Fiji Time

Bamboo Hostel was located right near the airport in Nadi and offered free transfers and breakfast for FJ$14 (£5) per night. Finally we were back to a cheap hostels, central America felt like a long time ago.

We arrived at the Hostel after sunset so we just hung around that night and joined in on our first of many Kava Ceremonies. Kava (not to be confused with Cava of sparkling wine fame, as one girl did) plays a huge roll in Fiji's culture and day to day life. It's popular across the South Pacific but it is a particularly big deal in Fiji. Every night the Fijian men sit bare footed on woven palm leave mats around a wooden bowl of water with one guy sat in the middle to serve. The drink its self is made from the dried roots of the Yaqona plant ground and then wrapped in a cloth. The guy serving repeatedly rinses and rings out the cloth darkening the water to a light brown colour. If your picturing a bowl of muddy puddle water your on the right lines.

Once the drink has been mixed to the required potency they use half a coconut shell as a bowl to pass around the group. Every one in the circle takes their turn to drink the liquid. As the server passes you the Bowl you have to clap your hands together and say 'Bula' (which is used interchangeable to mean Hello, Thank You, Cheers or Good Health) after drinking the cup in one go you return it to the server and now everyone claps three times. I'm sure I have just butchered an ancient Fijian tradition but that is the tourist experience of Kava.

Sure Kava looks like muddy puddle water and it doesn't taste any better but the thing is though, the more you drink the less bothered you seem to be that you are drinking it. Never mixed with alcohol (by the Fijians anyway) it is meant to bring a calm relaxing vibe to the gathering. Combined with singing and guitar playing the Ceremony is actually very enjoyable. The other noticeable effect is a numbing of the lips and gums, oh and the day after a big session you lose any enthusiasm this is why Fiji 'runs' on 'Fiji Time'.

Speaking of which, 'Fiji Time' will come up a lot in this blog. In our two weeks in Fiji we only accomplished around half of what we wanted thanks to 'Fiji Time' but thanks to Kava we couldn't have cared less!

Fiji is a pretty popular destination or backpackers, especially from the UK. The 300 plus picture perfect islands of the Yasawa and Mamanuca Chains are the most visited and there are now plenty of well organised (and expensive) island hoping tours that everyone raves about. Feeling the pinch a little after Hawaii and the rest of the states we were determined to get back on budget and hopefully off the trodden path a little so opted away from those tourist hotspots.

Through the hostel we booked onto what they called the 'North Combo' which promised to show us the real Fiji. The combo would take us to the beautifully secluded and undeveloped islands of Tavenui and Qamea but first we had to catch a 19 hour ferry from Suva. In the taxi from Nadi to Suva we met a British couple who had just started their travels and had chosen to do the same route as Liann and I.

Located near the Yasawa and Mamanuca Islands, Nadi is home to the international airport and is the gateway to these island. Suva, located on the other side of the main island (Viti Levu) is a big, bustling and slightly dirty port city. When we arrived at the ferry terminal there were two different ferries, both were old and rusty car ferries but one looked ready for the scrap heap. Luckily we were on the other. Interestingly the next week the other ferry was actually scrapped!

Thanks to Fiji time we had arrived at the ferry about an hour into boarding and all the clued up locals had claimed the best spots to lay out their mats and blankets for the 19 hour journey ahead. After an hour squeezed onto four tiny seats it was time to set off, but this is Fiji so after another two hours we were still in port! That added another three hours to the mammoth trip. There was no way we were going to spend 22 hours over night sat bolt upright so Darren and I managed to bribe our way into the 1st class. I know I said I wanted an authentic Fiji experience but no one told us to bring beds!

Eventually after very little sleep we arrived on Fiji's third largest island, Taveuni. Hear we were met by Vili who was to drive us to our Hostel on the north of the Island. On the way we stopped at the 180° Median. This is the exact opposite side of the world to Greenwich and also the physical start and end of days. Here it is possible to stand in Today and Yesterday at the same time. Very cool, but we soon got over it!

Our hostel, Tuvununu was sat right on the coast with stunning sea views but no real beach which was a bit of a shame. I guess it didn't really matter because we had some pretty tropical weather that day! So what else is there to do in Fiji on a rainy day other than play cards with friends and drink possible the most questionable rum I have ever tasted, Bounty! Of course we had to round the night of with a few bowls of Kava!

