1MB Travels: Cancun, Mexico: Day 3: Tulum Cenotes, Mayan Ruins and Casa Jaguar Jungle Dining

Our excitement rose with the sun on the third day:  we were heading to Tulum for many firsts: first time diving in cenotes, first time visiting Tulum's Mayan ruins, and first time dining 'in the jungle'.

We started our hour and a half drive south from Cancun at 6:30am to make our morning dive call time.

Where Cancun is a mass of commercialism, mostly packed with tourists, day drinking, nightly debauchery, and sensory overload, Tulum (at least the parts we saw) was all beauty, authenticity and calm.

Aside from ancient ruins, gorgeous beaches and jungles, there are also thousands of cenotes (sinkholes created by collapsed limestone over ground water) that form a large and fascinating underground cave system in Tulum and Mayan Riviera.  We had chosen two that sounded amazing but would also suit our level of experience.

Despite a hiccup with our guide at Calypso Dive Center waking up with clogged sinuses (making it dangerous for him to dive), when he heard how far we traveled, he called in a favor from a dive master friend to lead us.

After a gear fitting and quick debriefing, Julio drove us north through the jungle to arrive at our first stop, which initially was difficult to tell was a destination at all.



What only looked like a small clearing from the road turned out to be a gorgeous shimmering pond of clear turquoise, framed by lush greenery: and the 'gateway' to Casa Cenote.

The entrance was actually underwater, so we slipped our gear on while sitting at the pond's rocky edges, then dove below gorgeous root forests to get to the start of the passages.

The inner sanctum of Casa Cenote was nothing short of transcendent. The way rays / panels of light shone down through the crystal clear water, through natural chambers and passages between towering limestone walls, with nothing but the sound of our breath and fins rhythmically fluttering, brought a sense of indescribable spiritual calm and peacefulness. I felt like we were in an hallowed place, an underwater cathedral.


Click below to watch a video of our dive, captured with GoPro Hero Silver 4:

 

If you're wondering why the colors change dramatically midway through the video: it's because Casa Cenote is part fresh water and part salt water: where the two meet is the halocline.  Experiencing it in person is nothing short of breathtaking.  It was one of the most life changing dives I'd done so far - and I was grateful to have been able to experience this one as our first cenote dive - Casa CEnote was going to be extremely hard to top!

 Our second cenote was the better known Dos Ojos - the visitor center is also located there.

This was a more physically demanding dive, even before we hit water.

From the parking area, all visitors must haul their own gear (~50-60 pounds? for us including tanks) down flights of stairs to reach the dark lip of the cavernous entrance to the cenote.



We pulled our gear on, then scampered down a few underwater steps to the passage entrance.

Where Casa Cenote was mostly lofty turquoise and azure beauty and light, Dos Ojos was a lot more intimidating to a rookie diver - most of the dive was in the dark, flashlight required, and through narrow passages filled with stalactites and stalagmites, where you could not surface immediately if something were to go wrong.

Yellow rope threaded throughout the system helps guide tourists to stick to the known, safest route.  After completing this dive I would recommend other rookies work to master buoyancy before attempting it - otherwise, like me, you will struggle trying to stay in the middle of the passage and not get poked by the rock formations above or below.  When trying to control my buoyancy, I kept ping-ponging up and down wildly.  It was by sheer luck (and the watchful eye of our guide) that I think I got through that dive without incident or injury.

Another note about Dos Ojos: since it is a more frequented site, they've got more set up to support common tourist needs, like a camera with flash near the end of the dive like at an amusement park - and you can buy a print of the photo at the info center after; there are t-shirts and other souvenirs for sale at the center - but it is cash only so be sure to prepare accordingly (no ATMs there), USD is accepted as well as pesos.

As always starving post dive, we headed to El Camello Jr.  Seeing a long line wrapping around the block, and that we had to get to the Mayan ruins before the park closes for the day, we got food to go and scarfed everything down on a bench at the park entrance.

Here is the seafood ceviche.

Fish tacos.

And shrimp tacos.

It was a beautiful hike up to the Tulum ruins from there.

The only Mayan city built along the coast, and one of the few with a wall ("tulum" translates literally to "wall" and was designed to be a seaport), gorgeous architecture dating back to the 13th century overlooks sheer limestone bluffs and the impossibly blue Caribbean.

