After landing in Fiji we experienced our first taste of humidity since Asia. In a way it was quite nice but we were wearing the wrong clothing after our flight from Auckland. We had booked a night in a very basic backpackers in Nadi (pronounced Nandi), the main islands second largest town, for one night which included a pick up from the airport so getting to town was no problem. Once we were in town however, the problems started. Well, not so much problems but hassle. Before we'd even put our bags in our room the staff were wanting to know every single detail of our time in Fiji; how long we were staying, where we were going, how we were getting there, if we has booked already etc. This happened without hesitation, with everyone we met both inside and on the street. Our error was that we'd gone out after the shops closed so were made a beeline for by everyone. Sadly most of them had an ulterior motive of coercing money out of you or just plain taking you to their 'shop' to then mug you! (I have to add that this is NOT an accurate representation of Fijians who are extremely friendly and wave at you as you go past in a car, it's just that the undesirables all tend to descend on this one main street). Being polite but firm in responding to all requests did the trick but being stopped every few seconds was very frustrating. Needless to say we soon realised why our room mates were staying in the hostel and reading.

The following morning our trip in Fiji officially started. We bought a very cheap ticket for a local bus that would take us a couple of hours south to the coral coast and a town called Korotogo. We were surprised when an air conditioned coach turned up rather than the no-window rustic bus we were anticipating - a nice surprise! We had a nice journey through the very green countryside and passed traditional Fijian villages and communities going about their business. We arrived at our destination, the Bedarra Inn Resort, and it was certainly a step up from the previous night. For the first time we were staying in an actual hotel room for more than one night. No noisy bunk beds or sharing bathrooms to worry about, we could relax in our very own room and shower when we wanted, not just when it was free! This certainly was a holiday from the holiday!

We spent a week at Bedarra and did lots of doing very little! It was quite odd spending so long in one place, especially as we were eating out for every meal rather than cooking. The resort was on a road that had 1 other hotel and 3 restaurants so we had some choice when it came to eating. As previously mentioned, our days were spent snorkelling, sunbathing, reading and in the pool. It was a very relaxing week and we were lucky enough to have sunshine for the most part of everyday despite it being cyclone season, with a thunderstorm at some point each day.

Whilst travelling back to Nadi after our week here, the streets were lined with people. We had managed to get in a taxi and on the road before the roads closed for a motorcade that included a hearse that was carrying the body of Fiji's ex-president who had passed away earlier in the week. There were school children and villagers all waiting to pay their last respects with a lot of the women wearing black. We received some smiles and waves from people as we went past which was nice. We arrived in Nadi ahead of it and dropped our bags in the same hostel we had stayed at previously before waiting on the streets with everyone else where after a long delay, it finally went past.

We were only in Nadi for the one night again before being picked up in the morning and taken back south on the mainland before crossing a short stretch of water to Robinson Crusoe Island. We are also spending a week here on an island that takes only half an hour to walk around; this may not be too strenuous either!

For our first few days on the island the really nice weather continued so we were able to use the small pool and we went on a snorkelling trip too. The island sits just off the mainland near the mouth of quite a big river. This meant the sea water on one side of the island was water that had swept out from the river so unfortunately it was brown, but as we'd walked around the island on our first day we knew it was quite nice on the other side. This was until the weather took a turn for the worst. On the afternoon of our third day the skies clouded over and from then until our last day on the island, they stayed. We had 4 days of it being overcast, and we were also deluged with a lot of rain. The rains were also over the mainland meaning the river swelled which then caused the waters surrounding our island to go brown. It also meant that the beach was inundated with debris, lots of logs and bamboo and various other items. The poor staff had to get up each morning to try and clear what they could, but with it raining so much it just came back again.
Fortunately, although the rain meant our hut sprung a leak and felt constantly damp, it didn't really dampen our spirits. During our first few days we made friends with some other people (Kate and Charley from England, and Alice, Enya and Kiralee from Australia who were here for Alice's 21st Birthday) who were staying for a similar length of time than us, as most other islanders are only here for a couple of days. Also a few days after we arrived, a group of 5 guys and a girl from England came to the island and they were all deaf. They were pleasantly surprised when Andy got talking to them and although they could all speak pretty well, they could ask him if they didn't understand what someone was saying. It was strange signing again after such a long time but quite enjoyable too! With all these people around us and of a similar age, it meant that we all bonded and spent several days just chatting with each other, and several hours playing UNO! Simple, but fun ways to spend the rainy days.

For half of the days we were here the island would be 'invaded' by day trippers, and on these days there were activities arranged for them that we could join in with. We watched several Polynesian shows involving the staff dancing to traditional music as well as knife and fire dancing. One afternoon we made traditional outfits out of huge banana leafs and were taught one of the dances. In the evening. we performed our version of the dance for the staff which gave them a laugh! We watched a coconut demonstration showing the stripping and opening of the coconut along with the tools use to shred the flesh into shredded coconut, and from squeezing that you can then get coconut milk. We took part in several traditional Kava ceremonies, something important to the Fijians. Kava is the root of a peppery type plant which is dug up when it is is between 5 & 10 years old. It is then washed, dried, and pounded into powder form. This is then put into a bag made of thin material and placed into the water in a large bowl called a tanoa, where it works much like a tea bag. The water turns a muddy brown colour and tastes much like it looks - just like muddy water! It is rude to turn down a bowl especially if it is part of your welcoming ceremony. We learnt how to correctly receive the bowl, how to drink it and how to give it back and on the ceremony the night before we left Andy represented the local Chief in the proceedings.
With some of the girls, Nikki made coconut jewellery but instead of a bangle came away with a nice kava bowl which will remind us of our evenings on the island. Along with all this we took part in some evening fun and games with our friends and the other islanders, and took time to stroke the 4 female cats who had all been rescued on the mainland where they were about to be killed and brought to a cat paradise! On our last day we treated our shoulders to a well needed massage (the masseuse confirmed they really needed it) before putting our backpacks on once more for our journey to the last country on our trip.

Our time on Robinson Crusoe Island doesn't sound overly exciting but we loved it. We stayed in a small hut on an island, didn't wear anything on our feet for a week, and the majority of our time was spent being part of a small community and completely going back to basics. Quite honestly it was heaven, and we'll miss it and its simplicity.