Day 6 – We relocated to Nadi two days before our flight on to Sydney. The weather on the west coast of Viti Levu was much better and we made the most of it. During our day in Nadi we went to the Garden of the Sleeping Giant, the mud pools and hot springs of Sabeto.
The Garden of the Sleeping Giant was really nice and filled with orchids, tropical plants, fruit trees, and a large frog pond. We explored the site, and climbed a large ridge for a view of the Pacific Ocean. It was HOT though.
We continued on with our car to the mud pools and hot springs of Sabeto. The complex had well manicured gardens, between the four hot pools. Our host explained the process to us, and we set off to coat ourselves in mud. After letting the mud dry, we proceeded to move from one pool to the next to wash off the mud. The progress from pool to pool is important to ensure cleanliness of the water.
Two lessons were learned:
1/ After the mud dries, it shrinks. The shrinking mud starts to pull at all your hairs. For most folks this is not a concern. I was very concerned, as the dried mud split, cracked, and pulled away from my skin while well affixed to my hair.
2/ Mud is a lubricant. While in the wash down process the mud made my rings very slippery. My wedding ring slid off of my finger and has been swallowed by the muddy ooze on the floor of the first hot pool. The management at Sabeto has my email address, but I suspect I will not hear from them regarding my lost wedding band.
Despite the loss of my ring, we managed to have a good day, and moved on. We will look to replace my ring in our travels with something that will be unique.
Day 7 – Boat trip to the Mamanuca islands. It was so great! Our sailing trip was from Port Denarau. We left from our hotel and transferred to the port area. I guess that is how the other folks vacation. Port Denarau was very glitzy and felt very western – an extension of Australia perhaps. Our experience on Fiji was very local in comparison, and enjoyable. We motored out in the boat and went snorkelling. Fish and corals were quite good. The guide caught and held a turtle so everyone could see which wasn’t very nice for the turtle, and they were feeding the fish… but other than that it was great. Then we had a bbq lunch on an island, and the weather meant the second snorkel wasn’t going to be good so they offered a hike instead. We went up to a lookout on the island and it was nice. On the way back to Denarau we were purely under sail for a bit which was great. The crew fished along the way and caught a small blue-fin tuna. There were also gifts for the passengers woven from palm fronds.
Day 8 – Flight to Sydney and start of Aussie adventure! This has been an incredible experience so far, and we are very excited about the events of the upcoming year.
Brent And Bron Abroad 