I'm Back

I have finally landed back in a place where i can give everyone this amazing update. here we go... After arriving in Singatoka by way of a 4 hour bus ride from Nandi we were directed toward our destination "club masa" by a little girl in the village. We, John, and Danny from England and I found ourselves in the middle of no where with amazing sand dunes towering skyward about 1/2 a mile away. Our guide was a bit off and our accomadtion was a room with 8 beds and a shady cast of hosts. Marijuana filtered in through the back window and the vibe was totally bizarre. Some surfers told us that club masa was uninhabitable becuase a film was being shot there, but we should try to get on as extras. We hiked throught the dunes to a rather large encampment at the only dip in the sand dunes. It was surreal to see an actual film set and walk through it so simply. Although we were denied due to overbookings of extra's we were directed toward a different place to stay. Shipwrek! And it was exactly that. A metal fence surrounded the delapidated compound and a coca cola was all that reminded us of civilization. We settled into a metal shack and were given 3 foam pads to place on the concrete floor. After chatting up a few bodyboarders from South Africa and enjoying our hosts "down home" cooking (actually quite tasty) we hit the hay for a 5 am surf sess. John, Dan and I crested the dunes around 6 and soaked in the spectacualar view provided by mother nature. We were all buzzing and tirpping out on the fact that we had arrived at the only beach break in the entire island. My mind was clear and i could feel the blood coursing through my veins in anticipation of the waves. Neither of the boys surf, but had a go with my 6'4". The waves were pretty much perfect. Waist to chest high clean lefts and rights which bowled up on the inside section. i was only joined by two beginner Aussies after about an hour into the sess and had no prob's. As they shouted from the shoulder of the wave of the morning i lost all connection to the land and felt myself drop into a perfect head high left which rode on for some distance. We hiked back and i paddled out with the body boarders for an afternoon sess into solid double over head surf. attempts to surf were fruitless in that the waves would suck backward after breaking and suck the lip of the waves up suddenly. The next morn brought the best waves of my whole fiji experience. Solid offshore winds and double overhead sets met Atti (bodyboarder) and i the next morn. i rode solidly on my 6'4" and pulled into a crazy barrel, but caught the lip on the head halfway through it. Getting barrelled is indescribable so i will not attempt.

The crew continued on to Suva on another grueling bus ride of about 3 hours. We had an excellent stay there, which consisted of frequenting a local nightclub, trekking throught the jungle and swinging from big ropes into refreshingly cold spring water!

Our bus back to Nadi was arduous, but our route along the coast allowed for great views of the ocean and the surrounding villages. We booked a trip up to the Yasawa Islands and spent the night on Sunday in Nandi in a crappy little hostel place.

Monday came too early and jumped on board a giant cat and took a crystal blue water island viewing ride for 6 hours. While aboard i met a self proclaimed master and his 2 students from Australlia. He was cool and showed me some moves. We talked at length about his Tai Chi background and the premise of his teachings which mostly realted back to Taoism. Due to my studies in college we ckicked and i felt as though i had met a life long teahcer. My trip had just taken a strange, but pleasant twist. Our first night was at Mel Bravo and we were joined by the kung fo crew. Overall our stay was a bit lacklaster due to the not so white beaches and dry host. The food was weird and just a bit sketchy. One day we hiked over the island for an hour and a half and landed in paradise. White sandy beaches, lined with plams on one side and crystal clear blue water on the other. It was so hot it was straight into the water with us. Dawning our snorkel gear proved intellegent and our reef viewing experience began 10 ft from shore. We saw hundreds of beautiful fish and healthy colorful coral which stretched out for about 200 yards. Later the Master showed us different techniques and stretches. We met some cool folks and actually 3 guys from san diego showed up and i knew them! CRAZY!

After three days on Mel Bravo we were ready to leave and headed toward Coconut Bay on Naviti. Beauty with our dorms on the beach, volleyball, snorkelling and dancing. I also had the opportunity to take part in a kava ceremony in a hut on the floor. The sunset that night was amazing and a rainbow fromed right onto the island about 20o yards from us as rain drizzled from the sky.

Manta Ray came next at the south island of Naviti. I will cut to the chase and say that we swam with two enormous manta's and enjoyed upper class accomodations.

Beachcomber was next and was rather uneventful yer relaxing.

Last stop was Bounty were Love Island was filmed. The snorkeling was mind boggling.

Out of time post again soon!