Departed Castaway Island for the "short" leg of the ferry route back to Denarau. Unfortunately the boat only had one engine working, so the 45min trip took about double that. After picking up our luggage, we could have taken anybody's but stuck with our own, we found a complimentary shuttle to the hotel and arrived at the Radisson Denarau to find that our room wasn't ready yet (again). We dropped the bags and headed for lunch at the beachfront restaurant.
After lunch we were shown to our room. Our suite is a great size with all the facilities we wanted. For the kids this meant the TV and Internet access to reconnect with the world, whereas for us it is the washing machine to catch up with all our laundry. The down side of the room is the view of the maintenance yard (again) of the Sheraton next door.
Headed our for dinner at the Water's Edge restaurant at the nearby Sheraton Villas. Set on an open air deck with water on two sides and a full moon in a clear sky, it was a fantastic spot. The kids opted for just desert (chocolate sin, with homemade chocolate and cookies and cream ice cream respectively), which must have been good, judging by the silence during dinner. Walked back to our hotel, picking up items for breakfast at a late opening deli on the way.
The kids took the king size bed, while we shared the decidely smaller sofa bed in the lounge.
Set off the next morning to wander around Nadi Town, home to the International Airport, but only the 3rd largest town in Fiji. Although the taxi driver was very keen for us to visit the "Garden of the Sleeping Giant", an Orchid Farm some 45 minutes away, we stuck to our guns and after a quick tour of the town, were dropped in front of the largest Hindu temple in the South Pacific. As we were all wearing shorts, we were not allowed to enter, so continued into town.
Nadi was quite a contrast from the Fiji of Castaway or Denarau. It seemed every other car was a taxi, slowing or stopping to offer your a ride, between which you had hawkers extolling the virtues of their shop as you passed. I am sure it is not a patch on Algiers, but I am just glad we picked a Sunday to go into town, when most of the shops were closed. After we had had our fill of kava dishes, shark tooth necklaces and cannibal forks, we grabbed a cab back to the Marina and enjoyed a great meat pie from the bakery before returning to the hotel on the Bula bus for some R&R.
Dinner tonight was at an Indian restaurant at the Marina (Indigo). The food was great once we had got past the "fijian time" service. The kids particularly enjoyed the vegatable samosas (with lots of water). Returned to our hotel on a very full Bula bus. The combination of a digesting curry, the regular speed bumps and the apparent lack of rear suspension in the Bula bus were not a great combination. Some jasmine tea before bed was just what the doctor ordered!
