Word for the Travel Wise (04/22/06)

by Adrienne Wilson on

Ah, Fiji, land of beautiful tropical paradise, shallow
reefs, clear cool waters and sacred caves. Who wouldn’t want to take a vacation to the South Pacific Island? I’ve got
a friend I’ve been begging for years now to let me tag along the next time she goes to visit family and another mutual
friend who wanted to make me one of his 12 wives, spoil me rotten and stay and play in Fiji all I wanted. For a while I
laughed off his crazy multiple wife chatter thinking I’d be able to zip over on vaca with my gal pal, but these days I’m
wondering if he’s still accepting applications.

Today’s word is a Fijian word used in Fiji:

daulomani – husband

Okay, I wouldn’t marry for a tropical island vacation and don’t act like you’ve never thought of it before, I’m
talking Fiji here. You have to understand where I’m coming from. Perhaps wife number 3 or 7 wouldn’t be so bad. Luckily
I have some time to sort out my thoughts and brush up on the Fijian lang. I just might need it in the event I ever
decide to head out on my own to search for a husband who will want me and only me. How sad does this sound? Anyhow,
let’s get onto the language resources, shall we?

Fiji
Dictionary has about 850 words translating from Fijian-English and vice versa. The author of the site has a small
disclaimer up top to remind those of us seeking methods to learn Fijian tongue online, that theirs may not be the most
accurate and to use at your own risk. Rob Kay’s Fiji Guide
has a pronunciation guide in addition to several useful words and historical background on the Fijian language
including Fijian Hindi. Before clicking into the two above, check out Wiki for other interesting lingo facts.

One for the Road: 30 Days in the South Pacific

by Dave (Blogsmith Old) on

How about heading to the South Pacific sometime in the next 30 days? Consider this our virtual December Destination suggestion of the day. All you have to do to be transported is read the recently released 30 Days in the South Pacific, published by our friends at Travelers Tales. This collection of True Stories of Escape to Paradise may inspire you to hop on a plane this month or just embark on some serious South Pacific daydreaming. Fiji, Moorea, Vanuatu, Tonga and Taveuni – just peek at the table of contents and read a sample chapter – do you feel the sand between your toes? I bet it won’t even take all thirty stories to get you seriously thinking of a trip to one of these islands. If you can’t get there in December, be sure to add this to the top of your New Year’s resolution list: “Must spend at least 30 days on an island in the South Pacific sunshine.”

This book is the first release in a new series of 30 Days titles from Travelers Tales. Future titles in the series will include Italy and Japan.

Wish I Was Paddling Fiji

by Erik Olsen on

Well there are several things I can think of that I’d rather be doing right now than sitting down at my desk on a Monday and writing. Let’s see…hmm…Jacuzzi party at Hef’s mansion…diving the Well there are several things I can think of that I’d rather be doing right now than sitting down at my desk on a Monday and writing. Let’s see…hmm…Jacuzzi party at Hef’s mansion…diving the Galapagos…wine tasting in Napa…oh, and how about paddling Fiji. Yes, that would be nice. Waking up and having nothing to do all day but draw quiet strokes across the cerulean surface of the South Pacific. I could do that.

Well, that’s what Robin Stanton got to do recently. Her adventure trip included not just paddling, but hiking, mountain biking and lots of good South Pacific grub. They visited local villages like Malake Village, where they hung out with the locals and dined on fish, chicken, taro leaves, and cassava (sorry, I’ve had both taro and cassava…yuck).

Anyway, as I stumbled in this morning from a searing weekend, I pondered momentarily where I might rather be, and as I say, paddling in Fiji is right up there. And Hef’s place would be cool too.

A Kinder Lodging

by Adrienne Wilson on

Outside has a nice piece on eco lodging and a list of the world’s ten best. Having done such great research they note that these eco lodges not only suggest that they cause no harm to the outdoors, but that they bring benefit to the whole community and economy. If anything they are unique. The Black Sheep Inn in Ecuador has dry composting toilets with little vegetable and flower gardens inside and it’s the teenie touches that provide splendor to these lodges. People enjoy the canyon views and the lodge loves the compliments about their restrooms. If you’re going to do it, then you should do it right and here is the list of places that make the list.

  • Turtle Island, Fiji

  • Asa Wright Nature Centre and Lodge, Trinidad

  • Birch Pond Lodge, Alaska

  • Wenhai Ecolodge, China

  • Posada Amazonas, Peru

  • Wilderness Lodge Lake Moeraki, New Zealand

  • Tassia Lodge, Kenya

  • Chumbe Island Coral Park, Tanzania

  • Selva Bananito Lodge, Costa Rica

  • Black Sheep Inn, Ecuador