This day has 37 hours... Day 114

Today I woke up and took all of my trash out, did any extra cleaning that I needed to do and then I called a cab and went to the airport. I was sad for a minute there and my eyes started to tear up, but I got over it. I got through the ChCh airport just fine. In the next 45 hours or so, I will have been (or seen in some cases) in 3 countries (New Zealand --> Fiji --> USA), 6 airports (ChCh --> Auckland --> Nadi, Fiji --> LAX --> Phoenix, AZ --> Chicago --> Detroit), 8 time zones (NZ/Fiji --> Nuku'alofa --> International Date Line West --> Samoa --> Hawaii --> Alaska --> Pacific --> Mountain), 3 sun rises (NZ, Date Line - ish, Chicago), 2 sunsets (Fiji, Phoenix) and the most confusing part... three days... but two of them I had twice. I went over the international date line just after at about 2am on June 10, so then it was June 9 again... then I flew for a million more hours and it was June 10 again. Yeah. Sweet as.

So I started June 9 at midnight at +12 Greenwich Standard Time (GST). I ended June 9 at 11:59 -7 GST. That means that my day was approximately 37 hours long. Let me tell you, it was a wicked dodgy day. I'm going to post a series of entries that I typed onto my computer at a few of the four airports I was at on June 9:

~I’m sitting in the airport to fly to Auckland. I have a crazy journey ahead of me, lasting 40 or so hours. I fly from Chch to Auckland, Auckland to Fiji, Fiji to LAX, LAX to Phoenix, Phoenix to Chicago and finally Chicago to Detroit. I’m kind of excited to get home, but at the same time, it’s quite sad. Oh, and I just saw a guy with a Central Michigan University shirt on… so I asked him about it. Turns out he’s a Kiwi with a friend at CMU. Sweet as. (Current Local Time: 11:06am June 9)

~Here I am, reporting live-ish from Nadi International Airport. I have approximately 3 hours until I board my flight to LAX, where I intend to sleep for as long as possible, since this flight is ludicrous. I had a horrible experience at Auckland International, as our flight landed late and I had a connecting flight with only 40 minutes to make it through the departure customs. I forgot those existed. Anyways, I made it to my flight, which was also running late, with a few minutes to spare, but there were a few minutes where I thought I was going to completely miss everything. Which would have been bad. Anyways, I’m just going to sit here for a few hours, try and hold off on eating dinner, since I’m sure I’ll get something on the plane. (Current Local Time: 7:23pm June 9)

~I’m currently at LAX, talking to Catherine Trombly on my cell phone. There was a fiasco involving my baggage, one of my bags came through on the wrong plane and one is still unaccounted for, so if you don’t get a souvenir, don’t fret, it will arrive in the next year or so. (Current Local Time: 5:45pm June 9)

Oz... Day 62

Let's start with last night. I went down to the internet lounge to update some more, but I never really got there. I met up with Steve and Jacob from Vorovoro! I hung out with them for a little bit, they were just at the Nomad to get online before their flight. After they left, I went back to my room and went to bed.

Anyways, this morning, I woke up around 6am and packed up, I was on the airport shuttle by 6:30. The airport was uneventful and I was on my plane by 8:45am. I think I'm training my body to sleep on planes now, since I slept about 75% of my 4 hour flight to Sydney, Australia. I checked in to my hostel, but I'm not too impressed, the room I'm staying in smells really bad. I'll get out into the city in a little bit and take pictures, I promise. Oh, and another thing, the time is different here than it is in NZ, I am now ten hours behind, but the day ahead, so Mom & Dad: If I don't call... that's why... I'll try and call tomorrow.

G'day mates... By the way... does this remind you of a certain other fast food restaurant? Burger King by chance? And instead of Dunkin' Donuts, they have Donut King... Interesting.

