Palau Kayaking

Aww man, our last day in Palau. As always, when I travel, I so don’t want to go home today.

Planet Blue Kayaking

Today we enjoy more aquatic adventures, of the kayaking kind. Thanks to our friends at Sam’s Tours and Planet Blue Kayaking, we enjoyed a 1/2-day kayaking adventure.

Before I continue, I wanted to post a picture of Molly, our wonderful host on this excellent adventure. Today she’s wearing the Little Miss Giggles shirt she borrowed (from her daughter, who protested that the shirt might not be professional enough to wear to “work.” We should all have to work this hard.)

Today we had another excellent insider tour of the island. We learned some of the local lore, kayaked under and through some incredible rock formations, and even around a sunken World War II battleship.

During lunch, we enjoyed some additional, amazing snorkeling. The sea life here was about as varied as I’ve ever seen, but sadly I opted not to rent the underwater camera for a second day.

What amazes me is how much colorful, diverse sea life can thrive just feet away from beaches. It seems like nature would want to protect itself and make its greatest beauties harder for humans to find. But I guess Palau is a stunning example of just how generous Mother Nature can be.

Four Hands Massage

After lunch, we returned to the PPR hotel, where I had a massage scheduled at the property’s Elilai by Mandara Spa.

I had planned to try a massage at both resorts, but as you’ve probably gathered, we’ve been somewhat busy this week. So since this was my first free minute to have a massage, I totally (over) indulged and booked myself a four-hands massage. Many of the massage therapists in Palau are trained in Indonesia, and my two therapists were no exception.

These two ladies were totally in sync, both exerting identical amounts of pressure just where I needed it. Normally I like my massages at a “Rough Me Up” level, but my sunburn was a deterrent, and it was a pleasure to just enjoy a relaxing hour in someone else’s hands.

I absolutely cannot rave enough about how blissful the experience was. I came out of the spa, and one of my travel mates told me I looked stoned. Which is pretty much how I felt.

After a few tropical drinks on the beach, it was time for the group to convene and enjoy our final dinner.

Fruit Bat Soup

All week, our hosts had been great about introducing us to typical Palaun experiences, but I would say that Melson really went out of his way to make sure we had a touch of local flavor. He brought us the Betel nut, clams, fried donuts and a number of other one-of-a-kind experiences.

The one thing he had not yet delivered was the national dish of Palau.

Fruit Bat Soup.

But at dinner, Melson, who hadn’t let us down yet, delivered once again. And voila, here you see the result of fruit bat soup. In terms of flavor, the soup tasted pretty good. The bat itself tasted somewhat like Japanese eel (tastes like chicken!).

But since the soup is cooked with the whole bat, having to peel off the little guy’s hairy skin would probably make this an experience I don’t need to repeat.

At dinner, we finally got to meet Darin Deleon, our very gracious Palau Visitor Authority host, and the person that made it possible for all of us to travel on such a wonderful excursion.

The dinner was hosted by the Palau Pacific Resort, who even arranged to have a traditional performance for us. What a fabulous way to end our stay.

After dinner, we had a short rest before we were escorted to the airport for our 1 am departure.

(I was considering writing a scathing overview of the retarded procedures at the airport in Guam. Think dot matrix passenger manifests and highlighters, but I decided that the journey was just too lovely to ruin with a scathing end. Just know that if you fly through Guam, you may need to arm yourselves with a little extra patience and a fine-tuned sense of humor.)

And also know that any stop in Guam is 100% worth the process if you get to enjoy Palau on the other end.

Palau Snorkeling

Here’s another deep dark confession. I’m just horrible at snorkeling. I’m so inept, I always get my hair caught between my goggles and my head, so the goggles don’t fit right and water gets in my eye. I can’t dive below the surface at all, because I’ll always end up taking a big giant gulp of ocean water through my breathing tube. The salt water makes me tear up and get all boogery.

Despite all that, I absolutely love snorkeling. Even with water trickling in my eyes and having to surface and wipe the snot off my face ever ten minutes or so, I just love it.

So I was very much looking forward to today’s snorkeling itinerary, which was to be hosted by Fish N Fins. I’ve heard so much about the wonderful dive/snorkel sites in Palau and despite the build up, the excursion beat all expectations.

Big Drop Off

We first went to a popular dive location known as Big Drop off. Here snorkelers could float on top of the coral reef, while serious divers could submerge down the coral wall. Having (for once) planned ahead, I rented an underwater camera from the hotel, and boy am I glad I did.

For the education of visitors, our crew had sent a trap into deep waters where the elusive Nautilus lives (generally 600-2,000 feet by day and 300 feet at night. Not to wax eloquent on the Nautilus (because there is so much more to say) but it is one of the oldest sea creatures on the planet, and very rarely seen in its natural habitat, so this was quite a cool experience.

Also interesting is that the cage used to bring up the Nautilus had also caught an errant Moray Eel. The eel was clearly not long for this world, and despite our guides’ gentle attempts to revive the eel and encourage it to swim away, it hung loosely in front of us. While sad that the eel was unwell, it was my first time to ever see a moray completely removed from the rocks they normally hide behind, and see just how long they actually are.

Soon, however, I became quite distracted by the Black Tip Shark swimming just below us. Generally he seemed pretty uninterested in the humans (there were a lot of people swimming about) These bad boys of the sea were hungry though, and if you look closely, you can see this one chomping on a small, yellow fish. (Right about now, my sister the marine biologist is shaking her head at my hugely scientific definition of sharky’s lunch.)

At any rate, the shark was so hungry, that while we were all watching his maneuvers, he swam directly in front of us, grabbed a hold of the Moray eel and took off like the proverbial bat out of hell. Wow, it was like the discovery channel unfolding in front of us.

Lunch on the Beach

Our next stop involved enjoying a leisurely lunch on the beach. I pretty much scarfed through my snack box, and couldn’t wait to jump back in the water. I swam some 100 feet out, where a boat from another tour company was dumping snacks in the ocean in an attempt to bring the fish close to their boat.

The fish were ecstatic and thousands of them began to swim about me. What started out as really cool took on a sort of EEK! feeling when five or six huge (okay at least five feet) sharks figured out that where there are thousands of fish, there’s a fine sashimi lunch to be had.

