Vitu Levu, Nadi – Fiji.

The Captain and Admiral sat and reminisced on the picture postcard memories they had made as the boat rocked on the South Pacific ocean, they could only wonder what was running through the Cadet’s mind as he nibbled on his salted and slightly sweet popcorn.

They disembarked and as usual the Admiral’s motherly instincts went into overdrive, frantically panicking to feed the Cadet as if he was starving. The Captain's mind wondered to Fawcett and the Amazon, where explorers did not eat for almost monthson end. The comparison in this case was futile. Reassuring the Admiral that the Cadet still had some fat reserves to survive on, they awaited their bags and the shuttle bus that was to take them to their next abode - Club Fiji, every second the pressure was building as the Cadet was now metabolising his muscle mass in the Admiral’s mind. Finally the bus came and they started to move.

Reaching Club Fiji they again had to wait for the rooms to be organised. The cadet was playfully running around the reception area when they were called and the bags taken to the rooms. The staff instantly were warm and lovely, just casually chatting to us as we walked down to our rooms. One of the staff members asked the Captain if he liked coconut water, to which the Captain responded “hell yes” the staff member instantly in mission mode to get a coconut from a tree, the Captain hoping this would help with the Admiral’s anxiety. And it surely did lift the mood once it arrived. Offering it to the Cadet was not the best idea however, he did not like the taste and spat it out, stating “Its too tasty” They did not attempt to offer it to him again.

They then went and sat by the pool ordering some tempura chicken for the Cadet in hopes he would eat some. He ate just enough to survive the harsh realities of living in fully equipped resort life.
After a quick lunch and some coconut water, they headed to the room for a rest. Whilst the Admiral and Cadet caught up on some sleep, the Captain continued to read of cannibalism and amazonian parasites.

When they woke up they planned to go and check out the Nadi town. They jumped in a taxi and headed in, noticing the rural landscape the whole way in, the lack of population made the city look more like a village. As they arrived in town it was evident that the city centre was no different. Underdeveloped, with little stores catering more for locals than for the large tourist base that visit the city. They got out of the taxi and instantly were approached by a pirate that led them on a 10 minute walk to a “local made” store. Instantly upon entering the Captain knew this was a scam, asking the price of an item, it was evident that it was. They quickly said thank you and left the store, wanting to go and explore.

Knowing that the Cadet was a ticking time bomb waiting to explode, they wheeled his stroller and walked along the strip looking for souvenirs and gifts for friends and family. Visiting several shops they got to one in which the Captain liked one item, in a whirlwind he returned to the Admiral with a full basket stating “screw it let's just grab everything from here” Shoving a million things into his basket for the next 40 minutes he ran around shopping. On the other side the Cadet had escaped his confines and the Admiral was entertaining him as he tried on every pair of high heels and women’s sandals in the shop.
Finally when they had managed to get everything the Admiral noticed that the engraving on some of the items were incorrect. The Captain had gotten the wrong name carved in. Frantic, he pleaded with the shopkeepers to allow him to change it, given they were purchasing so many things the manager obliged, recarving the correct name into the items.
Just when things looked complete, the manager started the paperwork to get duty free.

It seems like it went on forever, entering every single line item into the system to ensure that they would get the duty back when departing the country. Although he was trying to do good the duration of him Entering every item started to get a little bit detrimental. The cadet was going off his hinge and the impatience was building up. He had now been in that store for about 2 hours, his hunger and restlessness started to take over. He was running around being completely crazy as the captain stood by. Hoping that the paperwork would be complete soon. It finally was. They finally scooped the cadet up and left the store. It was already dark outside.

The store managers had recommended a restaurant which was a couple of doors down. They had one of the staff members escort the crew there because they felt it was a little bit unsafe to walk the streets at night. They got to the restaurant and it was dark and very dingy, There was no one else inside and all the lights were switched off. When they did switch them on, they were flickering. It reminded the captain of something out of a horror film. Against their instincts they took a seat and started to look at the menu. They found a few items that they wanted to get. Rather than waiting, they ordered the Cadets' food and then continued to look at the menu for themselves. When ordering three out of the four items that they ordered were not available, considering the rough looking spot they made a quick call to leave the establishment. The staff informed them that they had already started making that cadet's food. Unfortunately this is not good enough and the captain insisted that they will leave. It was not a place that they could remain for longer. It was too dark and now hosted some unsavoury characters by the bar. Scurrying out ,they then tried the restaurant which was across the road and looked a lot more appetising, was brightly lit with more families inside.