Alive & Well... Day 61

Just to let you all know, I am alive and well and in Nadi, Fiji. I just had an airplane hiccup, the flight left an hour early... without me, so I had to spend the night in Labasa at a hotel. I'll start posting from Vorovoro in a little bit. The posts will appear under this one, as I'm going to back date them. I'll just tell you now... Vorovoro was AMAZING. I'm going back, that's all there is to it.

Oh Fiji, how punctual you are... Day 60

This morning I woke up and had to carve my name into the pole, its island tradition, apparently. Sadly, I'm not that much of a carver. Anyways, today we all just kinda hung around. I got to know the new couple that came in the day before, they seem like really cool people, I wish they had come earlier. Better yet, I wish I was staying longer. Today, in the bure, Rob, the quiet Dutch boy, got a little cheeky. He came over to where Jacob and I were laying and set his pillow on top of me and laid down. It was pretty cute, since he doesn't really talk to anyone, yet he comes and lays on top of me. Hmm... After all of the laying on people, we had a quick lunch, then I had to get my stuff ready to go. I had about an hour to say my goodbyes, then the boat showed up. We did the traditional leaving ceremony, where everyone lines up and sings while I walk through them. It was good. I thought I was going to cry when I left, but I didn't. It was pretty surreal. Anyways, I got on the boat with Kimbo and Api, and we made our way to Malau, to pick up Ben and some other guy. We ended up having Kava with Chief Tui Mali at his house, which was fun. After dropping Kimbo off at the Grand Eastern, the cab driver took me to the airport. I arrived at 4:30, half an hour before my flight was scheduled to leave. Funny how it had already left. So I went back to the Grand Eastern and got a room. It was pretty cheap, so I'm not worried about it. I even got room service. I bumped into the chief and her husband there, since he and I were now on the same flight. I watched a little Dr. Who, had a shower, then I passed out at the late hour of 9pm.

The last supper... Day 59

Today was a very very relaxed day... not unlike every day here. Anyways, my day started very early, I woke up with the sunrise. The sky was the most amazing shade of pink, but I didn't have time to go get my camera, the color had already left. It finally rained today, so the new water tank got a little action. I pretty much tied up all of my loose ends today, including packing, a little bit of snorkeling and some reading. I hung out with Jacob quite a bit today, he's such a cutie. I'm going to miss that kid. All of us ended up in the bure during the rain, so there was a lot of poker and Uno playing going on. Otherwise, we just enjoyed each other's company. Not too exciting, but still a great day.

Lengu Levu... Day 58

This morning, I woke up on what I believed to be my last full day on the island. Anyways, I just chilled for an hour, then we went to the school in Lengu Levu, on Mali island. I had way too much fun there with the kids. It was a completely awesome experience. First, the kids sang us a song, then did a meke (read: dance). It was great until we had to do it as well... it was quite pathetic, but fun all the same. After that, I helped teach a 3rd/4th grade class. We did hangman. At one point, they were having a hard time with a word, so I tried to draw a stomach on the hangman guy, since they had already gotten all of the normal body parts... too bad it accidentally looked like a large penis. Awkward. The guy I was teaching with informed me of this after class... we had a good chuckle. After class, I went outside and played netball (read: basketball for girls) with some of the girls, then I played with some of the smaller kids. A little girl named Louisa was glued to me. Great fun. We left the school and hopped back on the boat to V². I ended up playing poker again, with the same people as before. I actually did well this time though. After all the meals, we ended up doing MORE KAVA. Those lushes. Good thing its not bad for you. Oh, and I realized today that I don't leave the island until Sunday... I was under the impression that I left on Saturday.

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The Village People... Day 57

This morning I was again woken up by the breakfast bell. I slept quite a bit better in the “bed” that Steffen left for me. In reality, it is just a raised piece of wood, but I think the bed shape is what convinced me that it was better. That and the extremely impressive mozzie (read: mosquito) net. Today I went down to the village with some people and learned how to make a fan out of palm leaves. Francis was the lady teaching us, but she didn’t speak much English, so she had a boy translating for us. Said boy was flirting with me like it was going out of style. Later on, we went to the village and had some grog with the locals, since they finished the new water tank. I played some poker after the grog with 2 English people, a Scot and a Dutch boy. Good fun.