As a few of the sharks swam around and took a second pass, two of them swam by me, almost nose to nose. Umm, not sure on exactly how much human sashimi these sharks feel a need to consume, I felt my heart slam into my throat. Melson was close by, so I did the typical tourist thing, handed him my camera, and swam back to the safer waters of our own boat. What you are looking at here, is some of Melson’s fine photography work, as I was far too chicken to be THAT close to the action.

Jellyfish Lake

Now if you’re thinking, wow, “swimming with the sharks, what could be better than that?” I’d say, “I know, right? How could the day get any better?”

Unbelievably it did.

We’d been told of a mythical lake, one that was once part of the ocean, but as the sea waters began to recede (gillions of years ago, after the ice age), the waters became trapped inland. Now the lake, a brackish mix of salt and fresh waters, still houses jellyfish that have made their home there for millennia. The jellyfish, with no natural predators, have evolved to be almost completely stingless. (I kid you not.)

So, we did have to take a somewhat steep hike to get up to and then back down to the lake. Me: hot, sweaty, klutzy, not looking forward to the hike. However, I sure am glad that I went.

This place was AMAZING. There literally is no other way to describe it.
Imagine swimming in a bowl of pea soup with the peas floating around you. That’s sort of the experience we had. The jelly fish were everywhere. In the picture you see Courtney (who took one of the earlier shark pics), and you get a great idea of just how many jelly’s are floating about. What you can't see in the picture, however, is Courtney's nefarious plotting to take home a jelly fish to keep.

We stayed here about an hour, and I think it’s safe to say that none of us wanted to leave.

A Giant Clam

Now, we went to so many places today that I don’t remember what all of them were called. I’m pretty sure the next location we hit was “Clam City.” Yup, the clams below were giant as promised.

And seriously, who can say the words “Giant Clam” without thinking of the B-52s?

“--He was in a jam
--s’in a Giant Clam”

Everyone now!

Too bad most of my group was too old (or too young) to know the song.

What was particularly cool about this dive is that it was what’s called a drift dive. You jump in the water, watch the world below you, and let the current swoosh you along. (By the way, a special kudos to travel mate Jacqui who was somewhat afraid of the water, yet still donned life vest to take a look along. Even when she realized how far away the boat was, she continued as if she were a seasoned pro.)

Even those who aren’t strong swimmers, or not swimmers at all, could navigate this site with ease. Pop on a life vest, let the water do the work, and the boat will swing around to meet you at the end.

Milky Way

Even though the day was drawing to a close, I don’t think any of us were ready to go home yet. Fortunately, Tim, our captain, had one last place to show us. We ended up at a fabulous place known as the Milky Way.

Here, the boat crew hauled up buckets of the milky white sand from the waters of a protected inlet. We were told to slather the sand over ourselves and let it dry. Basically, a free spa treatment. We were enjoying the afternoon too much, though, so we pretty much posed long enough for this picture before jumping en masse back into the water.

This adventure was probably slightly cooler before we learned that the fine, milky white sand in the water is scientifically known as Chiton poop. Whatever, my skin never felt so good.

Barracuda Bar & Grill

As the day came to a close, Fish N Fins hosted our delightful dinner at their on-site restaurant, Barracuda Bar & Grill. Despite a raging sunburn (in places I’ve never burned before), I managed to scarf down a stunning amount of delectable cuisine, before returning to the hotel to fall into a near comatose sleep.

The Battle of Peleliu

Here’s my deep, dark, secret confession.

Part of our group would be going diving today while the rest of us would be doing an “alternate” activity. So of course I was thinking that a separate (but equal) activity would be snorkeling.

Nope. We non-diving girls would be visiting Peleliu Island for an in-depth overview of island’s importance during the War in the Pacific.

Hmm, can’t say I was as excited as I should have been.

Turns out, the program was quite fascinating.

We were transported by a 40-minute boat ride to Peleliu Island by Sam’s Tours . Once on Peleliu, we were escorted by Des Matsutaro, an expert on the island’s history, and a World War II historian.

War in the Pacific

Peleliu, which is currently inhabited by some 200 residents, had no less than 10,000 residents before the (in)famous battle. Many of these residents were Japanese, as the Japanese had several military sites on the island, in particular an airstrip that proveg to be central in the fight to control the Pacific.

Scattered throughout the island are numerous World War II artifacts, all of which are protected under historical preservation rules. We visited a memorial site (seen in the photo) dedicated to the 81st infantry division (the Wildcats) as well as many other historical sites, including the famed “Orange Beach” where one of the initial battles took place.

Des did a fabulous job of bringing the history of this area to life. The battle for Peleliu was considered controversial, by many, in particular because of its high casualty count and because of the fact that the airstrip never ended up serving its intended purpose as a strategic site in the battle to recapture the Philippines.

Des excelled at conveying the feeling of that time. The young men of the US (and Japanese) armies fought in 115 degree, humid weather marching over sandy beaches and tropical vegetation. The horror of what these brave men went through, in the defense of liberty, is really beyond my comprehension. I've attached this photo (which I "borrowed" from the Department of Defense, public domain) which illustrates very well, the overwhelming forces fighting for Peleliu.

We took a break from military history to enjoy lunch at Yellow Wall restaurant, which is owned and operated by our hosts for the day, Maml Divers. We were served stuffed mud crab, a local specialty, as well as a totally decadent deep friend cheese log. Bad, bad, bad (but so good.)

After lunch, our history lesson continued, as we visited Peleliu World War II Memorial Museum. The museum is largely made up of donated artifacts and items, as well as many personal histories of the soldiers that fought on the island. One of the many donations here was a copy of John McCain’s biography.

We visited some of the island’s caves, which played a huge role in the Japanese defense of the island. These caves were largely the reason that the battle of Peleliu didn’t take the four days the Americans anticipated, and rather lasted some four months.

Palau Diving

Des told us that diving operations also have base locations on Peleliu Island. Because the island is much closer to some of the famed reef spots, visitors embarking from Peleliu will reach the prime diving spots an hour before the visitors from Koror, making for at least an hour of prime, unshared diving time.

If staying on the island, one of the best resorts to check out is Dolphin Bay Resort. This cute little resort is an ideal jumping off point for eagers divers wanting to get an early start.

