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| Airplane Dinner + How I Met Your Mother |
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| Fijian Dollars |
Fiji is different, that’s for sure. We arrived just
before 5am this morning following a ten hour flight over the Pacific Ocean and
after walking down the covered, but no enclosed ramp to the main airport, we were
greeted by traditionally dressed Fijian men who were serenading us. It was
quite a bit much, in my opinion. Especially for five in the morning, but
whatever, I’m sure it was some people’s cup of tea.
Our hotel is basically three feet from the airport. We
could walk if we wanted to, but they provide a shuttle service. The downside to
this is that the hotel is absolutely nowhere near town. So our first free day
in Nadi, amounted to sitting around the pool, drinking the Fijian version of a
Mike’s Hard Lemonade until lunchtime.
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| Panoramic view from our hotel room |
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| Another view from the other side of the balcony |
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| The pool from our front balcony |
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| Our hotel room in Nadi |
Speaking of lunch, I ate lamb today. That’s right, I
actually consumed an animal that was not chicken. I had no idea what it was
until after it was already in my stomach, thankfully, but still I think that’s
impressive. Something tells me that Fiji is going to be full of adventurous
food choices. I don’t think the hotel breakfast will hold me off all day, even
if it does include unlimited peanut butter and bread :) They also have a decent
supply of ketchup!
To save us from our boredom, our group leader in Fiji led
us on a 30-minute ride into Nadi after lunch. Apparently, this is the last day
for the town festival, so droves of people were heading into town. The public
bus ride was quite cramped and un-air conditioned. However, they do seem to
like American party tunes here because the bus was jamming to the point my ears
started to hurt for the entirety of the ride.
Town was strange. It isn’t anything like what I would
picture when someone says Fiji. In fact, it makes me think of India, minus some
of the people. The drivers are crazy. The buildings are run down. And everyone
is trying to sell you something. Granted, I guess that could easily describe
parts of any American city as well. But let’s go with India. Especially since
we walked through a temple on our brief tour around the city.
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| One of the streets we walked down in Nadi |
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| The temple basically came out of nowhere |
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| Most of the AIFS group I'm travelling with |
The festival was quaint once we got there, but incredibly
dusty and crowded (as you would expect on not only a Saturday but the last day
of a national festival). We walked around and looked at the rides a bit, but
nothing overexcited me. I took some pictures, but you’ll notice they’re fairly
similar to the typical American carnival, albeit the rides might be a little
older.
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| There were a ton of ferris wheels and they all went different speeds |
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| There's an actual block of ice visible in the Snow Cone machine |
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| One of the public buses in Nadi |
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