Bula Pixies & Friends... From the Hot & Steamy Fiji Islands!
As the pink and purple lights of the sky make way for the stars appearance,
my thoughts were clear, I have got to connect with all the Pixie Souls first
thing tomorrow morning.
I apologise to all of you that I told we would have a travel blog up and
running so you could dance vicariously with us through the warm tropical
waters of the South Pacific. We have not had the best of luck finding
internet connections fast enough, or that stay on long enough to facilitate
the creation process of such a website.
Our jet set adventure began with an awe inspiring week in Mexico with my
parents at the "Presidential Suite" in the Barceló Hotel Hualtuco... Payback
for that nasty foot injury last year was worth the wait, best rooms in the
house overlooking Tangaluna Bay...private jacuzzi on the deck overlooking
the twinkling pool and thatched huts below! We had a week of Mezcal and
Magical Mexican Moments, full of adventure and relaxation, new and old
friends from the Village of Santa Cruza, all inclusive luxury living,
Argentinean Birthday Songs, midnight swims in the warm ocean.
We had to feel a little pain in our hearts in leaving our new Mexican family
that adopted us all "You have everything you need here, a place to sleep,
food and a family, please come home soon and we will be waiting for you"
were the parting words of my sweet sweet pixie friend in Mexico, Miss
Carolina. We will be completing her new website for this spring, she hand
makes the most unreal jewellery EVER, we made her a quick website for now
but stay tuned for the magical fairie bedazzlement coming soon...
http://www.maicadesign.comThe warmth of the wood stove in the Okanagan was of some consolation in our
visit home to see my family for the holidays... Downtime, playing with baby
Tave and packing for the Fiji Expedition filled the cold days. If anyone is
visiting the Okanagan stop in and see the Bird Family at the Vitamin King -
354 Main Street, Penticton - They love meeting all the Pixies!
Leaving for Fiji was exciting to say the least, we were entering, visiting
and trying to do some business in a country that had experienced a military
coup 10 days before we arrived. Unsure what to expect but full of
manifestations of dreams coming true we touched down on Christmas Day 2006
into a country have been taken over by a military dictatorship....
That Fijian morning minutes after getting off the plane I KNEW I was home,
there is nothing more clear then when you get a feeling like that, it takes
over your whole body like watching your entire life pass before your eyes in
slow motion. The smell, sound, vibrations, temperature and smiles that met
us on the Coral Coast told me that we were exactly where we were supposed to
be....I gobbled up that feeling and never let it go!
Military dictatorship and military coups are not such a bad thing you know -
it is when the people or the military of a country do not believe that the
"elected" leader is using his or her powerful decisions in the betterment of
the country they are suppose to be leading, and the people take a stand, ask
that leader to step down, disassemble whatever corrupt and tortured
government remains and try to start again, from scratch.... We have not seen
or felt one moment of violence or threatening motion the entire time we have
been here. The people of Fiji are happy to see the changes happening, and
believe the cleaning up the Commodore is doing in Suva is progressive and
for the good of the people and the country, I believe they are right. The
international response from other nations is one of horror, and they
continue to send out security alerts for a peaceful nation. Please remember
this is because the international countries of this OUR Planet Earth, do not
want the populations of this Earth to know that if they do not agree with
what "elected leaders" are doing with their power and position that there is
something we can do about it! That is a quick update of the political
situation we are living in, a very peaceful revolute against abuse of power.
We have been adopted by community after community, never in my travels have
I experienced a more hospitable country or people as the Fijians. Never have
I seen so many smiles and had so many hugs from big mamas. We are staying
now in the small coastal town of Savu Savu, on the South Coast of the North
Island... Paradise! We have rented a Bure, traditional thatched roof house,
for one month as we trek around looking for the perfect land to buy and call
home. Our little bure is Fijian luxury, a little kitchen, mosquito net,
titled shower.....we are on the beach surrounded by coconut trees, fruit
trees and villagers. By the way - The BEST thing about Fiji - No chem trails
ever! Not one - clean skies, clean air, clean rain - Pixie Paradise!
The sunrise is at 5:30am and lights up our room with a red glow that is the
best alarm clock in the world, "you have 4 hours till it gets sweaty hot!"
