Tshaj tawm: 08.02.2018
BULA! 🌺
This is THE word in Fiji.. it can mean so much like: "Hello, how are you? Welcome to Fiji! Nice to have you here!" or just "Hello!" or or.. the reply BULA BULA means something like: "Hello too, I'm good, how are you? We're happy to be here.." So entire conversations are possible with just BULA and BULA BULA. Amazing! ((-:
We arrived in Fiji with a one-hour delay.. at the airport we were greeted by local musicians and singers who welcomed us warmly: BULA! 😃
Arriving at the hotel in Nadi in the evening, we asked about the shuttle that was booked for the next morning to take us to the ferry that would bring us to the first island, Beachcomber Island. And there we learned everything important that applies to Fiji.. Shuttle is supposed to arrive at 7am and leaves at around 7.15am. We asked: "so should we be outside by 7am at the latest?" Response: "Relax! No rush! Take your time! It's FIJI-TIME!" 😃🤙🤗 🌏
The shuttle then took us to the port the next day (around 7.15am), from where we took a ferry to our first island. Since the ferry cannot dock on the small island due to the lack of a jetty or something, we were picked up again by a small boat from the ferry, which then took us to Beachcomber Island. On the beach, the staff of the only resort on the island was waiting for us, applauding, smiling, singing, waving and shouting BULA. It can't get any better! We moved into the small, sweet hut surrounded by palm trees and from that point on we were only allowed to walk around the island barefoot.. almost like a vacation: bar in the sand, dining area in the sand, beach in the sand.. it's Fiji-Time! 😎 by the way, the island is so small that you can walk around it in 10 minutes. Snorkeling with the numerous colorful fish was amazing, relaxing on the beach and by the pool was almost exhausting because it is unbelievably hot and tropical humid, but there's always something, right?! 😉 Flo sweats about 25 hours a day, but that doesn't matter.. it's vacation and water right in front of our door and everything. 🤗
You can see, we really can't complain.. it's a dream! The two nights on Beachcomber were really great. On the last evening we were treated to a wonderful show by local dancers. We already love Fiji. Let's see what Octopus Island has in store for us, where we will spend the next four nights.