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Fiji (March 18 through March 31,
2000)
Author: Bob Stern
18 March – On Saturday evening, we departed Baltimore Maryland (BWI) airport at 515 PM. Thanks to the suggestions of WIZ and DocVikingo, our checked baggage was in three bags. Two (66-pound) Samsonite with dive gear, clothes and gifts. One (30 pound) with toiletries, some bug spray, a portable hospital, three Orkin men, Muzzie coils, and stock in Eveready. We each had a hand carry with money, legal documents, regulators, computers, cameras, clothing and food. The balance of our group from “Aqua Ventures” was a newly married couple (40’s), two married couples slightly younger than we are, a single couple, and three single females. For the record, we have been married 40 years and have 150 dives each.
Since my change to regular suitcases, US Air did not ask about scuba gear or charge anyone the additional $50 tax. We went non-stop to Los Angeles and arrived at 8:05 PM local time. (8 travel time counting from home). Some had checked their bags through and others picked them up and rechecked with Air New Zealand. We left LA on Air New Zealand at 9:55 PM (now 10 travel time) and went non-stop to Nadi, Fiji. Arrived there at 5:00 AM on Monday the 20th (now 20.5 travel time). Everyone got all his or her bags. At 7:00 AM we checked in with Sunflower Rubber Band Airplane Company for a flight to Tavenui. Most of us paid from $10-25 US for excess baggage weight. We departed at 9:15 AM in two planes, one with 13 passengers and some bags, the other carried the balance of our bags. The pilot took the scenic route and did a great job of showing us the waterfalls and beauty of Tavenui on the way in…but then he landed from the wrong direction onto the dirt runway. We bounced to a landing in Tavenui almost 27 hours after leaving home. Garden Island Resort was to be our first home. They transported us from the airport (HA) in two passenger vans and a pickup truck. The jungle road was worse than anything I have ever traveled. The 12-mile trip took about 50 minutes. Wiz will criticize me for not saying more about the ride and driver, but you have to experience it to understand it. They are in the 9th year of a five-year road building project. Cutting a road through volcanic rock with Tupperware spatulas. GI is a restored Ramada or Holiday Inn. All rooms and the layout were typical motel style, with air conditioning and very clean. After washing up and opening some bags we met with GI management (Noreen) for a briefing followed by lunch. I figured we had been traveling about 30-33 hours total. Later that afternoon we took our gear to the dive shop, checked in, reserved Nitrox, etc. The shop seemed well equipped. They would wash all gear, sort and hang for each dive day. We unpacked and collapsed at the pool until dinner. We can not recall what we did that night (Monday), if anything…and we had somehow lost Sunday.
21
March – First dive day. We
checked our Nitrox levels and the fills were too hot on several tanks.
Ended up with only three tanks on the boat and a fourth would be
delivered to the boat. There were
three of us on Nitrox (air tables) and a total of 7 approved tanks at the start. Our group leader uses DIN fittings and they had adapters and
could accept all types of first stage. Fins
were grouped in a box for our group. We picked up our BC etc and boarded the boat.
There was another group on a second boat.
Total number of divers that day was about 20.
Two dive morning. (1) “The
Ledge – Soma Soma Straights”. Although
there was heavy current, the boat was anchored.
Consequently it was a swim to get back to the line.
85F water, surface calm and about 3 K current.
Max depth 67 FT, total time 38 minutes.
I did not carry the camera, never take it the first day.
Fish and coral life was extraordinary.
Totally different than what we are used to with Caribbean diving.
Log books say: clown,
unicorn, lion, and turkey, wedge tail trigger. At one point, the dive master had to take Miriam’s hand and
pull her. She was finning and
getting nowhere. They put one dive
leader in the water with 4-5 people and tried to spread us out as much as
possible. The other group was at a
different site. We both felt we did
OK. It was a great first dive for the trip.
After a 1.5-hour surface break we dived “Small White Wall – Soma Soma
Straights”. They brought out a
new Nitrox tank and tester. The
current here was roaring at about 5-6 K. Went
down the line and assembled on bottom. Max
depth 52 FT, total time 38 minutes. Log
books say: Stonefish, Moorish idol, assorted butterfly, white coral, etc. Had to
tow Miriam on several occasions, especially to get back to the up line.
