Bula Fam and Friends,
After settling into our sketchy backpackers hostel in downtown Nadi we explored the town a bit and did a little souviner shopping before setting in for an early evening. My ear became evidently more painful since I had left Beachcomber and I told myself I would go see a doctor after the ear drops I bought from the chemist hadn't done much to seize the pain. After dead bolting our door and tossing and turning because of the loud music from a night club just outside I managed to almost fall asleep until our Thailand song came on "Beautiful Girl." I couldn't help but doze off fairly quickly to where we'd left off in Thailand having such an incredible time. The next thing I remember is waking up with an insane throbbing feeling of an ear infection in my ear and so the next morning at the crack of down I went to the doctor and got properly treated. I am feeling a lot better but still pretty timid to get on a plane when my ear is already popping like crazy and I haven't even reached altitude yet, might need a cocktail or two on this flight!
The day after I saw the doctor Jay and I strolled around town for a bit more and bought our gifts and did some price haggling like in any third world country and than got a taxi new town, where most the backpackers went. The first day like the previous days it continued to rain here and there so we made friends sitting around doing nothing with an Australian guy and a couple of Spanish girls. I definitely took a liking to one of the Spanish girls right away and flirted with her most the day off and on which kept my entertained. We decided since it was Saturday and all to finish off the Whiskey we'd been lugging around since we bought it at duty free in the airport a week prior. It does sound like we drink a lot but it's just that we don't drink that much, it's just where all the funny stories come from! Anyway, we played some cards and than the six of us by this time grabbed a cab and went to a popular local bar up the road called "Eds." Jay and I ran the pool table for a bit playing some Fijians and dancing a little in between. Jay had met a Canadian girl who was actually from this island but had moved away when she was young. She was insanely gorgeous but a little snobby so Jay and I kind of brushed her off, sorta. I was pretty keen on the Spanish girl so I continued my pursuit which paid off and I ended up having a great night with her, even if it did end up on a beach and getting caught by a creepy local with a flashlight! Yesterday we caught a little sun so we lounged around and read our books. I took a afternoon siesta and got woke up by Jay at around 4pm saying we were going fishing so just like that off we went! A guy named Ali, an Indian guy, picked us up and took us to grab some beers and than drove on to the beach. We were greeted by his son Z and the captain on their twenty foot or so length fishing boat. We ventured off to their secret spot while trolling along the way (trolling is letting your line drift alongside the boat while moving) and about five minutes into our trip my pull started to bend. Reeling the sucker in it was a Traveli about a foot long. We started the engine back up and our captain prepared the Traveli raw with some soy sauce and hot sauce and it was incredible good, literally fresh right off the boat! About a half hour later we got to the spot and dropped a different line deep to the bottom with bait on it, not a lure like when trolling. The owner's boy began catching multiple little strippers and black spots while the fish just kept nibbling and snatching our bait without getting caught on our hooks. As soon as dusk approached, Jay and I were feeling the six beers having a great time while we watched the sunset over the outter islands. Beer in hand and fishing pull near on a boat fishing in Fiji I thought what an incredible experience we've had. Jay and I both cheers to that and minutes later our lines started to rip forward. First Jay caught a litte stripper, than I caught a baby Tiger Shark and than a Macrow right after! Shortly after that the owner's boy caught a pretty big sized Traveli and about ten minutes after that I caught a massive Traveli! Casting down into the depts while it rained on us and sitting their in board shorts was the greatest feeling in the world. Shortly after we called it a day and walked back to our hostel after getting dropped off on the beach. Our cook at our hostel cooked us up our big catch and we feasted like starving cave man did back some tens of thousands of years ago. Fresh fish caught just hours ago, I can't explain how delicious it was but it was insanely delicious if that's any constitute! After our bellies were stuffed I waited for my Spanish girl to get back but than I gave up and just went to bed early.
I met up with her today and spent most the day hanging around water with her, her friend, Jay and some of the other kids around our hostel. It started to rain again a couple hours ago and we're going to catch a movie here and than probably pack our finally pack job before getting on the next plane out of here to LA.
I am anxious to get home but I know the feeling as it happends every time I've traveled. The first week is a reverse culture shock and a readjustment period. It'll be so good to see friends and family and catch up on everything. I mean, I really have no idea what's happened back home as I've never been around any form of news or TV in the last four and a half months! And then, after that week has passed I am going to go through a pretty depressive state where I just want to pack up my backpack and grab the next flight to Cairo, explore Egypt and than hop over to Jordan! I am ready though to dive into Real Estate and try and fill the incredibly large shoes my Mom has provided me with. I am excited for the challenges ahead but I am definately sad to leave the tracks I've paved behind. I'll write one more entry when I am in LA or back home and than I'm back into the mix, an ordinary boring person with the same stories as everyone, no 9-5 thank God but a similar monster will be awaiting my arrival back in Portland. Well, time to pack my bags, best be off. I do ask one thing, if you've been reading my entries their's a link to post a comment and I'd love to know who's been following along my amazing journey, at least so I felt I had some purpose writing them. See you all soon...
