As we made our way across the Pacific we were perpetually asking “can we spend a little more time here?” After ~10 years of putting off today’s desires in favor of tomorrow’s dream it was finally time to say “Yes, why not!” The down side to this was that we knew that every extra day we spent in today’s paradise would be borrowed from tomorrow’s. You can only defer for so long before the cyclone threat starts making your choices for you.
So that’s how we got into our current state of mind. For the last few months we have resigned ourselves to the fact that Fiji (the islands that everyone raves about) would be merely a quick stop to meet up with our long lost friends Krister and Amanda of s/v Britannia. We even decided to skip the lauded Astrolabe Reefs in Kadavu in favor of getting a few days closer to Britannia.
Now that we have been here for a few weeks, we know that the praise is well founded. Fiji has delicious/cheap food, the hands-down-friendliest people in all of Oceania, amazing blue sky dipping into turquoise water, easy easy easy sailing, and supplies and consumer goods at near-American prices. There’s a lot to love here. So are we bummed that we doddled on our way here, that we have so very little time in an archipelago that could captivate our interest for a season. Nah. I love Fiji and I’ll come back, but on our way over here, when we were making the choice to see Kadavu or skip, we summed up our feelings pretty succinctly—”It’s more about the people than the location.” We finally caught up with our friends and in doing so feel like we have sewed the seeds of community once more. We’ll head off to Vanuatu on Friday in company and when we arrive there we will drop back into our familiar rhythms and start developing some news ones.
Fiji—like so many of the places we have fallen in love with—will be here in 15 years when we make our second lap. I will look forward to the warm Bulahs, broad smiles, delightful Indian food, warm days and cool nights, and endless perfect sailing. In the meantime it’s onward and seaward towards the ever dwindling season, towards new community, opportunity, and challenge.
2 comments
Comment by Cidnie
Cidnie October 3, 2012 at 2:10 am
So happy you have found your So Pac groove. The good thing about loving a place and having to leave before you are ready? You have a reason to come back.
Comment by Aaran
Aaran October 3, 2012 at 4:15 pm
This is the dream of many people in the world! Unforgettable times right? And for you and especially for your children!
Comments are closed.