Joe spent the morning trying to all the credit card companies and get things sorted. We finally got one of the cards to send an emergency card to an address we have set up in New Zealand. It only lasts for a month, so we'll see how it will go from there.
We spent some time talking with a few of the other couples staying here. One couple from England just arrived this morning. We wanted to head to the nearby supermarket, so we asked if they wanted to join us. They did and it was fun chatting with them because they're essentially doing what we are, but backwards. So, we learned about a few areas that we're looking to go to.
A family that's staying here (they're from Switzerland) pointed us to an Indian/Thai restaurant nearby. We had dinner there, which was excellent.
We're heading to the island tomorrow. I feel better about everything today. Hopefully it works out.
-Miranda
PS Here are a couple older photos since I slacked on taking and uploading photos.
This was in the trunk of our rental car on the Big Island in Hawaii.
Our view from the place we stayed in Honolulu.
Two kittens that hang out in the patio area at our hotel in Fiji.
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We woke up at 5:45 to finish packing and head to the airport. Sue was kind enough to give us a ride. The flight was supposed to leave at 8:10 and we got to check-in at 6:45, we were slightly concerned. Then, the lady at the check-in desk said we had to have a flight scheduled out of Fiji before we could go... So, Joe quickly bought a ticket to leave Fiji on the next Sunday. One of the guys there mentioned that we could always buy a refundable ticket, then return it once in the country and get a ticket for when we really want to leave. They're pretty expensive, but there shouldn't be much, if any, fees for refunding it. So, we'll probably do that from here on out.
Anyway, we finally got that situated, and headed to security. We got through security without a problem, found a tiny bit of breakfast, and were on the plane. It took off early at about 7:55. It was a 6.5 hour flight. At about 5 hours into the flight, Joe realized his wallet wasn't in his pocket. After searching the aircraft and our baggage, we tried to retrace when we last saw it. We remembered him taking it out and putting it in a tray at security, but can't remember it after that. He talked to the flight attendants and they were a big help. The pilot ended up contacting Honolulu and asked the security if they had the wallet. Unfortunately, they didn't. I just remembered that this security check was the only time I haven't looked back and triple checked that we had everything. So, he must have left it and then someone behind us swiped it. We're still hoping that it turns up, but our hopes aren't too high...
We landed in Fiji and had no idea where to go. We found some food and talked to information who apparently knew about the hostel we were supposed to be staying at. He called her and she came to pick us up. We found out the actual hostel was under renovations and we would be staying nearby at the Wailoaloa Beach Resort instead. The room is nice. It has wifi, though it doesn't reach our room, so we just have to sit outside in the eating area.
She then talked to us some more and was trying to help us plan our week. We ended up deciding to take a boat to a nearby island and stay at a hotel there for four nights (all meals included). She was doing the booking, she called the place to verify that they did have wifi and that they could cater to vegetarians. When we added it up, it came to about $500. She wanted the cash upfront. We were a little skeptical, but wanted to just have a plan figured and taken care of, so we paid her. Later, we were talking to the guy that checked us in here, and he was basically saying that we were charged way too much. After some talking with him and hearing about a situation where another couple had problems through her, he ended up calling the director of the place we're staying to verify things. They later called him back and were upset that she was sending people out there without money... So, basically, the guys here are going to get the money back from her tomorrow and we're apparently doing the stay through them. So, now we feel a bit bad for her, but who knows. I guess we'll just see how tomorrow plays out...
-Miranda
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We spent some time just working and resting. Donald, the guy we met on Maui, and his girlfriend, Megan, were both in Honolulu around the same time, so we really wanted to meet up with them.
Friday we made plans to go snorkeling and leave early in the morning. Well, it rained all night, so Donald figured the water would be too stirred up to really see anything. We went back to bed and ended up heading out later in the afternoon to a different, closer area. The rain started up as soon as we went over the mountains. It was pouring! We stopped at the beach and decided to go into the water anyway. It was kind of neat to snorkel with the water hitting your back. The visibility was pretty awful though.
We didn't stay long, but the main problem was, Megan and I didn't really have much for dry clothes. We got some stuff sorted, warmed up a bit, and found a restaurant that had very good food. We then found a creperie called Le Crepe Cafe that was amazing. We had very good dessert crepes before dropping Donald and Megan off and heading back to the house.
The next day, we got some stuff prepared before calling them again to try for a new snorkel adventure. This time we went to a place nicknamed 'Electric Beach' because it is right outside a power plant that shoots warm water (it uses sea water to cool its pipes). Apparently fish congregate around there. We headed out and definitely found some warm water. You can see it bubbling to the surface.
It was a very neat area. There were fish everywhere, some we hadn't seen yet. We also got to see an eel. When we started heading in, Joe spotted an octopus! So, that's our second one. Very fun.
This adventure went much better than the previous one. We headed towards an Indian restaurant for dinner, but ended up going to a Hawaiin-Southern restaurant? The food was good, it was just a bit interesting. Afterwards, we all agreed that Le Crepe Cafe was amazing and we should head back there. We were hoping to be home by 8 to get a load of laundry done, but we ended up chatting for quite a while and didn't get home until 9. All worked out fine though. It was a blast to get to know them.
-Miranda
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Yesterday we were planning on resting after walking so much, but Sue was heading to work and apparently Chinatown is near there, so we hitched a ride. Joe wanted to go there to check out the area and try and find these neat cereal/drink packets that Donald introduced us to.
We spent about 4 hours on our feet and walked another 4 miles or so. We were pretty tired and sore from the day before still, so I think it was a day too early... We did find the packets and they had less protein in them than Joe was hoping, but he still picked up a bag of them.
On our way home, we stopped at a vegan restaurant that was very good.
Today, we have been sitting at the house just working, resting and playing. Joe's getting a little bored, but it should mean we have more energy for doing something tomorrow.
-Miranda
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We were picked up last night from the airport by our host. The view from our room is of the city and is pretty amazing. Lucas and his mother are very nice and fun. They're both basically vegans. We had fun chatting with them quite a bit last night.
This morning, we headed out to get breakfast. Unfortunately, the house is up quite a hill. We walked a mile down and found a small grocery store and a cute cafe. We had breakfast at the cafe, walked around a little bit, then headed back to the supermarket, back up the hill in the hot sun, and home.
We were due for our second Twinrix shot (Hep A and Hep B shot in one) so I called a travel clinic that was a little under 2 miles away. They could get us in at 2. We headed back out and hoofed it down there. We each got our shot and decided to walk around and explore some. We walked down to the beach and over to Waikiki before starting to work our way back, finding dinner along the way. We ended up walking around 13-14 miles today total. We're hurting pretty good.
-Miranda
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