If this doesn’t inspire you to take that Fiji holiday, I don’t know what will

As if you would need even further inspiration to go to Fiji, but here’s 20 reasons to take that Fiji wanderlust to the next level

Fiji the little gem in the South Pacific. Palm-fringed beaches, over 300 islands, beautiful traditional villages, crystal clear waters and possibly the nicest people in the world. I absolutely loved my time in Fiji and its taken me awhile to write this post as I just wasn’t sure my words could do justice to this stunning country but here we go..

Bula

If you had a pound for every time you heard this traditional Fijian greeting during your trip then trust me you would be extremely wealthy. Everyone says it even the tourists and not only that it is always said with a huge grin. Even when I say it in my head I smile. At one of the resorts one of the gatekeepers jobs was to be the Bula Bula man to whoever entered and my word did he do it with enthusiasm.

Being serenaded with calming island tunes

The moment you step off the plane and into the terminal the serenading starts. Yep right there in passport control. Then at dinner, and then with cocktails and we even got serenaded while sailing around the islands. Such beautiful voices it really just added to the feeling of being in an island paradise. If you were serenaded like that in the UK it would feel super weird but not in Fiji, in Fiji you wanted it to never end.

Literally every shade of blue

I thought growing up in Australia that I would have seen all the shades of blue but alas I was wrong. So wrong.  Fiji opened my eyes to more colours and shades then I had every imagined the colour wheel could contain. The water, the sky, and the horizon in between. If I was ever only to remember one thing about Fiji it would be the blues.

The weather

Sunny and hot – Yes, please!. I should warn you that it can get pretty windy at times and this can lull you into a false sense that you aren’t burning so do keep that factor 50 on at all times. The weather is perfect for those early morning beach walks, lazing in the water days and alfresco dinners.

The People

Fijians are the BEST! They are kind, good-natured, funny, helpful, generous and have the most amazing memories. We were spread out over three resorts and all the staff remembered not only our names straight away but what we drank and who was in our group. Even the Fijians that we came in contact with on the streets and in the villages all were lovely, chatty and very welcoming. Everyone just seemed so happy.

You can take thousands of photos of palm trees

Yep, thousands.

The Fijian Farewell song (Isa Lei)

We had this beautiful song sung to us a few times during our stay. Google the words they are so emotive. The most touching time we heard this was the final night our whole family was together. I think we all got a lump in our throats. The words and the way its sung is just so beautiful and a fitting farewell for our time there. I think every country should have a farewell song.

Fiji water, Fiji gold, Fiji Bitter and  Fiji cocktails

Ok, I made that last one up.The cocktails were pretty on point especially when served at a swim-up bar or slid down the bar to you! Fiji Gold and Fiji Bitter were a big hit.  I always thought people who drank  Fiji water were just a bit pretentious but now I’m on board. Must be the electrolytes. I  even brought a bottle back and although I keep filling it up with ‘normal’ water, I can kind of trick my mind that I’m there in the sun drinking it.

Snorkelling

Every day started with watching the sunrise then snorkeling right outside our resort. I think in another life I was a mermaid, being in the water really is my happy place and this was just the most energising way to start each day. We saw so many starfish, brightly coloured fish, coral and some huge clams. I even saw a sea snake and then promptly swam as fast as my little legs could take me back to shore.

Coconuts

Bill at our resort told us that we didn’t need to worry about coconuts dropping on our heads as the elders in his village said that they had eyes. And low and behold they kept their eyes open and didn’t drop on us. One day we were walking along the beach by a nearby village and there were a couple of guys up a palm tree with nothing more than a rope and machetes cutting down the coconuts. In any other country if someone approached you with a machete you would run for your life but no in Fiji he was just offering us a coconut for free to enjoy on our walk. See nicest people ever.

A $7 note

Yes, a $7 note and yes its legal tender. Hilarious!  It was put into circulation to commemorate the Rugby 7’s winning gold at the Olympics. Is there any better way to celebrate a countries success?

Island hopping

One of my favourite moments in Fiji was when we were on the ferry and as if out of nowhere there was this small sandy, palm tree studded island that looked like it had just popped up out of the ocean. There are over 300 islands to explore some easy to reach and others require seaplanes and helicopters. Try and see as many as you can and even the ones owned by resorts have day passes so you don’t need to spend a fortune staying on them to reap the benefits.

