November 21, 2023
Yes. We’ve got the blues.
The blues…unfortunately, the camera and my lazy ass sitting on a chair didn’t want to move to get a better shot. This was the view from the chair in front of our bure…our “cabin”…this is at Barefoot Manta resort.
You can’t help but have the blues in Fiji. The question is how can I explain? I know Gaugin did his best and he certainly had the palette, but the infinity blues kissing into greens defies definition. Looking out from our room towards the horizon, we feast on the colors and are amazed then look up into the deep, very different blue of the tropical sky punctuated by the occasional puffy white clouds…a reminder of just how blue the sky is.
But if you are thinking we have the blues…as in that blues defined by music…no! At every island our transfer boats are met by the resort staff singing on the beach. It is island music, with lots of sustained notes upon which harmonies are built. We know they sing every time the boats arrive which on these small Yasawa Islands is twice a day, coming and going from the main island, Viti Levu, of Fiji. They always seem genuinely pleased that we are visiting. Smiles are abundant as are true wishes of welcome, “Bula.”
The Yasawa Islands are a group of islands that run north of Nadi where the international airport is. We chose to try a “hop on-hop off” approach to the islands, staying on three of the islands over the course of 11 days. Each island has its own vibe and approach to the tourists. In common, they all have a multitude of water activities that can happen with or without guides such as scuba, snorkeling, paddle boarding, kayaking, etc. But perhaps the best part is the local marine life education, cultural talks, cooking (!) class [Expect kokoda on your next menu at our house!].
- The cooking class at the Barefoot Manta resort started with opening the husk of the coconut by banging the coconut against a sharp stick in the sand.
- Clean off the extra coconut hair.
- Find the perfect spot by the three ‘eyes” and hit the coconut with a large rock to split it amazingly in perfect halves.
- Let the coconut water explode all over and either drink the rest or pour it out.
- Grate the interior onto a woven palm leaf plate.
- Remove the “wookie” bark [his nod to American cultural icons] from near the top of the coconut tree.
- Take the scraped coconut and place it in the “wookie” bark that is soft and acts like a sieve. then squeeze the coconut milk out to use in the dish. You can see the drips going into the bowl. It, of course, added to the creamy texture of this Fiji version of ceviche which, in this case was a white fish marinated in a lime and vinegar marinade for 30 minutes.
- Add diced onion, carrot, cucumber or whatever colorful veggies.
- On the side, was served a tiny hot pepper. And it was, indeed, hot. I was thankfully very careful to only burn my tongue and lips…not my other organs. Finished product. A light, lovely flavor…not too fishy, not too coconutty…just a lively dish. Note the wonderful “kitchen” where we watched the demonstration
But better than the infinite blues, the activities, and the constant flowers are the people.They are all as welcoming as…Mom. Consider an entire nation populated by folks who want you to feel at home and welcome. As you walk around the resort, every single person on the staff, goes out of their way to greet you with a smile, say “Bula”, and ask how you are doing. And it is genuine. As we listened to the culture talk this morning, I realized that it is their culture. It is how they live their lives.
So, we do have the blues in Fiji….Surrounded by blues and friendship.
~Wendy and Nick