The next day we woke to glorious sunshine again which was the perfect day for a hike to three beautiful waterfalls. The lower section was like walking through a patch of paradise. Colourful birds flitted amongst the trees, lizards scuttled away as we walked past and the gentle rumble of the first waterfall echoed in the valley. Not time to stop yet, Vili continued to guide Liann and I up the ever steeper cliff the third and highest waterfall. We spent around an hour up here jumping off the rocks and swimming in the clear cool water. I even managed to find some lost money and jewellery listening at the bottom of the plunge pool. On our way back down we stopped to swim in the other two falls. Back at Tuvununu and tired from our hike we relaxed with a glass of rum in the hammocks before dinner and more Kava.

The area of reef that separates Tavuni and Fiji's second larges island, Vanua Levu is know and Rainbow reef. Thanks to the strong currents and nutrient rich water Rainbow Reef gets its name from the dozens of different soft corals that grow there. In the top 10 places to dive I couldn't pass up this opportunity so the next day I booked on for a two dive package with a small but well organised dive shop. Like I say I couldn't miss this, my only chance to dive The Rainbow Reef. Unfortunately it did mean leaving Liann for the majority of her Birthday! Don't worry; she spent the day being massaged and pampered back at the hostel.

They weren't kidding about strong currents at Rainbow Reef. We were there bang on slack water but still only had 20 minutes before we were being pushed past the reef at high speed. At time we had no choice but to cling onto a rock so as not to disappear into the blue. The soft corals were glorious with their pink, purple, red and green colours making for some great photos, if only I could hold still in the damn current!

Back at the hostel I had to rush as we had booked onto a Snorkelling trip too. Joined by Raffa (Brazil) and Scott (USA) we spent the afternoon floating around Honeymoon island. Obviously a little tame after diving the reef but it's still nice to be able to point things out to Liann and the guys who seemed to miss them otherwise.

After a couple of great nights at Tavununu it was time to leave. Our next stop was billed as a secluded eco resort on the tiny island of Qamae.

We had managed to pack a lot into the day and it wasn't over yet. Villi rushed us to the beach ready to be picked up by a boat to take us to Qamae, but in true Fiji Time style we then waited for over an hour slowly watching the sun set and the rain roll in. The clouds broke just as we saw the faint flicker of a head lamp from a tiny old Fijian man on a tiny old Fijian boat. After battling in the surf while loading our bags and other supplies for the island we set off. Off we went in the pitch black with nothing more to guide the way than our skippers headlamp and the red glow of his cigarette which he persisted to hold over the vent of the outboards fuel tank! Luckily the rain didn't last and even more luckily we didn't blow up. The Eco hostel of Maqai (pronounced Mon-gi) is nestled amongst the rainforest on the south shore of Qamae(pronounced Gam-ai) Island. Completely cut off from the world, Maqai relies on rainwater and solar power with supplies shipped over by boat. My kinda place!

I had managed to call ahead and organise a birthday cake for Liann. It was meant to be a complete surprise but I think Liann had gotten wind of the plan as soon as Cathy (the owner) pulled me to one side. So after our evening meal they had the whole hostel sing Happy Birthday and brought Liann's 'surprise' out. The Fijian guys then performed a traditional fire dance for us all which was an extra treat.

Maqai was only a small place but was pretty packed with other travellers; we soon got to know each other over a few too many glasses of Bounty and of course Kava! We spent hours just sat around in the sand singing, listening and drinking bowl after bowl of Kava. They even produced the 'Dragon Bowl' which was made by their last Welsh guest out of an over sized coconut. Villi insisted that I must continue Fijian/Welsh tradition and drink from the Dragon Bowl. That was way too much Kava!

The next day we took a boat around to the other side of the island to visit a remote traditional Fijian village. Similar to the Maya villages I visited in Belize they live very basic lives with much of their time consumed by farming, cooking and making traditional products to sell at market. Their homes are a little more modern; mostly wooden with corrugated tin roofs some even had power from either solar or communal generator. We were fed and watered before.... you guessed it, more Kava. This made the afternoon disappear a little quicker. By the time we waited around for two hours for our return boat the entire day had slipped away.

Our stay at Maqai was only brief but on our last day we still managed to squeeze in another snorkelling trip and a coconut oil massage before heading back to Taveuni in time (just) to catch our 19 hour ferry back to Suva. We were able to find a quiet patch of floor for our group to claim as our own so no 1st class this time and actually the time passed relatively quickly with game after game of cards.

That pretty much concludes the North Combo and the first half of our adventures in Fiji.

Next we headed to the Coral Coast; around half way between Suva and Nadi on the South of Viti Levu to stay at another hostel that we had heard lots about. In fact it was even in an article that I read on the flight to Fiji.