Arrivals and Departures

Fiji really has one of the coolest arrivals you'll get. When i I first arrived at Fiji, i was greeted in the airport by men and women singing and dancing their tribal tunes. A lay of shells was placed over my head and the Fijians greeted us with a big smile and a loud BULA! It's quite an experience. Afterwards we were all placed on a bus to take us to the port. Mind you, they could've taken us anywhere, it was dark and we had no idea where we were going. But typically, we took a shot. We ended up at the port where we were then all piled onto a boat. It was late at night, really warm. It was amazing standing on the giant boat with the warm wind blowing and the sea air. As we approached Beachcomber island, we stopped...and then all boarded tiny little boats which would take us from deep sea too the island itself. That was interesting. We got wet, but the water was warm. Many were worried about their belongings going overboard, but the big strong Fijian men are always there to help. Once there, we were greeted again with a song and dance from the Fijians and a nice cooling down drink. The best part was, once we had all settled in, we literally got right into partying. That was one of the coolest arrivals I've had. We really got straight into it. Unfortunately, it did take nearly 45 mins from the airport to Beachcomber island. The journey back was much the same, an early 3am breakfast (most still drunk and awake from the night before), a goodbye song and hugs from the women who'd looked after us all on our trip (and by looked after us, i mean those drunken evenings). The boat ride back was spectacular. The sun was rising, i was lucky enough to be standing right at the front of the boat, gliding through the morning air. The airport was chaos, hardly movable. I arrived at the airport 2 hrs before my flight and made it on the plane JUST in time. This also means i had to sit alone without my friends, as no together seats were available. Of course, i suffer from anxiety when i fly, wasn't the best. Fijian's definitely make the trip memorable, the arrivals and departures are lovely.