Bula from Fiji

    Talk about a travel day. We rolled out of bed on Sunday morning at 4 am and headed to the Toronto airport to begin our trip to the South Pacific. We landed at the airport in Nadi at 2 pm on Monday afternoon (that’s 6 am on Tuesday, July 2 in Fiji). That’s what time zones and the International Date Line will do to you.
    The first leg of the trip we flew Air Canada from Toronto to Las Vegas. Not a bad trip - 3150 km in 4 hours 20 minutes - except that Air Canada was so busy patting themselves on the back for being voted ‘best international carrier in North America’ they forgot to feed their passengers. I know the airlines are cutting back but no breakfast on a 4 ½ hour flight leaving at 7 am is a bit much. At least we got some orange juice.
    The United flight from Las Vegas to Los Angeles was noteworthy only for the pilot’s announcement that the seat belt sign would be turned off for the five minutes between reaching altitude and beginning our descent. A 45 minute flight - blink and you miss it. Unfortunately, things began to bog down in Los Angeles. We knew going in that there would be a long delay because there is only the one late night flight to Fiji. We had discussed renting a car for the day but ultimately decided there wasn’t enough time to go anywhere meaningful.
    Doreen had gotten mixed reviews on Fiji Airlines (recently re-named from Air Pacific), particularly with respect to their reliability and the quality of their food. Initial impressions took a negative trend when we couldn’t even find their counter - seems they don’t have a full-time presence at LAX. They finally opened up at 6 o’clock and we were able to get rid of our big bags. I don’t think I’ve ever been in a check-out line that moved so slowly. I don’t know if it was the airline personnel or the customers - it seemed to be a combination of both - but the whole thing dragged on and on.
    The flight was scheduled to leave at 11:30 and boarding was to commence at 10:30. Fat chance. We kept getting the ‘thank you for your patience’ routine as boarding was continually pushed back by 10 minute intervals. Something about a security problem with the plane at one time, a maintenance issue at another time. Of course, the crew didn’t show up until almost 11:15 and I doubt we could have left without them.
    At any rate, we finally got off the ground only an hour late and things started to look up. We were flying in a 747 and, though the seats were narrow and we seemed to have a very large crowd in the waiting area, we had an empty seat between us so we were quite comfortable. As soon as we were settled into the flight, they served a meal (doesn’t everybody eat at 1:30 am) and it was quite good. Can’t say the same for the egg/cheese biscuit we got for breakfast but maybe it was the hour. The legroom was comfortable and I managed to get a few hours of sleep.
    A long wait for our luggage was offset by a quick transit through customs and immigration. We decided to stretch our legs by walking down the road and across the highway where we’re staying at Raffles Hotel for the night before we catch the Yasawa Flyer tomorrow morning. We’ll be in and out of here four times over the next few weeks as we bounce between Waya Island, the Solomons and Mana Island.