In countries all over the world people refer to large cities as ‘the big smoke’, but Lautoka in Fiji takes the cake. Lautoka (which henceforth shall be known as Lausmokea) is the home of Fiji’s cane sugar mill. It burns heavy fuel oil (HFO), which is about as dirty as you can get, and belches thick black smoke across the horizon. The entire city…
For those of you who aren’t facebook geeks – I have put up enough photos for you to be thoroughly sick of. You can find the public links for them here: Fiji (general) http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150326314601420.390850.619276419&l=0842b70da6&type=1 Eakau Village (Fiji) http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150323254516420.390016.619276419&l=af12fb0bf0&type=1 Nuiatoputapu (Tonga) http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150326885886420.391009.619276419&l=2a01a544db&type=1 For those who have missed the links on previous blogs you can find the rest here:…
I know what you are all thinking but this is not a blog about drunken sailors (we are all teetotalers of course!) Instead of poor quality booze, ‘grog’ in Fiji is what the locals call kava. Kava is a mild narcotic brewed from the root of a type of pepper plant. It looks like dirty dishwater, tastes like slightly peppery…
Sorry for the blog double up – I have a bit of a backlog and am sending them all now that we have a bit of downtime. Our jump off point to the Yasawas was Kia Island – a little place where I learned a lot. The island is broken up into three villages, the largest boasting just over 100…
(Sorry that the blogs are a little out of order here. I still have another Tonga one to go but I’m going to cheat and jump ahead to Fiji) We have been in Fiji for a couple of weeks now and have had quite an interesting time. Our first stop was a lovely little town called Savusavu where we met…
One of the more fascinating spots in Vava’u is Mariner’s cave. Tucked into the side of Nuapapu Island, the entrance is a big black hole a couple of metres below the surface of the water (depending on the tide). From there you swim down a short passage and surface in an air pocket inside an incredible cave. The unusual…
Hi all, Photos from Tonga are now up on facebook. The public link is here: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150300768086420.384087.619276419&l=b410cc26ee There are more from Vava’u to come and a blog and pics of a cave dive we did on the way xxx
Hi all, Just a quick note to let you know we have arrived safe and sound in Fiji. We’re waiting for customs and a health inspector to come prowl around the boat (I hope we are healthy enough!) It’s 30 degrees with 73% humidity and we are pretty much melting at the moment but I’m not complaining since I am…
(photographic evidence to come) Last week I got excited about a new laundry bucket. A couple of days ago I baked bread. Yesterday I actually asked a neighbour if I could borrow a cup of sugar (okay, it was baking soda, but it was still just as scary!) Anyone who knows me well will see what is wrong with this…
It’s hosing down with rain today – serious tropical rain. The type that floods the dinghy, fills the water tanks in half an hour and soaks you to the bone if you so much as stick your head outside the cockpit. Unlike Wellington though, the rain here has the decency to fall downwards instead of diagonally and it’s not exactly…