From: Mike and Carol Kefford [mailto:kefford {CHANGE TO AT} mailasail {DOT} com]
Sent: 20 September 2014 06:17
To: 'kefford+diary-027176 {CHANGE TO AT} mailasail {DOT} com' (kefford+diary-027176 {CHANGE TO AT} mailasail {DOT} com)
Subject: Fiji. Savu Savu, the pictures. Tuesday 09 September 2014
After a few hours with the charming gentlemen from Health, Immigration, Customs and Biosecurity we were allowed to move into the creek and pick up a mooring ball. Ours belonged to a long time liveaboard sailor called Curly who had his yacht moored to his houseboat!
We joined Moana Roa and Sud Oest for a curry in town. Best we have had outside India.
Moana Roa had lost one blade from one of their feathering propellers and needed to change both props back to the traditional sort that they had kept as back up. This could be done with some effort by diving, or at some expense by having the boat hauled out (once you get to a yard with the necessary hoist) or by careening the boat in the way the sailors of yore would have done before haul out or diving was ever an option. Luckily we were in a tidal creek with a patch of land at just the right angle for them to back up to at high tide, waiting for the tide to go out, change the props, wait for the tide to come back in and re-float the boat and… job done. |
We all fell for Savu Savu immediately. Small town with an Indian feel, very lively and friendly. Easy to see why people stay on far longer than planned. |
Kerry got us together with Knot Tied Down and Lady Carolina for a bus trip out to the National Park and a walk through the rain forest. First the bus station and great disappointment when our bus turned out to look like a proper coach with glass in the windows. |
But it had a nifty little set up of bicycle bell attached to a string running all the way down the bus as a means of ringing when you wanted to get off. |
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The park was high up, cool and had great views with a lot of interesting critters such as the barking pigeon, scarlet dove and tree frog however with four children and eleven adults chattering along the track the wildlife will have been keeping its distance.
We walked down to a pool teeming with freshwater shrimps ….
The bus ride back was on a properly ventilated bus, ie no glass windows, and it was packed so all but a couple of us had to stand. When someone needed to get off we either had to pour out onto the roadside or, more usually, they simply climbed out through the window while their luggage or shopping was located and passed out to them. |
We attended Curly’s weekly briefing on sailing in Fiji which packed in a huge amount of useful detail while we packed in a huge amount of iced coffee and homemade rum and raisin ice cream. The best we have had. Curly gave us the low down on the Sevu Sevu ceremony which is required on arrival at many of the islands – more on this to follow no doubt.
