Paradise Found- Fiji

When God expelled Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden in the book of Genesis it seemed that paradise, at least here on earth, would be eternally lost to mankind. Like vegans at a rib joint, those first humans found their eating habits at odds with their host (God didn't want them to know that fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is actually delicious with strawberries and cream). A bit of a row ensued and they found themselves unceremoniously dumped outside the garden walls, forced to till the earth for food through strenuous labor. God even left a bouncer in the form of a cherubim with a flaming sword on the eastern edge of the garden to keep those naked apes from rushing back in and setting up shop to wait for judgement day. But, as anyone who's ever been turned away by the doorman at a hip Manhattan club should know, there is always another way in.

A Fijian demonstration of how to get into those pesky brown coconuts

The backdoor to paradise turns out to be the warm waters of the South Pacific. When Dutch explorer Abel Tasman first sailed into Fijian waters in 1643 he must have checked his pulse to make sure he hadn't died and gone to heaven. He saw emerald green islands bursting with lush tropical forests rising up from sapphire waves like enormous sea turtles basking in the golden equatorial sun. Brown skinned natives, unencumbered by clothes, dove for fish in the crystal clear sea or plucked sweet fruits from the trees.

With these abundant resources, it's nearly impossible to go hungry in Fiji. And like their biblical forebearers, the inhabitants of these verdant, oceanic island jewels also had some rather peculiar eating habits. But the Fijian's tastes were slightly more visceral in nature; think canibalism. That, along with the fierce warrior traditions of the Fijian people, kept European sailors and settlers at bay for the next hundred years or so.

Molly and I arrived in this other Eden under the cover of darkness after a long and much delayed flight from Los Angeles. Our flight landed in the city of Nadi on the large island of Viti Levu. The next day at dawn we boarded a large, yellow catamaran bound for the Yasawa islands, a sparsly inhabited archipelago northwest of the main island.

Along the way we passed dozens of islands, some as small as thirty yards across, most of which had small resorts on them. 

At one point I looked around and counted 35 distinct islands in sight and countless other looming blues shapes in the distance that might have been islands or perhaps just large clouds, it was hard to tell. After a few hours of sailing, the catamaran was met by a small motorboat that took us to our hut on the tiny island of Matacawalevu, just a few minutes from where a topless Brooke Sheilds frolicked in the waters of The Blue Lagoon and a bearded Tom Hanks made friends with a volleyball when he was a Castaway.

The Yasawa Flyer catamaran in the distance

A typical Fijian Bure

Our hut was everything you would expect from a remote tropical paradise. It was situated right on the beach shaded by coconut, mango and papaya trees. Out front, a hammock swaying gently in the island breeze practically begged to be cast in a Corona commercial. Although it lacked certain modern conveniences like electricity and hot water it was about as close to perfection as you can get.  

A tiny visitor in our hut

That afternoon we went snorkeling. We had to wait until high tide because at low tide, the water in the strait between our island and the next island was very shallow and VERY warm, probably around 85 or 90 degrees. High tide brought deeper waters and cooler temperatures (around 75 degrees). We decided to take our brand new waterproof/shockproof digital camera to get some pictures of the local sea life. We bought it specifically because it was supposed to be rough and ready for scuba diving and underwater fun.  

We swam around and took pictures for about 45 minutes and then IT BROKE. This was the first time we used it. We didn't drop it or do anything wrong. It just stopped working. We worked it out and for the price, the camera cost about $8 per minute. Thanks a lot Nikon!  

All bitching aside, we did get to see some amazing  sea life--- from bright orange clown fish swimming in their anemone homes to a giant royal blue starfish hiding under delicate branches of coral.

The next day we took a sea kayak across the strait to the island of Yaqeta. As we were crossing, a giant sea turtle surfaced right in front of our boat. Its shell must have been three feet in diameter. It looked at us for a moment with its huge black eyes before disappearing beneath the waves.

On Yaqeta we sunbathed, collected shells and waded through tide pools.

At one point an island native came strolling out of the jungle holding a 3 foot machete. It was startling at first but he greeted us with a broad smile and friendly "Bula!" (Hello). From behind him, his four children burst through the trees and ran headlong into the water, laughing and splashing. 

Small boy/Biiiig knife

It should come as no surprise that Fijians are some of the happiest people on earth and are very interested in talking to visitors although they are very isolated from the outside world. And although they are isolated, they still seemed to know a bit about the US. 

Him: Where are you from?

Me: New York City.

Him: Is that close to Los Angeles?

Me: Not exactly.

The next few days were spent lounging, swimming and kayaking all over the island which makes for great vacationing but rather boring blogs. (How many times do you need to hear me say "And then I poured some rum in a coconut and took a nap in the hammock"?)

Who wants an OYSTAH?

On our final day we hopped into a boat with some of the locals and went to church on the other side of the island.

The boat ride to church

 On an island with a population of about 200 people, about 150 of them were in church. Everyone was decked out in their finest Fijian garb (it was exactly like a Hawaiian garb, but in Fiji) so that the congregation looked like a rainbow of flowers had exploded all over the inside of the building. There was at least one child for every adult at the service and since everyone was related to eachother, the children would simply wander around smiling and jumping into people's laps for a little while before getting up in search of a more comfortable lap. 

The most beautiful part by far however was the singing. The songs were all multi-part harmonies with the angelic sopranos of the women rising delicately above the booming bass of the men. No one had hymnals or books so all of the songs were sung from memory. It was a truly wonderful.

One thing that struck me while in Fiji, aside from the extreme beauty, was how seriously they take the problem of global warming. Everywhere you look there are signs; "Don't waste water, reduce our carbon foot print" and "Turn off the lights, help eliminate greenhouse gases".  There are no idiot reporters from Fox News trying to confuse the issue by saying there is not enough evidence or that our economy cannot withstand a change to a more ecologically sustainable model. This is the front line of climate change. As the mercury shoots up, rising ocean temperatures will spawn more and more destructive tropical storms. Fortunately for us, our trip to Fiji had beautiful wather, but unfortunately for the Fijians that week was bookended by two cyclones that battered the islands and left many areas damaged and flooded. Furthermore, most of these precious islands are only a few feet above sea level. As the global ice caps melt and sea levels rise, more and more of these places will be swallowed up by the ravenous Pacific Ocean. We have reached a tipping point in history where decisive action can cause positive changes. Unfortunately, if we do nothing, this place will slip slowly beneath the waves and paradise will once again be lost.