It was incredible to see these historical relics that stood the test of time.

For dinner, we ventured back into the jungle - a very unexpectedly chic stretch of it, minutes from the ruins.

We originally intended to check out Hartwood, a World's 50 Best Restaurant, but as they do not accept reservations and were already full for the night, we skipped down the road to Casa Jaguar.  The kitchen was al fresco, with rustic touches like a wood burning oven and reclaimed wood everything.

We dined and toasted with craft cocktails to the sounds of birds in the jungle - such an incredible experience.  (But as a reminder, when in nature you have to be prepared for the bad with the good - be sure to bring an arsenal of mosquito repellent or you will become the thing that the buggers feast on!)

The food was fine dining quality, but not mind blowing like we imagined Hartwood would be.  It was upscale Latin American with influences from the chef's travels to Asia and Europe, using local ingredients, from grilled shrimp with garlic butter, guajillo chiles and mezcal, to plantains.

Tulum was an amazing day trip down from Cancun, but since we all loved the diving, food and whole laid back, small town vibe of Tulum - next time we visit we will definitely look to find a place to stay there.

It would be very difficult to pick a favorite day out of our incredible Cancun/Tulum trip - special thanks to @jennybawel for all the hard work researching and booking the dives and handling transpo logistics! - but if I had to choose, Day 3 might be it.

Looking for more activity ideas for Cancun / Tulum / the Yucatan? Check out how we maximized our trip in my recaps of Day 1, Day 2, Day 4 and Day 5. For more photos from this trip, please visit my Instagram @onemorebiteblog


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Tulum, Mexico

Ontime Car Rental
Blvd. Kukulcan, Km 11.5 Loc. 101-B
Cancun, Quintana Roo, Mexico 77500
Ph: +52 998 883 0160
Website: ontimecarrental.com

La Calypso Dive Center
Tulum Quintana Roo Mexico 
Email: lacalypsodivecenter@gmail.com

Ph: +52 (1) 984 106 80 02
+52 (1) 984 100 73 85

Website: lacalypsodivecenter.com

Casa Cenotes 
Tulum 77780, Mexico


Cenotes: Dos Ojos
17km north of Tulum
Website: cenotedosojos.com


El Camello Jr
Carretera Chetumal-Cancun Locales 1 y 2 Lte 3 Mza 40, Centro, 77600 Tulum, Q.R., Mexico
Ph: +52 984 871 2036

Mayan Ruins Tulum
Website: tulumruins.net

Casa Jaguar 
Carretera Tulum Bocapaila km 7.5, Tulum, Quintana Roo
Website: casajaguar-tulum.com

Westin Resort & Spa Cancun

Boulevard Kukulcan KM 20, Cancun, Quintana Roo 77500, Mexico 

Ph: +52 (998) 848-7400

Website: starwoodhotels.com


Day 3 costs breakdown:

• Car Rental: $40 USD per day = $10 per person per day including mandatory liability insurance
• Gas: 200 pesos per day = 50 pesos per person per day (~$3 USD)

• Cenotes Dives: $130pp includes dive gear rental, entrance fees, transportation from dive center to dive spots, guide and water

• Dive tips: $20 per person

• Lunch at El Camello Jr ~400 pesos total, 100 pesos per person (~$5 USD)
• Tulum ruins: admission: 40 pesos per person (~$2 USD)
• Casa Jaguar 

• Dinner: 350 pesos entree + 150 pesos cocktail (~$27 USD)
• Parking: 50 pesos (~$3 USD)

• Hotel: 8,500 Starwood points

• Total: ~$200 USD per person

(Check out how we maximized our trip in my recaps for Day 1, Day 2, Day 4 and Day 5.  To see more photos from this trip, visit my Instagram @onemorebiteblog)

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1MB Travels: Cancun, Mexico: Day 2: Scuba Adventures: Underwater Sculpture Gardens and My First Night Dive!

Our second day in Cancun fell on July 4th!  We celebrated freedom and independence remotely, by spending most of the day (and night) immersed in underwater adventure.

Though I am not a morning person at all, waking up to this gorgeous white sand and clear blue ocean at The Westin could easily make me a convert.

And the service was also fantastic - even though we were there on a 'rewards' stay using Starwood points, the hotel still gave us complimentary breakfast buffet for two in their lovely sunlit beachfront restaurant.

