It was curry night at Mantaray Resort. A long table stretched in front of me, heavy with platters of naan, rice, pad thai, salad, yogurt sauce, savory split pea soup, and finally 3 different kinds of curry - fish, veggie, and chicken. The fish was incredible, bathed in a rich tomato and garlic sauce. How glorious was that dinner! Sleeping arrangements were in a 30-bed dorm, every 4 of which were divided into their own cubicle. I breathed a huge sigh of relief as I saw fans, mosquito nets, and the cleanest most whitest of sheets. No bed bugs tonight! It didn't even phase me that one of the girls I met had a back covered in bites from an unfortunate stay on another island.
During dinner I was able to meet some of the guys who work at Mantaray. One was a younger dude from UK who runs the dive shop, think his name was John. He said he left London to do some traveling, ended up at this resort, and hasn't left in 5 years except to visit home once. He said it was total culture shock when he went back. Then there was Justin, a 40 y.o.'ish Aussie handy-man who made sure we had running water and things like that. I asked him if he had kids and he said "Hundreds. That's why I'm here." Then there were the locals who do all the rest. After dinner, everyone emptied into the main lodge for game night. The lodge was so comfy. It had huge modern looking couches with bright squishy pillows to lean back against. We played limbo which I lost to a girl named Heather from Georgia. Imagine that! :) Then the games kind of sizzled out. Everyone was sitting in circles on those big cushions just getting to know each other and taking turns playing DJ with the community iPod. The funniest thing was when John started having everyone do rum and coke snorkel bongs, lol. You should have seen the people with those goggles on, mouthpiece flailing and them sputtering as if they'd just swallowed a gallon of ocean water. Went to bed minus the snorkel bong :) I fell asleep that night to the sound of soft rain.
Mantaray Resort was a really neat little spot. I rather liked it. It was worth the extra $25 bucks. Breakfast was served buffet style. I was so stoked that I actually found wifi! Got to skype my amazing b/f for a bit and also send my dad an "I'm safe, everything's ok, love you" e-mail. Poor dad, he was concerned because I hadn't posted a blog in a week. But here on the distant Fijian islands internet is scarce, expensive, and s…l…o…w…
I had an amazing morning in beautiful weather. Played a few great games of volleyball, 4 on 4 this time! That's an improvement over the typical 10 on 10 or whatever the Fijians usually like to do (=MAYHEM). Right after lunch it just out of the blue started pouring sheets of rain! It let up a little in time to get on the Yasawa Flyer, but as I got closer to Octopus Resort it started again with a vengeance. The Flyer couldn't even let us off in front of the resort. We had to enter from the other side of the island and trek up the slippery muddy side of a hill. By the time we reached Octopus we, along with all our luggage, were completely soaked. Any discomfort from this was immediately quelled by..….
The vision that is Octopus Resort.
WOW. Phenomenal. By far my new favorite! Part of Waya Island, Octopus sits on the longest white sand beach I've seen yet. Rocky prominences jut out into the ocean. The resort has a beautiful open-air, wooden dining area and bar. The middle of it is soft sand with beautiful mission-style tables and chairs all around. Huge wooden beams are adorned with green leaves woven around like Christmas lights. In front of the dining area is a covered veranda with comfy chairs and a breathtaking ocean view. To the side is a swimming pool surrounded by lush plants and flowers. The staff all match in their blue Hawaian shirts and glistening white smiles. Breakfast will be buffet style, lunch is a-la-carte and includes fresh unique salads, sandwiches, curries, and other Fijian fair. Dinner is "family-style" where everyone sits down together. I can't wait :)
I'm staying in a lovely 4-bed suite with it's own bathroom and warm shower. At the moment all my clothes are spread over the bed on a beach towel, hopefully drying. I sit here in the twilight, writing this blog, breathing in that cool, refreshing smell. You know, the one after a heavy rain. It is delicious. Keeping my fingers crossed for brilliant weather tomorrow!
Plan: 3 nights at Octopus, yes! :D
Budget:
Fiji day #8 (Mantaray Resort) - $25 additional resort charge, $10 internet, $10 Fiji Gold
Fiji day #9 (Octopus Resort) - $30 room, $35 food, $10 snacks, $5 internet
Very jealous!!!
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