Navetau Village

We have a very special visit to the Navetau Village!

Kids - the same everywhere!

Our Fijian caretaker, Masi, is the Minister of his church and he invited us to join them for Palm Sunday services .

Navetau church

On Palm Sunday, the children all dress in white and perform the church services.

So adorable

The village is small - approximately 80 people.

I think every member came up and shook our hands and thanked us for joining them - Vinaka!

After Church

The older children read bible stories and the younger children sang.

They were adorable - trying to be so good and be quiet and sit still!

After the service, Masi and his wife Millie, invited us have lunch at their home and meet the rest of the family.

Masi and his girls

We had a feast of chicken, sausages, taro, soup, curry, and fresh fruit - so much food.

We know that Masi's family doesn't have a lot, but they were happy to share it with us.  We were very grateful.

Doug in his sulu

The funny part - watching Doug try to sit cross legged on the mats for hours. 

They finally got him a chair - hah!

It was a very special day!

Back in Fiji - yeah!

It was wonderful to tour the states and see so many of our family and friends, but it is sure good to be back on Moondance!

Doug working and sweating!

View from the Sunset Bar

We have been back two weeks already and we have been busy.

Getting Moondance ready to sail the islands and get us back in shape - tough jobs!

Plus visiting with cruising buddies and goofing off.  Of course!

I know we have lots to work on, but we decided to rent a car and take a road trip to Suva - the capital of Fiji.  Why not?

Cheryl and Michael and their new boat -
Ebb Tide

Our good friends, Michael and Cheryl, from Hawaii/Fiji were there and we just wanted to see them.

Plus, do some site seeing and provisioning - there was nothing to eat or drink on Moondance!

While in Suva, we visited the Fiji Museum.

It was wonderful to read about the history of the islands, plus see the old artifacts.

Our favorite - the Drua - a double canoe that the islanders used to cross the Pacific. 

Fijian Drua Canoe

This is a small one - the large ones could carry 200 people.

These guys were brave!

Gardens around the museum

We only stayed one night in Suva, but had a great time.

We stayed at the 2-room Fiji Club, plus fine dining at Tandoori Heights and the Food Court - yum.

Be sure to check'em out if you are in the area.

Octopus Orchid

We had one more day with the car, so invited Cheryl and Karen (s/v Interlude) to see some of the local sites.

First stop - the Garden of the Sleeping Giant.

Beautiful orchids

Raymond Burr (Perry Mason) founded the gardens back in the 70's.

Now, there is over 2000 varieties - amazing.  A very pleasant place to wander around.

WWII cannon

Next, the search for the elusive WWII cannon and pill boxes.

Clearing our path

After lots of wrong turns and asking lots of questions, we found the right hill.

A very nice machete-wielding gentlemen took us the rest of the way.

Hard to imagine these beautiful islands ever involved in war.  But, what a view from the hill - amazing.

View of the Manamuca islands

As you can see, we have definitely enjoyed being back in Fiji.  It truly is an amazing place.

Potluck - big success

Our plans this year, finish our Moondance projects by the end of April and then sail off to explore the islands to the West - the Manamuca and Yasawa islands.

That should keep us busy for the next 6 months for sure!