Our last blog finished with us back out of the water and a leak to be fixed. G and the mechanic removed and re-installed the sail drive on Monday, but then we found out we had some propeller damage. G did some research and ordered new props from New Zealand. Given we were a bit fed up with only seeing the marina, we decided to leave the boat for a few days while we waited for our props to arrive. Accommodation booked, we left on Wednesday morning to circumnavigate the island by car.
Our first stop was Sunset Beach near Rakiraki and our home was Bularangi villa. P loved having a full kitchen, G could relax without boat jobs to do, and the kids loved the pool.
The following day we went diving with Wananavu resort. Our first dive site was Dream maker where we saw lots of fish, a couple of white tipped reef sharks and a moray eel. We also swam through a tunnel which was pretty cool. J played boat Captain as he isn't old enough yet to learn.
After our dive we stayed on board out at the reef and chatted with the crew before going to our second dive site. H and J got to drive the boat which they loved. S, G and P dove the Golden dream site (H and E were too cold), aptly named for the abundance of golden coloured coral. We spotted a few moray eels, some beautiful lion fish, a scorpion fish, and the rare ghost pipe fish. The ghost pipe fish looked a bit like a piece of see grass, so very difficult to identify.
After a tasty lunch at the resort we spent the afternoon just hanging out at the villa, swimming in the pool and enjoying the gorgeous views.
Early the next morning we set off for Suva. We drove through the mountains and passed several small villages, all taking turns to yell out “Bula Bula” to the locals. When we arrived in Suva G wasn't happy about the traffic, it took us 10 minutes to drive 50 metres! We had a quick look around and got out of there.
We continued around the island to Tambua Sands resort on the coral coast. It was a lovely small resort right on the beach. On Saturday we drove to Sigatoka sand dunes. We did the 20 minute walk to the dunes and attempted to surf down the dunes on some big sheets of cardboard - without much success but it was fun trying.
From there we wandered along the beach where there were heaps of teepee like shelters that the park had built for people to stop and rest in.
After returning via a lovely forest walk we got back in our trusty Toyota and returned to the resort. We spent Sunday lazing around, doing some kayaking and snorkelling.
Monday morning we headed to Laselase village where Simon (one of the staff from the boatshed restaurant at Vuda marina) lives. After asking a few people we found his family home. Simon happened to be home as he was on holidays so he showed us around. We walked through the village and he explained a bit about their customs and village life. S, E, H and J all liked the idea that if your mum is making a meal you don’t like, you can just go to another house in the village and they will feed you. There was a great sense of community.
Burning off sugar cane. Slowed the traffic for a while..
Mini holiday over, back to Vuda Marina and Be and Be to get the props fitted and get out sailing!