With a planned morning dive, we couldn't completely indulge in the AYCE breakfast, but I loved the fresh fruit offerings including whole granadilla (first time I've seen / tried this fruit), guava, mango, as well as the made to order omelettes.


Our first dive of the day would be at the Museo Subacuatico de Arte ( MUSA), an underwater museum with over 1300 artificial habitats, an innovative project designed to counteract effects of climate change on oceans and reef systems by diverting tourism away from the national marine park, and creating new places for reef and marine life to colonize and thrive. 

It was a choppy 40 mins-long boat ride from Cancun to reach MUSA, just off the coast of Isla Mujeres (don't forget the dramamine, people!) - but once we were underwater, it was utter calm.

There were several galleries in the MUSA collection, at varying depths to allow those who are more into snorkeling or free diving to enjoy viewings as well.

Our tour brought us first to a reef teeming with smaller fish.  These locals were super friendly and curious, and one little guy even seemed to follow me around through several clusters of coral.

Then it was on to an actual MUSA site, Salon Manchones, about 8 feet deep and recommended more to scuba divers.

The installations consisted of various objects sunk to create habitats for marine life, from a Volkswagen beetle with a statue in fetal position on its windshield, to groups of statues like 'The Bankers', bodies only in prone position next to briefcases.

But the most haunting installation for me was a group of 400+ life-size standing figures in The Silent Evolution galleries, by renowned British sculptor Jason de Caires Taylor: some faces uplifted with pleading expressions - as if souls abandoned to the sea, looking for salvation that never comes.

As we are relatively new to scuba diving and sought diversity of experiences to add to our PADI log book, this was an interesting one - but personally I find that I prefer dives designed around larger marine life (or cenotes, which was scheduled for Day 3 of this trip!).

In any case, apparently diving is a good form of exercise - we emerged from the sea starving, so very uncharacteristically opted for the closest seafood shack to the dive shop. This happened to be on the lively Disco Beach.  First things first at Paradise Restaurante, a tamarindo margarita with chips and salsa. 

Of course, what beach vacation would be complete without a pina colada or three?  And when served in a pineapple?  All the better.  Though, I wasn't into the crazy Gremlin inspired face they made with fruit.  But the cocktail was refreshing on a scorching day at the beach.

When seaside, we try to of course dine accordingly - focusing on seafood.  Even though Paradise Restaurante was chosen based on expedience, and clearly catered to tourist tastes, we tried to go with the fresher sounding seafood items on the menu.  And, we were amused by the banner over the kitchen's pass - I'd love to be on a #seafooddiet for sure.

I ended up with fried whole fish, while others at the table ordered seafood tacos.

We also shared a plate of crabs, which were tasty but on the smaller side, with not that much meat for the price.


We had such fun with Cancun Scuba Center during the day that we decided to return that evening for our first night dive.  This departs from a different dock, next to the Holiday Inn in hotel zone.  It's easy enough to get around in the hotel zone using public transportation - the buses that go up and down the strip are only $1 per trip!  But since we had Tulum on the itinerary for the next day, our travel planner / agent extraordinaire @jennybawel had planned ahead and secured a rental car - so while we did our night dive Jenny took care of the car rental.

To be perfectly honest, the night dive was nerve-wracking for me, especially as a newish diver and not a very strong swimmer - the first few minutes were every bit as disorienting as I thought it would be.  We were supplied with flashlights, and outside of the immediate foot or so that the light is able to reach, it was pitch black underwater.  I was glad for the light, but it was one more thing to need to worry about among the many necessary steps you had to take to descend underwater safely - I heard myself breathing faster and deeper breaths in my nervousness.

Only two things helped me not drain all the air out of my tank before I even reach sea bed - our guide, who reassuringly let me hang onto his arm the whole time, and a giant sea turtle, who showed up a few minutes into our dive, curious to see what these bubble-making monsters were that was invading  his territory.  He swam right up to us and alongside us for what seemed like 5 minutes, and was joined by another turtle friend for a bit.  It was thoroughly magical.  I was too nervous to bring my GoPro down for the night dive, so no videos unfortunately - but it was kind of refreshing too, to just be in the moment, or as yoga teachers like to say, to be "present" - instead of engaging from behind a lens.  And it was a beautiful one, that I will never forget.