Mainland

As lovely and picturesque as the islands are you almost be forgiven for not wanting to spend any time on the mainland.  However, the mainland has many of its own charms and is as equally. If your flying internationally you’ll arrive in Nadi and the drive to the coral coast or even Suva will give you an insight into the day to day life.

Sunsets and sunrises

I watched the sunrise and set every day and every day and it was different. It also resulted in a memory card full of the suns movements. The way it affected the tides, the colours it created and contrasted against the silhouettes of the palm trees. I would sacrifice chocolate forever if I could have that each day of my life. There is just something so good for the soul watching the sun rise and fall over the ocean each day.

Sailing

Any place with water involved if always best seen from on top of it and sailing around the Mamanuca islands way pretty damn perfect. We had the captain an crew playing guitar and singing with their dulcet island tones, a bbq lunch served while staring at the islands, weaving through and around uninhabited islands and then jumping straight off the boat into the water. If I recommend you do anything in Fiji spend a day doing this.

Villages

Traditional villages, kava ceremonies, colourful houses, women’s crafts, meeting the chief and so many smiling happy faces. Whilst I appreciate parts of the traditional villages have been tailored to the tourists it is still really interesting in walking around and absorbing their life and also contributing to their economy in buying souvenirs rather than buying at the tourist shops.

It’s perfectly acceptable to wear a flower behind your ear and a shell necklace

Enough said.

Stars

As there is very little air and low light pollution the sky at night is clear as clear can be.  The stars put on one hell of a good display.

Fiji time

Everything runs on Fiji time and you’ll get on board with this almost as soon as you start saying Bula instead of hello. No rush, no worries.

Family

The reason I was in Fiji is that my sister and brother in law were getting hitched. Initially planned as an elopement they then decided to have the family there (thank the lord!). So we travelled from all over Australia and in our case from the UK to be with them. It was an intimate affair with only immediate family, 2 friends and a cousin -15 in total.  And what an insanely romantic and beautiful place to tie the knot.  One of the reasons I loved Fiji so much was the family time we had.  Many of the resorts are aimed at families and that isn’t just families with younger children its families of all ages.  We laughed, we swam, we went down water slides very fast, we ate, we cut some sick shapes on the dance floors, we explored, we took millions of photos, we had girl time, we watched our dad embrace Fiji life and wear a sulu when walking our sister down the aisle, we marveled at the views and we all cried when it was over and time to head home.. Fiji and little nuggets wedding will hold a very dear place in all our hearts. One of the best family holidays.

Until next time Fiji.  Vinaka vakalevu

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It’s not just me that feels like this check out a post by Debs World who had similar feelings https://debs-world.com/2017/10/21/how-fiji-got-under-my-skin/

What to do before you leave..for when you get back 

Yes I’m being serious.

So the Internet is filled with posts and advice on what to do before you go on a trip, what to pack and how to plan but what you don’t see a lot of is what to do before you leave for when you get home.

Now bear with me I know when you’re getting ready for adventures the last thing you are thinking about is the dark days when you return from said trip.But trust me.
A little preplanning for your return can do wonders for the holiday blues. These are some of things we do to make our return a little easier

Fresh sheets
You’ve probably had terrible, broken, uncomfortable sleep on one or maybe two planes. You’ve had the same clothes on for several different time zones and the hair is probs a big ball of grease. Once you’ve had your first shower in several days slipping into fresh sheets is ALL kinds of bliss. I will actually forgo packing time to ensure we have fresh sheets for when we get back.

Washing done and put away
Unless you’ve been lucky enough to do some washing while away your suitcase or backpack is likely to be filled with a whole lota dirty clothes. If you’ve done all your washing before you go it means the holiday clothes can go straight in the machine and you have a whole fresh new wardrobe to start your migration back into reality with.

Organise someone to check in on your house 

This is obviously for security as with social media people are bound to know your away. Someone checking in turning the lights on and off shows that your place isn’t open for Harry and Marv to break in. The other key part of having someone check in is you can ask them to pop some milk and bread in on the day of your return (I mean is there anything better than a cup of tea after long transit home) and if you’re lucky they may even stick the heating on so you don’t come back to a cold house.

Clean the house
I usually do this panicked at midnight the night before we leave but coming back into a house which has been hoovered, dishes done and tidy up is soo much better than coming home to a messy house. I’ve done both and like I tell myself in my midnight cleaning rage it really is soooo worth it.

