We’re all cleared in to Fiji and yesterday I added a new set of photos from our last days in Tonga. The photo above was taken at sunrise as we first spotted the islands of Fiji appearing on the horizon at dawn. Land Ho!

The passage from Tonga to Fiji took 50 hours; we sailed the first day and night with winds close to 20 knots, but lost the wind the second day and finished up motoring into Suva. We sailed right past boats that left Neiafu about the same time we did – most of those took 3 1/2 days to complete the trip here. Nice to have a fast boat! There was a big line at immigration Monday morning, but Rod as usual was an early bird and got all the paperwork out of the way in good time.

I guess a passage is comparable in some ways to hauling horses overnight via truck and trailer. Everyone takes turns driving (keeping watch) and sleeps or reads in between times. When the boat is under sail, sleeping is somewhat innovative as it is heeled over to one side, so some of the usual beds become unusable unless you want to roll off into a heap on the floor (or you can rig up a lee cloth). However the sofa seats in the saloon are super comfortable, as is a cockpit cushion thrown down on the saloon floor.  There are lots of noises – primarily assorted very loud creaks. Walking around the interior of the boat is a challenge because it is lurching about, so the interior is designed with multiple handholds scattered around. Eating consists of a lot of quick snacks, but Anouk had made quiche and couscous ahead of time, so we didn’t suffer too much!

The night was almost pitch black – no moon – but the stars were bright enough that the Milky Way reflected a path on the surface of the water, as did Venus. We had phosphorescence sparkling in Raven’s bow wave and wake. We peered around outside every 15 minutes or so to make sure another boat wasn’t in the vicinity, and otherwise stayed cozy in the pilot house and sailed primarily by the instruments. Mike and I are now both very attached to the radar screen, which shows islands, reefs, ships and other boats, and even squalls. There were a few squalls the first night out and one of them surprised us with a bit too much wind for the amount of sail we had set. That created a flurry of excitement as we furled the reacher, reefed the main, and put out the jib, all in the dark with 30 knots of wind. That may not sound too out of the ordinary to the seasoned sailors amongst you readers, but Mike and I definitely got our adrenalin up!

Fiji is very unlike Tonga (so far); the rugged mountains near Suva have a misty rain forest look to them. Suva is the biggest city in the South Pacific with a population of about 350,000. Downtown has a definitely big city vibe. Jon and Peggy especially will appreciate what a contrast that must be to our month in Tonga. Last night Mike and I went to the movies! Anouk is thrilled with the markets which offer a huge selection of fresh produce at ridiculously low prices. A pineapple here is $1.00 Fijian, which is about $.60 cents US; in Tonga a pineapple was $8.00.

I got a Fijian cellphone number, although after the fact I figured out that, in contrast to the fruit and veggies, the phone prices in Fiji are really high – about $4.50 Fijian per minute to dial out to the US, so I probably won’t be calling to chat.

We planned to leave Suva this morning and sail to the island Beqa, but it is gray and drizzly right now so our plans have changed. We need sunshine to see the coral reefs in the water in order to avoid them! Going to the Fijian islands off the beaten track will be a different experience. Anouk has purchased bundles of kava (a root out of which is made a muddy, slightly narcotic drink which is used in ceremonial and social occasions) which we will offer to the chiefs of the villages as a gift in exchange for allowing us to anchor in their local waters. I purchased a sulu – a man’s version of a sarong – yesterday for Mike, so the next set of pictures will probably have Mike wearing a skirt. That is the property attire for greeting a village chief.