Love,
Grant
Sunday, January 6, 2008
Thursday, January 3, 2008
Bula from Fiji!
Bula Bula Friends and Fam,
Leaving Cook Islands turned out to be a bit of a hassle as we got to the airport at nearly 4am and were the last ones of our flight because our ticket situation after our flights got changed midway through our trip to Fiji. Instead of a direct flight we had a day layover in Auckland which we were not thrilled about. Let me start off by saying New Zealand air kicks ass because they put us up in a nice hotel with free meals and boy did we spoil ourselves! It was so nice to be in our own rooms with AC and a flat screen TV which we hadn't seen in a long time. Also, I was in a pissy mood getting off the flight because somewhere I picked up some kind of ear infection and it took a full day for my ear to pop finally. Oh and I just got medicine for my ear problem I've been dealing with for almost a week now because I have been trapped on an island with no pharmacy, internet, or phones of any kind, but I'll get to that in a bit. Tom came and visited us one last time at our hotel before we took off the next day which was cool because chances are we'll probably never cross paths again for a long time if we ever do.
Getting into Fiji we had no idea how to get to the island we were staying on but luckily for us they had a travel agency in the airport which got everything sorted out for us, going with the wind works again somehow! After about an hour ferry ride we arrived at Beachcomber Island which you can walk around in under 8 minutes, I was board and timed it one day. It's world renown as having been a party island for quite a few years, in fact I met a guy on the bus today that had worked there back in the 70's and he said it was raging then! That's why we decided to make our home there for the next four days that would take us into the new year and prove to be an insane night of partying. The first day we just mellowed out and played some volleyball and made friends with some Aussies. We were stoked that we got to play for awhile because the next two days were so hot that you couldn't play on the sand or you'd literally burn your feet!
The next day we new years day and we made friends with a bunch of Kiwi guys that we'd cruise with for the rest of the trip. We all bought our own alcohol at the duty free store at the airport so we all went down the beach to start off our new years eve a little early. While we sat down some Tassie girls walking by with glow sticks on decided to join us and by now we had about 15 of us chilling and talking story with some drinks on the sand. We made our way to the only bar on the island with roughly a couple hundred other kids and danced the night away. Jay thought it'd be a good idea to each buy a bottle of champaign. After that, counting down from 10 and drinking to the New Year and hanging out with one of the Tassie chicks for a little bit I woke up in my bed! What a good night, and after hanging out and sharing stories the next morning I found out that not everyone was as lucky as I to wake up in their beds! One of the Kiwi boys woke up face first in the sand and Jay also was woke up by one of the girls we know guess how, face first in the sand!
New Years day we lounged around the beach and took the day off haha. It was good to talk with the Kiwi boys because they were really interested in our travels and pretty dumb founded that we'd been to Tibet! One of the boys had traveled before but the rest were pretty inquisitive so it was fun to try and stir the travel bug in their system and hopefully get them out there because I know they'd have a blast. That day Jay ad I book a diving trip with sharks on another island but ended up canceling the trip because my ear infection has still been bothering me and it was probably a good idea because we are nearly broke as well! The last day it started to rain pretty hard so we were confined to the bar which meant one thing, time to hop on the booze train! I taught the Kiwi boys a new game that they thought was a little intense and got a good laugh out of them. After we played another game we got the Kiwi boys proclaiming they were Aussies and Jay and I were doing ridiculous general calls and dancing, it got the troops rallied and made way for a great kick off to our last night. I ended up running into a girl from Seattle that I'd met real briefly earlier in the day and ended up hanging out with her the rest of the night and had a blast. Waking up in the hot muggy 100 person dorm we were staying in I said bye to the cutie from Seattle, to the Kiwi boys, and the Aussie girls we had hung with as well and took off on the ferry back to the main land. The ferry ride was a little aggravating as my head was pounding and the rains picked up and of course my pack was somewhere I wasn't on the boat and I was in my boardies and sandals! Getting off the ferry we got a bus ride to town where we had no idea where our hostel was and how to get there, pretty typical for us haha. We grabbed some grub to fill our stomachs and met a taxi cab driver named what else other than George. Jay got some money stolen on the ferry ride over so we went to the police station first and file a claim for our travel insurance to get reimbursed. We were in pretty crap moods so George brightened our spirits a bit and helped us find the way to get to our hostel, most of the time talking in third person and reminding us that he was the best taxi driver known to man, a true character! Getting to our hostel which was further away from town than expected we were greeted with emptiness as the massive hostel was virtually deserted except for an English couple and four English girls we hung out with for a bit.