The place they visited was the fast food chain called Galiotos, the menu resembled Nando's as if it was a cheap knock off. Staff informed them that the menu items were going to be spicy and this may be a problem for the Cadet. As time was running out they decided not to move on and to order something from there and take the risk. When the food came it was not spicy. They also discovered that orange juice in the country was Fanta. The cadet and everybody ate quickly. The food also tasted very much like Nando's with a little bit more turmeric in the sauces. The Cadet enjoyed the chicken and ate adequately.

They exited the establishment and instantly were a little bit rattled by the emptiness of the streets. Their minds were playing up on what the shopkeeper had said about it being a little bit rough at night. In any case, after many failed attempts to politely hail a taxi, a local couple standing nearby came to their rescue, by yelling at a taxi that was across the road whistling and carrying on to get them to come over. Within seconds the driver turned on his lights and popped over. They told the crew that this is how it's done in Fiji.

Arriving back at the hotel. The Captain was called aside by the staff members to come and join them for Kava, to which the captain agreed and they poured him a bowl. Instantly his lips were numb. He wanted to continue but the Admiral needed him so he retreated. As they walked into the resort, they saw a giant bonfire going on the beach, The cadet was hypnotised. They took him along to the Burning heap which was just on the beach. Turns out that the resort does a bonfire every week, this proved to be amazing, the Captain and Cadet stood and watched whilst the Admiral headed back into the hotel room to set up the night time routine.

The second day started with Breakfast, followed by jumping in a taxi to head to the sleeping giant gardens. The taxi driver was quite chatty and was explaining about Fiji as we drove past villages and establishments made for the staff that worked on the resorts. He also pointed out the expensive hotels and resorts that they drove past.

They arrived at the sleeping giant gardens only to think that this is a bit of a hack. They paid the entry and walked around the gardens. Much like the captain and Admiral, the Cadet was not impressed, It just seemed like a jungle forest with pretty plants and lots of trees. It was getting exhausting to carry the Cadet as he had no interest in the fauna that surrounded him. The Captain was wondering if these rainforests resemble the ones in the book he was reading and if this was what the lost city of z would have looked like.
They found a forest swing that occupied them for about 5 minutes before deciding to walk on, they climbed the walkways higher into the forest. It was amongst this walk that the Cadet discovered a stick and started killing mosquitoes with it, at least in his mind. It was amusing for a little while, however, just like the forest around them, the novelty had worn off pretty quickly.

Following a refreshing beverage that was provided by the cafe and possibly the only value for money on the tour, they retreated back into the car and headed towards the next landmark, Sabeto Hot Spring Mud Pools. Luckily it was a short drive and they were still recovering from the heat, the Captain wondered on how the Cadet would take the mud baths as he's a bit of a clean freak, any signs of dirt generally seems to distress the little man.

Once they got there, a local guide was assigned to them, he directed the crew to the change rooms and asked them to strip to their underwear. Once they were done, they were escorted by the guide to a big open space. The Mud pools were not exactly how the Captain had pictured them, instead of pools of mud, they were several buckets full of sludge that they were to apply on their bodies. The Guide stated how in the morning they go out to collect the mineral rich mud from the forests.

Initially when the Cadet got some mud on him he was a little distressed. He didn't know what was going on but when the Admiral and Captain started to lather themselves up with the black goop, the Cadet seemed to be a little bit more open to the idea of being painted with mud. This was short lived however as he soon realised that he was indeed very dirty and started to panic. Luckily there was another child who distracted the Cadet by chasing him around as the mud dried on their bodies. The Admiral also joined in the fun and it was three little piggies running around covered in mud.
Once they had dried up, They were escorted by their guide to a series of mineral baths that were heated naturally. The first one and second were mainly to get the mud off, followed by a third and fourth very warm pool in which they could swim around. It had been a successful mission, and one that was much more satisfying and enjoyable compared to the gardens they visited earlier. They dried off and walked back to the taxi to head back to the resort.

Reaching in perfect timing for the Cadet’s all important nap , they rested in the room, before deciding to explore the resort and take a dip in one of the pools. The Captain was busy talking to the staff members and making friends with the bartender. This proved pretty fruitful as the bartender was able to make the cadet a strawberry milkshake to enjoy whilst he swam in the pools.

As time progressed, they decided to knock off one more thing off the list and headed to the largest Hindu temple in the Pacific islands (or so they were told by the driver). The Sri Siva Subramaniya Swami Temple Is dedicated to Karthik who is the brother of Ganesha and the son of Shiva. They walked around and prayed for surviving the rest of the trip as well as saying some prayers for family and friends. The peaceful place did not have much of an impact on the cadet who had instantly run into the “priest only” area of the temple and had to be escorted out by the dedicated priest there. Aside from this mishap, the place felt peaceful and refreshing for both the Captain and Admiral.

