BULA!
Basically...I love Fiji.
Here goes a little description of my adventures thus far...
THE PLANE RIDE WAS LONG. I left Boise at 5:40, flew to SLC and met my friend Alyssa, flew to LAX, waited in lines, found the International section of the airport, waited in more lines, got to our gate, waited in line, and then sat in an airplane seat for the best 11 hours of my life. Luckily, we were running away from the sun so it was dark the whole ride and we could sleep...very comfortably. :) I sat next to a very nice Indian couple native to Fiji who were going back for a wedding and they had all sorts of tips for me. (Side note: About 40% of Fiji's population is Indian so we get to learn 2 cultures! Namaste, aunty.)
Anyway, we got to Fiji Saturday morning at 6:30 (Side note: Fiji is 16 hours ahead so just think 1 day ahead and subtract 6 hours) and it was probably the longest day of my life. :) We were exhausted from the night flight, and we just jumped into Fiji life...Okay so I'm running out of my Internet time so I will just summarize...
Reasons why I love Fiji:
1. The buses. They are my favorite! Most are open air with no windows so you get an awesome breeze and you get to stick your head out and look at everything! Fiji is gorgeous...the green mountains, sky, palm trees...we aren't close to a beach but who needs it? :) Plus, you get to wave to all the people who live right off the road! Or you can talk to the people you are sitting next to and learn all about their life or new Fijian/Hindi words.
2. The first couple of days we did some mapping out of the towns we will be frequenting and then we started working in villages and going to the NGO's we are working with. And guess what?? At one of the NGO's, Friend Fiji, they have some deaf people working there! They are teaching me Fijian Sign Language and hopefully I will be able to contact the school the girls went to and help out there! So far I only know the alphabet and the basics, but they are good teachers! (Side note: In FSL, the sign for "what" is the ASL sign for "where" and the FSL sign for "where" is the ASL sign for "what") Also, this deaf lady at the market randomly found me and knew that I knew ASL and gave me her information...I'm still trying to figure out how she knew I signed.
3. All of the volunteers are very good friends now...especially since all 20 of us live in a house a little bigger than a Liberty Square apartment...haha. But seriously, we are having a blast! We like to come home and just chill and talk and play games...Stefka and Zac kill me at California Speed.
4. I can buy 3 pineapple for $1.
5. I learned how to handwash my clothes.
6. On our day off today, Kevin and I went to the beach! Not really a white sandy one, but a beach complete with a sweet mangrove river we explored nonetheless!
Anywayyy...I love it! Also, we don't have a PO Box yet, so if you want to contact me, email me!
Mothe!