Goodbye old friend... Day 56

Today I woke up and was still feeling the grog a little bit. Luckily, Emily brought my shoes back for me, as I was beginning to wonder where they were. We had to say goodbye to Steffen this afternoon, which sucked, but it was a good send off. I pretty much relaxed all day; I’m becoming quite comfortable with one of the hammocks. Later in the day, we got two new people, Rosie from England and Dave from Scotland, who sounds exactly like the actor that played Oliver Wood in the Harry Potter movies. I took a shower later in the day and let my hair air-dry. Apparently that doesn’t work in Fiji, your hair just kind of air-frizzes. The curls were out of control, but we can call it island chic. Around 8pm, I finally got my sevu sevu (a ceremony asking to be welcomed into the village). I had to present some kava in the ceremony, then we had to drink it. After the sevu sevu we had a weird church presentation. I was confused by it, then again, I’m not at all religious. They were preaching about why its bad to use kava… while we were drinking it…

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It's hammock time... Day 55

Today was a really chill day, I woke up at half six (read 6:30am) after a surprisingly restful nights sleep, even though the roosters were being obnoxious. We had porridge (slimy-er oatmeal) and toast with peanut butter. We then said farewell to 4 of our members, including a possible Olympic swimmer for the 2008 Estonian swim team (100 Breast Stroke). I took a great shower today, it is surprisingly effective, even though it is only a bucket with a spigot attachment. I used the coconut soap that I purchased in Nadi. It may be the creamiest soap ever made, really good stuff… and it’s entirely eco-friendly. I spent the day chasing around Jacob, while his dad was snorkeling. It was fun getting to know the little guy… seeing as how he fell asleep in my lap last night after dinner. I ended up taking a nap in one of the hammocks, which was marvelous. Then I popped into the sea for a few minutes to cool off and take some pictures of the island. We had fried dough for afternoon tea, which was really good. Speaking of afternoon tea, we eat like hobbits here, five meals a day: Breakfast, morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea and supper. Crazy stuff. After the meal, I went into the bure with the chief and her husband, Lavinia and Steffen. A while later, Emily came into the bure and kidnapped me for some grog in the worker’s village. It did affect me a little bit tonight, I just felt like I was moving a little bit slower than usual. I did, however, completely forget my shoes when I walked back to the bure. I found out later that almost everyone forgot their shoes…

Mali Day... Day 54

Today I woke up around 7am to the sound of the brekkie bell. I had a quick meal of fruit and a biscuit (read: cookie). Then I hung around a bit in a hammock. A little while later, Api and his brother, Tui, came around to pick us up for Mali Day on Mali Island, the nearest island to Vorovoro. At low tide, you can walk in between the islands. Anyways, Mai day is an annual gathering of all of Tui Mali’s villages to raise money for the churches on Mali. It was an amazing day. First, we sat down with Tui Mali in his home for a few minutes, waiting for church to let out. Then we went outside to the shelter and sat on the mats for a keri keri (an offering in exchange for something). We quickly moved on to the kava, which they call grog. It is the root of the kava plant, which is ground up with a large, heavy pole, much like a mortar and pestle. Once the root is ground up, it is mixed with water and ingested. Being a slow acting narcotic, it takes time to feel the effects. The only thing that I felt was a mild numbing of the mouth. The locals, however, have been drinking this stuff for a long time, and instead of growing immune to it, the exact opposite effect is experienced, as the kava builds up in their systems. Kava is legal in both Fiji and the United States, even for those under 21. While the ceremony was going on, we sat around and were fed cakes and tea, in addition to the never ending supply of grog. I wound up moving around quite a bit, meeting new people as I went along. After sitting with mostly men, I went to the back and hung out with the women of the tribe, as they called me over. Shockingly, we had more grog. Some of the children that were present taught me some games that involve clapping, much like ones we do in the US. One kid, Eduardo, was getting so annoyed that I was screwing up, it was quite funny actually. One of the women was absolutely fascinated by my white skin, she said it was beautiful. That’s a first, seeing as how everyone from the US wants to be as tan as possible. I was called for lunch around 2pm. I was told that it was quite a traditional meal, consisting of fish, tuapo (potato type root), curried potatoes, coconut milk & spinach salad and fish soup. I ate it all out of respect, but I could have done without the fish soup. We boarded our boat around 3:30pm and went back to V² (much easier than typing Vorovoro). I put on my togs (read: swimsuit) and went for a little dip… I’m pretty sure that I saw a starfish. After swimming I kept my sulu (read: sarong) on for the rest of the day, since that’s what most people here wear. I helped prepare dinner, which was an amazing fried rice dish. The kitchen ladies, Emily, Juli, Nini and Cassa are so much fun, Emily has the most infectious laugh that I’ve ever heard. Later on, we had a cake, celebrating Steve’s 39^th birthday. His son, Jacob, was attached to me most of the day; he’s a good kid. We sat around for a few hours and I talked to a guy named Steffen, from Germany. He’s a journalist and is down here for a story on V². We were sharing a glass all night; he would drink alcohol, then pass it to me so I could use it for Coke. Luckily there was barely any alcohol in it by the time I received it. I could have sworn this guy was maybe 20 years old, but he is 28 and about to be married. Crazy stuff. Here’s a little bit of commentary from one of the American guys, Marc, from Chicago.