Today, we woke up thinking it was 11 according to my watch which proved to be wrong and only 8 so we got some breaky and caught the bus back to town. Right before getting on the bus one of the Aussie girls we'd met briefly told us the bus was quite the adventure and of course we shrugged her comment off. I mean we'd been on buses along cliff sides thousands of feet up with the tire hanging over the edge, on buses where you virtually are standing wedged between person to person with just an air bubble to breath out of, on buses where you had to keep one eye on your bag and one eye on your pockets, on buses that have broken down more than once, so of course we thought nothing of her comment about the cheap two dollar bus. As we boarded the bus with our packs we were greeted by smiles and two empty seats, perfect so far. As we progressed up the pot infested roads we stopped about every five minutes to pick up more Fijians. By about a half hour into the trip we both had our bags on our laps and were scrunched together with more people than the 30 capacity occupancy the label above the door proclaimed. The drive was very humbling as people would stare for a bit but smile as soon as you caught them. I spent most the time starring out the window at the houses you would consider shacks back in the states but that people lived in with the brightest smiles ever as we passed them. Horses ran freely and the cows looked fairly famined amongst an incredibly lush hillside inhabited with tropical plants of all sorts. As I began to get lost in my music and looking out the window I was suddenly through forward into the front of my seat as apparently a passing car had cut infront of us right before the bridge and we slammed into the back of him. We were stopped on the middle of the bridge and after everyone caught their breath the bus driver inched across to the other side to get an inspection of the damage. Jay and I both looked back at each other we a puzzle expression as we had no idea what had happened and let out a sly chuckle as if to say "Can't say we didn't expect this!" The driver drove about another ten minutes before fumes started to arise and we pulled the 1950's bus with no windows off the side of the road. They sent another bus as one of the gentleman explained the situation to us so in the mean time Jay and I through out our fingers but had no luck. We got on the next bus reluctantly but still with a smile on our faces that we exchanged once again with the Fijians on the bus. We made friends with some old guys who were curious about California and America which proved to be in our luck because they showed us around town and found us a hostel once we finally reached town 2 hours later! A smile and casual conversation saved us the time of walking around aimlessly with our packs on our backs so we were stoked.
Downtown Nadi is pretty dirty and not the paradise that we left on the islands but we are adjusting accordingly. I don't have enough time on the internet as always and have to get going but I hope to hear from everyone when I get home on the 8th! Jay and I both concluded today that we are ready to come home and re adjust to the way things used to be about some 4 and a half months ago but for now I've got to go catch a bus!
Bula,
Grant
Leaving Cook Islands turned out to be a bit of a hassle as we got to the airport at nearly 4am and were the last ones of our flight because our ticket situation after our flights got changed midway through our trip to Fiji. Instead of a direct flight we had a day layover in Auckland which we were not thrilled about. Let me start off by saying New Zealand air kicks ass because they put us up in a nice hotel with free meals and boy did we spoil ourselves! It was so nice to be in our own rooms with AC and a flat screen TV which we hadn't seen in a long time. Also, I was in a pissy mood getting off the flight because somewhere I picked up some kind of ear infection and it took a full day for my ear to pop finally. Oh and I just got medicine for my ear problem I've been dealing with for almost a week now because I have been trapped on an island with no pharmacy, internet, or phones of any kind, but I'll get to that in a bit. Tom came and visited us one last time at our hotel before we took off the next day which was cool because chances are we'll probably never cross paths again for a long time if we ever do.
Getting into Fiji we had no idea how to get to the island we were staying on but luckily for us they had a travel agency in the airport which got everything sorted out for us, going with the wind works again somehow! After about an hour ferry ride we arrived at Beachcomber Island which you can walk around in under 8 minutes, I was board and timed it one day. It's world renown as having been a party island for quite a few years, in fact I met a guy on the bus today that had worked there back in the 70's and he said it was raging then! That's why we decided to make our home there for the next four days that would take us into the new year and prove to be an insane night of partying. The first day we just mellowed out and played some volleyball and made friends with some Aussies. We were stoked that we got to play for awhile because the next two days were so hot that you couldn't play on the sand or you'd literally burn your feet!
The next day we new years day and we made friends with a bunch of Kiwi guys that we'd cruise with for the rest of the trip. We all bought our own alcohol at the duty free store at the airport so we all went down the beach to start off our new years eve a little early. While we sat down some Tassie girls walking by with glow sticks on decided to join us and by now we had about 15 of us chilling and talking story with some drinks on the sand. We made our way to the only bar on the island with roughly a couple hundred other kids and danced the night away. Jay thought it'd be a good idea to each buy a bottle of champaign. After that, counting down from 10 and drinking to the New Year and hanging out with one of the Tassie chicks for a little bit I woke up in my bed! What a good night, and after hanging out and sharing stories the next morning I found out that not everyone was as lucky as I to wake up in their beds! One of the Kiwi boys woke up face first in the sand and Jay also was woke up by one of the girls we know guess how, face first in the sand!
