Paradise Found!
Trip Start
Jan 17, 2007
1
56
67
Trip End
Jul 20, 2007
Korolevu, Fiji
Friday, June 8, 2007
Our taxi ride from the airport to our hotel was certainly bumpy but as it was in the dark we didn't realise till the morning that we had had to drive along the beach to get there! There's not a lot to see or do in Nadi so we left on the public bus that travels around the whole island on its only main road. The journey went through several small villages past markets and alongside the sea and gave us a good chance to see the real Fiji outside of the resorts. It reminded us of being in the countryside of India, seeing animals wandering wherever they please, roadside fruitsellers, tin shack villages and people sitting by the road with seemingly nothing to do. In actual fact a lot of the people are of Indian descent, with 40% of Fiji's population coming from India, brought by the British to work in the sugar plantations a couple of generations ago.
Just past the tiny town of Korolevu, almost 2 hours into the journey, we spotted the ramshackle sign marking our destination - the Beachouse. A small backpackers situated right on the beach and the venue of the most recent Celebrity Love Island! There are remnants of the filming left all over the place, you have to be especially careful when using the mirrors beacuse several of them are actually windows! It's connections with Love Island are not something it likes to overly boast about, especially after some particularly socialist backpackers burnt down the previous Love Island resort in a protest against the shallowness of celebrity culture.
We had our own spacious bure (a hut made from palm leaves and branches) set in tropical gardens but the whole resort has shared facilities. The small size of the resort ensures a very communal feel. Fijiians believe that meals should be shared with other people and so we got to know the other backpackers very quickly at the large communal tables. The food was good but simple, consisting mainly of fish, rive and tropical fruits but afternoon tea everyday at 4 was a lovely treat - freshly baked scones wherever you are in the world!
The beach on our doorstep was abasolutely beautiful and the hammocks, benches and swings gave us perfect views across the bay. We loved going off and using the sea kayaks, the sea was so clear we could see lots of creatures and beautiful corals just below the surface. This is tropics and we couldn't escape without some rain - Fijiian rain by our standards in torrential and can last all day! Bizarrely though, the sky stays quite bright and it's still very warm, the feel of the rain on our skin on the beach was actually lovely and refreshing! Even though it's the dry season the Fijiians weren't at all surprised by the amount of rain and it gave us the opportunity to learn from them the art of making coconut jewellery and woven hats, baskets and bowls from coconut palm leaves. Making the jewellery from the coconuts was surprisingly long and hard work but it was great to have the chance to chat to the Fijiians and to be able to take a really personal souvenir home.
We've had an excellent week but we're looking forward to leaving the mainland and seeing some of the tiny islands in the Mamanuca and Yasawa groups.
Lots of love,
Jilly and Laurie xxx