“We should have a pot farm here”… “Wait, no, then we’d have to have a pizza farm and a cheeto farm…” Some people just shouldn’t drink…

No day but today... Day 53 cont'd

Today, after much ado, Sara Jane (SJ) and I finally got in the boat with the captain, Api. Thirty minutes later, I was greeted by my fellow tribemates at the shore. All of the names are a blur, I vaguely remember a Steve and a George. The island is overrun by Brits and Americans, however, there is a guy from Holland and a German. Today we reached the highest ever number of people on the island, which is awesome. Soon after arriving on the island, I got the official tour by the chief’s husband, apparently the chief needed some sleep. This place is ten times better than I could have ever imagined. An hour later I was helping cook Easter supper. We ate at a large covered dining table by the sea. Miraculously, all of us (upwards of 15) fit at once. After supper, we drifted back to the Great Bure (pronounced bur-ay), sans the drinkers, who were living it up at the dining table. We all sat around and chatted, periodically being poked and prodded by Jacob, the youngest member so far, at the age of 8. Then, out of nowhere, a mammoth spider dropped from the ceiling. Right next to my leg. Including legs, the spider was about the size of my palm. I immediately jumped and ran to the other side of the Bure, as did a few of the other girls. Steffen, the German journalist, chased it out of the Bure with a giant bowl. I have no idea how that worked, but either way, the spider was gone. Later that night, Api came over and played guitar for a while. I quickly climbed back into my area of the Bure, fully enclosed in my mosquito net, and fell asleep.

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Really really really close... Day 53

So I am literally a boat ride away from Vorovoro... but the guy who pretty much came up with the Tribewanted idea broke his foot, so Sara Jane (a girl that works for Tribewanted) and I are waiting around to hear from him. Last phone call said he might be in the hospital for four days. Apparently they don't have outpatient surgery here. Anyways, did I mention that Fiji is hot? I am sitting here, doing absolutely nothing and I am still sweating. It's driving me crazy. Alas, I will get used to it.

Anyways, the plane ride over to Labasa from Nadi was great, I was on a little hopper of an aircraft, there were six rows, three seats each. It was a bumpy ride to say the least, but it was still pretty cool. The view was amazing. The one I put up here looks strange... almost like a painting.

Now I'm just sitting in the conference room of a mediocre hotel, leeching on their internet. Ahh... Fiji is a magical place.

Men in skirts... Day 52 cont'd

I took this earlier in the day, right when I got to the hostel, I just didn't have a chance to upload it. Disregard my craziness, I'm sleep deprived.

