My Happy Travels

When your siblings live far away from one another, time and busy lives makes it challenging to catch up.  For us it has been 11 years since we have all been in the same place at the same time.

We started a plan 11 months ago to have an adventure together with our parents. We schemed, planned, booked and organised a trip in secret to meet up in Fiji.

The stories we told to get the parents away were confusing and complex. It involved pretend prizes, partners that couldn’t go and many other tales that they stopped trying to understand. All they knew for sure (eventually) that it was not optional!

When we were trying to decide where to go, the criteria first involved a budget we were willing to spend, a location that didn’t take too long for the parents to travel and ultimately felt like an adventure. It didn’t take too long to decide Fiji was the place. Ricky (baby brother) found Papageno Resort. It was remote, included meals, water based activities and had a house where we could stay together as a family. Tick tick tick!

The first real surprise (after revealing the destination a week before) was at the Brisbane International airport where 2 more sisters (Joy and Keleigh) arrived unexpectedly on the other side of security after much ducking, weaving and suspicious behavior at check-in.  Sneaking in to to join us for preflight breakfast they announced they were coming too. Initially the ‘prize’ was a trip for 4 that myself, sister Tracy and the parents were going on.  We had now increased to 6, a parents and daughters adventure to Fiji. ‘Isn’t that fantastic’ Mom announced!

We arrived in Fiji for a 1 night stop over in Nadi taking 2 cabs to a nearby BnB, Bua Bed and Breakfast.  We settled in then wandered to the beach one street over to explore and find dinner.  Dinner was in a beach front resort restaurant which served simple but tasty meals.  The billing system caused much confusion and I’m still not sure if we paid too much or not enough! With the bill settled, we made our way back to our accommodation.

The BnB was a couple different buildings nestled around a pool. The kitchen and our rooms were in the main building and the remaining building was the private residence. It was simple, comfortable and uncomplicated. Some of us had an evening swim before a night of restless sleep before the next big surprise.

Baby brother landed 5am from Canada. The parents did not know. We bought matching shirts for the 7 of us and quickly dressed him to match his sisters when he arrived at the BnB.  We strategically positioned him in the outside area behind a pole to wait for the parents to make their way outside. Of all the surprises, this was the big one! 

Mom came out first, dressed for a morning swim chatting away at us and not noticing the additional person at the table.  When she finally took notice of this extra person, her face told the story of what her brain was trying to understand. ‘Ricky John’ ‘Ricky John?’ She was stunned, crying, hugging all at once. It was gold and couldn’t have gone better or had a better reaction.

Mom couldn’t believe what had just happened so decided to shake it off with her planned morning swim while we waited for Ian to make his appearance.  He came wandering out casting comments about the noise we were making when he spotted Ricky out of the corner of his eye! G’day mate he said with much surprise but also, ‘I wondered if something like this was going to happen’. Perfect, the lies and the scheming had paid off and we could all now relax!

Even though our accommodation was booked for 6, the hosts gladly made 7 serves of scrambled eggs for breakfast (Tracy’s favourite!).  We then went for a morning walk on the beach to fill in time before our maxi-cab driver, Sam, was due to pick us up at 9am. 

We arrived at the domestic Nadi airport which was a little building to the side of the International airport. A very casual check-in where not only our bags were weighed, we all had to stand on the scales with our carry-on bags. A new preflight experience for me! As we waited excitedly having our usual animated super quiet conversation we were approached by Phillip, the owner of Papageno Resort, who immediately identified us in our matching reef shirts as the Colley family. We didn’t try to explain the many surnames associated to our family! The host was personally escorting us to the resort – what a great start!

We boarded our tiny plane and were soon off across the inland of the main island heading for Kadavu Island.  It was pretty neat to sit 1 row back from the open cockpit of the plane and watch the pilot in action.  The run way on Kadavu was a small stretch of tarmac with water on both ends.  Safely landed, we made our way to the ‘airport’ where Phillip said his team would take our luggage and we were to make our way the the beach for a ‘wet’ boarding onto the boat that was to take us to the resort.

Shoes off, bags held high, we waded out the the back of the boat where our, soon to be, new friends offered a hand up onto the boat.  Our luggage, slung over the shoulders of strong Fijian men, was loaded into a separate fibreglass long boat. The luggage was getting its own transport which zipped off into the shallows along the coast line. Aqua blue water of various shades greeted us as we headed out into deeper waters for our journey.

As we made our way around and into the bay of the resort, our attention was drawn to the staff lined up on the beach singing their welcome songs. We were told that we needed to respond loudly with ‘Bula’ which, of course, we assured Phillip that loud we could do! We disembarked in similar fashion with a helping hand and big smiles. 

The staff then greeted us individually introducing themselves, asking our names in return and handing us cold towels which was a welcome refresh.  We got a basic run down of the resort lay out which consisted of a beach side bar, communal eating area and a dive shop.  There were hammocks scattered around the resort and various lawn chairs inviting us to relax with a good book! We were directed to the Royal House, which we soon named the Palace, to settle in, unpack, explore and walk around in wonder at our accommodation for the next 5 nights.

