4:30pm Fiji Time
I woke up bright and early at 6am this morning to catch the bus to Denarau Port and then the Boat to the village. I lugged my 4 giant bags all the way to the port where I met Reapi. I got on the boat first and then all the locals boarded. We asked the captain to drop us off the route and since everyone in Fiji is family, of course the capotain happened to be Api's great uncle and we were invited to the captain's lounge, we made our way upstairs and had free snacks and enjoyed the very nice first class lounge. We were getting close to our stop so we checked our bags and get ready to disembark. I was reading my book when I noticed the view out the window was awfully familiar. I looked closer and realized that we were right by Botaira! The resort I had stayed at during my last trip to Fiji. I got nostalgic remembering my time there fondly as we passed by. Finally, we were at our stop, Api and I got off the ship into the smaller boat with her brother Tua and the captain Sti. We road the waves for a while, it was a very bumpy ride to along the beautiful coast of Naviti island. The village came into view and I felt my heart racing, I Was so excited to be there. We pulled up to the beach and Api And I met Naomi, Tua's wife and their 10 month old niece Hope and 1 and half year old son Sam. The children were adorable and Sam ran up to say Bula! The babas (babies) called me Ne which means Auntie in Fijian. I met Sandy, Api's mom and then went to get settled in my room before lunch. My room was so nice and it was clear that a lot of work had been put into it, the blue walls and the curtains inside were handmade and the bathroom was new and clean. My little home was bigger than I had thought it would be and right on the beach too! The clear water was totaka (beautiful) and the breeze was refreshing, Tua explained that we were having and 8-day wind and it would stop in 5 days and then start again, apparently it happened often. Api called me over when the food was ready, we all went to the blue deck to eat as a family. Api’s mother told me to call her mom and explained that I was not a visitor on the island and instead her third daughter. I felt so warm an accepted in to the wonderful little family. Lunch was fish and potato curry and rice with oranges. It was delicious, I said Vinaka naka kana (Thank you for the food) and watched baba Sam fall asleep in his daddy’s lap. After lunch, Api and I went to the school to talk to the head teacher, I start school on Monday at 8am. The schoolchildren were having sports time and we went to say Bula and watch them play for a while. We were both happy to see the kids so full of life and enthusiasm. We walked through the village to see some old friends and meet some new ones, I saw Sana, the little boy whose leg I bandaged on my last trip and Kati, the little baba I held every day and their grandparents. I was greeted by many of the villagers by name and they all seemed so happy to see me, I felt very welcomed as everyone we greeted said Bula! And gave me a kiss on the cheek. As we walked through the village I kept tripping and Api said to watch out for crabholes, I laughed and thought about home where we watch out for potholes, we kept on walking and saw Nia again and caught up for a bit. We started walking back home when we saw the school children on their way home, I said Bula and they posed for a picture. After the long day, Api and I went our separate ways to relax and take a break so I could update my blog and get unpacked a bit.