Day 8: FIJI, pool and shopping

We started the day off right with a continental breakfast which was ok, I like food so all it good, we did try marmite which is like a soysauce spread that taste horrid, why it's so popular over there I don't understand.

Well we needed a break from the rushing around so we spent the morning at the pool, It was so nice to just relax in the sun and read a bit. I also went swimming and they had a nice large pool to splash around in along with a big slide. I went down that thing multiple times. So fun!

 

this was the pool slide

Also, I noticed some of the locals hanging out in the trees next to the pool. Massive bats were roosting in the tree. It was really cool looking, occasionally they would stretch their wings and we got to see them. They were about the size of crows... they were big!

We finished up at the pool and around noon headed to Nadi, the local town. We caught a bus which was only a dollar. (much better than a $15 cab) we got to town and hit every shop we could find.

As we walked along we would be approached by some people inviting us to their shops off the main area. We followed one, and he did indeed bring us to a little wood carvings store which showcased his villages wood carvings.

They had a welcoming presentation which involved a drink called Kava. It starts out as a powder that comes from a ground up root. They put it in a bag then run water through it into a bowl turning the water a muddy color, then with a half of a coconut shell they scoop some out and give it to you. They clap three times and then you drink. The stuff tastes like muddy water and makes your mouth numb but it was fun and we did end up buying some nice pieces of wood work.

We kept walking around and I ended up buying a really cool wood bowl, but the thing was large and heavy after a while. We stopped at a traditional market with little stalls, at the last on I found a bag that could hold my bowl really well. Originally the seller wanted $45 for it but I got it down to $20 which translates to about $10 American, not too bad. I do enjoy haggling. Well I stuck my bowl in there and happily continued on my way.

We shopped for a bit more then we were getting hungry so we asked a store owner where we should eat. Well these people were so nice that he actually walked us to the restaurant that he though we should eat at. Super nice... we didn't actually eat there though. We walked around a bit more and found a Mongolian/Chinese place that had free wifi. There was a lot of food when we were done eating that we just got it to go so we would have dinner tomorrow :)

We called it a day after the meal that and like New Zealand everything closes at 5pm. We caught the bus back to the hotel, it was interesting cause there were roaches climbing on the side of the bus and freaked me and Tasha out a bit, The day ended with a nice/competitive game of 5 deck in the hotel. yeah my team was slaughtered....oh well I'm in Fiji!

 

all the kids have to wear uniforms for school :)

Also side note, we had to pack everything this night cause we were checking out early tomorrow, which was good because as I was organizing my bag I noticed an ant in the bag I bought today. Well, when I investigated further I found that there were ants all over the seems of the bag so I had to rush to the bathroom and shake out all the ants in my new bag. Thankfully I got them all! At least I know it authentic :)

A good day!