coast” with the disappointing beaches), so we really got an authentic Fijian experience, coming where we did. I’m glad I researched it on the interwebs! He also answered a long-standing question for me, which is the issue of “bowling.” I mentioned a few weeks ago on the blog (weeks! I KNOW!) that we saw these outdoor “bowling clubs” all over Auckland and other cities, and I thought it had something to do with cricket. Actually, it is its own sport, something like a combination of bocce and shuffleboard. He offered to have one of the guys teach it to us, so perhaps we will try that tomorrow before we go. Our flight is not until 10pm, so we certainly have time even though it is a 2-hour drive back to the airport.

After our chat and mango, we headed to the pool. The pool was (say it with me) perfect. Nice and clear, a good cool temperature, with soft comfortable lounge chairs. I got a good tan and Gretchen stayed in the shade. I took a terrific nap in the sun and no, I didn’t wake up with a sunburn even though there was not a cloud in the sky and the sun was intense. What a place.

We showered and headed out to Volivoli to watch the sun set. Just when the sun was at its most beautiful point in the sky, we were high on a ridge road. We stopped and took in the sight of the sun setting over this beautiful bay, with green mountains in the background. People were canoeing in the bay. There was a gorgeous breeze. Perfect. We continued to Volivoli, hoping to see the sunset from the beach, but when we got there, we discovered that the tide had come in, so the beach was no more. We ordered dinner and much-needed frozen drinks and relaxed with the other people at Volivoli. Gretchen had an American burger, but I had the Volivoli burger, which is like no other burger I’ve had. It was topped with a fried egg and pickled red beets in addition to the standard toppings, and believe it or not, it was pretty damn delicious. As soon as the sun went all the way down, the breeze just plain stopped. We left shortly after it got dark because the air was just not moving, and despite what you may have heard, girls sweat. When it is 95 degrees and 95% humidity with no wind, they do it a lot.

As we walked up from the beach, we had another wonderful Fiji surprise: A full moon, rising over the bay. We gawked at it for a few minutes, then ran to the car to get to high ground to take photos. It was beautiful. After the moonrise, we came back to the hotel and decided to watch Fiji One, the only TV channel our hotel gets. I pined for the six luxurious channels in Rotorua! We laughed to see that Fiji One’s Saturday night programming includes the cultural programs “Friends” and “24.” Oh well, like it or not, tomorrow we start the journey home, so we’d better start thinking American again. I’m really glad I gave Fiji another chance. My first impression was totally misleading – I will happily admit I was wrong about this place. It was a great decision to come here, especially considering that it only added $15 to our Qantas itinerary to stop here for 3 days. It may have been my joking suggestion to stop in Fiji because it was on the way, but Gretchen took it seriously enough to check. And now you all know: stop in Fiji on the way back to the US from Australia! It’s cheaper than going to a movie with a friend!