The Palace consisted of verandahs on all sides, a large open common area in the middle with rooms to the sides and kitchen to the back.  They had decided (even though I had said we would work it out when we got there) who would stay where.  The parents had their own room and bathroom, Tracy, Joy and I were directed in one direction and Keleigh and Ricky (the little ones) directed in another. Our room had a large room with a king bed and a single on one side of the bathroom. On the other side of the bathroom was another room with a single bed which Joy quickly claimed.  I was awarded the king and Tracy took the remaining single.  Keleigh claimed the king bed in their room leaving Ricky in the single in their room which included their own bathroom. We were set, under one roof and couldn’t be happier.

We immediately headed to lunch which was freshly made caesar salad (delicious), then the dive shop for our complimentary snorkelling equipment and then to the bar for a cold drink, or two! 

We wasted no time for the adventures to begin, we secured some kayaks, left the parents to absorb where they were, and the siblings headed out on the water to explore. We found floating seed pods which soon became missiles gathered and thrown, dodged and missed, gathered and thrown again. We were immediately right back to childhood banter, laughter and tomfoolery!

Showered and to the bar, drinks flowing, agreeing to a tour offered for the morning, dinner was called (a couple times) and consumed. Finally the exhausted bodies fell into bed…

Our first morning found us wandering in and out of the Palace kitchen in turns looking for coffee and tea only to find such things lacking.  Communal breakfast must be the only source of morning beverages so off we went, bleary eyed and ready for our first full day. The tour we agreed to the night before turned out to be a Manta Ray tour, which Ian opted out, choosing instead to stay and explore the resort (read: nap, search out cups of tea and take in his surroundings).

Manta Ray tour was without Manta Rays but we certainly looked for them lots. The snorkelling in between was outstanding and the picnic lunch on Manta Island was delicious – home made, still warm, chicken curry crepes along side fresh salad and fruit. 

A day well spent which included trolling for fish on the way home. A yellow fin tuna was caught by a fellow tourist, bled and taken back for dinner service.  A night full of a few more refreshments, laughter, wild debates and exhausted family who again slept soundly.

That second night it dawned on us that we didn’t ask how much our tour was and had not taken any notice of the cost of our drinks. We made a decision to ask for a running total the next morning. That took Phillip some time to produce such a score but the results certainly pulled us up to be a little more aware in that regard. Meals, tea, coffee, water and water activities from the shore were included but drinks from the bar, snacks and tours were extra.  We had no regrets, but certainly a lesson to pay attention moving forward with our eyes a little more open.

Back in the planning phase of the trip I put forward an idea to attempt a social media trend that involved hugs and paint. We collectively decided to give it a go. It was a very fun and funny after breakfast activity that set us up for another great memory of the trip. Personalised hug shirts, tick!

Ricky had dreams of fishing in all forms and persistently made it happen securing himself a fishing rod and eventually a spear gun. He was up early every day in pursuit of his goals and certainly kept the kitchen supplied with fish to cook for us.  He soon made fast friends with the staff who took great interest and care of our family. He was taken out for a one on one personal spear fishing expedition with Joe, the barman, who soon became our go to person. He was very accommodating from making a hat for Mom when she lost hers to ensuring we all had an enjoyable Fijian experience.

Ricky may have been the most determined of us to catch fish, but he was not alone in his Fijian fish quest. We soon priced a fishing tour and arranged a couple hours of bottom fishing for the seven of us. We loaded up into the former luggage transport boat for some hand line reef fishing in not ideal weather. 2 hrs flew by with wind, rain, laughter, competitive jibes from guides and family alike but not much in the way of fish. Keleigh caught 2 fish (a rock cod and coral trout) which would not have been keepers in Australia but in Fiji, great fish! The captain caught the rest, asking Ricky each time what he was catching to which much laughter ensued.  It was a memorable trip, but certainly would not have fed the village.

We did not need to supply fish as there was fish with most meals. Our most special meal was the food cooked in the ground, carefully wrapped and positioned in amongst the hot sand and coals.  The meat was chicken, lamb, pork and the big mangrove snapper that Ricky caught off the rocks. The veges was bread fruit, plantain, sweet potatoes, taro and taro leaf parcels filled with coconut cream, garlic, ginger and tomatoes.  The food was outstanding from start to finish, everything hand made except the toast with breakfast. There was always a soup to start dinner which varied each night and fresh cooked bread rolls in abundance. The meals were set and nobody ever went hungry.

Our final tour on the last full day was a village tour with Joe guiding us through his home village a 10 minute boat ride away. He was the village spokesman and his role in the village was to take care of the welfare of his people liaising with government and other organisations to ensure the village had what it needed. He was outstanding in his service to us and the fellow tourists giving special attention to Mom, our appointed ‘Chief’ which started the night before at the cava welcome ceremony in the resort.

