Last days on Vomo beckon

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Sunday 29th April

My penultimate day at Vomo Island.  Steve is out trolling (fishing moving along or something like that) with the guys from the activity centre.  They have been getting excited about it for days now, and have some extra equipment to try to pull in the big fish.  Steve would definitely stay on this island forever, he loves the life the guys here leave.  It is very idyllic.  Yesterday we had rain but it was still beautiful.  Today is scorching hot, too hot outside for Lloyd.  Matthew is currently playing in the shade with Sue, he prefers her to me I think!!

I have started packing again.  It shouldnt be so bad going back as we are a bit lighter in nappies and the like.  I also gave one of the women some of Lloyd's clothes which he is soon to outgrow, in the hope they are of use to her.  It is nice to think the clothes are likely to be re-used out here, rather than taking them home and them ending up on the rubbish heap, or getting a couple of quid for them on ebay.

We waved off some of the staff this morning on the beach.  They head home for 4 days then return.  Many of them have families, looked after by relatives, husbands and wives while they work on Vomo.

I would recommend Vomo Island to anyone.  It is small enough to be intimate, but big enough to be interesting.  There is plenty to do here, or you can just watch the sea all day if you want.  The snorkelling is fantastic, it is surrounded by a reef so perfect for this.  If you have kids I suggest you book the services of a babysitter as they are excellent with them.  If I came again I would book the babysitter for the whole week rather than in small chunks. 

If you are on honeymoon or here on an anniversary it is very private.  I dont think the kids destroy the peace of the place, though I am biased, and we are the only family here currently.  The bures are secluded enough that you dont really see your neighbours unless you want to.  I think the other couples here are quite friendly with each other, we are somewhat apart from them having the children with us as we dont go on many of the activities such as snorkelling trips or sunset cruises.

If you have kids and you come here make sure you bring nappies and suncream.  They have toys, just ask for them, like a bucket and spade, lego, etc.  You can have meals at any time in your room, which is handy with the kids, and they will make something up if you request it.  The smallness of the place means that the staff are very attentive, always eager to assist. 

The downsides of Vomo, well there are very few.  I would say possibly that the pool is a little small, though with the sea and reef on your doorstep you would be quite sad to want to sit round the pool much anyhow.  And maybe the lack of motorised sports - though this would spoil the peace of Vomo.  I reckon it would be good if they ran some motorised sports off the back of the smaller island though, far enough away not to be disturbing to the residents. I only say this as I miss the jet-skiing!!!  Some people might miss the comforts of the mainland. For instance, a guest the other day asked for some special brand of cigarettes, which had to be brought over specially for her.  If you want to go shopping for expensive perfume, or want a massive selection of food and restaurants then Vomo is not for you.

I have learned yet more about the life of Fijians.  They do not use teething gel for babies, though possibly they have some other medicine.  They wrap up their children for the first 6 months, and could not believe I had Lloyd in an air-conditioned room in just his nappy!  They dont go out with babies for the first month (which I believe is probably a good thing out here).  Immunisations seem to happen at 1 year, I didnt hear of any earlier than that.  They wean at 4 months onwards, similar to england where it is 6 months but many wean earlier.  The food for children is good, they eat a lot of fruit and vegetables I believe.

There seem to be a lot of car accidents, the cars seem to not slow down in the villages, and the children are running fairly freely.  People trade goods, which is a good thing.  If Steve catches a fish it will be sold this time, giving a good return for the lads.  Clothes are traded, all types of goods.  iPods and the like are rare, mainly coming from people leaving them in hotel rooms.  A lot of the youngsters have email addresses, computers and english in school is compulsory.  Breastfeeding is encouraged and widely accepted.  The men talk about it freely and women are aware of its benefits.  They only seem to stop breastfeeding if work forces it.

Disposable nappies are not really used, too expensive.  The family sizes tend to be small, 2 children seems about the average.  The most I have heard of is 3.  I think that they have good family planning clinics in place, though it is hard to tell of course.  And I expect the women I meet are among the better educated of Fiji, so maybe that influences the number of children. The Fijian people seem intelligent, articulate, and friendly.  They are limited in their choice of profession by their environment, the main occupation is in the tourism trade.  Internet at home costs more than in england, around 45 quid per month.  Even the internet cafes are expensive, I cant recall the figures now.  They widely use mobiles and sms.  The phone seems an important form of communication.