Palau Pacific Resort

During the day our belongings had been transferred to the lovely Palau Pacific Resort (known by locals as PPR), our second accommodation in the islands. After finishing our Peleliu tour, we enjoyed a relaxing 40-minute boat ride back to Koror, where we were dropped off directly at the PPR’s boat dock.

This gorgeous, west-facing facility would be our home for the next three nights, and what a home it is.

Sams Tours

After a brief rest we were escorted back to the Sam’s Tours headquarters. The tour company is operated out of an open-style area, which loans itself well to group events, meetings and functions. We were served a splendid dinner, prepared by the wives of the Sam’s Tours senior staff.

A particular favorite was the crab in coconut milk (gosh I can still taste it) and lobster with garlic butter. Our hosts were incredibly generous with their time and they pulled out all the stops.

We enjoyed an in-depth presentation on the ecological history of Palau by Ron Leidich, the staff biologist for Sam’s Tours.

We were also lucky enough to watch some of the stunning underwater, movie footage shot by staff videographer Dr. Nick Martorano, Ph.D. If you want to watch some of his awesome footage (or even download it to your iPod), you can visit his site at: www.oceanwonders.org/LAUPS_2007/. A sample picture from a dive to a "mystery wreck" is included here.

With our heads and our bellies filled to the max, we returned to the PPR to enjoy some well-earned rest.

Babeldaob Island Tour

Early Morning Massage

Now here's a great way to start the day. The Palau Royal Resort sets up a massage therapist in the lobby, who gives away five to ten-minute massages in order to encourage traffic to the property's Mandara Spa.

Ahh bliss. I don't think I'm going to have time to enjoy a complete massage here, but it sure felt good getting a 10-minute preview before we set off for our hard day of sightseeing.

Palau International Coral Reef Center

Palau is so reliant upon its coral reef system, both for the tourism it brings, as well as for the marine environment that sustains much of the country’s economy, that it’s great to see an Aquarium dedicated specifically to the reefs.

The Palau Coral Reef Center is a small but mighty attraction with lots of great information about the reef and its native denizens. The Outer Reef exhibit is one of the largest exhibits of its kind in the world and houses angelfish, butterflyfish and wrasses along with many coral types. We had a huge itinerary today, and definitely did not have enough time to explore this amazing place.

Having said that, however, I wouldn’t have wanted to miss anything else on the day’s agenda, so wouldn’t have really changed a thing. Our next stop would be Ngchesar to enjoy a new Palau attraction.

If you’re feeling confused by Palau's names and locations, don’t worry, so was I. I’ve attached another map of Palau, to help you get your bearings. Again, my apologies to the PVA for stealing their content.

Ngchesar Jungle River Boat Cruise

Next we visited the Jungle River Boat Cruise

Being the uber Disney fan that I am, needless to say, I had a few jokes about the “Jungle River Boat Cruise” ride. But turns out the joke was on me, because owner Billy Takamine lived in Anaheim for a time, and designed the concept somewhat around its namesake.

It is definitely much, much cooler on a real jungle river, that’s for sure.

The aluminum boat holds forty people and sails up a 2.5-mile river, until it hits the ocean. Along the way, the river is lined by mangroves and we had our very own guest appearance by two crocodiles, who apparently are quite the local celebrities.

After our fabulous cruise, we were treated to a tremendous luncheon barbecue, starring some of the best short ribs I’ve ever eaten. (And since I worked with the Korean government, I’ve eaten a LOT of short ribs.)

What I think impressed me the most is that this entire operation, which is run on land owned by Billy Takamine, is all run without any electricity. The land, which was nearly inaccessible until roads into the area were recently developed. Because the area is somewhat remote, electricity is a fairly new development, and Billy isn’t in any hurry to get it. (Don’t worry, the restrooms, which are lit by candle, do feature running water.)

That’s kind of how the Palauns are. Eco friendly, not because they have to be, but just because it’s a way of life.

Babeldaob Tour

A light rain, and the fact that we left the Jungle River Boat Cruise considerably later than our itinerary had planned, meant we had some last minute modifications on our afternoon schedule. Out was the waterfall hike (too slippery) but the rest of the Babeldaob (Island) tour was intact.

First we did some creative four-wheeling to see Palau’s national capital, Melekeok. The town, which has less than 200 residents, boasts a gorgeous capital building literally situated in the middle of nowhere.

I think our group was perplexed by the fact that all the nation’s officials had to drive 40 minutes each way, every day, to come to work, but apparently Palau is hoping to develop the area in the near future.

In the area, we also visited the Melekeok Bai, a traditional ceremonial house and stepped far back in time at the Ngarchelong Stone monoliths. The origin of these mysterious stone heads is unknown, but the Palauans consider this space sacred. While walking through the area, I definitely got the sense that this location is being guarded by ancient spirits.

Today our hosts were Kadoi, Yumie and Melson of the PVA. Melson was great about introducing us to some of the native aspects of Palaun life. Here you see him enjoying some very fabulous raw clams at a local market. If we’d had more time, I probably would have eaten 20 of these babies, but since we were on a schedule, we had to roll along.

Poor Melson also took quite a hit later when he elected to introduce us to an old stone sarcophagus further along Babeldaob. The sarcophagus, origins unknown, is located up a steep, muddy slope. You know what happens when rain, hills, mud and klutzy Monica mix together, right? Yep, I took a header up and down that hill.

Melson was great about trying to get us all up and down safely but to no avail as one of our group (not me, thank god) quite literally crashed into him, taking him out. He’s survived in one piece, but likely won’t ever forget our group.

Elilai Restaurant

After spending the day toiling in the mud and visiting some of Palau’s remote areas, it was a total shock to the system to have dinner at Elilai, www.elilaipalau.com
a trendy “Asian” grill.


This place looks like it comes straight from the pages of New York or Las Vegas magazine. The owner, Takuya Tetsuzo is a designer as well as a restaurateur, and he wanted to open a restaurant with a modern flair in Palau. Mission accomplished. The meal consisted of countless courses of Asian specialties (like Pad Thai, pork ribs, pineapple fried rice, seared ahi with a Korean hot sauce) and the restaurant sported a beautiful view of the neighboring Rock Islands. (Again the view was implied, as that dreaded night darkness prevented us from seeing much.)

