Mahendra

Scenery, Vanua Levu, Fiji

This was taken on the drive back to Savusavu from the waterfall.

Cory's Turn to Row, Savusavu, Vanua Levu, Fiji

Copra Drying, Vanua Levu, Fiji

A 4WD mini-tour near Savusavu brought us to a village copra shed. Copra is dried coconut. It is left roasting over for the fire for two days then packed up and sent to market.

Sugar Cane, Vanua Levu, Fiji

Oh what yummy sugar treats. chomp chomp.

Vanilla Beans, Vanua Levu, Fiji

We had a little contest to see who could find a vanilla bean first. They sure do blend in before they dry out and turn brown. It's amazing that anyone can find them to pollinate them by hand. Yes, hand pollination of this orchid is what makes vanilla expensive.

Fijian Straw

Fish Pond, Vanua Levu, Fiji

Lemon Leaves, Vanua Levu

Hurray for more lemon leaves to make tea. Watch out for those thorns!

Snowdrift

Cory built snowdrift as our dinghy's dinghy from wood scraps we had. Every screw represents an instrument. It evolves as we go. Sanding one month, a new anchor and anchor testing another. Here Snowdrift gets a paint job.

Makogai, Fiji

Makogai is run by the Ministry of Fisheries. They breed giant clams and grow coral to replenish depleted and dying reefs. We had the treat of seeing some turtles in the raceways (those concrete structures in the background) saved for the arrival of the minister too. On top of the mountain is a whale watch station full of marine biology post grads from around Fiji and sometimes from Australia and Canada too.

Fijian Parkas

Yes kids, clothing does help to keep you warm. Daddy's clothes seem to be working just fine too.

Breeding Giant Clams, Makogai, Fiji

Clams are bred here and released to the ocean when they are about 2 years old. They are only about 2-3 cm in length then. After three years their growth increases exponentially. The fifty year old clams by the dock were bigger and much heavier than Cory. What a treat to go for a snorkel and see live clams and their beautiful colours in an area where they have been replenished after overeating. Reefs around Fiji are being restocked with clams and live coral.

Pumps and Work, Makogai, Fiji

We arrived on Makogia in the middle of a pump crisis. The broken water pump meant there was a lot of extra work changing the sea water in the clam, turtle and coral raceways. Scott spent smoe time with the men and his multimeter, Cory spent days analysing the pumping systems and helping seive cement sand. Cory still spends a lot of time seiving beach sand as he pretends to make his cement creations. He brought home some souvenirs of his work and time with the Makogai men.

Old Leper Colony, Makogai, Fiji

Makogai Island is the home to an old leper colony. We saw the reamins of that settlement along a trail leading to the cemetary. The photos are of the theatre, prison and cemetary.

Whales!

A humpack and her calf delighted us with their show of breaching and play for a long time. They had some inspiration too as the whole village was out cheering them on.