Days of rain and rest

Day 149 – Pacific Harbour, Fiji Islands

So, it seems that I haven’t written in a while!

I’m almost at the end of my stay in Pacific Harbour. The resort I stay at is very nice, as I wrote in my last article. Of course, I slowly discovered that the services it offers outside of the cheap dormitory bed are expensive, such as the laundry (yes, eternal laundry), which is twice what I paid in Nadi.

The weather is mostly uncooperative. Most days are cloudy, with intermittent drizzle and a few tropical showers. The mosquitoes are of course very present, and seem to like me very much. Especially in the places where the spray didn’t reach.

Uprising Beach Resort – Poolside seats

I had a few adventures. The other night, there was a buffet diner on offer, with Fijian recipes. It was more expensive than I typically spend a diner on, but well, I thought that it would be the perfect opportunity to try several different local foods in one go. And that way, I can start with little quantities and go back for more if I like it.

The conclusion was that… I mostly didn’t like it. There was steamed cassava roots (manioc in French), taro leaves (think spinach) in coconut milk, fish, chicken, beef in different sauces, and barbecued pork, pumpkin soup and sweet rolls.

The pork was absolutely delicious, the soup was good, and I didn’t enjoy the rest. Even the deserts weren’t that good. So if I go back to Fiji, it won’t be for the local cooking.

There was some dancing though that was enjoyable, with male and female dancers in costumes, stomping feet and waving arms, and a hip roll that was a delight to watch. They invited customers to join them in a dance, and apparently the best dancers get their meal free. An incentive to give one’s best!

With Halloween approaching, the restaurant makes effort to be festive, and offers a zombie burger to the patrons. I tried it, and it was really worth it. Of course, it was huge: it is actually two medium burgers with a plate of fries, and it was so big that I skipped diner and breakfast.

Uprising Beach Resort – Zombie burgers

I had a few exchange with the people sharing the dorm. Italian, French, Kiwi, and a few other nationalities I didn’t catch.

There is also work being done on the roof when the weather allows it, apparently they need to change the palm fronds that cover it, or just access what’s under it. That means a lot of noise and bits of palm everywhere!

Last night I had another kind of surprise: the plastic bag where I keep my snacks, which I had knotted close on the morning and not touched since, started rustling… That’s what everyone want to have when reading in bed before going to sleep, trying to imagine what kind of critter has found an opening in a food bag.

So I took the bag out on the veranda, upended it on the table, and totally didn’t see what was trying to leave it. I was expecting to see some kind of rodent fleeing, but it was the invisible critter.

So I put back everything inside, checking that each package was intact, and that will stay the mystery of the invisible critter. (My current theory is a lizard that would be fast and discreet enough, but really I don’t know.)

I’ve uploaded a few pictures of the resort and of nearby flowers, check them out in the gallery.