Even without the view, the lounge-feel of the restaurant balcony made an enjoyable setting. After dinner we enjoyed drinks in the restaurant lounge. Quasi day-beds, video screens, what more could a girl want. Here you see Yumie, Kadoi and Heather enjoying a rare quiet moment.

Palau Overview

Palau Royal Resort

This morning we got our first "real" look (by daylight) at our hotel, the Palau Royal Resort, a lovely resort in Koror. This is one of Palau’s high-end properties and definitely worth checking out if you’re planning a visit. This is a member of the Nikko Hotels family and because of the huge volume of Japanese travelers to Palau, it felt a little bit like traveling in Asia.

Yay for me, because that meant the delicious breakfast had lots and lots of Asian specialties. I never eat breakfast at home, so why oh why does a buffet seem to lure me with its message of “go crazy and try to eat everything?”

I enjoyed my favorite international breakfast, congee rice porridge with a side of bacon. Gross, I know. But don’t worry, I added other specialties from the buffet, including made-to-order waffles in order to round out my palate.

Koror Museum Tour

Not really knowing much about Palau, I was pleased to see our morning consisted of a museum tour of Koror. We visited the Belau National Museum, Tebang Woodcarvers and Etpison Museum, all of which helped color in some details of the Palauan history (as well as a greater understanding of the islands that make up Micronesia.)

At the Belau National Museum we had a great overview of the effects of international communities on Palau. From the German control of Palau to the Japanese occupation to modern-day influences such as Taiwan, which uses its friendship with Palau to further its own global positioning independent of China, the tiny nation has played a role in much of international politics.

At the Tebang Woodcarvers, we saw artisans crafting the “storyboard” wood carvings that are a popular Palauan handicraft. The storyboards generally follow one of just a handful of fables, which give a greater insight into the nation’s history. For example, the Palauan past has a rather grim history in that the women never had a natural childbirth. The woman’s womb was sliced open with a bamboo knife and needless to say, the woman rarely survived this process. Along came the spider god Mengidabrutkoel and showed the people how to deliver babies naturally. Now many storyboards bear the image of this spider god and display this legend.

The Etipson Museum also proved to be hugely informative with exhibits focused on the endemic culture of Palau. With displays of a Bai (traditional men’s meeting house), canoes and other boats, the museum helped wrap up all the information we’d learned this morning during our advanced-learning Palau course.

Dolphin Pacific

In the afternoon, we got up close and personal with some of Palau’s natives, the dolphins. Dolphins Pacific is an educational facility that studies the dolphin habits. Since I am a child of the “Flipper Generation,” I’ve had a deep seated “awww” for dolphins since my early childhood. I’ve been up close and personal before, but these smart animals never fail to make me smile.

The dolphins have been taught not to eat the many leaves that fall in their enclosures, but rather to bring the leaves to a trainer. As a reward, the dolphins get a tasty seafood treat. Now the crafty critters swim around the pool finding leaves and trade them for seafood in an almost incessant manner. Makes you wonder whose training whom, right?

Although we had some scheduled “free time” in the afternoon, Heather, one of our hosts, had told us that one of the best places to buy story boards was at the men’s prison. Cool, right? So naturally a group of us made our way over to check out the inventory. They must have had thousands of storyboards there. Overwhelming.

The paper sign over the door mandating “no prisoners beyond this point” was our first clue that this might not be a high-security prison. Although I was tempted to buy the storyboard of the legend of “Melechotech-a-chau” about a giant with a long, long, long male member that sort of resembles the Loch Ness monster, the cliché of a sex carving by a male prisoner was just too much for me to bear. So I bought a nice legend about boats, and turtles and greed set in Ngerchemai, a the home village of our other host, Kadoi.

Palasia Hotel Palau

Dinner tonight was at the Taiwanese-owned Palasia Hotel Palau. Our all-Chinese buffet of delicacies was followed by drinks overlooking the Rock Islands. (Of course since it was pitch black outside, this was more of a figurative overlooking than an actual view.) If I’d had more time, I definitely wanted to indulge in the hotel’s Chinese-style massages, wow, priced at just $20 an hour.

I just love inexpensive hedonism.

On My Way to Palau

One Country Closer to the "Century Club"

There are some (usually older) travel geeks who keep track of how many countries they’ve visited, and for them the “century” mark of 100 countries is a high water mark. I’m nowhere near visiting 100 countries, but have noticed lately that I’ve only been traveling to countries I’ve already visited. I’m not complaining, of course, but when I got the offer to visit Micronesia’s Palau, I jumped at the chance.

When I told people I was visiting Palau, I usually received one of two responses. The main one being “where’s Palau” and the second-most popular being “oh yes, there was a very famous World War II battle fought there.” For those of you in the first category, I’m including a map of the area, which I borrowed from the website of our hosts, the Palau Visitors Authority Palau Visitors Authority For those of you in the second category, keep reading.

Getting To Micronesia Via Continental Airlines

To get to Palau we flew Continental Airlines and Continental Air Micronesia with routing from LAX to Honolulu, then Honolulu to Guam and finally Guam to Koror (Palau).

Suprisingly, the flights were not awful. I can’t stand flying truth be told. Being tall, big and above average in the chest region mean that airline seats are at best uncomfortable and usually pretty intolerable. Continental however had a decent enough pitch (room between me and the person whose reclined seat usually rests on my chest) to allow me to even get in and out of my seat, and to eat my meal without performing my usual contortionist dance.

Further the food service was plentiful and fairly pleasant. On the long leg (HNL to GUM) we were even served ice cream sundaes for our mid-flight snack. Oh yum.

And anyone who knows me, knows that I’m a video game addict. So the in-seat video games (on a domestic carrier no less) were a welcome distraction. The movies were on demand so you could start, stop, pause and fast forward through the movies at your own whim. Don’t you just hate having to start watching a movie half way through the film?

Fortunately (sorry Continental, please don’t reduce your flights after reading this) none of the flights were 100% full, so I mostly had an empty seat next to me, which was awesome. Just enough to let me spread out a little bit.

The flight schedule was great, getting us into Palau in the evening. We didn’t get to see much on our first night, but it was great being able to get a full night’s sleep right away, rather than having full day’s schedule on only airplane rest.

