Fiji - Just another day in paradise...

Fiji. What comes to mind when you think of Fiji? Sun, endless beaches, palm trees, ocean, and a tropical paradise atmosphere. Whether all of this is really waiting for us? Or if you expect too much when you think of Fiji? We want to find out and fly from Christchurch to Nadi, where the international airport of the islands is located.

It is evening, it is tropical hot. As always on our journey, we first look for public transportation options. Bought bus tickets and off we go. Except for us, there don't seem to be any tourists who have chosen the local bus, because only locals are sitting around us. The tropical climate and the older bus that rattles over broken and palm-lined streets somehow remind us of Cuba. The pitch-black night quickly envelops us and cheesy songs from the 90s play in the bus.

We reach the Uprising Beach Resort quite late and are dropped off on the street. Now we are curious... whether everything really looks like in the photos on the Internet? At check-in, a friendly lady greets us with a hibiscus flower in her hair, and a colleague takes us to our Bure, a small wooden house just for us. The resort looks very beautiful, with palm trees and colorful flowers everywhere. When we arrive at our Bure, we are excited like little children: our own little house, plenty of space, a huge king-size bed, a sofa corner, a kitchenette, a wardrobe, and all lovingly designed. This is where we can relax! Now quite tired from today's journey, we go directly to the king-size bed and into dreamland.

The next morning, we are awakened by the gentle sound of the sea. Are we still in dreamland? Some rays of sunshine make their way past the curtains into our Bure. I go to the back door of the Bure, which we didn't really notice last night, and enter a small terrace with seating. From here, I not only hear the sea, I see it right in front of me. Vast blue, sunshine, hammocks swaying between palm trees in the wind. Maybe we really landed in paradise here. On the front side of the Bure, there is our walk-in outdoor shower and access to the colorful, tropical garden. If we ride through this, we reach the swimming pool (with a view of the sea, of course) and the restaurant. Absolutely dreamy!

Now let's see if breakfast is just as dreamy. On the way to the restaurant, we once again admire the beautiful, well-maintained resort and rejoice in the luxury of not just having our own room, but an entire little house just for ourselves. We sit at one of the outer tables, with a view of the pool, garden, and sea, and sample the breakfast buffet. Fresh fruits, coffee and juice, pancakes, cake, vegetables, hash browns - there is pretty much everything your heart desires. The breakfast test is also passed. However, one must be careful: never leave the plate unattended. A group of cheeky birds is always lurking, ready to pick the plates clean!

From now on, we have to make difficult decisions. Where to go first - the ocean, the pool, the hammock, the sun loungers? Read, take a nap? Go kayaking or take a walk along the beach? We will have to struggle with these questions over the next few days. Lisa first jumps into the ocean while Sebastian makes himself comfortable in the hammock in front of our Bure. The perfect start to the day. The attentive staff of the resort is constantly striving to ensure our well-being and inquires if everything is alright. Yes, very much so! After extensive splashing, sunbathing, lounging around, reading, and enjoying a cup of coffee on the terrace, it is time for dinner. How convenient that we can dine in the restaurant just a few meters from our Bure. Laziness can be so beautiful. So we sit again at our little table from the morning, this time surrounded by fairy lights, music from the beach bar, and a gentle breeze from the sea. There are even delicious vegetarian dishes, perfect!

Well, what can we say. We could have taken a trip to the capital Suva. We could have taken a trip to one of the other islands. But in the end, we only did one thing: nothing. Relaxing. Finally, read an entire book again. Swimming. Swinging back and forth in the hammock. And that was the best thing we could have done.

There is nothing else to say about our vacation in Fiji, except... just another day in paradise.