Fiji - Part 3

Denauru turned out to be a very short stay. G and P went to shore the next morning to arrange a new sim card so that phone calls could be made and internet accessed. Our first call was to Vuda marina to see if they had a berth for us. Fortunately they did, so we went back to the boat and motorsailed the 5 nautical miles up to Vuda point. The entry is narrow and you can see the reef on both sides, but G helmed beautifully, and managed to dock Be and Be into the very tight space allocated to us using only one engine. The staff at the boatshed restaurant called out ‘Bula’ as we motored in, making us feel very welcome. Once settled G was busy contacting Baobab marine to arrange for a Yanmar mechanic to come and examine our non functioning sail drive. E, P, S and J went into Lautoka to run some errands. Once the bathroom cupboard doors were dropped off (to replace damaged mirrors), we visited the open air market to stock up on fresh fruits and vegetables. When we return home, P will endeavour to go to the market more often for fruit and veg, as it has been a great experience here, and the produce is so much fresher. After groceries it was a special treat to have Maccas for lunch on the way back to the boat.

On Saturday we all headed into Nadi for the Bula festival. After some shopping we went to the carnival. There were several ferris wheels (same as Savusavu, FAST), a jumping castle or two and a few Cha-Cha rides. Again the motors running the rides were manned, and our man on the cha cha had very worn shoes as he used his foot on the engine to slow the ride down! But the positive was the ride only cost $3 FJD per person, so it was the least expensive show we've ever been too!

On Tuesday we met up with the kids from Skylark, Sangvind, Invictus, and a couple of extras which was lovely. We spent the day at the Bula water park - all had lots of fun. The kids all ran off in different directions, enjoying the waterslides again and again.

Then we all headed out to the Rhum-Ba at Port Denauru for a meal together before heading back to our boat at Vuda marina. It was a great day and evening out. The rest of the week was pretty uneventful, getting boat jobs sorted and deciding how to fix our sail drive. That was, until, Nana and Papa arrived to visit. All were super excited to see them both, J and P the lucky ones to meet them at the airport. We took them back to the boat for brekky and then Nana and Papa went for a rest as they hadn't got much sleep on their overnight flight. We opened up the case they had brought over for us and it was a bit like Christmas with some Pokemon cards, clothes, school books and more boat parts! Thanks to Dooza, Robbo, Shell, and Grandma at home for getting our things together and packed for Nana and Papa to bring over to us. We took Nana and Papa into Nadi on the local bus on Friday, which was an adventure on its own. Wandering through the market, Nana and Papa checking out all the different fresh fruits and vegetables, recalling their own tropical veggie garden from their time in Darwin.

After some lunch we caught a taxi back to the boat and checked them into their hotel for the next four nights, the First Landing Resort, which was next to the marina. We would have loved them to stay on the boat with us but given the uncertainty of whether we would be in or out of the water, thought it best to utilise the resort close by. We stayed one night at the resort with them and otherwise just wandered back and forth each day to hang out, in between boat jobs.

Nerds..

Papa, G, H and J all enjoyed a fishing charter on Saturday, catching several fish. Papa caught the biggest one, and J caught the most. Though J had only been on the boat for half an hour before saying “ I’m bored ”, though once he started catching fish he was fine. Lucky they caught a few, so they didn’t have to listen to J complain all day, and then they generously gave most of the fish to the charter boat crew and some of the resort staff. Afterwards Papa and G went back to Be and Be to clean and fillet the fish, Papa giving G some expert advice for future fish we catch. Thanks Papa.

Bored J..

Happy J : )

We all enjoyed the fire and dancing show at the resort that night, with H and J getting up to dance when it came time for audience participation.

The rest of our time with Nana and Papa was spent enjoying the resort. The pool and the restaurant were great and the boys loved the fishing each morning off the resorts private jetty. S and P took them to the airport on Tuesday to see them off, and even think they looked well rested after a mini break in Fiji. Thanks heaps Nana and Papa for coming to visit, we loved having you here and hope to see you again before we get home, maybe New Caledonia or Vanuatu for another mini break!

Two days after they left we hauled the boat out of the water. While everything went well its a very nerve wracking experience taking your boat onto the land. The staff here at Vuda marina did an excellent job and we hope to be back in the water in a week.

That afternoon, the Baobab team came in to start polishing the boat and remove the existing sail drives. The next day P, S, E, H and J headed into Lautoka to get some groceries and ended up in Nadi as well so they stayed off the boat while the work was being done. The weekend was spent doing lots of jobs on the boat that could only be done while the boat was out of the water. On Monday, P flew to Suva to see the dentist about a crown that had fallen out en route to Tonga, and been re-cemented there, but had fallen out again. Cheap flight there and got a lift back with friends from the boat Free Wheel, and the knowledge that P will need another implant when we get home to Australia, Yay!

re-hydration time..

Our friends on Skylark had arrived in Vuda with plans to check out the next day, so we had a nice few days hanging out together. They set sail for Vanuatu on a Wednesday afternoon and we waved them off from the marina, unsure if we will see them again on our journey. That's part of boat life, you meet people and become fast friends, enjoying the time you spend together. We have tended to coincide our anchorages when suitable with the kid boats we have met, so that S,E,H and J have other kids to mingle with, as the thing they have missed most on our adventure is their friends from home. Inevitably everyone follows their own route but if you're lucky you might get to see those friends again along your way.

On Friday, after many jobs were completed, we returned Be and Be to the water. The process is quite involved and includes many people. There are 4 people needed on the boat to manage lines, plus someone on the helm, then usually 4 people to manage the lines from shore. On top of that, there is Timo (excellent yardsman here) and his crew getting the trailer in the correct position, also directing the men driving the tractor and travel lift. Though - it was to be short-lived. As we have replaced our sail drives, it was imperative to monitor for leaks once in the water, ideally before they removed the trailer that we were transported into the water on. The mechanic said everything was ok, the trailer was removed, and then lo and behold, there was water coming into the engine bay. Not huge amounts, but hey, not the point! After a few expletives from G, and some major frustration, we moved to a marina berth with plans to haul out again the following day. G spent the next day trying to fix the leak while still in the water but to no avail.

So, at 3pm, with help from the crew on Free Wheel (again), we took the boat out of the water for the second time. We are now back on the hard, but hopefully the issue will be fixed and we’ll be splashing again by mid week. We have been here nearly 4 weeks and are on first name terms with many of the staff at the marina and the boatshed restaurant on site, which has excellent food (we've tried most dishes) and cold beer. Whilst lovely, and there are certainly worse places to be doing boat jobs, we are really looking forward to being back on our own anchor and exploring some more of this beautiful country.