Sweaty hot is the heat of the day, when if you have planned your day right
you are sitting somewhere in the shade with a nice breeze. Its always a good
idea to try and make it to the market in town early, fresh pineapple,
papaya, passion fruit, guava, bananas, watermelon, coconuts, green beans,
cilantro, onions, carrots, cabbage, eggplant, chillies!, Kava Kava, rice,
lentils.... Yeah you get the idea, magical market setting full of fresh
food, big mamas and the best prices in town! Another Fijian bonus because of
being so close to Australia, they have an amazing wine selection, bottles of
Wolf Blass and Bin 555 Shiraz for $10 at the market! Best to clear up the
chores of the day early so when the hot part of the day comes around you can
nap, chill, visit with friends, type epic emails....
We have been cooking up a storm in our little kitchen, this is the only
tropical country that I have ever been to that you can use the water out of
the tap for drinking! Amazing - Its cleaner and better then the artisan
spring water we have delivered in Victoria! We have been cooking dinner as
often as possible, most nights we are invited to someone's home for dinner,
we had to get a notebook to keep track of the invitations, dates and names
of our hosts... We have been to the Hindu Temple for dinner and prayers, the
Mosque for dinner and prayers and the Church for prayers and lunch, plus
endless homes have opened their doors to us, mostly we sit on the floor with
the family, dinner is curried meats, spicy veggies, roti (Indian bread) and
of course rice, it is always different but always tasty. The conversations
can go any which way, but mostly they want to know what we are doing in
Fiji, what religion we are, how long we have been married....And because we
are spiritual fairies that believe in gods, goddesses, creation, magic,
will, destiny and peace, we want to move to Fiji and stay forever, and we
have been together for 5 years are not married and do not have any
babies....their questions lead to an entire explanation of the above -
fascinating. We get to sit in the place of honour, hug the grammas, drink
Kava with the elders and are always invited back next week for more!
Last week Matthew recorded a village community hall gathering, "old time
songs" they call them - an amazing cd of their chanting, drumming, clapping,
signing and laughing is the product of that afternoon. We are teaching them
to reproduce the cd to sell to the tourists at the monthly performances they
put on at the poshy hotels. Turns out it is was the right village to make
friends with... When Matthew presented the Chief with the 1/2 kilo of Kava
Kave we brought as an offering when we went to introduced our selves he
noticed the twinkle in the Chiefs eye and the respect everyone around him
was showing. The village of Nakumbaluo is the head village of the province
and our new friend the Chief is the also the Head Chief of all the Chiefs in
the province of 82 villages. They said we can stay in Fiji and have a
family, that they can make that happen and not to worry about any of the red
tape, one letter of recommendation from the Chief and we are good to go.
That was great news as we spend the rest of our days trying to get to the
bottom of what the steps and procedures of moving to another country entail,
what papers to file first and how much baksheesh to hand out. We have looked
at numerous properties and scouted our the Northern Island as best we can
with a couple days of a rental car and touring around with our new friends
to different places on the island of Vanua Levu, each slice is a piece of
heaven, AMAZING, I wish I could transport you to the views I have seen, the
coral reefs, the ancient sandal wood trees, the avocado trees, old palm
plantations, tropical rain forest, artisan springs, hot springs, the
turquoise waters, tropical fish, sea shells, white sand, black sand,
volcanic sand, the gardens, smells, houses, huts, fields.... Like I said I
am home! We continue to look around, many properties have been almost
perfect, but we are going to keep questing until it is Perfect!
Of course there has been many nights of Poi and Fire, New Years was full of
glowing orbs of light, cheering crowds and friends! Many of the Fijians are
excited to learn the art of spinning, interesting that Poi has not made its
way here over the years considering that it is located so close to the
traditional home of Poi, New Zealand.... The community has gobbled up that
lessons I have been teaching and are convinced it will help propel the
tourism industry as it compliments their traditional Fire Walking shows very
nicely! Hot Stuff!
There is so much more to say, so many stories and details I would love to
share... Here's the deal, I will share and tell you more when you come for a
visit... after when we get settled and Pixie Paradise and your Bure are
waiting, you will each get an invitation! The fruit salad and Kava Ceremony
are worth the trip....so is the snorkelling, the clean beaches, the Fiji
Bitter Beer, the hammock time, the smiling children, the cool breeze, the
Fijian Seafood Lovo BBQ, the warm nights, the chilly rum drinks, the sound
the coconut trees make when it's raining, the bure roof, the garden trees
and more stars then you have ever seen in your whole entire life!
We miss you all and send bright wishes and warm kisses!
Some sweet little Fiji photos below!
Natasha & Matthew
--
Poi Pixie Productions
http://www.poipixies.com/250 472 3473
Euro Studios
http://www.eurostudios.ca/
