Family Vacation in Fiji Day 13 June 2024 - Last Day

Sunrise this morning was overcast and hazy. I sat outside listening to the ocean waves while I waited for the rest of the family to wake up. This Fiji vacation has been my favorite family vacation we have ever taken - surrounded by nature, amazing dives, great accommodations, our incredible daily view of the ocean, lovely people, experiencing the culture, and so much relaxing family time. There were a few small bumps (hot water issues, wifi, potholes, issue with rental car) but overall, the sights, sounds, conversations, experiences, and beauty, is what we will remember most.

We ate a clean-out-the-fridge breakfast while we watched the ocean from the back deck. It has been good to have this family time together. Boogs is now 18, hopefully he will continue to go on trips with us as he makes his way into adulthood. 

One last look at Sega Na Leqa while getting ready to head to the airport in Bablu's cab. Bablu does all of the maintenance and repair work on his cab. He told us it is a 1996 Toyota that was originally used as a taxi in Japan. He has had the car for seven years. The floorboards are very rusted, so he frequently puts fresh cardboard in the floorboards to keep it looking nice and clean. 

The Savusavu airport is small and completely outdoors. This is the runway. We were lucky with the timing of our trip. The airport was scheduled to close, four days after we left, to have the runway resurfaced. The other airport on the island is a 1.5 hour drive from Savusavu.

There are about seven benches in a covered pavilion for the waiting area.

When you check in for your flight, they have you hold your personal carry on item and stand on a scale. They arrange passengers to balance the weight of the plane. We got to the airport early and were able to get on the flight an hour before our original flight was scheduled. The small plane used for flights into Savusavu airport has 19 seats on it, 17 were filled.

Wheels up for our last look at Vanua Levu. We were sad to say goodbye to Vanua Levu. It was an hour long flight back to Nadi. Unfortunately, my head congestion was a problem. My ears became so pressurized and painful, I was in absolute tears during the flight. When we landed, I could not hear out of my left ear and could barely hear out of my right ear. 

We had a 10 hour and 50 minute flight from Nadi to LA. It was rough on my ears. We had enough layover time to grab food and drinks before our final flight home to Austin.

It was a 25 hour travel day. We left the Savusavu airport at 2:45 on Friday afternoon. But, because we crossed the international date line and many time zones, we arrived home in Austin at 8:30 Friday night. We were exhausted. I still could not hear well and my ears were still hurting when we got home. We grabbed fast food on the ride home from the airport, ate, and fell into bed. It was an amazing trip!

Family Vacation in Fiji Day 12 June 2024 - Flora Tropica Garden

Today was our last full day in Fiji. We had a slow start to our day. We had planned on driving to the other side of the island to do a bit more exploring but we ran out of time. So instead, we drove about 15 minutes down the road to visit the Jean-Michel Cousteau Resort. It is supposed to be beautiful with a lovely beach. When we arrived we were turned away because only resort guests were allowed on the property. So we tried to figure out something else to do that was close by. I remembered reading about Flora Tropica Gardens. When we looked it up, it was a short drive from our rental property. Unfortunately, our internet service was spotty and GPS had us turn down the wrong road. We drove up and up on a steep and narrow dirt road. We ended up at a dead end on someone's property. When we made it back down to the where we turned off of the main road, we saw this little sign on the road right next to where we were.

The website said Flora Tropica Gardens had daily tours, but sign on the gate said tours were by appointment only. We called the number on the gate sign but no one answered the call. We left a message and then walked in the unlocked and open gate to look for someone to see about a tour. We followed the first of many signs that said "this way". Turns out the signs were pointing the way to the actual trail. We followed the trail for a bit and then turned back to the entrance. We didn't see any workers in the gardens.

The trails at Flora Tropica Gardens were made with elevated wooden walkways. Everything was so lush, vibrant, and green.

There were identification signs posted showing the name and country of origin of plants, trees, and shrubs. A sign said the gardens have more than 250 varieties of palm trees and 40 types of fruit trees. It was such a pretty trail and so well laid out. I would have liked to have a guided tour to tell us more about how the gardens were started and kept up.

I loved the way this flowering tree arched over the walkway.

There was no sign by this tree so I am not sure what it is. The red parts felt velvety and soft.

There were gorgeous views out to the ocean. There was a stairway leading up to another trail, but we turned back after about 15 minutes and headed back to the entrance. The ocean view from the higher trail must have been amazing.

My husband looking out towards the ocean view of Savusavu Bay.

Boogs posing in his souvenir tropical shirt. He is such a cutie.

This is a Teddy Bear Palm. The brown part was very fuzzy looking.