They dont use many of the modern mothering techniques we use in england.  For instance they dont understand why I talk at normal level when Lloyd is asleep, or why I wont rock him to sleep (though his Dad does).  In case you are wondering I dont rock him so that he gets used to falling asleep by himself.  Steve is a soft touch!  They were shocked yesterday when I took Lloyd outside when it was a bit windy, it isnt something they would do.  I believe that is good, as it shows they care a great deal for their children. Maybe I am exposing Lloyd to too much, I'm not sure.  I believe he is a strong baby though, and don't think I am affecting him adversely.  Certainly, many of the people we meet say that Lloyd seems a very happy strong baby.  He feeds well and is alert.  I do strongly believe that this experience will be good for him.  Yes he will not remember it, but the experience along the way will shape him.  And the same goes for Matthew. 

Of course my learning of Fiji is only based on the conversations I have had here on Vomo, another part of Fiji may be completely different.

Matthew is already a different child to the one that first stepped on that plane at Heathrow.  I believe Matthew will have gained an inner confidence that may have otherwise evaded him.  From us Matthew has learned that new experiences are to be relished and enjoyed.  He has also learned that relationships with other people can be funny, warm and interesting. He has taken his first small steps on the road to independence.

I am not looking forward to our onward journey.  I think it will be sensory overload when we hit LAX.  We also dont have a hotel booked yet, or a car for our first day.  I shall have to organise something today for it.  I am worried how Matthew will cope with the big city, and Disneyworld.  It will be very far removed from Vomo Island.  He seems to adjust fairly well now though, so we will see.  Luckily the time difference isnt too bad, we just gain a day, so their body clocks shouldnt be affected too much.  It is a long flight, maybe 10 or 12 hours I think.  Hopefully they will both sleep as it will be 10pm when we depart.

We also go on a helicopter tomorrow which should be fun, but possibly scary!  Neither Steve or Matthew (or Lloyd of course) have been on one, so will be an interesting experience for them.  Hopefully we can get some good shots of the Fiji Islands.

In some ways it is good to move on, as we are nearing our time on holiday.  Just over 1 month left to travel.  It has been a brilliant journey so far, the best experience of my life by far.  I will be pleased to return home at the end though, as I have come to realise my journey of life is also a good one, with many exciting and interesting days to come.  I am looking forwards to seeing all my friends, my family, and the comfort of my house.  I still miss Sainsbury's, and quite sadly, even miss work a bit.  I think our lives will be different when we return home, we have come to see what is important, and I hope we ensure we do not forget that in the months and years to come.

We are already planning a return visit to Fiji, in 2009.  We will go to Australia for a couple of weeks, then spend a week on Vomo.  The kids will be older then, and hopefully can do more with us (though Lloyd will only be Matthew's age so wont be doing too much).  It is something for us to look forwards to, something to aim for.  I have no doubt that we will remain in contact with the beautiful people of Fiji for many years to come.

An update - Steve has returned from fishing, complete with a Dolphin Fish and a Barracuda.  They were out until dusk, all three of them have beaming smiles on their faces, so looks like they have had fun.  Steve already wants to return to Fiji and do some more deep sea fishing.  I think the guys from Vomo also want him to come back, seems like he gave them all the fishing bug!  I dont for one second think this is the end of Steve's fishing adventures, I reckon once we hit America he will be looking for the next target.  We gave the fish to the other guys that went out with him (captain and mate), they will either cook them or sell them.  I definitely dont feel as bad as when Steve was catching them in New Zealand, as these guys will ensure the fish doesnt go to waste, not one little bit of it.  Good luck to them, they deserve it.

We depart this paradise at 4.30pm on Monday (tomorrow).  The time can go as slowly as it wants until then in my opinion.  Was it worth the money coming here?  Of course, its been excellent for us all.  Thanks Vomo, you have been great.