When we got back, everyone was bushed!
Tuesday afternoon we did the pool thing again and early to bed.
Neither one of us has much recollection of that evening…
---------------------------------------------
22 March – Second dive day at Garden Island Resort.
We assembled at 8AM. They
seem to have their act together with the Nitrox.
There were a total of 8 tanks filled.
The first four came up with good levels, so we took them.
Based on the reports from the other group, who had already been here
several days, we asked for specific sites.
First dive was “Jack’s Place – Soma Soma Straights”.
Our dive leader was Kata. She
had been running the boat team yesterday and today led the first dive.
Entered the 85F water at 9:23AM and instantly realized that, because of
her “size and shape”,
Kata would be easy to follow.
She did a great job, could lead us anytime. Current was manageable for 67FT and 40 minutes.
Log books BOTH only say “lots of beautiful fish, coral, and SHARKS”.
After a 1.5HR surface break, we did “Cabbage Patch – Soma Soma
Straights”. I’ll let my photos
(http://members3.clubphoto.com/robert232202/Fiji_Trip_in_March_2000/)
speak for this amazing place. That’s
a picture of Miriam cruising over the cabbage.
We did 56FT for 53 minutes. Miriam’s
logbook notes that she still had 1100 pounds and Bob was about 700…Logbooks
say Green and Wavy Coral, lots of fish inside the leaves, a pink/yellow fish,
Royal Angelfish, Unbelievable fish of all types, amazing dive.
NOTE: As you can see from our logs, we were so totally enthralled and overwhelmed with Fiji diving that exact names of fish and other critical information was totally ignored. As long as we dived a safe profile, the heck with anything else.
Got back to the dive shop about 1:30PM and had lunch. The shop knew we were leaving the next morning, so after washing our gear, they laid it in a separate area for us. Great idea. Miriam and I washed and dressed to take a walk. I had to put on long pants out of courtesy. Got the video working and we were off to see tomorrow…or was it yesterday? We walked up a dirt road (what else?) about a mile to the international dateline marker. I took pictures of Miriam in tomorrow and me in today…or was I in yesterday and she in today? She slipped in the road and reopened a previously skinned knee. Thanks to planning information from Wiz and Doc, I was able to conduct major surgery and repair the wound when we got back. At nightfall the staff of GI did a short musical and local dance display. Everyone participates, even the 3-year-olds, and they can all sing! Then dinner and packing. We all agreed to leave our dive gear (still wet) in the mesh bags. We were to travel back the road to hell, oops… airport on Thursday morning and then the people from Matangi would pick us up.
23 March – Thursday. Travel day Garden Island Resort, Tavenui to Matangi Island Resort. After breakfast, we went to the dive shop and loaded our gear. Miriam got our mandatory tee shirt assortment and, somehow, decided that two clown fish pins were also necessary. GI had anticipated the increase in luggage volume and we departed there at 9AM with two passenger vans and two pickup trucks. The ride back is a blur…but we met the Matangi group at the airport for the second major leg of the trip.
GARDEN ISLAND COMMENTS: Please note. These are our personal comments and everyone else may reach different opinions. The ride to/from the airport is fun. All jokes aside, you have to do it to understand it. The resort has the flavor of a motel. Although Noreen and her people are wonderful, always helpful, friendly, and you feel SAFE, you still feel like one in a crowd. The dive shop was top class, almost. I can’t comment on their rental gear or instruction, as we didn’t use it. Dives were well managed and always a safe profile. I would have liked to see more of a drift dive instead of anchored, as the currents really roar through that area. We have dived Tobago, and although the currents are probably similar or even a little stronger at Soma Soma, having the boat meet you instead of needing to get back to a line is real. The sea life in that area of the Pacific will make future Caribbean dives very boring. Their policy to not do more than two dives a day, unless especially requested is a good one. Everyone in our group was reasonably tired after two dives in those currents. A third dive could be less than smart. We categorized it as a top class act, but we would not go crazy to go back there.
