WE MADE IT - but first I need to tell you about Fiji

We have arrived!! and internet is up and going - time to tell you all about what we have been up to.  First, let me say that the big plane ride from LA to Nadi, Fiji went just fine.  We left LA on the night of Jan. 13th, at around 10:00 pm, and arrived 10 hours later, 5:00 A.M. on Saturday the 15th.  So, yes, the 14th (Liam's B-day) completely disappeared.  I had packed a present for him in my carry on but both the kids fell asleep before take off.  They slept for about 6-7 hours, which is much more than their parents (aka pillows) did.   Needless to say we were all pretty wore out by the time Liam actually received his gift, which was when we were hanging out around the baggage claim carousel.  Unfortunately, we really had no idea how "rough" our day was about to come.

And, that my friends, brings me to the most terrifying part of our trip to date.  THE BOAT RIDE.  So, we decided to experience a part of Fiji a little more remote and booked a stay at the Octopus Resort.  This resort was on Waya Island, a small Island in the Yassawa chains of islands off the main island of Fiji.  All that was on this island was this small resort and a small village on the other side of the hills.  To get there you could take the Octopus resort boat (which was a smaller, but more direct route).  Or, you could take a large boat that made stops at many different islands, or you could take a helicopter.  Of course we thought the direct route would be the best, and also, cheapest.  So, after 4 hours waiting in the LA airport,  a 10 hour flight, another 4 hours in the Fiji airport waiting to be picked up, another hour to get to the marina and wait for the supplies to be loaded,  we finally boarded this boat for what was supposed to be a 55 minute ride out to the resort.  When we got on the captain said the words I did not want to hear - "it's a little choppy out there, but no worries, we will make it."

I wish I knew how to describe the boat.  Or that I even had a photo of it.  There were probably 15-18 people on it, including the crew and that was about max capacity.  We also had luggage (thankfully we decided to store 6 of the 8 bags in the Fiji airport) and resort supplies.  There were life jackets, but they were wedged in between two rows of seats, and I couldn't pull any out for the children, not that they were going to fit anyways.  I also thought "how bad could it be?"  Well, it was bad.  Huge swells, little boat, spine crushing jolts as we speed through the waves.  The kids were hanging on to us for dear life, and we were bracing ourselves inside the boat as good as we could.  Thank god I forced Dramamine into the whole family.  Have to admit the thought "maybe Fiji wasn't such a good idea" went through my head a few times.  At one point Brett gave me the "check mark sign" - which later he told me was the "chalk this one up to as a bad idea.  I had given him the "helicopter sign", as in,  "there is no way I'm taking this boat back again".   Well, after an hour an half, and half dozen times when the motor sounded like it was going to quit, we made it.  The kids, besides the death grip and a few "slow down" screams, did amazingly well, they even fell asleep at one point.  We had to maneuver into a little rickety boat to get ashore (no docks on the island) and I promptly fell on my a** getting into this one.  But then, as we were driven ashore, we were greeted by singing on the beach. After landing, one of the Fijian ladies scooped Phoebe up and gave her a big kiss and carried her all the way up the beach and then we were given refreshing tropical drinks.  It really was paradise, and after a good night sleep, I was happy we came.
The resort we stayed at was a whole other experience.  It kind of reminded me of summer camp, with really good food.  It was made up of a variety of accomadations, ranging from backpacker dormitories to deluxe (air conditioned) bungalows on the ends of beach.  We went for the midrange Bure (traditional Fiji hut) in the garden. And, it was not at all frilly.  Very basic, no airconditioning, bug nets,  thatched walls and grass roof, and, my favorite part, no roof in the shower.  However, this meant we had shower guests in the form of little lizards and slugs.  There were some activities daily, such as hermit crab racing, jewelry and basket weaving, beach parties, volleyball games, and walks to the village.  The beach was stunning and the shell collecting was out of this world.  I found some huge intact shells.  Never have been a fan of shell collecting, but now I am an addict.  The water was warm and the air temperature was sultry.  That part was a little hard without air conditioning - especially when you are sleep deprived and crabby.  And, as I said, the food was excellent.  We ate our meals in a large open aired dining room with a sand floor.  I never put a pair of shoes on all week.   The room was made up of large tables, so you got to sit with the other guests.   It was such a friendly place and we got to know many wonderful, interesting people - from the crazy german backpackers to the wealthy Aussie family who took the helicopter off the island.  There was Jim, from Oregon, who was staying at the resort for 6 weeks and even an American MD and her husband who were on their way home from working in New Zealand.  The best part was the children were running completely free and playing with the local children.    We had no TV, internet, phones, roads.... it was fantastic.  And, then we decided to take the upgrade to a beachfront bure on our last night and life got even better.  As you can tell, I could go on and on about Fiji - it was just pretty darn cool.  My only regrets (besides the boat), was that we didn't take more photos (it just felt too weird carrying a camera around), and that we didn't take a day of rest after the plane ride before we attempted the boat ride.  Brett's biggest regret was playing sand volley ball in the noon sun and thinking he was going to die of heat stroke (otherwise we all stayed healthy). And, if you are curious, the resort paid for us to take the big Yassawa inter-island ferry back, and, of course, that day the seas were calm and we got stuck on a very slow, very crowded, and hot boat.  Oh well, you can't win them all.

Liam on the beach with some of his new Friends

above - playing with their new friends
below - life at the octopus, the welcoming Kava ceremony, performed each night with new arrivals, Liam making his shell anklet, Phoebe getting her hair braided, hermit crab racing (mine came in 4th)

Our Garden Bure

the view from the shower

Our Beach Front Bure

Some of my Awesome shells I found - kind of sad I left them there

How we slept each night

On the path

Last day, sad to go

See that yellow boat, a woman from the village had just given birth on that boat - she didn't make it in time to the hospital - she had returned and was sitting with the newborn under that tree.  Later that day she took the big boat into town with us. 

Waiting to  leave

bye, bye Waya Island and the Octopus resort