After the dive, Jenny picked us up and we grabbed quick food - restaurant selection again based on convenience post dive - at Mextreme, where tourist-friendly chefs prepared guacamole for us tableside.  Thus wrapped a fun Day 2 in Cancun.

Looking for more activity ideas for Cancun / Tulum / the Yucatan? Check out how we maximized our trip in my recaps of Day 1, Day 3, Day 4 and Day 5. Look out for recaps of Days 4 and 5 coming soon. For more photos from this trip, check out my Instagram @onemorebiteblog

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Cancun, Mexico

Westin Cancun

Boulevard Kukulcan KM 20, Cancun, Quintana Roo 77500, Mexico 

Ph: +52 (998) 848-7400

Website: starwoodhotels.com

MUSA
Salon Manchones
Website: musamexico.org

Cancun Scuba Center

Email: operations@cancunscubacenter.com 
Skype: cancunsc

Website: cancunscubacenter.com

Paradise Restaurante at Disco Beach

Blvd. Kukulcan Km. 6.5 Local 8, Playa Tortugas, Zona Hotelera, 77500 Cancún

Pho:+52 998 282 3862

Night Dive
Cancun Scuba Center

Email: operations@cancunscubacenter.com 
Skype: cancunsc

Website: cancunscubacenter.com

Mextreme Cancun
Zona Hotelera Km 9 | (Frente Al Centro de Convenciones), Cancun 77500

Day 2 costs breakdown:

• Breakfast buffet: $0 cost, complimentary with hotel stay; $10 USD tip
• MUSA + Reef dive $83pp + $20 tip 
• Lunch: $30
• Rental car: $120 for 3 days = $40 per day split 4 ways = $10 per person per day
• Gas for rental car: 600 pesos for 3 days = 200 pesos per day split 4 ways = 50 pesos per person per day (~$2.64 USD pp / day)
• Bus to night dive: $1pp
• Night dive: + $20 tip
• Dinner: $45
• Westin Resort & Spa Cancun: 8,500 Starwood points
•  Total: ~$221.64 USD per person 

(Check out how we maximized our trip in my other recaps for Day 1, Day 3, Day 4 and Day 5.  Check out more photos from this trip on my Instagram @onemorebiteblog)

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1MB Travels: Fiji: Adventure Flashpacking Day 4: Shark Diving, Arts Village, Kumaran Chetty's

"Do one thing that scares you, every day." - Eleanor Roosevelt

I didn't grow up dreaming of swimming with sharks.

I ended up doing it metaphorically, involuntarily, most of my professional career - and on this trip to Fiji, literally, semi-voluntarily.

Truthfully, my original intention with Fiji was to dive the world famous Rainbow Reef. Fiji is the soft coral capital of the world, and scuba diving there is definitely a bucket list adventure.  I'd dreamed of a utopic underwater world, fish of all sizes and creatures of all forms flitting around, technicolor coral formations in all directions - marine life at 500% vibrancy.

But Fiji also features probably the best shark diving in the world - a once in a lifetime experience on par with, and possibly overshadowing the Rainbow Reef.  With the safety rule of not diving 24 hours before flying, we could only choose one.  As I was traveling with daredevil @gourmetpigs, and *because* the thought of diving with sharks (and as extremely inexperienced divers, at that - we'd only completed the minimum dives required to get PADI certified) terrified me - we decided to go for the shark dive.  When else in our lives were we going to do this?  And, if we were going to take the risk: might as well do it at the best place possible.

After some research, we decided on Beqa Adventure Divers - run by marine biologists who were conservationists first and foremost, running tours to educate, inform and raise funds to keep protecting sharks and their beautiful habitats. While they were perfectly friendly to guests/customers, what we loved was that they did not seem to be tourist pleasers, who would never encourage any goofy, risky behavior, nor tolerate silly selfie-takers. 

Four dive masters accompanied our group of five amateurs, led by a guide who asked to be addressed as 'Papa'.  Papa was charismatic and very entertaining on the boat ride to our dive site - but make no mistake, he had been running this tour for 18 years, loves the sharks like his own children - he knows almost all of the regulars by name - and never had any incidents.  He laid out the rules we were to follow, not only to keep us safe from the sharks, but the sharks safe from us (after all, if anything were to happen, the damage from a fear driven public would cause irreparable harm to the entire shark population).  