Spa Day in Fiji

Although we started the day today with a fabulously sunny morning, by mid-morning we’d devolved into more rain. At this point I received an email from Air Pacific confirming my flight back home later that night. Bummer. We kept hoping those rumors were just that.

I did manage to ease some of my sadness with a fabulous one-hour massage at the Mandara Spa at the Sofitel Fiji Resort & Spa. This spa is one of my favorites in Denarau (admittedly, the only one I’ve really experienced here, but I just love the atmosphere.)

Set up in a landscaped, protected courtyard, the spa sits in the middle of the resort overlooking the ocean, and yet is totally cut off from the property. The spa probably has some of the most beautiful sunset views in Denarau. I've posted a photo, and am cheating a bit, because this is a press photo from the hotel, and not one I actually took on this trip.

As Janie and I arrived for our treatments, a massage therapist remembered me from my last trip to the Sofitel. According to Ili, studies have been done on the remarkable abilities the Fijians have for remembering names and faces. This ability to remember guests as valued friends is such a large part of what makes the country so welcoming.

At Mandara, I enjoyed a blissfully traditional massage. Okay, I think I enjoyed it, but I sort of fell asleep somewhere in the middle.

After the massage we managed to gather enough energy to find our way to the Westin Denarau where we enjoyed lunch on the patio and another fabulous wood-fired pizza. At lunch Ili confirmed we were indeed being sent home that evening. Did I mention, bummer?

After lunch, Ili, Janie and I went back to the Radisson where I enjoyed one last ice coffee before returning to my room to pack.

Because the Sofitel was holding a “Fijian Night” performance that night, we decided to partake in that event before Ili drove us back to the airport. First we enjoyed a traditional Kava Ceremony, which is a welcome ceremony used throughout Fiji. Next, we enjoyed more traditional music, performed by a local group. (In the picture you see visiting children and local cannibals enjoying the performance.)

After the performance, we went into the buffet to enjoy a lovo (traditional feast.) Oh dear, I seriously overindulged here, and ate far too much of everything on the buffet. Kokoda, of course, but also fresh water muscles, grilled-to-order meats, and what was seriously my favorite thing in the word, a made-to-order Caesar Salad with enough garlic to make me cry.

All too soon, Ili was driving us to the airport, and it hardly seemed possible that our trip had already come to an end. We did enjoy a very lovely upgrade to Air Pacific’s Tabua (business) class which was a fabulous way to end the trip. If you’re an amenity collector to me, Air Pacific has a wonderful in-flight bag for its Business class users, including several Pure Fiji lotion products.

I more or less slept the entire 8 hour flight home, and landed in Los Angeles with no problems. Already, though, I’m checking my calendar to see when I can go back.

Visiting Nadi

Although we were scheduled to head up to the Pacific Harbor region of Viti Levu today, the inclement weather prohibited us from getting much further than downtown Nadi (and even that turned out to be a bit of an adventure drive.)

The ongoing weather situation has caused many hotel properties throughout the islands to be on limited or reduced resources. With more rain in the forecast, it is unclear what our schedule would be. At one point during the day we even heard rumors of us being sent home early, but we’re keeping our fingers crossed that we can salvage parts of our trip.

In the morning, Janie and I enjoyed another leisurely breakfast watching the rain and gale-force winds go toe to toe with Pacific Ocean. After breakfast, I took up temporary residence in the bar to utilize their free WiFi. God Bless the Radisson. Cyclones, power outages, but not one single wireless interruption.

Although I was supposed to be working, I kind of ended up just hanging out. My computer became the business center annex, as many people in our group used it to check in with loved ones back home. Meanwhile I spent my time getting to know the bartenders (Jutta, Kevin, and a number of others) and sucking down more ice coffees with vanilla ice cream. I can think of a lot worse ways to spend the day.

In the afternoon, Ili needed to drive to her office to pick up some materials, so Janie and I, and Georgette, another journalist in our group decided to join her on the drive to town.

After stopping at the office, we stopped at one of the local produce markets. Despite the weather, locals were busy catching up on commerce and gossip.

The Fijian people seemed to take the inclement weather in stride, and even as we watched the local populace wade their way through the streets, we only saw smiles and laughter all around.

Later, I re-opened the temporary business center and as the rains calmed down some I continued to hold out hope that by tomorrow we would be able to rejoin our regularly scheduled itinerary already in progress.

In the evening Janie and I headed over to the Fiji Beach Resort & Spa Managed (AKA the Hilton) to enjoy dinner there. This shot of the Hilton pool showed just how gorgeous the island looked, even in the bad weather. In the distance, though, notice the speck of a man in a blowing rain coat, which will give you an idea of just how windy it was.

Although we’d already enjoyed two fabulous dinners in Denarau, this one was probably the best one yet. I had fish steamed with coconut milk (so, so good). What made dinner especially fun is that the bartender, Seta, was the bar manager at the LikuLiku when I stayed there last year. As is the Fijian way, he remembered me from my last visit, once again demonstrating why visitors always feel so at home here.
After dinner, Janie and I decided to take our chances and walk back to the hotel because to quote Janie, “it isn’t that far away.” Three seconds after we started walking, we were soaked through, so we spent most of the “walk” running along the beach squealing like little kids as we tried to find palm leaves to protect us from the downpour.

Water, Water Everywhere

The rain we never saw last night during dinner, found us sometime during the night. This morning we woke up to find ourselves smack in the middle of Tropical Cyclone Gene. Now I’ve seen Mother Nature wrathful before, but nothing like this. And the Radisson with its open lobby and restaurant areas gave us a front-row view of the effects 140 km/hour winds can have.

Janie and I enjoyed a lengthy breakfast, meditatively contemplating the wind and rain as it pounded the surf. (We watched through a screen that kept most of the wet away from our breakfast.) We were so impressed with the water’s fury, we were moved to order a second ham, cheese and tomato sandwich on croissant.

Our morning meetings were all put on hold, as most of the transportation on Denarau Island had been cancelled, making it difficult to transport our group (which was scattered throughout different hotels on the island) to the meeting venue.

So instead we spent a quiet morning at the hotel. Of course, I found the bar, where I indulged in my ice coffee addiction, complete with a scoop of vanilla ice cream (bad Weight Watcher) and took advantage of the hotel’s free wireless service.