These make our return a little sweeter but I’m sure there is lots of other things people do. I can’t be the only weirdo one who not only plans a trip but also plans for the return? If you’ve got and tips share them below! I’d love to hear them

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UK Heatwave*

* I use this term very loosely

As an Aussie kid I know a thing or too about summer – and I mean a proper summer not this one day (or week) of sun.

We swam in creeks,  weren’t allowed out at lunch unless we had a hat on, didn’t have air con managed to not only function like a normal human being but also NEVER mutted the words ‘it’s too hot’. 

Now imagine my surprise that after 10 years of living in the UK I have now become a climatised as what to expect for the great British summer, And that the one day it’s over 30 degrees I’m there with my pommy  friends struggling to cope. 

Today I’ve eaten 3 ice lollies, let my team finish early as it was too hot to keep them working, had the aircon in my car up full ball, taken a photo of the temperature gauge (obvs), checked on the weather for the rest of the week (like 100 times) to see if this will last longer than a week, faked smiled when 20 people said ‘your Australian you should be used to this’ and  then struggled to actually do anything constructive- Because. Of. The. Heat(!) 

Ugh.

Who am I ?!
England just isn’t equipped to cope with this sort of weather. There was actually news articles about how bosses shouldn’t let people work if it was over 30 degrees. But it is really is so lovely when it’s nice. The shackles of the grey doom and gloom melts away and everyone is in the parks at lunch and after work, everyone is out walking/cycling/sporting, tescos runs out of ice lollies as all the work places are buying them, fan sales sky rocket  and everyone just looks… Happy. 

So yes I’m dissapointed that my Aussie bred body is struggling like an English rose but you know what if our summer for this year is just going to be this one week of heatwave then I’m going to bloody enjoy it. As I’ll only be complaining about the rain and lack of sun before to long. 


  


Where I want to go 2016 

Today most people went back to work after the Christmas break. I was one of the lucky (smug) ones that didn’t. Having been in New York between Christmas and New Year I wanted to have a few relaxing days at home before getting back to the 9-5. 
One thing I found myself doing today was looking at different ideas of where to go this year. It also led me to looking at lots of the ‘2016 holiday destinations’ lists that lots of travel operators/magazines have put out. 
I’m sure there is good logic around why the certain destinations made it onto these lists and it’s interesting how so many included similar if not the same destinations. But really who decides why a destination makes it into the list? 
Anyhoo I’ve put together a hit list for myself this year. I’m fully aware I won’t get to all these destinations but it’s a good place to start and helps prioritise where to go. 2015 was a good year I went to Marrakech, Essaouria, Paris, Melbourne, Regional Australia, Wales, New York and Devon so I needed to make sure I have a strong list for this year. 
I already knew that Nashville would feature on our list as the fiancé is keen (massive country music fan!) and it’s actually been listed on a few ‘2016 holiday destination lists’ so we are bang on trend!
I’m already booked up to go to Portugal for a girls holiday in the summer for some much needed sun. 
I’ve longed to see the Northern lights for YEARS so a little email from Easyjet claiming 20% of some flights led me to check out how I could get to Iceland later in the year. This will be a winter holiday. Although I also would adore going to Canada so that’s a long haul option and makes my list for this year. 

Other closer to home destinations include 

Amsterdam 

Rome 

Edinburgh 

Lake District 

Poland 

Sicily or Sardinia 
Let’s see where I end up!

If you have any suggestions or tips where your heading this year let me know! 
  

Awkward 2nd post 

So I’ve got the awkward first post out of the way and now onto the almost as awkward second post. I feel like it should be something profound but I doubt that will happen. Soz

What do I want to say, what should I say, do I do it about me or about what I want to achieve, use it as a precursor about what this blog will be about. So many questions… 
If I’ve not lost you yet then stay with me.

I’m a lover of travelling, adventures and general wandering around this amazing world of ours. I live on the other side of the world from where I was born and grew up. My parents took me on my first overseas trip at 10 years old and those itchy travel feet have followed me ever since. 

Fast forward and now I’m a 30 something female who works my day job in media. Not only do I love going new places and experiencing new things I also love (should read obsessed) taking photos. 

So this blog will be a combination of travel ideas, stories, pictures, where I’ve been/going to, tips, ideas and hopefully in time contributions from others who have been to places I’ve not yet got to. As most of my wandering has been with a lot of great girl friends (the fiancé isn’t so keen on travelling he prefers going to ‘our gate’) there will be a lot of posts focusing on girl trips.  

If I’ve sparked interest then do follow here or on Instagram (thewanderingdarlings) or sign up for email updates. 

Phew second post done

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