Our destination that early morning was to Shark Reef Marine Reserve, an aquatic park with coral walls built for the study of the resident shark population.  We would travel as a group to each wall, amateurs to lie prone, heads down - while divemasters used tuna heads and other feed above us to attract the sharks.  The first stop was at a ledge 30 meters / 100 feet down, in "The Arena", where we spend just under 20 amazing minutes with 30 to 40 bull sharks swirling around us.



Then we move up to "The Shallows", at 16 meters / 55 feet - where smaller sharks from blacktips, whitetips, grey to lemon dart back and forth along the wall, sometimes at just arm's length from us. 

The thrill of the first dive was incredible: there is the expected adrenaline rush, but at the same time, an amazing stillness from being in the presence of the majestic creatures, designed by nature as the most efficient killers, but really simply following the basic instinct to survive - just like all other living beings.  We didn't see the blood-lust driven monsters from Jaws movies that everyone who thought we were insane were afraid that we would come across (ok we didn't encounter that exact species, great whites, either, but you get the point).  They're not swimming around looking for humans to tear limb from limb - most shark attacks happen because sharks can't see very well, and sometimes mistake humans for fish.

If you're wondering what was protecting us from sharks who can't distinguish us from lunch - it was basically our divemasters, holding blunt metal rods (shaped like those triangle-handled screwdrivers you get with IKEA furniture sometimes) that they use to gently nudge curious sharks away whenever they get a little too close. 

When we surfaced, we were very pleasantly surprised to hear that there was a second round!  This time, the divemasters HAND FED a line of bull sharks, right in front of us!  The sharks seemed to know the drill though, and were very comfortable with all the feeders and having us bunch of tourists around watching while they grabbed lunch from the divemasters, in protective metal mesh suits.

All in all, an incredible bucket list experience - one that we will always look back on proudly to have done!!!

After an adventure-filled morning, we headed back to the resort for a little R&R.

Since we arrived fairly late night the first night, it was great to get a chance to see and appreciate the resort property with its traditionally-styled bures (even at the oceanfront bar).

We ordered our requisite island drinks ('tropical juice' - a blend I think of watermelon, pineapple, and ? - seemed to popular here too)

And after all the excitement, we realized we were starving - and inhaled this lovely kokoda (traditional Fijian ceviche made with mahi mahi and coconut cream) presented in a coconut shell bowl, the best version of it we'd had in Fiji so far - with super fresh fish that was just the right supple texture and infused with flavor.

We also had mahi mahi prepared another way: as fish and chips, also tasty with a fresh fried golden crispy exterior and juicy, flaky fish beneath. 

The only bit of trouble we had in paradise was with mosquitos - they were everywhere, and made quick lunch of us wherever we went.  Time to break out my secondary supply of mosquito repellent - I was trying to stay 'natural' as much as possible, and had brought "Florida Water" from Hong Kong's "Two Girls" brand.  It smelled great, and was supposed to repel bugs.  But like all the other repellent I brought, this didn't work very well.  In Fiji, if mosquitos are a problem for you (I'm allergic and bites swell up sometimes to knuckle size), I would advise on giving in to tropical-strength / max strength DEET repellent. They smell like death and are bad for the environment and for the person inhaling the fumes - but they will work to keep those bloodsuckers from making a meal of you.

Photo credit: artsvillage.fiji.com

We'd heard that Arts Village was a great place to visit, and that it was 'just across the street' from Uprising Resort, and decided to walk off our lunch there.  

Found out this was a bad idea for 3 reasons:

• Across the street turns out to be 15 minutes
• In the Fijian heat, every minute feels like half an hour
• During wet season, downpours can happen at any minute without warning

We totally got scorched in the heat of the first part of the walk, then drenched in the rain running for cover (which was still a distance away).

Photo credit: artsvillage.fiji.com

Oh yeah, and there was a fourth reason: while we had planned fairly meticulously the rest of the itinerary to ensure we maximized every minute of the bucket list trip, I had somehow missed looking up showtimes for the the Arts Village fire walking and meke dance.  Maybe in the back of my mind I thought it was something that would occur a few times throughout the day, or perhaps once in the evening (allowing us plenty of time to get there after our shark dive).  

