Sunday, December 20, 2009

Bula From Fiji!!!

“Bula” means something like “hello” or “hey, how’s it going?” in Fijian. Everyone here says it to you – and everyone says it with a smile. The people in Fiji have been wonderful – all really helpful, super friendly, and laid back.

Because of Cyclone Mick, which hit Fiji only a few days before we arrived, the conditions here have not been absolutely perfect. For one thing, it has been a bit gray and cloudy, though still warm. (And certainly warmer than the 8 degrees we left in Boulder!) The main issue from the cyclone was that it left a huge quantity of debris on the beaches. Most of the debris consisted of driftwood and a bit of garbage, which was not actually so bad. But, while walking on the beach, we did also discover some kind of dead tentacle and a severed cow head that I’m sure will haunt my dreams with its lolling tongue for some time to come!

The little resort we stayed at was a bit run down, and also had some cyclone damage, but I actually sort of liked it that way. It felt more local and unique. We spent two nights in a quiet bungalow with an ocean view and a hammock. We drank fruity cocktails and lounged by the pool. I must admit that I did actually do a little bit of homework for my upcoming class, but I suppose if you have to be in law school, reading poolside in Fiji with a cocktail is probably the best possible option!

While we have enjoyed ourselves overall, unfortunately I do have to admit that all this traveling hasn’t been completely easy for me. The first night we got here I had a nosebleed like the one I had on the boat in China (i.e. gushing over the sink for at least half an hour, dizzy by the time it finally stopped.) By the time we got to bed that night I was so fatigued from all the traveling that my eyes were literally twitching and I had trouble moving my joints at all.

Although I slept really well, I was still feeling way less than 100% on our second day – really fatigued, super swollen and sore hands (from the heat, maybe?), and a lot of pain in both of my hips. After spending the afternoon in the sun, I had a little bit of a breakdown that evening. Somehow, it felt worse to me to be in so much pain on a vacation than on an ordinary day at home. I don’t know if this will actually make sense to anyone else, but at home it is perfectly normal for me to feel icky. I go to school and run errands while feeling gross all the time. But on what may be a once in a lifetime trip, and the first thing APL and I have been excited about in a long time, I really wanted to feel good. And so I was really disappointed that I didn’t.

But APL was there for me, as he always is. He held me while I cried for a little bit and then he told me it was going to be ok. He told me I could keep going – that we could do this – and that we would still really enjoy ourselves. And so then we went to dinner, ordered a passion fruit daiquiri, watched the sunset over the ocean, and listened to the live music. And it was ok. It may not have been perfect, but it was real and we were together. And I’ll take that. Plus I took my ENBREL injection today, so that should help.

Now on to Australia...posts when I can make them!

1 comment:

Sarah Z said...

i'm glad to hear about your trip!