Heading back down the trail. Man there were a lot of steps!

About 30 minutes after we left, I got a message from the person running the tours saying they were closed today. Oops, I guess we were trespassing. Someone forgot to lock the gate. 

We made it back to Sega Na Leqa, our rental, in time to meet Veri, the masseuse, for an end of trip massage for each of us. After our massages, we swam in the pool while a chef cooked our dinner for out last night in Fiji. The food was, once again, delicious! I was so happy not to have to cook dinner or clean the kitchen on our last night.

Last sunset in Fiji. 

I really enjoyed this view from the back deck during the two weeks we were there. Sega Na Leqa is such an amazing, comfortable, and well thought out property. We are truly going to miss it.

Family Vacation in Fiji Day 11 June 2024 - Last dive day in Fiji

Today was our last dive day in Fiji. I considered not going diving. During the night, I became completely congested and started coughing. I only slept about two hours. My husband said he was feeling better but still had a lingering cough. Congested and coughing is not the best way to scuba dive. I took an Advil Sinus and hoped for the best. I figured if I was unable to dive, I would still have a nice boat.

For our last diving day, Koro Sun Dive took us to Grand Canyon and Dream House dive sites. Dive master Jeff told us about the "magic coral" we would see on the dive. If you gently touch the coral in one spot, it will turn white and the color change will spread across the coral. After a few minutes it turns back to its original color. Boogs touched this coral while my husband filmed the color change.

Just before our second dive, Boogs noticed air leaking out of my husband's regulator hose. Jeff switched out the regulator hose, but the replacement hose also had a leak. Jeff swapped out his own hose to give to my husband. Jeff took the hose with the slower leak. He said his best piece of advice if things go wrong while diving is, "If you panic, be sure to panic slowly." Luckily, the leaky hose was not a problem during the dive.

We saw several gray reef sharks on this dive. We were still hoping to see some hammerhead sharks, but they didn't show themselves. The quick turn this shark made, makes me a little nervous about being in the water with them.

My husband followed these two fish for a while. They moved so gracefully together.

I think this is a carpet anemone. They were all over the coral reefs in Fiji. Some were quite large. I really liked watching them sway with the current.

I had a few coughing fits while diving but nothing too bad that made me not want to complete both dives. We had an awesome dive day.

Koro Sun Dive had an amazing dive crew. We appreciated their professionalism, competitive price, and the relaxed and adventurous atmosphere on their dive boat. We met interesting divers on each of our dive days. I really jealous of some of our fellow dives - the American couple on an extended holiday which began in Japan in March to see the cherry blossoms and will continue throughout the summer, the Australian couple on a four month tour through Polynesia and the South Pacific, and the young German guy who was traveling for several months just because. I would love to have an extended, island hopping trip some day. But for now, I am so happy we were able to have this beautiful family vacation.

Today's dives were a great way to finish our diving adventures in Fiji.

Family Vacation in Fiji Day 10 June 2024 - Sightseeing in Savusavu

We had a busy day on our 10th day in Fiji. Dee, the house manager and chef for our rental property, offered to accompany us to several local sites/attractions. We went to KokoMana Chocolate Factory, Nakama Hot Springs, Nawi Island Marina, shopping in downtown Savusavu, and a visit to Nukubalabu Village.

KokoMana is a small chocolate factory. I was fascinated by the process of starting with cocoa seeds (the KokoMana staff say cocoa not cacao trees) and seeing how they are grown and processed to make chocolate. We were told KokoMana makes about 250 bars/packages a week. We started our tour learning about the different varieties of cocoa trees on the property and how their fruit is transformed into chocolate.

KokoMana grows four different varieties of cocoa trees. Larger cocoa fruit have a higher cocoa butter content. The trees that have smaller fruit, produce more fruit per tree than the larger fruit trees. They combine the different varieties of cocoa beans to make their chocolate.

Cocoa nibs are put in this grinding machine and it is set to grind for 12 to 15 hours to turn the nibs into smooth chocolate.

After learning a bit of the history of KokoMana, Joeli, the farm supervisor, took us on a tour to see the trees and harvesting process. The KokoMana farm was started on an abandoned cultivation area in 2013. By 2016 there were 200 thriving cocoa trees on the land. Then, Cyclone Winston (a category 5 storm) blew all of the trees down. The owners were able to stand most of the trees back up and they continued to grow. At the end of 2020 another category 5 storm flattened the area again. They stood the trees back up and kept working. Now, there are almost 500 mature trees on the property.

It takes three years from seed for a tree mature enough to produce flowers (bottom of pic) that eventually turn into cocoa fruit. The cocoa fruit turns purple (top right of pic) at about two months and then takes 6 months from flower to ripe yellow fruit.