Apparently there was only 1 show time, at 2:30 - and we had missed it.  

Also, 'Fiji time' meant that all the little shops close by 3:30pm / 4pm. While to be honest we were not impressed by the number and quality of shops we did manage to see, we also don't know what it might have been like if we had arrived early enough for most stores (and possibly table vendors) to be open.  I had been looking forward to getting some unique souvenirs, especially handcrafted items like the Fijian weave bracelets / bags - but the shops we saw mostly carried standard issue postcards, magnets, generic shell jewelry and bath products.  There was also a small market, where we were hoping to find local snacks and other food treasures - but that one also catered to tourists and carried mainly processed items from Australia.

So learn from our mistakes and if you go: 
1) Take a taxi
2) Plan even your visit to the local arts village to give yourself time to fully enjoy it.

Venturing on to check out local fare at Kumaran Chetty's down the street, we had a lovely meal of lamb curry 

...and Mahi Mahi curry.  A little more expensive than we had expected, at $35 Fiji total (~$17 USD) including drinks, but we were glad to have been able to check out a local spot.

All in all, an amazing Day 4!


(You can see my recaps for Day 1 here , Day 2 here and Day 3 here)


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Fiji

Uprising Beach Resort

Queens Rd, Pacific Harbour, Fiji

Ph:+679 345 2200

Website: uprisingbeachresort.com

Beqa Adventure Divers
Lagoon Resort, Pacific Harbour, Fiji
Ph: +679 345 0911
Email: contactus@fijisharkdive.com
Website: fijisharkdive.com

Arts Village
Pacific Harbour, Fiji
Ph: +679 345 0065
Website: artsvillage.com.fj
Program:
Wednesday, Thursday, Friday & Saturday
10:45am – 11:45pm – Boat Tour
12pm – 1pm – Temple Tour
1:15pm – 2:15pm – Lovo Lunch
2:30pm – 3:30pm – Fire walking & Meke Show

Kumaran Chetty's
Lot 9 Pacific Highway, Pacific Harbour, (Opposite Pacific Timber), 3450096 Navua, Central, Fiji
Ph: +679 9962062
facebook.com/pages/Kumaran-Restaurant

Day 4 costs breakdown:

• Car service from hotel to Beqa Adventure Divers and back: $0 (FREE, provided with dive - just have hotel call to arrange in advance).  Tip optional (we tipped $8 Fiji total roundtrip)
• Shark dive:  $375 Fiji per person (~$187 USD pp) PADI certification required, Open Water Diver at minimum
• Lunch at Uprising Resort: $27.50 Fiji per person (~$13.75 USD)
• Dinner at Kumaran Chetty's: $17 Fiji per person (~$9 USD pp tip included) 
• Taxis: $10 Fiji (~$5 USD)
• Uprising Beach Resort 2nd night (@gourmetpigs caught a promo code that knocked $100 off this night's booking.  And free upgrade to beachfront bure continued!): $31 USD total tax included) prepaid via Orbitz
• Total: ~$229.75 USD per person

(See my recaps for Day 1 here , Day 2 here , Day 3 here, and Day 5 here)
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1MB Travels: Fiji: Adventure Flashpacking: Day 2: Blue Lagoon Coral Dive, Lovo and Meke Dance

With Fiji being 20 hours ahead of LA, jetlag really wasn't an issue. We woke up ready for adventure on our second day, to a gorgeous view and cooling ocean breeze...

...it's no wonder Fijians are said to be the happiest people on earth - they get to wake up to this.

Stopping by the activities desk, you can sign up for one of three dives per day, and the resort provides all of the equipment you need.  We could choose from 9am, 11am or 1pm. Based on the divemaster's descriptions, we went for the 11am - for more balance of coral and fish - even though that meant missing the Fijian bracelet weaving class (I know, rough life).

But first things first: breakfast on the beach!

That the only tweeting came from actual birds; the soft rustling of palm branches swaying in the ocean breeze, to the rhythm of island time: this was the very definition of serenity, and paradise. 

Buffet tables set up by the pool (yep, there is one, for those who for whatever reason don't want to take the few steps into the crystal clear ocean) offered food to please every international traveler. There were the basics: eggs, fruit, toast, juice, and hot stations where you can get omelets or crepes made to order.

