Waya Island, Fiji

Stan, Archie and Tim Jr on the lookout for pirates.
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After 10 hectic weeks travelling around Canada and the USA, cramming as much of these huge countries as we could into our limited time we were completely exhausted. Not only that but we were bored of motels and hotels, and although we had done as much as we could to eat as healthily as possible, eating out was often unavoidable and that involved huge portions, usually of meat and occasionally of junk food. In a nutshell we were tired and bloated.

We saw Fiji as a remedy for all this and booked our accommodation accordingly. A two hour boat ride took us to our first destination, Bayside on Waya Island. Comprising of a central dining area and only two Bures (thatched huts), all right on the beach, this was as basic as it gets. No electricity meant no TV, no computer or internet, no music (after our ipod batteries ran out), no air conditioning, no lights, no hot water etc. The nearest shop was a half an hour walk away and sold almost nothing so that meant luxuries like beer and snacks (just in case you didn’t like the food) were out of the question. Luckily our hosts Tim and Oni, plus their kids Vassity and Tim junior were wonderful. The three meals a day they provided were all simple, healthy and tasty - pastries and fruit for breakfast, pasta or sandwiches for lunch, curry or fish (caught with a harpoon in the afternoon) for dinner. One evening Tim popped out to sea in the dark with just a mask, snorkel and torch and came back with a large lobster he had caught. Fifteen minutes later it had been boiled, devoured and the shell sucked clean by a very appreciative table. Moments like that we will remember for ever.

Like a 'Rennie', in island form.

Sam on the lookout for pirates.
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Time at Bayside was simple. We woke when the sun came up, swam, snorkelled, read, the boys had their lessons, and when the sun set we played games in the dim glow of paraffin lamps until we were tired. The only other bure was taken by Adam and Helen from England (who were booked in for 6 weeks) and an American girl, Devon, camped in the garden. We all got on really well and although it took a couple of days to get used to the lack of, well, almost everything, we thought we had found paradise. Days and nights were both hot, mosquitos were well fed most nights, spiders were literally as big as my hand, and despite two days of solid rain where we dreamed of sunshine and dry clothes, a week at Bayside was just what the doctor ordered.