It was really neat to learn how KokoMana tries to make chocolate as sustainably as possible. They were having problems with tree rats eating their fruit. The local government told them they could use rat poison at the base of the trees. KokoMana did not want to use poison on their property so they brought in four cats to take care of the rat problem.

Kokomana gathers about 1000 cocoa fruits a month. They use a cement block to split open the fruit.

Inside, the cocoa beans are surrounded by a pod and covered in fruit. We got to taste the fruit surrounding the cocoa pod, it kind of tasted like passion fruit.

They take the fruit and leave it out for fruit flies for a few days. The fruit flies are a necessary part of the fermentation process because they (somehow) help add yeast to the fermentation process. Then the seed pods are left to ferment under banana leaves for about 6 days before being moved to the drying racks for three weeks.

After the tour of the grounds, we went back inside for a tasting of the different varieties of bars KokoMana makes. The chocolate is made with cocoa nibs and Fiji cane sugar. They do not add emulsifiers, preservatives, or stabilizers to their chocolate. They do add natural ingredients for flavor. We each purchased a package of chocolate at the end of the tour. Boogs and I both chose chocolate covered ginger. My husband got chocolate with condensed milk. 

After leaving KokoMana we stopped back by the rental property to pick up an egg, a spoon, and a small bowl. Dee told me we would need those things at Nakama Hot Springs to boil an egg.

Dee put the egg into the hot spring water and told us to leave it there while we looked around.

There were two spots where the hot springs were bubbling up. Dee said locals cook their meals in pots covered with tarps in the hot water. She and her family come by and place chicken in a pot in the springs and then go to a nearby park while it cooks. Then they come back to the springs to eat at the picnic tables near the springs. She said it is a gathering place for locals to share food and visit with each other.

A few minutes later, the egg was boiled. 

I am not a fan of soft boiled eggs, but Boogs likes them. We all ate a little bit of it.

After we left the springs, we took a boat taxi over to Nawi Island Marina and had lunch at Skipper's Bar. Boogs was very happy with his fish and chips.

Boat ride across to Nawi.

Outdoor seating area at Skipper's Bar.

The marina is really pretty. It was opened in 2022 and was built has a haven for boats during cyclone season. "Nestled safely between three islands, Nawi, Korovesa and Nawi Lailai, it is the state of the art, custom designed Marina, engineered to provide year-round mooring." This picture is from Super Yacht News. You can see how well the boats are protected. The marina is set up with restaurants, a laundry services, swimming pool, fuel services, restrooms & showers, and retail shops.

We left the marina and drove to Nukubalavu, a traditonal Fijian village. Every Tuesday, Nukubalavu Village invites tourists in to experience traditional Fijian customs. Dee knew or was related to many people in the village. I really needed a restroom when we first arrived. Dee took me to one of her cousin's houses to use their restroom. The houses in the village were made of wood with tin roofs and are very weathered. You could tell that people did not have a lot of income. Talking with Dee, we learned that a typical wage was equivalent to $4 an hour. Prices at the grocery store were about the same as we pay in Texas. I don't know how people survive on that.

The village elders greeted each visitor with a simple Salusalu, a Fijian lei. Villagers sang a welcome song to their guests. 

The village elders organized the visitors before walking us through the village to the community center. They asked for men and boys to walk ahead of women and girls. Women visitors had to have their shoulders and knees covered to enter the village. Once we reached the community center, a prayer was said and the kava the visitors brought was presented to the village chief.

We really enjoyed listening to the singing. The villagers were very welcoming and seemed happy.

Visitors were asked to dance with the villagers. My husband is on the left in this photo.

Boogs joined in too. He looked a little nervous while dancing. 

The dance transformed into a giant conga line for several minutes before we returned to our seats to see the traditional dances of the villagers.

After the dancing, there were several different demonstrations - making a basket, opening coconuts in various ways, and information about village life.

This basket was made in about 10 minutes.

After the singing, dancing, and demonstrations, we shopped the tables of handmade items for sale. My husband bought a war club. Boogs and I had already bought souvenirs when we went to the Vuodomo village and waterfall.

Dee told us that the Chief of the Nubalavu Village is one of the highest chiefs on the island. She askes the Chief if it would be possible to get a picture with him. There are about 300 people in the village. This village holds the title of Tui Na Savusavu, the highest title in the land of Savusavu.