Lunch consisted of wood-fire pizza (I know, pizza in Fiji? What can I say, it sure tasted yummy), after which our group organizers decided to forge ahead with the meetings. At this point we spent hours meeting a large number of hoteliers and suppliers from around Fiji. Overwhelming how many wonderful properties there are yet for me to explore.

Outside, it was still raining, so Janie and I joined our wonderful host Ili Matatolou, the Regional Director of the Los Angeles office of the Fiji Visitors Bureau, who invited us for a most delicious dinner, the popular seafood buffet at the Sheraton Fiji Resort. I enjoyed second helpings of Kokoda, which is a Fijian specialty (one of my favorites), and is basically ceviche prepared with coconut milk. Yum!

The Fiji Bitter beer, the wine with dinner and the general overloading on excellent seafood caused me to enter a coma pretty much the second I got back to my room, and if the winds continued to blow outside my room, there is no way I could tell for sure.

Back to Fiji

A week after my birthday, and I’m heading back to one of my most favorite destinations in the world, the Fijian Islands. This trip was supposed to happen in December, but due to some scheduling issues, it got moved to January, and I feel like I’ve been waiting FOREVER to leave.
The flight (fortunately for Air Pacific) was quite full. As a member of the travel industry I always meet this news with mixed feelings. I’m delighted of course, for the airline, but selfishly hate not having an empty seat next to me.

Nadi

After our night-time departure, we arrive early in the morning at Nadi (pronounced “Nandi”) International Airport. At the airport I’m fortunate enough to meet a fellow journalist, Janie, and it pretty soon becomes obvious that Janie and I are friends who were just waiting to meet.

On my last trip, I’d toured the Radisson Resort Fiji Denarau before it had opened, so I was looking forward to staying there. After check in, we had several hours to fill before our first meeting, and so many options of things to do. Tour the hotel, get a spa treatment, go swimming in what is being promoted as the largest pool in Fiji. Unfortunately I was sidelined by option D, taking a nap. I sat on the bed for a few minutes and the next thing I knew, I was out…

Conveniently, I did make it on time to lunch, a yummy buffet at the Radisson. I tried to remember that I’m being a good “Weight Watcher,” and so chose to forgo the yummy-looking chocolate covered banana bread at lunch figuring I would see it again later in the week. (You know what they say about resisting temptation, it may never come around again. Sadly, that was the last we ever saw of those cakes.)

After an afternoon of business meetings, I did have enough free time to snap a few photos of the Radisson Hotel at dusk.

Our evening program, which was originally scheduled to be held at an outdoor venue at the Westin, was moved at the last minute to an indoor location at the Sheraton due to the threat of rain. At the Sheraton, we enjoyed a lovely buffet dinner capped off by a native Fijian performance.



The music in Fiji, is one of the reasons why I’m so in love with this country. No matter where you go, you will always find Fijians singing. If you are in a hotel or resort, and the workers are on a break, they will almost always migrate over to a common area and start singing. Visitors are always welcomed with song, and as I’ve mentioned in past posts, “Isa Lei,” is the official farewell song, which most people will hear on their final night or upon departing.

Our Final Day

Oh my gosh, it is our last day in Fiji and here are the things I still haven’t done:

Fishing
Snorkeling
A relaxing meal poolside
River Rafting on the Navua River
Tour the new spa at the Shangri La

So today was all about packing in as much activity as I could in the few short hours we had left.

First, in Fijian tradition, I had to enjoy the hotel’s lovely breakfast buffet. Lata had told me the ocean-side seats fill up quickly, so I made it a point to get there early. I left my room, just after pausing to catch this gorgeous shot of the sunrise from my balcony.



Call Me Ishmael

Then, I signed myself up for an early morning fishing trip. I got to the activities center a little early, so even managed to squeeze in 30 minutes of “relaxing” time, lying on a deck chair by the lagoon.

The fishing trip was about as wonderful as I hoped it would be.

Other than the captain, I was the first to pull in a fish.

When I asked Captain Nate what kind of fish I caught, he told me “it is a goldfish that escaped from his bowl.” What was sad was little Nemo Junior died before we could throw him back in the ocean, so we had to cut him up for bait.

That was also the last fish I caught that day. (Pretty much as expected.)

One gentleman on the boat did okay, pulling in about four fish, although he wouldn’t be winning any prizes for size. His friend (who asked to be left nameless due to the shame) didn’t manage to catch anything.

Romantic Wedding Chapel

Later Barbara and I caught up with Lata for an insider tour of the new “Chi” spa that is scheduled to be opened in July. These are deluxe little mini-villas that will serve as both massage bungalows and private accommodations. They are still in the early building stages, but the place is already looking pretty impressive.

We also stopped at the Shangri-La’s oceanfront Chapel, and if I ever accidentally get married, this would be the place I want to do it. A small patio out back

At Last, Snorkeling

I enjoyed a lovely lunch with Lata before I finally went off to engage in some snorkeling. The activities directors recommended I stay inside the roped off swim area. At first I was disappointed because the coral was beyond the rope. Not having much time, and not knowing exactly how much time I would need, I elected not to swim to the coral, which I kind of wish I would have. However, once I started paying attention, and stopped my self pity party I was amazed by the volume of sea life hanging out in the busy swim area.

I can feel my sister the marine biologist shaking her head at me as she reads this, because of course I have no idea what the names of most of the fish were, but I do know that I was being chased by some tuna (small by tuna standards, but still about two feet long, which is big enough for me.)

I also did see a sea snake, which I thought might be something else, but later ran into Captain Nate who confirmed the black and white and yellow thing that looked like a snack was indeed . . . a snake. I saw a rock fish, countless Sweet Lips, and numerous other fish that I have NO idea what the heck they were but made up my own cute little names for. Here’s the part where my sister wonders how such a hopeless science retard made it into her family.

The End

Time was pulling to a close, and since I stayed in the water thirty minutes longer than what I'd intended, I was rushing a bit to get my act together before leaving.

After check out, Barbara, Lata and I enjoyed a final farewell drink at the beachside Bilo Bar. You can see my nose is a bit rosy from this morning’s fishing excursion. Behind is you can just barely make out the very end of a most fabulous sunset.

During happy hour, the resort hosts a nightly singing contest among the staff members. This is hugely popular with resort guests who all come down to root for their favorites.

