NZ/FIJI Update

Fiji - Sep/Oct 06

For the sixth time in four years, I went to Fiji. I was welcomed back to Mama's Tropic of Capricorn resort in Nadi with a bowl of kava and songs of joy from the local band, the Kavaholics. "Please don't touch my Papaya," a classic on these beautiful islands was sung over and over again as bowls full of the dirt tasting kava was passed around until we all collapsed. We collapsed not due to the intoxicating effects kava is suppose to have, but due to drinking five gallons of the shit. Dreams of the Swedish bikini team prancing around the white sandy beaches soon followed...
Having been to Fiji numerous times, I knew the bikini team wasn't going to show, so I head to my favorite island in search of sun and fishies instead. Nananu-I-Ra is an island off the northeast coast of the main island. It's a lovely place with warm water, nice beaches, great snorkelling/diving, and my vote for the best island in Fiji!

Being the rainy season Nananu Lodge was very quite his time around. The weather was down right poopy. The four English lads I was traveling with and I went a bit loopy. Not loopy enough to talk to a volleyball, but we went as far as pretending to be pirates from neighboring Samoa; kayaking out to cruise liners demanding a mango, banana, or any other item of food they had. Yes, it was that lonely. A lot of Fiji Bitter was consumed, which might have had something to do with the pirate thing.

After a week on the island we head back to the mainland. Sticking with my usual Fiji routine, we stopped in the capital Suva, for a bit of rainforest trekking before heading south to the Coral Coast. Beqa Lagoon on the coast has some of the best shark diving in the world! With over nine varieties of sharks that can be seen on any one dive, it's an amazing place for shark divers. The highlight of the dives was being surrounded by hundreds of huge snapper fish while a 5m Bull shark swam within a couple meters. It's the same shark, known as 'Big Mama', that I get to see every time I come to Fiji and dive this site. I think the thrill of diving with sharks must be waning for me a bit; all I could think about during the dives is how much I like fish & chips.

New Zealand- Oct 06 to April 07

Having traveled NZ fairly thoroughly in 2003, I returned with the intention of working a bit and playing a lot.

After a week in Auckland, which gets my vote for one of the dullest cities in the world, a couple of the guys from Fiji and I went on a road trip to the Bay of Islands in the north. We spent a lot of time kayaking around the coast. The coast is stunning as there are lots of caves and crevices that we were able to kayak through. One of the kayak trips got a bit nasty as we went against the current and a wind that was strong enough to blow the brown off me. My kayak, meant to be used in kiddy swimming pools, took a beating. Massive waves threatened to send me down to Davey Jones locker. Visions of the 'perfect storm' clouded my mind as I paddled as if there was a chicken pie and ice cream waiting for me on shore. It was a painful trip, but well worth it for the views we were rewarded with.

Besides a couple trips to Queenstown and a month of trekking the Great Walks, I spent my days in Christchurch. A nice little city. Had fantastic time for most of my stay. I will say I left New Zealand quite disappointed after I realized it's a racist country that seems to betting getting worse as the years go on. It's not nearly as bad as Australia, which in my opinion is the most racist country in world, but it's worse than it should be. So can I safely say I won't be returning to NZ anytime soon. Maybe when I can afford a camel as quite a few people believe I'm a 'Camel Jockey.' To be honest I have ridden a few camels in my day but I have never owned or raced them!

Fiji - April 07

My seventh time... Needless to say, I love this place! No real stories to tell.

I am proposing a ban on Hilton Hotels as they bought most of my favorite island, Nananu-I-Ra, and they intend on destroying the island and he surrounding coral in order to build a resort and marina. Sad!