25th

June 13th is our wedding anniversary and we’ve made it to 25. Big hugs to Helen for surviving me and putting up with me for all these years.

I had hoped the lobsters would have self-sacrificed en mass to give us a treat but it wasn’t to be. I decided to move the trap somewhere else by sticking it on the front of the dinghy. The fish frame was getting a bit manky and some of the flesh dropped into the dinghy creating a horrible stink which I had to wash off later.

We decided not to be too lazy and ended up going out for the day. We went ashore and caught a taxi to take us down the west coast of Taveuni to see all the attractions there. We first passed through the town of Somosomo where they have the chiefs meeting hall. Whenever there is a need to pull all the Fijian chiefs together, this is where they come. It stems from the fact that the first Fijian president hailed from here.

Next we were dropped off near the Waitavala Water Slide which is very popular among the local kids. There were a few there and they were very helpful showing us where to cross the slippery rive and where to get into the chute. We had two slides each videoing the second one. Helen unfortunately bruised her backside the second time resulting in a painful seat.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AT2J-TlSrUs[/youtube]

We were then taken to see the large catholic church further south followed by the oh-so-exciting meridian. This was a split poster on the far side of a soccer/rugby pitch marking where the 180 meridian passes. I guess this is the only place in the world where you can kick a ball into tomorrow. There was also the 180 meridian church which was more of a tin hut.

We wanted to pick up rotis for lunch but we could find nowhere selling them as most places were closed for the Queen’s Birthday holiday. So we went back to the boat for a bite to eat and rest the afternoon.

During the afternoon another six friends arrived in the anchorage some wishing us well for the day which was nice. I understand a few more will arrive today in time for this evenings party.

In the evening we dinghied ashore for our anniversary meal down on the beach. The staff at Coconut Grove cooked us a wonderful curry which we ate under a thatched shelter. The only downside of the meal was a plastic table and chairs which I’m sure could easily be improved upon. All in all though it was a lovely night out.

Getting back to the boat it rained on us and we got a little wet but that did little to dampen our enjoyment of a great day.

Unfortunately we learned we can’t easily do the conversion work here in Fiji.  There is no guarantee on the dates nor that we’ll have the space to do the work needed for the time needed so it would be too much of a gamble.