Hail the Chief
15 August 2017 | The pass into Vuda Marina, Fiji
After you've been at this cruising lark for a while there's a good chance you begin to take the freedom, relaxed, go anywhere, anytime lifestyle for granted. We get to go where few others do, park up, go ashore to empty beaches, build a wee fire and watch the sun go down.
It's therefore good to get a poke in the ribs every now and then to remind us that what we're doing is a bit unique. A bit "special" as Sven and Lisa tell us.
With apologies to those of my friends and readers who may have enjoyed a cruise or two, the most recent reminder was watching a boat load of maybe forty tourists from the Reef Endeavour, (apparently one of Captain Cooks boats, or at least his cruises) all squished in a flat bottomed, sun shaded floating perambulator, being bussed in to shore to lever their pinky white bodies up the steps up to view the exhorbitantly priced limestone caves in Sawa-I-Lau.
They look at us like we're wackos that have "gone Asiatic". I look at them and think that if anyone ever hears of me considering participating in such a vacation, while I can still walk without a Zimmer and remain in control of my bladder, please remind me that sailing's where it's at.
Sawa-I-Lau, at the top of the Yasawas was the last village still living on the edge....... of the tourist economy. We went ashore and met Nox, the Headman, who duly introduced us to Abraham, his chief. A bit less formally than in the Lau, we handed over our Kava offering, got the Sevu sevu welcome and had the honour of being asked if we'd like to take the chief fishing as the wahoo were running just outside the reef.
Two hours of trolling up and down, getting soaked, a mile out in the ocean, no life jackets, no radio, no nuthin' (like the muppets we see on the Clyde and give them a serious "tutt tutt") we caught a single sparkly blue job. If the wahoo were running, they were running away from us.
Three guys at Fiji's minimum wage of $2.75 for two hours plus a tank of petrol made it a pretty expensive fish.
But quite tasty.