As we were leaving the resort, Lata gave us a bag of press kit information and inside we found our very own collection of fabulous Pure Fiji products. How lovely of her to help me with my substance collection problem. The bag will sit somewhere at home in a place of honor. Until I decide to actually have my mini spa day.

What a perfect way to close out our magical Fiji adventure.

The Shangri-La Fijian Resort

This morning we enjoyed a second “go” at the fabulous breakfast buffet (custom made beignets, and I’m not even that embarrassed to say I ate three of them).

In the lobby of the Outrigger we were serenaded with the traditional farewell song "Isa Lei" (again this is an abbreviated clip, but I promise next time I’m bringing a bigger memory stick.) As always, I got teary eyed listening to people that I really started to think of as friends wishing me well.



Here, Barbara and I are wearing our fancy new tye dye shirts, as we made our farewells to the staff. By the way, if you want to know which of the handsome men in the picture are available, Fijian custom states that single people wear the flower in their left ear and married people wear it in their right. Good information to know.

The Shangri-La Fijian Resort

Our final property was the Shangri-La Fijian Resort. To be totally honest, and I know I shouldn’t admit this, I was not looking forward to this property as much as the others.

It is Fiji’s largest resort, and even in Fiji people kept saying to me “The Fijian? They have a lot of kids there.” I’m not so much a fan of kids (or even adults) in large groups, so I was totally worried this would be what I call “meet market tourism” at its worst.

Of course a bad day in Fiji is still a pretty good day. But I needn’t have worried, because I just loved the place.

Options on Two Sides

See if you can picture this. The resort lies on the tip of a small peninsula and so has an ocean side and a lagoon side. The ocean side (which tends to cater more to adults only) has the fabulous views we’d come to expect of Fiji. Because there were less formalized activities on this side, it had a more remote, romantic feeling to it.

This the section is where the hotel placed its private gazebo, where couples can book a romantic dinner for two overlooking the ocean.

The lagoon side, which is more protected from tidal influences, is set up for families, with a dedicated swimming area, activities center, hair braiding, beach cafes and a host of other things to add to the to do list.

We ended up in rooms overlooking the adults-only pool, and naturally my first thought was “thank goodness.” But I’m so contrary, I ended up spending most of my time in the more crowded section of the resort.

On the "family" side is where we ultimately decided to have lunch. Really, there were too many dining choices for us to experience them all, but we liked the informal feel of this restaurant. As had become our tradition, we enjoyed tropical drinks for two, with a fabulous lagoon view in the background.

A Relaxing Afternoon by the Adults-Only Pool

In the afternoon Barbara visited more jewelry ladies but I’d already blown my shopping budget and decided to have a nice massage in one of the pool-side bures. At first I was a bit stressed about having to disrobe in what was very much an open environment, but the massage therapist was very professional and it wasn’t a problem. When I first lay down I worried about who might be looking in at me in my semi-nude position, but soon after she started, I stopped caring.

After the massage we had enough time for tropical drinks. Can you call a blended ice mocha tropical? With the cute little umbrella in it, how could it be anything but? We drank them poolside as we watched the sun start set.

Eventually we meandered along the tide pools to commune with the sea life. I even saw something that looked suspiciously like a sea snake, but later I learned they were sea cucumbers. With my love of snakes and all, I just wasn't thrilled to see any three-foot-long, tube-y thing, and there were plenty of them.

It’s the Fijian People

It is quite easy to become fast friends with most of the people you meet in Fiji. I truly believe the people are what set the country apart. You feel like you’re visiting family when you come here. You’ve heard me mention numerous people by name in this blog, and I left the country feeling like they were all my new best friends.

At the Shangri-La, the sales & marketing director, Lata was no different. By the time we had dinner, at Kalevu, the resort’s fine dining establishment, we were laughing like old friends. In a country where two-hour meals are common, we found ourselves dining well into the third hour.

I even felt comfortable enough to admit my substance abuse problem to Lata. You see, I can't stop collecting the fabulous shampoos and soaps they have here. Every resort has given us high-end products like "Pure Fiji," "L'Occitane," and other deluxe and designer names. Rather than using the product I'm collecting them all to use them at home when I need a little mini Fiji vacation. By now, I need a small bag to contain my whole collection.

After dinner, Barbara and I checked out the 80s night disco, but as always found ourselves nearly comatose from all the food we consumed, so soon headed back to our rooms to catch some well-needed rest.

Outrigger on the Lagoon

So finally, finally this morning I’m going snorkeling.

I've already been in Fiji for five days and haven’t yet seen any reef fish. I had it all worked out, a resort-sponsored kayak snorkel trip at 8:30 am, (preceded by another fabulous buffet and I wasn’t even too embarrassed to be all American and enjoy the custom-made waffles.)

So while Barbara went off to luxuriate with a facial, I packed gear, swimsuit and went off for my marine adventure. Too bad the weather was a tad too rainy and windy to comply with my needs, and the trip didn’t happen.

It was all right though, I hadn’t even checked emails in four days, so I spent the morning in my room, gazing at the ocean and getting caught up on work. Had a nice ice mocha (because it was just a little too early to enjoy the lovely bottle of Shiraz the hotel left for me.)

Kula Eco Park

Barbara and I met up around 11 am and after enjoying a few minutes (or so) of more jewelry shopping, we headed across the road to the Kula Eco Park. Fijians, apparently aren’t so big yet on animal preservation habitats, so this is kind of a one-of-a-kind attraction in Fiji.

With an unofficial partnership with the San Diego Zoo, this place was pretty impressive. Everyone told us we'd need about 45 minutes, but we stayed there nearly three hours.

After we fed the sea turtles (so adorable, and they made me think of Raoul and El Mariachi, my red eared sliders back at home), we wandered around chatting with the birds and playing with the lizards.

Here you see me playing with my new friends. Later I even served as a snake charmer with a baby boa constrictor, but since snakes basically freak me out AND since I could feel that sucker squeezing my fingers, I didn’t hold onto him that long.

Back at the hotel, and by the way, since the eco park is a good 30 minute walk across the road, the resort will drive you over there with their golf cart service, we felt the need to nourish ourselves. It wasn’t really hunger so much, since we’ve been eating a ton of food since we arrived, but we’d been hearing RAVE reviews about the pizza, so we had to sample it.