We were excited to try the Fijian coconut filled 'pancakes' that were more like giant, sweet, chewy empanadas, and topoi (doughy chewy bread made with coconut cream).  And, raw coconut shards (though, I think I much prefer the tender meat from young coconuts).







While resting on a lounger after the ultra-strenuous morning, a random puppy came up out of nowhere and lay down next to me, quiet but for the sound of gentle breathing - and turned his head to watch and listen to waves washing ashore in such a way as if to say "do this with me". 

It lasted just a few minutes - but that turned out to be one of my favorite, most randomly magical moments, for this often over-thinking, over-planning OCDer while in Fiji.



Since we had a bit of a wait until our dive, and to ward off food coma, we took a hike up the beach.  When we pulled up to the island by speedboat on Day 1, I'd noticed a large tree that looked different from the others, and seemed to form a canopy over a recess in the rainforest-like greenery.  We decided to hike that way to explore - and Random Puppy came along, leading the way. 

Turns out the recessed tree was not the hidden gateway to some secret lost indigenous village, nor a cover for the TARDIS, but simply a place that naturally formed to provide shade to small animals.  But it was a lovely hike nonetheless, with frequent breaks to dip in the water for relief from scorching heat.  I wondered what life would be like, as a puppy in paradise, with fresh supplies of guests to adore him daily - and free run of the place.

Arriving back just in time for the dive meet up - we took a 10 minute boat ride out to the site. 

The original location was to be Tom's Thumb - but due to rough waters, we moved to the Cabbage Patch instead - where we saw giant coral formations in the shape of cabbage blossoms!

I got to give my new SeaLife MicroHD+ underwater camera a test drive, before the big shark dive later on in the week (wouldn't want to be fumbling with buttons while they swirled around us!) - excuse the quality of video - I was and am still learning how to use it!



To be honest, I had envisioned giant schools of fish in every direction - but I think that would be more over at the Rainbow Reef by Vanau Levu / Taveuni islands - which I hope to get a chance to visit next time.

We definitely burned off enough energy during the dive to justify wolfing down lunch!

There was Beef Curry with pampadam and naan.

And the Fijian interpretation of 'Thai chicken soup with rice noodles' and vegetables.  All very fresh and tasty.

I love that the hardest decision we have to make while at Blue Lagoon, is whether to hammock or snorkel.  Remembering the minibar at the last minute, we raided it for Fijian beer to enjoy on the loungers.

Despite 'Fiji time', days seem to pass by far too quickly. 

Before we knew it, it was time for Lovo and Meke night. 

The resort staff puts together an intimate feast of Fijian fare including roast pork and whole black snapper, kokoda (ceviche in coconut cream), ota & chickpea salad, taro and more served buffet style.


But first, a dance - Meke!  In keeping with the intimate, cozy family-run vibe of the resort, the meke dance presentation was not elaborate either, it wasn't polished and professional, but that's what was endearing about it: it was the staff of the resort and their families from the local village, just giving us a glimpse of their culture and celebratory song and dance.


And it was full audience participation too - they had everyone up on their feet and doing a sort of Conga line around the pool!


With the communal tables, set dining hours and engaging activities, you get to meet a lot of fellow travelers from all around the world.  We met some amazing people from Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Australia - from their twenties on up.

We closed out Day 2 with a fire dance, a bonfire on the beach, and that game where you stick a piece of paper to your forehead with a famous person written on it - and you can only use yes/no questions to try to glean from those around you, clues to figure out who you are. A fun game to play at the bar, on the beach, by the bonfire.

All I could think was:  please don't make me leave.


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Fiji

Blue Lagoon Beach Resort
Nacula Island, Yasawas

reservations@ftn.net.nz

Ph: +64 3 442 9998
Website: beachresort.com.fj


Day 2 costs breakdown:

• 1-tank Dive:  $120 Fiji per person (~$60 USD, 20% tax already included)
• Beachfront Bure: $577 USD for two nights, total prepaid via Agoda (~$288.50 per night tax included)
• Mandatory meal plan: $99 Fiji per person (~$49.50 USD pp / day, 20% tax already included) 
• Beer (included with free in-room minibar): $0
• Total: ~$254 USD per person

(See my recaps for Day 1 here, Day 3 here, Day 4 here, and Day 5 here)
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