New Years day we lounged around the beach and took the day off haha. It was good to talk with the Kiwi boys because they were really interested in our travels and pretty dumb founded that we'd been to Tibet! One of the boys had traveled before but the rest were pretty inquisitive so it was fun to try and stir the travel bug in their system and hopefully get them out there because I know they'd have a blast. That day Jay ad I book a diving trip with sharks on another island but ended up canceling the trip because my ear infection has still been bothering me and it was probably a good idea because we are nearly broke as well! The last day it started to rain pretty hard so we were confined to the bar which meant one thing, time to hop on the booze train! I taught the Kiwi boys a new game that they thought was a little intense and got a good laugh out of them. After we played another game we got the Kiwi boys proclaiming they were Aussies and Jay and I were doing ridiculous general calls and dancing, it got the troops rallied and made way for a great kick off to our last night. I ended up running into a girl from Seattle that I'd met real briefly earlier in the day and ended up hanging out with her the rest of the night and had a blast. Waking up in the hot muggy 100 person dorm we were staying in I said bye to the cutie from Seattle, to the Kiwi boys, and the Aussie girls we had hung with as well and took off on the ferry back to the main land. The ferry ride was a little aggravating as my head was pounding and the rains picked up and of course my pack was somewhere I wasn't on the boat and I was in my boardies and sandals! Getting off the ferry we got a bus ride to town where we had no idea where our hostel was and how to get there, pretty typical for us haha. We grabbed some grub to fill our stomachs and met a taxi cab driver named what else other than George. Jay got some money stolen on the ferry ride over so we went to the police station first and file a claim for our travel insurance to get reimbursed. We were in pretty crap moods so George brightened our spirits a bit and helped us find the way to get to our hostel, most of the time talking in third person and reminding us that he was the best taxi driver known to man, a true character! Getting to our hostel which was further away from town than expected we were greeted with emptiness as the massive hostel was virtually deserted except for an English couple and four English girls we hung out with for a bit.
Today, we woke up thinking it was 11 according to my watch which proved to be wrong and only 8 so we got some breaky and caught the bus back to town. Right before getting on the bus one of the Aussie girls we'd met briefly told us the bus was quite the adventure and of course we shrugged her comment off. I mean we'd been on buses along cliff sides thousands of feet up with the tire hanging over the edge, on buses where you virtually are standing wedged between person to person with just an air bubble to breath out of, on buses where you had to keep one eye on your bag and one eye on your pockets, on buses that have broken down more than once, so of course we thought nothing of her comment about the cheap two dollar bus. As we boarded the bus with our packs we were greeted by smiles and two empty seats, perfect so far. As we progressed up the pot infested roads we stopped about every five minutes to pick up more Fijians. By about a half hour into the trip we both had our bags on our laps and were scrunched together with more people than the 30 capacity occupancy the label above the door proclaimed. The drive was very humbling as people would stare for a bit but smile as soon as you caught them. I spent most the time starring out the window at the houses you would consider shacks back in the states but that people lived in with the brightest smiles ever as we passed them. Horses ran freely and the cows looked fairly famined amongst an incredibly lush hillside inhabited with tropical plants of all sorts. As I began to get lost in my music and looking out the window I was suddenly through forward into the front of my seat as apparently a passing car had cut infront of us right before the bridge and we slammed into the back of him. We were stopped on the middle of the bridge and after everyone caught their breath the bus driver inched across to the other side to get an inspection of the damage. Jay and I both looked back at each other we a puzzle expression as we had no idea what had happened and let out a sly chuckle as if to say "Can't say we didn't expect this!" The driver drove about another ten minutes before fumes started to arise and we pulled the 1950's bus with no windows off the side of the road. They sent another bus as one of the gentleman explained the situation to us so in the mean time Jay and I through out our fingers but had no luck. We got on the next bus reluctantly but still with a smile on our faces that we exchanged once again with the Fijians on the bus. We made friends with some old guys who were curious about California and America which proved to be in our luck because they showed us around town and found us a hostel once we finally reached town 2 hours later! A smile and casual conversation saved us the time of walking around aimlessly with our packs on our backs so we were stoked.
Downtown Nadi is pretty dirty and not the paradise that we left on the islands but we are adjusting accordingly. I don't have enough time on the internet as always and have to get going but I hope to hear from everyone when I get home on the 8th! Jay and I both concluded today that we are ready to come home and re adjust to the way things used to be about some 4 and a half months ago but for now I've got to go catch a bus!
Bula,
Grant
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