MATANGI
BACKUP – I forgot to note that on Thursday morning about one hour before we were to leave GIR, one of our group decided to go to the local hospital for some antibiotic. The GIR driver took them to the hospital, which was about 10 minutes away on a decent road, walked them past any delays and direct into a treatment area. They got some meds and returned to us. Fantastic treatment.
23 March 11:00 Tavenui Airport. Matangi Island Resort picked us (13) up in two vans and a pickup truck. After about a 20-minute ride (on almost tolerable roads) we arrived at a small beach area. Two dive boats (about 30 ft) were waiting. The staff loaded all our baggage and then we walked through the water and boarded for the ride to Matangi Island. Everyone had been warned about the wet loading and we were ready. This is NOT a sales campaign, but TEVAS are great. After a short (15 min) ride we reached Matangi Island Resort. Since the Fiji people do not know how to build piers, we again had a wet boat departure. We were greeted on shore by staff and cold coconut drinks. After introductions, we were split into two groups and taken to our bure. This small house would be our home for 8 days. I’m not going to go into a description of the place or the beauty of it. Check it out on their web site.
http://www.matangiisland.com/ Actually, the web site does not do it justice.
Just after getting into Bure 6 (sici) members of the dive shop team arrived with our luggage. As we started to unpack, some fool starts beating on a drum! You quickly learn how they announce food call. When we sat for lunch, a member of staff comes over and says, “Bob and Miriam – What would you like to drink”. Get that, less than one hour on site and they are calling everyone by their first name. That was just the beginning. We soon came to realize that, although there were about 20 guests, we were constantly made to feel as if we were the only people on the island except for staff. After lunch we finished unpacking and went to the dive shop. They gave us two mesh bags marked “6” for our fins, boots, knifes, and regs. BC was hung above the bags, and suits were in another area. We did the necessary paperwork (no Nitrox here) and were done for the day. We swam a little, relaxed, etc. Drums again at 7PM – Dinner! No shoes inside any buildings, so it’s TEVAS to walk in, and barefoot the rest of the time. The walk from our bure to the food area was about 2 minutes. Past two other bures; 83 chickens; 2-one eye cats; 1 cat with rear leg motor problems; 1 healthy cat; 197,832 crab holes; and 4 statues with flaming things in their head – you learn to carry a flashlight at night. When we returned to our bure, there were fresh towels, our dirty laundry was gone, and the mosquito net was over the bed. It doesn’t get any better than this! There’s no way the diving can match it…WRONG.
---------------------------------
24
March, Friday – First Dive Day at Matangi.
Drums got us up at 7AM. Dressed
(bathing suit, tee shirt and skirt for both of us (sulu) and breakfast.
Although we are strictly cereal people on dive days, some in the group
went for eggs, pancakes, bacon, ham, muffins, and cookies.
Note that cookies are one of the basic food groups at Matangi Island
Resort. At the dive shop by 8:15AM.
We were split into two groups with about 6-8 on each boat.
Both would go to the same sites. BC
was already set up on tanks and on the boat.
We picked up suits, weight belts and Number 6 bags and boarded.
Then got back off and put our suits on at the shop.
Short rides to the dive site. 
Suits
ranged from full 3.2 down to just skins. No
one went bare skin. Everyone added
a few pounds to help handle anticipated currents. In the water at “Yellow Wall” at 9:08AM.
Nice coral but did not see a lot of fish life except for One small shark.
All colors of soft coral and fans. 86
FT for 37 minutes in 84 F water. I
managed to get tangled in the drift line when we surfaced. If anyone sees my black weight belt, please get it for me.
After we surface, they bring out a covering for the deck, cookies, fruit,
hot tea, hot coffee, cold juice and water...and no paper goods.
Real cups! While we eat,
they change tanks. Back in the
water at 10:40AM at “Cross Channel”. It
was like jumping into the aquarium! Clown
anemone of all color combinations, humphead banner, unicorn, blue corals with
all types of life inside, and a huge school of blue (?) went right through our
group. This time my MARES ABS clip
lost its black pin. Great dive day,
bad equipment day for me. 68 FT for
46 minutes and 85 F water. Back
to the resort for lunch, an afternoon of snorkeling off the beach, dinner and
collapse. Things seem to shut down
by 9 PM. Between the drums, cookies
and animals, hot showers, we are rapidly slowing down to the pace. I am on the second book.