The village ‘tourist committee’ met us on the beach as we arrived in our luggage, come fishing, now tour boat. They sang, introduced themselves, hugged us and presented us with handmade flower/leaf necklaces.  We were then directed to a beach side shelter for another cava welcoming ceremony with more singing and some green, life changing, coconut water to share. We met the elders, the cava master and the wives of the staff from the resort who soon proved their husbands’ stories to be just stories as suspected. These people were warm, friendly, welcoming and beyond generous with their time and their introduction to village life.

Joe then took us, arm in arm with Mom, through the village explaining all the way about his great plans for the sustainability of the village and how he would bring his people back to the island to keep traditions and the island community viable. The plans were considered, well thought out and diversified to ensure his people had a long and prosperous future ahead.  His list was expansion of existing farming, a mahogany plantation, eco tourism including home stays and much more. All of these plans required a sustainable water source and that was his first goal for everything ahead. It was well thought out, carefully shared to ensure nobody got overwhelmed and all gently moving towards self reliance. It was impressive and yet ambitious. We wish him well and hope he is successful in all these goals, nobody impressed us more.

The village tour ended with more cava (pretty sure we were being used by the men as an excuse to drink more cava), singing and dancing.  The dancing started with what seemed like Ricky being married off to one of the village ladies but soon turned into an all in conga line with the impeccable voices keeping the tune going. Perfection!

Our own goals for this trip were well and truly achieved. Mom constantly telling us she was in a dream and Ian comfortably enjoying his time on the ‘no option’ holiday. The siblings fell right back into a comfortable place with each other and we revelled the adventure we had taken our parents on.  It really could not have worked out better.

Our fair well from the island was firstly waiting out a hung over resort owner calculating our final bill, creative mathematics divvying out the share 5 ways and then overwhelmed with complimentary items from the souvenir shop which seemed to be gifted only to us. Phillips sending us on our way telling us we were the heart of the resort while we were there!   The staff then gathered again at the beach for another round of flower/leaf necklaces and more singing to wish us well on our journey home.  We may have shed a couple tears but our hearts were full having achieved that once in a lifetime family adventure we had hoped for.

The return trip to Nadi in reverse order. A short plane ride then collection from the airport again by Sam to the airport hotel. That is where our next adventure awaited. The rooms were bad, all bad, they smelt, they had cockroaches, there were rooms for hire by the hour and we all had concerns for our safety… we could not leave fast enough – initially just to find some lunch and do some souvenir shopping before saying good bye to Ricky who was scheduled to fly same day without the need for accommodation. 

We asked Sam to come back and take us to Denarau where Joy had been previously and thought a good place to waste a few hours. Sam directed us to a restaurant where we ate overlooking a marina which could have been any tourist town at home. It was water, boats and fancy houses. At this point we again reflected how good our remote stay at Kadavu really had been. Some gifts purchased for family at home and then Sam promptly collected us as arranged for the drive to the airport. Things stayed chatty and loud until the airport was in sight and then the soon to be somber good bye went about bringing the mood down. The hard part was upon us and we knew it.  We threw Ricky out, slammed the door and drove away…. NOT! We all climbed out, Sam patiently waiting for extended hugs (minus the paint), tears flowing as we sent the baby on his way home to Canada. It will be a couple more years for most of us before we see him again. It was a less animated ride back to our accommodation of which none of us were excited to return to.

It didn’t take long for same thoughts to run through our heads – we need somewhere else to stay… Keleigh voiced it, the sisters unanimously agreed we could afford to stay somewhere else that had breathable air and less likelihood for foreign diseases to join us on the way home. We asked Sam to stand by, we were going to collect our luggage and leave.

Sam was soon on board with our escape plan, he would find us somewhere ‘good’ to stay, somewhere ‘clean’, somewhere with a pool and air conditioning,  somewhere close with a ‘good deal’, somewhere ‘better’. You stay in car, I negotiate…. a deal was struck, it indeed had a pool, it indeed didn’t stink of mould and indeed 1 of the 3 rooms had air conditioning! The beds were on the floor, made up only with a bottom sheet and a pillow. The shower head did not exist in any room – just a spout of which a shower head might have been once attached. The water was cold or nothing, but given the lack of air conditioning, certainly brought the body temp down.  The parents room got the working air conditioning but not even a spout in the shower, just a hole in the wall from which water flowed. The parents chose not to shower… This part of the adventure gave us no opportunity to be sad that Ricky had gone home. It was the perfect antidote as we laughed and shook our head as to the circumstances we had found ourselves on the last night! Mom continued to insist that this was not the level of better she expected and could not recognise the small increment our position had improved – much laughter and little sleep was attained for our last night…

As I sit on the plane back to Brisbane, I still can’t quite fathom how we pulled it off. It was everything we wanted, some things we didn’t but ultimately we couldn’t have asked for more. Thank you family, thank you Phillip and all the Papageno staff especially Joe, thank you taxi Sam and thank you Fiji. What a trip, what a memory and what a bloody grand adventure we had.