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So after I got checked in, I went down to the pool for a swim. It was ridiculously refreshing. So then I think, hmm... I'm going to sit on a deck chair and read. Yeah, I fell asleep for the better part of two hours. Thank god for sun umbrellas or I would have been toast. Then I went back to my room and changed into normal people clothes. Then I laid down on my bed, just to put my feet up, right? No. I fell asleep again, this time for about 3 hours. I guess my body is just not taking no for an answer right now. I can tell that I'm going to sleep like a baby tonight. Then I'm up early again tomorrow to catch my flight, which doesn't leave until 9:30am, but the only shuttle that I can make is at 7:00am. I'm sure I can amuse myself at the airport for an hour or two.

If you guys didn't catch it on the video, I would like to point out that it is completely socially acceptable for men here to wear skirts. It's amazing. I bet if it was acceptable in the USA to do that, a lot of guys would, its quite nice when it's hot out. I think their skirts are called sulu. Yes, like the man from Star Trek. I blame Jake & dad for my knowledge of that.

I know I didn't post any pictures, I'm not on a part of the island where you can take really cool pictures, but you can get some awesome ones from the airport, so don't worry, I'm all over it. I'll try to snap some photos of the hostel as well, tomorrow morning before I leave.

Here's some news from home: My mom broke her foot. Everyone say it with me: Awwww. Okay, good. She is a dork, that's all I have to say about that. In other news, Coop is going in for surgery on April 10, so everyone wish her good luck. I feel like I should do more news updates. Okay... Cat passed her CLEP English Literature exam with flying colors :) Woot. Umm... Mom & Jill's friend 'Pillow' had a baby. Congrats. I don't know her given name, that's just what they call her. Okay, I can't think of anything else to update, my brain is melting away... OH! Happy Easter for all of you people that celebrate Easter. If you don't... that's okay too.

I'll update as frequent as possible in the next few weeks. Love you guys!

Sleep is overrated... Day 52

I never went to sleep last night... I don't know how I managed that, but somehow, I did. Instead, I stayed awake and did random stuff until 3:30am, when I finally got really tired, so I took a 20 minute nap. Then I was awake to get my stuff done and get downstairs by 4:15am for my shuttle to Christchurch International Airport. When I got there, I was ravenous, so after going through security and stuff, I scarfed down a croissant sandwich. Delicious. Then I sat around for about an hour until my flight was called. When I finally got on the plane, I couldn't sleep for the life of me, I was having these weird little asthma things, probably because of the altitude change. Every time I would drift off, I would wake up gasping for breath. It was kinda weird. But once I got used to the thinner air, I fell asleep like a baby. I slept most of the way to Fiji. When I woke up, I was super disoriented, which sounds horrible, but it was just because of the lack of sleep. I got off the plane and went through immigration and customs really fast, then sat around for 3o minutes, waiting for my shuttle to the Nomad Sky Lodge Hostel. My driver was a really nice guy, but to make it better, the ride was FREE! Awesome. Let me just tell you that Fiji is absolutely gorgeous. It looks like the island on Lost. I'm utterly amazed. I think I'm going to go out in a little bit and take some pictures. Right now I'm waiting around the hostel to check in, as my check in time is in just over an hour, so I can't go find a bed and sleep. Lame. Sleep will come soon. Actually, I'm just going to take a small nap, so I don't ruin my sleep schedule for the rest of my life. OH! And Fiji money looks pretty cool, I have a $2 bill... and I think it's red.

While I was waiting for my room, I went and checked out the hostel, it's pretty impressive. As soon as I get into my room, I'm going to get into my togs (read: swim suit) and hop in the pool. Oh, and I met the rugby team that's sponsored by Air Pacific. They were super nice.

I had to buy some coconut soap here... and I know I got ripped off, but it's eco friendly for Vorovoro, so I guess I can deal with it. Luckily it smells good. Okay, my room is ready and there are some hot Fijian rugby players outside... so I'm gonna go.