Life in da' hood...

The evening view of the inlet to our neighborhood. 

Above is the evening view of the inlet into our neighborhood.  (Everyone needs to park their yacht at home, right?) Day three of this Fiji blog and I am noticing that lunchtime seems to be when I am inspired to write.  Perhaps the reason for that is that I have been so busy in the evening time that the "blog-life" rarely enters my mind at that point, but during lunch, after perusing my FB and attempting to answer a few emails, i am more inclined to ramble incessantly about the things going on here on my island. 
The biggest reason I've been busy is that I have been trying to facilitate our move.  We found a place, that shall from here on out be referred to as "The Palace" and I have been working with the Realtor to secure the property.  As of tomorrow, (Friday, here in Fiji) the keys are ours!  The Palace is approx 3500 sqft, 3 bedroom 2 bath, with a loft.  It is located in an area known as Denurau, perhaps the most exclusive area on my island, and it is (for lack of a better term) AWESOME!  The house is an open design with use of finished local wood through out.  It has an approx 30ft glass wall that opens up to our giant patio/pool area and integrates the indoor and outdoor living space.  The perimeter of the property  lights up at night by gas torches that line the patio and backyard and the master suite has french doors that open up to a patio above the entertaining area.  I'd tell you to drive by and check it out, (you will know it is us by the huge WSU flag blowin' in the ocean breeze but you should call first as I will have to make sure our private security will allow you through the gate and that the gardener, pool keeper, and house keeper are finished with their daily duties as I would not want them to interrupt our visit.  (How snobby do I sound?  Sorry, I guess life has just gotten that good!  Lol...)  Okay, you get the point.  As my good friend Buddy would say, "this place rocks" and to top it off, it is about a two minute walk to the beach, or just as far to the marina and all of the hottest bars and restaurants.
Needless to say, we can't wait to get moved in, and we have already started our own betting-pool as to who will be the first visitors from "off" my island. 
I will post some pictures once we get settled in, and undoubtedly be busy planning a BBQ or two, so start making your plans to visit and I will get the beer cold and the BBQ coals heated.  We would love to see you!

From 30,000 Feet

Well, not everything is as it seems from 30,000 feet. First of all, it looks like there is nobody on my island. Second, because from here all I can only see is the lush green canopy.  I assume that the glow of the Mcdonalds golden arches or the brightness of Wendy's pigtails must be hiddens somewhere beneith the canopy and I eagerly anticipate the fastfood I have become accusomed to, but as I knew deep in my heart, the grease and beef of the USA could not be matched, not even on my island, and simply put, there is nothing "fast" about the food in Fiji. Although I have discovered the lone Mcdonalds on the island, I have yet to try it. Subconciously I believe it is an attempt to convince myself that I am somehow more worldly or well rounded, so I have been trying the local places and dishes, and here is roughly what I have found...
1) you better love Seafood
2) you better love Curry
3) tomato sauce is considered ketchup here
4) if you are in a hurry, don't sit down, cause even "fastfood" will take you atleast 30 min."
5) you better still love curry
6) beef is not common, but did I mention you better like seafood
7) lastly, oh, yeah, get used to curry.
Whether it was my Chicken burrito (with curry), my fettucinni alfredo (with curry) or my BBQ beef sandwich (that tasted like it had a bit of curry) it only took me a month to realize I needed to find at least one "go-to" place that I could get something that my stomach might think familiar. (Of course this does not include the AWESOME fruite which I have been living off of. No pestisides, no preservatives, simply AMAZING!)
Okay, I digress, I guess the best way to put it is that up until last night, I was not overly excited about most of the food options I had expirienced, but then, Wait....Wait....Wait for it..... I went to the Hardrock Cafe at Port Denurau! Jimmy Buffett must have writen "Cheeseburger in Paradise" based on my dinner! A huge beef patty, Heinz Ketchup, Frenches Mustard, Cheddar Cheese, perfect french frys, and all the fixin's... Just when I did not think it could happen, life got even better! Great food, great beer, great weather, and in great company with Jenn!  I found Heaven on the peir in Fiji!
I figured it out, what I could not see from 30,000 feet was how awesome life here on my island is going to be, and it just keeps getting better!
We should get keys to the "Palace" (more info to follow) by weeks end and be officially moving in shortly there after. So incase I failed to mention it, LIFE IS GREAT!
I am working on getting some photos and maybe even a video to put up, but until then I'll be sitting in the sun, most likely eating curry...

Bula!

Welcome to my blog.  Being that this is my first post, I have yet to really develop a style, format, or anything that closely resembles a plan as to how this is supposed to look when it is all done.  That being said, if I haven't bored you enough already with my lame into and you have somehow fought off the urge to go back to shopping on Amazon.com or scouring youtube for the next great wiffleball-in-the-crotch-video, then again, "Welcome" or "Bula" as we say here in Fiji. 
Over the next couple years, I will be sharing a little about me and my life here on "My Island".   Alright, so it is not technically, "mine" but as any good red blooded American, I felt it necassary to stake claim and immediatly take over the entire culture upon my arrival.  Therefor if a sense of obligation to world peace, political correctness, or a need to recognize the Nation of Fiji's delicate sensibilities while reading my posts should become impossible to ignore and under no circumstances can you stand by as I single handedly (mostly sarcastically) take over a small island nation, (even if it is only on this obscure blog), feel free to mentally substitute the word "Fiji" anytime I say "my island".  Great, now that we are beyond our first international incident, lets get on to a little bit about what is going on on my island...
First off, I guess I better explain a little bit about my island.  For those of you who have not been to Fiji, never had to do a report on it in elementary school and memorize the facts from the worldbook encycolopedia, or those that might be challenged to find it on a map, all you need to do is find Austraila or New Zealand, and go east.  Fiji sits about as far south of the Equator as Hawaii is north.  It is a third world  island nation that is comprised of over 300 islands and filled with some of the most beautiful beaches and the most friendly people in the world.  The average temperature is about 85 degrees year round and a fun fact; Fiji is the last known place to practice canabalism....So, speaking of food, I am going to sign off and go grab something to eat.  Feel free to reply, comment, post or what ever.  There will be more posts, photos and videos soon.  Thanks for reading.