On the Fifth Day of Christmas: diving and sun - Fiji, Dec. 29, 2015

After a flurry of emails last night, I finally just decided to take the plunge and commit to a morning of diving with Scuba Bula, who dives a bit south of here on the outer reef of the west side of Viti Levu (this big island). I got picked up at 7:30, then a car swap (since my driver actual driver was running late, a coworker of his took me to a meeting spot in Nadi and I switched cars).

It was the same beautiful drive down the coast, all farmlands and grazing cattle, goats, and horses. On the way down, James (the driver) mentioned that he'd visited a lot of the Polynesian islands, and that Fiji was his favorite - also his native one, so maybe a bit of bias. He was very accepting of British rule of Fiji, and thought they weren't corrupt while the local government might be. 

We arrived at a pretty dumpy looking resort, and he dropped me off at the gate, since it was closed. 

I walked through the grass toward the water and was pointed to the scuba shop. The paperwork was super efficient, and we were on a boat heading to our first dive site by 8:45, less than 30 minutes after I got there. (Oh, and I got my detailed logbook praised by the office manager.)

The first site was the Bat Cave and we drifted to the Wreck, where Scuba Sam, my guide and the founder of the company, sank a wooden-hulled boat ten years before. It had gotten torn up by the cyclones, so all that was left was one long timber. 

It was vaguely a pinnacle dive to start, as we stayed pretty near the top of the outer reef wall at 30 meters. After poking around there, with a ton of fishes, including a goatfish, we cruised over some sand to the inner reef wall at 18 meters. In the sand between the two, I was hoping for a nurse shark, but I got a midnight snapper instead. 

At the second reef wall, Scuba Sam looked in every nook and cranny, but "all" we saw were fish, soft coral, sea anemones, hard coral such as fan and whip corals, and the random sea lice that stung me. 

We were up for a surface interval (during which I ate half a small pineapple). Alan/Adam (I forget the name of the other guy I was diving with - it was a very small group with just the two of us!) lives in the area so was talking about the shops that have come and gone and the resorts. The resort that the shop was on was apparently closed as of a few days ago for renovations for a few years, but one was being built next door that they might be moving to. 

I did my second backward roll off the boat into the Nursery. I got down a little faster and with a little less ear pressure than the first time, but still slowly. The first wall I found the antennae waving of a spiny lobster, then Scuba Sam pointed out the first of four moray eels we saw that dive! Both he and I found some giant sea slugs, then he found a flatworm and made it swim in its beautiful undulating way. 

I found a moray peeping out from under a coral bump as we continued along the sloping wall. 

At the sandy bottom next to us was a reef shark! The little guy didn't move at all while we drifted by (the current was a bit stronger, so staying off the wall was a little trickier in some cases). Sam and I went through a swim-through. Right at the end, at what was called Fish Wonders, we saw a giant clam and a giant moray chilling back in a cave (like, its neck was as big as a football). As we were doing our safety stop along the top of the reef, a free-swimming moray (number four!) darted about the coral below. 

It was a quick ride back to the shop, where I got the details for my logbook, changed, and was back in James' car for the ride back. 

He saw a mango stand and asked if I wanted some. So I got some mangoes, then I got some pineapple a little further down the road. They were added to the collection of fruit that the others had gotten on their morning trip into Nadi for some shopping.

I got back for lunch, which, for me, was toast and fruit. I went to watch Valerie try scuba in the pool here, then had a conversation with Mark before changing into another dry swimsuit and laying by the pool with the rest of my family. (Except Deanne - she was feeling poorly, so the air conditioning was better for her.)

I got hot at one point, so hopped in the pool, rinsed, then started my nap. It was rudely interrupted by spits of rain, so I went inside and collapsed into my bed, still wet. 

I woke up what I thought was hours later - turns out, it was just 6:30 and the boys were making dinner. My lack of protein made me starving, and Mom found some cheese at the store to tide me over. It was... cheese. Kinda weird how mild it was. 

The fried rice and "General Tso" chicken for dinner was well needed. In fact, I stayed awake all the way through Jurassic World! Bedtime was at a healthy 11pm. Maybe I will make it to midnight by the time New Years rolls around!