That’s two more books (non-technical) than I have read in the last 5
years. When we return to our bure
after dinner, the net is on the bed, fresh towels, and our laundry has been
returned.
25 March – Saturday – one boat dead. One boat needs a starter motor so we regroup. Miriam and I end up on a Boston Whaler type boat with another couple who is not from our group (Newlyweds from Los Vegas). It’s just the right size for four divers, a dive master and captain “Leslie”. We get to “Still Water” and the captain says, “There will be current until you get down, then it’s fine”. We dropped fast and had another fantastic dive. 97 FT for 35 minutes and 85 F water. Log books say: lots of life; clown anemone; hard and soft coral; school of barracuda. When we surface, Leslie says that the other boat had put the people in the water at the wrong place. They had short dives. That evening we found out how right he was. Some had entered the water and never even got down to depth. Some thought they were headed to Australia (to visit Wiz). No one believed our story of a great dive, etc. Only one of the group had a 20-minute dive. Most were 10 to 15 minute. After tea and cookies, we 4 traveled to “Mula Mula”. Same story – good drift dive, clown fish, lionfish, and moray eel. 69 FT for 47 minutes at 85 F. This time the other group realized that our dive leader was the best, so they caught up to us. At times, in our way…Back at the resort about 12:30PM. Dinner tonight was only bar-b-que with steak, chicken, lamb and pork.
26 March – Sunday. Both boats alive. Mr. Douglas (owner) rebuilt the starter motor. By this time, some of our group are handling the drum duty. It’s still the same time of day, but sure doesn’t have the right beat. Wind today was from the wrong direction. Water was choppy. Traveled in the other direction to “Noel’s Wall”. 65 FT for 39 minutes at 86 F. Fairly good current, so we must have drifted for miles. Did not try to stop for photos. Dive logs say: Steep wall, no bottom visible, sharks, and beautiful coral. Am I starting to sound jaded? During the break, we took two people (FEMALE) back because of the chop and they felt uncomfortable. (I really didn’t mind, there were more chocolate chip cookies for me.) The dive crew made up for the first dive and we went to “Easy Street”. Although still choppy, there was sand bottom at 60 FT, and this was a “lazy” dive. We did 57 FT for 48 minutes at 86 F. This is a beautiful wall. Photo opportunities were so numerous, I even let Miriam take a few with my camera. Back at the resort by about 1:00PM. The FEMALES were now feeling better. Decided against a night dive because of the chop and visibility possibly being lower.
--------------------------------
Monday – No Dive - This morning they brought Jonathan to breakfast. Did I mention him? He’s the owners’ pet fruit bat. Then, we all boarded the boats and went back to Tavenui Island. We rode to one of the waterfall parks. Two of us senior couples only walked to the first falls, most went to the second, and one couple went to the third. The place was unreal in its beauty. I have a few photos but did not think them proper to post. (Email me if you want to see). Then Matangi set up a full buffet lunch at the base camp. No one felt proper eating lunch…they didn’t bring the drum. We stopped on the way back to the boats and raided a local pineapple field for a few samples. That afternoon we collapsed, Miriam on a beach lounge and me under the covered porch of our bure. We took some time to snorkel the reef and get a few photos of a mother clown guarding her brood.
28 March - Tuesday – Day and night dives.
Two morning dives. First,
everybody wanted to go back to Noel’s Wall.
It was so spectacular we were worried we might have missed something.
Huge school of barracuda, but not close enough for a good photo.
In addition, I wasn’t about to chase them… 92 FT for 38 minutes and
85 F. After tea and cookies, we did
“Golden Dream”. Huge
coral, many canyons and swim through, huge Indian Steephead Parrotfish (here?),
46 FT for 48 minutes and 85 F. Just
another boring Fiji dive…That afternoon we traveled (boat of course) to
another island and visited a local village.
