Landfall - Savusavu, Fiji

Savusavu, Fiji

The Copra Shed: Maina/Yacht Club

(see Britannia's dinghy at the end of the dock)

Fijians cleaning oysters for pearl cultivation

Enjoying lunch out; Indian curry & Fiji water

(Yeap, it tastes just like bottled water back home)

Four days and three nights of (pretty nice) sailing, and we're in Fiji.

We're in FIJI!

Savusavu is gorgeous, though we've only checked it out from the boat. We arrived in the afternoon, and customs didn't have time to check us in, so our choice was to pay an overtime fee ($200 FJD) or be quarantined on the boat. So, needless to say, we're on the boat. We were hoping for a meal out tonight, but after a long(ish) crossing, it's nice to have some forced downtime. And the sunset has been unreal - we've spent the last hour in the cockpit, taking the same pictures over and over again because every five minutes the light changes and it's like we're in a whole new world.

Savusavu is a very cruiser focused place from what we can tell, peering out from our boat-cage. Kinda reminds me of La Paz - a good dinghy dock, free water, free showers (if you're staying on a mooring, which we are at least for a few days), and good, cheap food. I'm excited to get out and explore.

We've met exactly two Fijians - a marina employee who took escorted us to our mooring, and the health inspector (the only one of three officials who made it out to the boat today). They were both really sweet people, with easy smiles, kind eyes and a laugh that TOTALLY reminds me of the Fijian scenes from Endless Summer II. It does feel like we're in a little bit of a different culture, caught in the middle between Polynesia and Melanesia. It's cool.

Doing this in two seasons was a great call. I'm really happy to have months here, and not just a few weeks. People say that you can easily spend a whole season in Fiji, and I can see why. Having this be a rush stop on the way to Australia from Mexico would be rough.

We'll report more when we get off the boat, and hopefully we'll be able to post some pictures if the internet is decent.

Stay tuned.