I enjoy talking with people and learning about their lives. I had a conversation with a women who is my age but is also two years older than me. While we were talking about our kids, we discovered we were born in the same year. When she was 16, she got pregnant. She told me that is not something that was allowed and the father of her child had an uncle who worked in the government offices. The uncle changed the year on her birth certificate from 1970 to 1968 so that her child's birth would be proper. She had to leave school and get married, then "properly" have her child. To this day, she is still legally two years older than she really is. Another lady told me about her life. She is one of 17 children. She is in her mid-30s and has four children of her own. She said her husband does not like to work, so she is "the strong one for the family". She was born in Savusavu, then went to Nadi at 18 to work in a resort. She worked in the kitchens at a resort and the head chef encouraged her to take classes and get a culinary certificate. She said it took her two years to finish the program, but then she could work as a chef. She returned to Sasvusavu to work. She married and started a family. Before she had kids, she said she was on the Savusavu rowing team. She misses the joy of that but wants to work hard to do what is best for her children. 

We had such a great day learning more about the culture of Fiji. I am glad my husband was feeling better today and got to enjoy the sights of Savusavu. By evening, I think I started to catch his cold and was not feeling so great. We had a quiet evening at our rental property and went to bed early.

Family Fiji Vacation Day 8 & 9 June 2024 - Kayaking Salt Lake

My husband was feeling a bit worse than he had the previous evening so we had a quiet morning at the rental property. He felt up to keeping our afternoon plans, kayaking at Salt Lake. This picture of Salt Lake is from Tourism Fiji (https://www.fiji.travel/places-to-go/vanua-levu/places/salt-lake)

The lake is an inland sea fed by the ocean's tides. It covers about 100 acres. We rented kayaks from Mangrove Jacks Kayaks. They were in the process of finishing building their dock area. The company is very safety conscious. Our guide Bandroo, led us down the tidal river to Salt Lake while another tour guide "followed at a discreet distance" in a small motor boat for our safety.

Waiting for everyone to get in their kayak.

Heading towards Salt Lake, we heard a lot of barking dogs and a loud squealing pig. Our guide told us there are lots of wild pigs in the mountains. Fijian locals hunt the pigs with dogs and spears. We were hearing an active hunt. 

This was such a peaceful way to spend the day. The weather was perfect - sunny and not too hot.

We kayaked around the perimeter of the lake.

Boogs was so relaxed that at one point I thought he had fallen asleep in his kayak. 

We were there for a couple of hours and I enjoyed every minute of it.

There was an island of mangrove trees in the middle of the lake. Our guide told us a story about how the island has been there since Fijians were still cannibals. He said a chief used the island to escape being eaten by his enemies. I could not quite understand his story and am not sure of its accuracy.

There were snails all over the trees on the mangrove island.

My co-worker gave me these glasses for my trip so I had to take a picture wearing them.

There is a floating dock on the lake. Our guide and the boat driver met up with some people they knew at the floating dock and started having a picnic. The owner of Mangrove Jacks said we were renting the kayaks for two hours. So at the two hour mark, we asked when we needed to head back. Bandroo told us it would be too difficult to head back for 3 hours because we needed to wait for the tide to turn before we paddled back. That did not sound right to us. The people at the floating dock offered us lunch. My husband was starting to feel worse, so we really were ready to go. After about half an hour of Boogs, my husband and me floating in one spot a little ways from the dock, Bandroo decided it would be a good time to go back. The paddle back was not difficult. I think he just wanted to hang out with his friends.

When we returned to Mangrove Jacks, they told us to paddle all the way down the side of the dock, instead of at the end where we first loaded into the kayaks, so it would be easier for them to get the kayaks out of the water. The waterway beside the dock was narrow, shallow, and difficult to navigate. There was not really enough room to properly use the paddles, The paddles kept hitting the dock and mud just below the surface. 

They told us to stay in the kayak while they tried to pull it up the bank by rolling it up and over some moving pvc pipes. They flipped the kayak sideways and dumped my husband into the muddy water. His foot got stuck in the mud, he almost lost his shoe, and had a hard time getting out of the mud to crawl up the bank. He was not happy at all! What a way to mess up a peaceful afternoon. 

The owner apologized and let my husband go into the house and take a shower. Luckily, we brought a dry change of clothes with us. The owner tried to get all of the mud off my husband's shoes. They picked some bananas off their tree and gave them to us as an apology. 

We spent part of the evening in the pool before dinner then watched another beautiful sunset.

There was a big rainstorm on the morning of day 9. We were supposed to be on a scuba boat at 8:30 but we canceled. Overcast skies and stirred up water does not make for good diving conditions, plus my husband was still not feeling well. He spent most of the day resting in bed. Boogs and I hung out in the pool for a good part of the day. During the afternoon, Boogs and I took a cab into town to go to the grocery store. It was a really quiet day.