Say what? Days 6 to 21 - Finally..!

I know I have been a naughty blogger. Slap my wrist.

I promised 21 days of Live Blogging from Fiji over on my Day 5, and then got caught up in the sweet, intoxicating daze of Fiji Time.

I promise I did have the best of intentions.

I blame The Rock (and Optus). It was Day 6 and we had been going to the movies each day - at $6fjd - why not? and Day 6 was Jumanji. (What a great movie, so funny and light-hearted, perfect holiday flick, and The Rock, well come on!). And it was after this movie that I lost my blogging mojo. (And after I returned to the Gold Coast, I have had this post written for a while, but Optus has been frustrating me with it's very poor internet service).

As we were driving home from watching The Rock, errr I mean watching Jumanji (so I could start writing) a great friend of ours called for us to drop by his house to pick up some dinner. He had spent all day cooking a lovo feast for us. So we got stuck into that - delicious!

Lovo - a traditional form of cooking a Fijian feast cooked in the earth. It tastes like a barbecue but with a smokier flavour. In this dish, you can see Chicken, Dalo, Palusami and Kasava.

After our feast (vinaka Rupeni!) I started writing my Sixth Day recap, and someone turned on the television for me to hear a Fiji Fashion Week runway parade on, so of course that was calling my name.

Then we realised we had no underware left (soz about the knicker talk, but in the spirit of honesty, and all..), so we started washing our smalls in the kitchen sink, and rinsing in the bathroom sink. I promise you this post was not meant to feature our underware, but side note - do you know how tricky it is to wash and dry undies in an airconditioned hotel room?

We ended up putting them one by one in a recycled shopping tote (you know the type I mean) and using the hair dryer to create a "clothes dryer effect" by heating them up whilst someone madly swished the bag around. Yep, we are fun like that - the whole 2 hours it took us (I really wish we took a photo of that). Needless to say, by this stage there was no blogging being done.

Anyway, what I am trying to say, is that I am sorry my friends for the slack blogging. And I really hate it when bloggers say sorry like this - I mean, does anyone even care? Well, apparently some of you do as I've received a few messages about it, so I am genuinely sorry. Life just got in the way.

So here is a quick recap of the days I did promise to blog about.

We spent about a week in Suva, then headed to the Hideaway Resort & Spa for a week. After that we went to a dear friend’s home in Cuvu, Sigatoka for a while, and then headed back to the Hideaway.

Suva - the Capital of Fiji

We did a lot of reminiscing whilst in Suva - this is the kid's old school. (And the terrible hill I used to walk up daily - it doesn't look too bad in this shot but for those who know Suva, you know this hill!)

This is the Catholic Church next to the girl's old school - halfway down that terrible hill! It is a beautiful church, and I make sure to light a candle in there every time I pass.

I had 38 letters in my post box - sadly nothing exciting, mostly bank statements (boo!). So, if you want to send me a letter so I get a nice surprise next time I open it, please do! It's PO Box 18215, Suva, Fiji Island.

We didn't take the bus this time, but we waved to a lot of people on the bus, lol.

Hubby took the opportunity for a $7fjd haircut, and bumped into Jerry Tuwai - Captain of the Olympic Gold winning Fiji Rugby 7s team. Jerry is in the middle, and the other guy is Rupeni, who we've been friends with since 2012 when he sold us Bu from the roadside in Raiwaqa. This pic is pre-haircut (I put the stops to a haircut prior to arriving in Fiji haha - much to Hubby's disgust - why pay $25 when you can pay $5? - that's my theory and I'm sticking to it!). We are all literally laughing right now at his long mop of hair in this pic. He was aiming for a mushroom cut (again my suggestion - gee he is a good man!). However the mushroom did not work. At all.

It was Christmas time which means 'back-to-school' preparations, and it was delightful to see all the different school uniforms displayed for sale in the city. So colourful and bright - Australian schools should take a leap out of the Fijian school book! (In the second photo, the fifth uniform from the left - navy skirt and white top - that was my daughter's uniform!)

There were 2 escapes from prison whilst we were in Suva. We knew something was going on as we drove through three police blocks.

And saw the devastating after-effect of a car accident.

It was raining a lot of the time we were in Suva (not surprising at all!). Suva is wet most of the time. This was our view each morning. When the sun shines in Suva, the city sparkles - I really believe that.

We enjoyed a buffet breakfast each morning. It was great for our budget, as we didn't need to eat much else during the day.

On our last day, we booked a taxi to leave Suva to drive us the 2 hours it takes to get to the Hideaway Resort & Spa on the Coral Coast for Christmas week. And 6 hours later we arrived at our destination. It was either our extraordinary amount of luggage, or we ran over a stray nail. But this is what happened...

Hideaway Resort & Spa

We had such a great time at the resort over Christmas. I am currently writing a specific blog on it, so I won't go into too much detail now. Basically we just relaxed, caught up with friends and slept. I won't lie - after a year of pretty bad illness, the Hideaway was the best medication.

It felt like a home-away-from home. No pretentious guests, no fancy-schmancy clothes or make up needed. It was just pure relaxation. Christmas Day was by the pool, we ate chicken burgers for lunch, and treated ourselves to an ice-cream from the resort shop. Super duper relaxing. I even read six novels! (No wonder I didn't have time for blogging!)

Cuvu, Sigatoka

Our days in Cuvu were awesome. We stayed with dear friends we met on our very first trip to Fiji in 2009. They live nearby to the ShangriLa (for those that know Fiji) in a small town called Cuvu. We were spoilt with delicious food, and we laughed for hours. There was lots to catch up on so we spent lots of time chatting. Hubby got in some Kava-time, and then spent the next day so lazy that fights ensued between the both of us - come on ladies, how lazy does Kava make your men? Looking back now, it's quite funny.

We ate at an amazing restaurant there too, called "Indiana" in Cuvu Town - if you are staying at ShangriLa - it would be about $10fjd in a taxi (less than 10 mins drive from the lobby). You must go there - honestly the food is to die for. The best butter chicken I've ever tasted. Go!!

So there you have it. Days 6-21 wrapped up in a nice, little bundle of photos. Looking back now, it's hard to believe that it is February already and our 21 Days of Fiji Time ended a month ago. Too sad. It's also hard to believe that on the first few nights, we all wanted to go home to our own beds. Especially when we've spent the last month dying to go back to Fiji. Crazy we are.

Until next time,

love and Fiji sunshine XX