(I posted this once already but who knows where it went…)
Fiji was beautiful and peaceful. I spent my days in the sun (fighting sunburn and tropical mosquitos) and slept under a big sky at a hostel on the beach. I met a bunch of interesting people from all over, many who have been on the road for several months already. I learned how to scuba dive, and I am now certified to dive in open water at depths of 60 feet without a divemaster.
I did not go to other islands — I stayed on the main island, Viti Levu, the whole time. The place where I was staying was in between the two biggest towns. It took about 2 hours in either direction to get to either of them (Nadi or Suva). The nearest village consisted of a group of houses and a mini-market. The nearest town was a 10 minute ride and had a few streets of stores and the only nightlife around, a little cafe that stayed open later than 9pm every night (except Sundays). The nightly entertainment at the hostel was a movie (which always started at 7 pm and ended at 9 pm, even if it wasn’t finished) and a ping pong table (or table tennis, as called by the British girls in my dorm).
Now I’m in Auckland, and I’m wondering what’s going to happen next. So far I’ve spent two days walking around town. Tomorrow I’m heading up to the bay of islands to explore and do some sea kayaking and swimming with dolphins. I’m excited for the next adventure, and would be totally happy if I could get my digital camera to work so that I could take a few more pictures.
Tags: backpacking, fiji, international travel, south pacific