Fiji!!!!!!!!!!!!

July 21, 2010

Fiji!!!!!!!!!!!!

Immediately had a drink on the beach as I arrived in Fiji! :)

Ariel shot of Fiji

Wow- it was a long journey all around Australia and New Zealand. Thanks for enjoying the trip along with me as I relived it through blogging and pictures! I've enjoyed documenting the trip, even though it seemed like such a massive effort (note to self: in the future, just bring my laptop and blog/review pics along the way... it was super overwhelming to go through over 5000 pictures when I got home, although it was nice to travel lighter without the laptop, so it will still be a hard call on what to do for another big trip like this :),

Let me recap our trip in numbers:
17 days
4 countries (I'm counting the US as we left, Oz, NZ and Fiji)
10 flights
23 bus rides
2 helicopter rides
1 horseback ride
2 gondola rides
3 train rides
9 car/taxi rides

9 boat rides
1 paragliding ride (credited to Karen ;)

On our last day we left New Zealand from Rotorua on a short flight to Auckland. We checked our bags and in a complete first for me, entered the airport without having to go through security! Our gate was 100 feet away from where we checked our bags, where we walked out onto the runway and boarded on stairs. Our commercial airliner was 1 seat down each side of the aisle and we could see the pilots from where we sat, with no closed door between us. This was a neat experience- almost like another leisure flight to view New Zealand from above one last time before we departed.

From Auckland we had a few hour flight to Fiji with a 7 hour layover. We were advised not to do this from our travel agent- that we wouldn't be able to enjoy the time, they wouldn't let us out of the airport, that this would make our jetlag worse. Baloney! It was fabulous! ;) We arrived, went through customs, took a cab to the beach and walked right up to a paradise resort on the ocean. We were so happy we made this stop as we soaked in the sun and enjoyed some drinks on the beach. Can you end a vacation any better?? We had a delicious dinner overlooking a golf course, enjoyed the sunset and then headed back to airport with plenty of time to spare, since we had no luggage to check. And, we can say we've been to Fiji! :) It was a beautiful island and the resorts and beaches were luxurious- I'd highly recommend it for a nice, relaxing vacation. I can't speak to what else there is to do in Fiji besides the beach, however.

Following Fiji were the last two legs of our trip- a 10 hour flight to LA and then back to Chicago. It was a tremendously long day with the time change (about a 32 hour day from the time we woke up until the time I got back to my house). I was tired for a week when I got back, trying to acclimate myself back to CST. :) Yet, it was well worth the crazy schedules and sleepiness- I would have to say it was my most spectacular trip ever with all involved, and despite the food poisoning sickness I suffered for one 24 hour period. I'm not sure that I can top this trip and I won't necessarily try either- I'll savor the memories until I can go back and visit again someday...