I’m not sure I can actually think of anything better than actual wood fired pizza in a little restaurant overlooking the sea. I mean really, the pizza was so heavenly (mine was Ribeye with Asparagus Spears and Barb’s was Smoked Salmon with pickles and crème fraiche). I'm running out of superlatives to mention just how great the food was. Every meal we think we've had the best, and it just keeps getting better.

Fiji Time

Wed been planning to take the hotel’s tye dye course at 2:30, but since we were still eating at 3:15, we pretty much had given up that idea by the end of lunch.

However God bless Fiji time, as they call it. I found this island mindset totally endearing once I got over my anal everything must be as it was planned feeling.

At any rate the activities staff had known we were planning to do the tye dye, so they actually waited for us to show up. Nearly an hour late and they still had all the paints out on the grass waiting for us.

Here you see a photo of William (the son of two of the hotel's sales, marketing and management staff) who was enjoying a leisurely Sunday off from school and generally helping make our stay so fabulous all day long. He's got a big smile because earlier that day he won the chocolate ice cream eating contest.

After tye dye, I just had barely enough time to get up to the spa to enjoy my own massage, which was probably perfect. I zenned out (even snored) for most of it, just enjoying the lovely, relaxing long strokes. And since we were so high above it all, this was probably a smidge closer to heaven than anything else I could have been doing.

Valet Service Followed By Dinner

Now I had to race back to the hotel, so I didn't miss today's butler service and again Barb and I enjoyed sipping champagne while overlooking the ocean and watching the sunset. By the way, all that racing to the hotel was just me being anal. If guests missed the Talei service, in true Fiji fashion, you could later and say I missed my service can you bring me my champagne now?

Dinner tonight was at the hotels IVI Restaurant, their fine dining establishment. In a place with food that is already a cut above, this was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. And may I add, if the alarming quantities of food we'd already been consuming were making your eyebrows raise, tonight we outdid ourselves.

For starters I had the traditional Fijian dish Kokoda (the coconut milk ceviche which has quickly become one of my favorite dishes here) and Barb enjoyed a potato leek soup. We shared the seafood lovers dish (for two) in our near-romantic little night. Lobster fried rice, tempura oysters and course sizzling prawns in black bean sauce. For dessert we enjoyed a chocolate fondue (also for two) and may be the only people on the planet who didn’t finish the fabulous banana bread dipper. The fresh cut fruit was too good, so we focused on that.

Flaming coffee drinks capped the evening, and we were barely able to stagger back to bed before passing out in a food coma. Here, the handsome and single (check the flower in the left ear) Apisai blazes up some fabulous post dinner coffee.

Post Conference Site Inspections

I know that yesterday I mentioned, in passing, how great the breakfast buffet is here at the Sofitel Denarau, but I just wanted to make sure that I emphasize it again.

This morning I was definitely NOT of sound mind or body (not so much from too much alcohol last night, but more from too little sleep), and the lavish buffet was incredibly rejuvenating. Deciding between the made-to-order breakfast steaks (yep, on the buffet) and all the many, many other delicacies was a tough decision. Fresh fruit of course, pancakes and bacon. And oh, what the heck, hand me one of those steaks while you're at it.

And you know how they say that after a night of carousing, grease is the best thing to get you back on your feet. So it really was in my best interest to try everything there. Barbara was quite pleased with her vegemite sandwich (not the only thing on her plate either), but thanks to her, I had Men at Work lyrics running through my head all day.

Outrigger on the Lagoon

With the closing of the BFTE conference, we headed out early this morning to enjoy the rest of the “site inspection” part of the trip. Today we were transferring to the Outrigger on the Lagoon Resort on Fiji's Coral Coast. Truth be told, this was the property I was most excited to see before my trip.

Not to belabor the power of the internet, but of all the properties we stayed at, the Outrigger had the website that offered the best information on their activities, so I already showed up with a laundry list of things I wanted to do. Deep sea fishing, how cool. With my love of all things nautical, fishing is an incredibly fun way for me to spend the day. And with my terrible track record in actually catching fish, I don’t even have to worry about being a fish murderer.

The resort totally lived up to my expectations, but I didn’t nearly get to spend enough time doing everything I wanted. Spa, fishing, or eco park. Decisions, decisions.

Award-Winning Cuisine

The staff at the Outrigger is quite pleased to tell everyone that they were Fiji's first five-star resort. The next thing you'll learn quite quickly is that their Executive Sous Chef, Shailesh Naidu has won numerous awards, including the global "One World Culinary Competition." And oh yum the food here sure reflects that. Now we haven’t been eating slop this week, so for the food here to stand out really says something.

For lunch I had Mongolian Barbecue (old school, actually cooked up on a large, round griddle) and Barbara was delighted by the lamb curry. Unlike her Vegemite breakfast, I did sneak a taste of her lunch. Heaven.

After lunch we supported the local ladies with the purchase of numerous pieces of jewelry. Navy blue pearls, need I say more? A quick stop at the hotel’s “Art Cart” also cost me a few hard-earned dollars. okay more than a few, but how could I resist the local art?

Bebe Spa

In the afternoon, we enjoyed a pre-opening tour of the brand new Bebe (pronounced Benbe) spa, which will be opening in two days.

Perched high a top a hill overlooking the resort, the views were out of this world. I think this is always how I thought Valhalla would like. The spa has its own glass-enclosed meeting room, which will surely become a favorite wedding site in Fiji, and the views from the treatment rooms are so beautiful its almost a shame to spend the time lying down looking at the floor. Almost.

Talei Service

After our hotel tour, Barbara and I had to rush back to our rooms by 5:00 pm, to make sure that we didn't miss the Talei butler service. Think champagne and snacks delivered to your room by the hotel's most handsome valet staff. Seriously, champagne and an ocean view, what’s not to love?

We enjoyed the hotel's torch lighting ceremony from our balcony and just took in the Fiji vibe, with the sound of the ocean waves in the background.

Now with a glass of champagne to warm me up, you’d think I didn’t have enough room left for dinner, but oh yes I did.

The hotel offered a fancy little performing group at the bar adjacent to the restaurant, but with our day of excess, we were once again too tired to enjoy much nightlife.