We're here!

We made it to Australia- we are staying in Perth (on the west coast).  The past few days we’ve be getting acquainted with the town and the people, etc. A lot is different here, but a lot is the same too.  Communication is interesting.  Sometimes we have no idea what people are saying!  And sometimes people don’t know what we’re saying! So much to get used to.  We’re going to have to adapt and start saying things like ‘We need to hire a flat’ or ‘I have to use the loo.’  


There are some dangers here that we'll have to get used to as well: spiders, sharks, blue ringed octopi, snakes.  And with crossing the street, making sure to look the right way because it's all opposite here since they drive on the other side.   

And we're proud to say that just in our first week here, we’ve already gotten to see Kangaroos!  That was pretty awesome.  There was a big group of them grazing in a golf course close to sundown.   We were able to get pretty close to them without them caring too much.  We saw kangaroos of all sizes, and mama kangaroos carrying joeys.  We made sure not to go near the big, 7 foot kangaroo.  

We also saw some black swans and cockatoos.  And I was very amused by these sleeping ducks because I don’t think I’ve ever seen a duck sleep, and they turn their heads backwards and tuck their beaks into their feathers. We also got to go to the beach!  Scarborough and Cottlesloe beaches which were some of the best beaches we’ve ever seen. 

cockatoo

black swans

Scarborough Beach

sleeping duck

a mama kangaroo with a joey in her pouch

downtown Perth

we're so close to them!

they walk on the left side too

Fiji

We got to eat/drink coconuts!

Our biggest worries in Fiji seemed to be watching out for falling coconuts and trying not to get sun burned!

Our flight to Fiji from the US was about 11 hours. When we arrived, it was hot and humid and we got on a boat that took us out to the smaller island we were staying at. When we got there, we had to get on a smaller boat that took us into shore where the people were playing guitar and singing “bula, bula, bula” to welcome us. They immediately sat us down and gave us tropical drinks.

Christmas Fiji style

our little shaded spot we hung out at a lot

We participated in a kava ceremony. Kava is a drink that is an important part of Fijian culture. The guy who lead the ceremony called me and Jeff ‘Chief’ and ‘Mrs. Chief’. He told us we had to ‘shoot it down like tequila (although it's not alcohol).‘ He mixed it all up in this special wooden bowl and served it up to us in half coconut shells. When we drank it, it made our tongues numb and our lips tingled. We got headaches and felt kinda funny after drinking 2 shots of kava, and started wondering “what do they put in that stuff?”

here we are, shooting it down

coconuts!

We were so pale on arrival, but we were still pretty pale by the end of the week.

One day, we took sea kayaks and paddled around the island and docked on a deserted beach to explore. We got back in our kayaks when we saw huge bats flying around.

This is where we got to eat breakfast everyday.

The lobby and the restaurants are all open air, no walls, so we can enjoy the view at all times. Whenever we come across someone, they always say “bula!” which means hello in Fijian.

bula!

We made friends with a stray kitten on the island.

the pool

Our room has a little water dish outside it to clean our feet off because most people walk everywhere barefoot, which we gladly do too.

our hut