We participated in a welcome ceremony, toured the village, delivered our
gifts, and tried KAVA. That’s the
local drink made from roots and old socks.
Now I know why they don’t wear shoes.
I was “too busy taking video” but Miriam tried it.
She says she couldn’t feel her tongue for three hours.
That evening dinner was cooked in a pit underground.
We had a traditional Fiji day.
Did I also mention that the underground oven was how they cooked their
enemies before they ate them? We
capped off the day with a night dive. Some
opted for the boat trip, but a few others and we dived the reef outside Matangi
Resort. Please note shore dives are
free and tanks are always sitting outside the shop.
The crab shot in my photo album was from this dive.
53 FT for 34 minutes and 85 F. Out
of the water at 7:30PM. Before bed,
tea and, you guessed it, COOKIES.
29 March – Wednesday – Last Dive Day. There was almost no talk at the breakfast table. Our entire group was in a big funk. We opted for two shallow dives. Started at “The Edge”. This actually was the end of Yellow Wall. 51 FT for 47 minutes and 85F. Then we requested the last dive to be “Golden Dreams”. No current, many canyons, marvelous coral and small fish, fantastic PINK anemone and I’m out of film. 35 Ft for 65 minutes and another 85 F water temperature. You can’t beat it! That afternoon we, very quietly and subdued, washed out gear extra good (Sink-the-Stink) and hanged it outside our bure. Then we tried to pack the balance of our stuff but couldn’t get into the spirit. After dinner, some “partied”. I will not get into any discussion about someone I know intimately doing a “pole dance”. Evan the staff participated in this bawdy exhibition. We finally started packing about 9 PM.
30 March – Travel home. Left Matangi (by boat) about 8:30AM. I got on the boat first and took video of each person getting aboard. I have video of 12 adults, all with long faces and many with tears in their eyes. The staff was all on the shore, singing a Fijian goodbye song, everyone got flower leis and hugs. It’s hard to ever forget a place like this.
We did the standard van and truck thing back to Tavenui Dirt Airstrip. Then Rubber Band Air back to Nadi Airport. We got there about 12 noon and checked our luggage. Air New Zealand flight was at midnight. The package included a day room at TokaToka hotel, which is very close to the airport. After we checked in, washed and did the necessary, it was off to shopping. Thanks to WIZ, we went right to Jacks Handicrafts in town. We picked out what we wanted and I used Wiz as a recommendation. They only charged us an additional 15%. I had everything shipped by air (got here in one week). Then back to the hotel to wash and change for dinner. Everyone else was going to a place called the “Ledge” or something like that. Miriam and I went to the Sheraton Resort for dinner at “Ports-of-Call”. The best way to describe this place is, if you are ever in Nadi, and you NEVER believe another thing Wiz tells you, go to this restaurant. He scored 1000 in our book. It IS the best beef and lamb, best treatment, best atmosphere, and craziest dessert making we have EVER experienced. This was a perfect ending to our time in Fiji. The photo at the end of my package is taken at the restaurant. Wiz refers to this as the Kleenex restaurant. At least I had a handkerchief. After the crazy flaming dessert, the wait staff sang the goodbye song. Tears all over again.
Back to Nadi airport at 10PM. Fly at 12 midnight. Get this, we left Nadi at 11:59 PM on Thursday and got to Los Angeles at 1 PM on Thursday. Spend most of the day at Manhattan Beach and then left LA at 10:30 PM on US Air for the flight home.
A FINAL FEW NOTES: One of the single girls thought she had
dropped her wallet on the Sunflower Air flight from Nadi to Tavenui.
She went to the Garden Isle desk and told her story.
($120 US plus Cards). That
evening, GIR told her that Sunflower had it and it would be on the next day
flight. It was brought to the hotel
the next day INTACT. NOTHING
MISSING Try that in the good old US or Caribbean.
Thanks go to our shop Aqua Ventures for managing the trip (we planned for more than a year); DocV for his good suggestions, and Wiz for his FANTASTIC suggestions and crazy Australian humor. Miriam and I have traveled on many vacations to many exotic places, including Bali and Hawaii…Fiji is a land and people that will always be paradise to us.
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