The crew were treated to a nice dinner at the resort and thankfully the Cadet was hungry and able to chomp down on some sustenance. The dinner was followed by some Poloneasian dancing, which once again meant that it was the Cadets time to shine, running to the front and participating in the foreign dance. Once the entertainment was over it was time to take a backseat as the dancers lit their torches and proceeded to do a fire dance. The Cadet was once again mesmerised, asking continuously “What they doing?” Once the fire dance finished they were able to take some selfies with the performers and head back to the room. It had been an eventful and long day.

The next day started off with breakfast and some drama. They had managed to negotiate a price on the previous night with the tour operator, however the information that was given was not correct. The price was more than what was quoted, while the Cadet ate, the Captain made a few calls only to find out that despite the elevated price the amount was still cheaper than other operators. They had to agree to the updated terms and set out on the 1 hour drive to the Kula Eco park

After the one hour journey to the animal sanctuary, they arrived with a very curious Cadet. Excitedly they entered the park only to find hundreds of little children, escorted by teachers entering the park. Looks like there were several schools that had the same idea and had made use of the good weather and arrived at the same time as the squadron had to the park. It took a while for them to navigate through the crowds as they walked towards the exhibits. Seeing lots of turtles, exotic fish, birds and peacocks as they explored the park grounds. A highlight of the expedition was definitely the dancing white peacock which put on a beautiful show as they watched its majestic dance.
They were able to pick up and make friends with some reptiles which seemed to amuse the cadet for a good minute, before his attention went to something else.

After engaging with the animals they visited the play area, which had a little water section that the Cadet could play in. The water was absolutely freezing and despite another little Cadet asking him to join her engaging in some militia-like training on the play equipment, It was too cold for him and he just ran around the edges. While this carfuffle was going on the Captain and Admiral were able to grab some food and prepare a little lunch for the Cadet. Despite all the distractions,he was able to eat.

Post lunch they were supposed to go and feed the turtles which was scheduled for 1:30 p.m. They arrived at the spot only to find it completely empty. Confused They started looking at all the possible variables only to realise that the Captain's watch had been incorrectly set and it was actually 2:30. They missed it by an hour.

Disappointed and the Admiral a little bit angry at the Captain for his miscalculation, they left the park and on the way as we walked through the exhibits again the Cadet had an incoming projectile in the shape of a bird that almost smacked him as it flew past this scared the hell out of him. Safely escaping they got back to the car and headed back to the resort.

After the long card ride they got back to the resort and had a quick nap before heading out to the private beach that they had not explored yet. It was their last day at the resort and it was and it would be sin not to check it out. They strolled over and while the Admiral and Cadet played. The captain made friends with the bartender who provided another complementary strawberry milkshake for the Cadet. He was very happy. They watched the waves, hit the shore, collected shells, coconuts and built sand castles sitting under the sun.

After a quick google of nice places to go to have dinner, the Admiral and Captain made the decision to head to the local Japanese restaurant, not only did the Cadet love Sushi, but they had teppanyaki, an experience that the Captain had never had before. The place looked authentic when they arrived, even being greeted by a cat that was walking around the ground floor. They were escorted upstairs and to a table with a large stainless steel plate for cooking. The experience was pleasant enough even though it lacked the theatrics that the Captain had expected. Despite the rather expensive meal, the Captain was still a bit peckish, so they decided to cross the road and have a dabble in the local Burger King that was there. Whilst they ate, the Cadet happily played in the play area.

FInding a Taxi was a bit of a challenge, however walking down to the shopping centre, where the Captain bought some obscure snacks, they were able to hail one down and make friends with the Taxi driver on the way back to the resort.

Upon getting out of the Cab the Assistant manager approached the Captain and invited him to the join the staff as they drank Kava, the Captain excited by the offer said that he will be back soon after putting the Cadet to sleep. Rushing through the bedtime routine he finished up and went and joined the staff. Sitting with them for a few hours and drinking 8 bowls of the muddy tasting intoxicating fluid. The time was well spent, learning a ton about local life, and the history of the resort, which turns out was owned by an Aussie who lived in Sydney.
After some quality time spent, the Captain stumbled back to the room and passed out.

The next morning the Captain woke up a little bit hungover from the night's activities before but he had no time to squander as they all had to pack and check out of the resort that they were staying at and head to their final destination which was Fiji gateway resort close to the airport. They grabbed breakfast and then caught a taxi and headed down.

Arriving at the gateway hotel there were advised that they would not be able to check in for another couple of hours. However, they were allowed to go and use the facilities, which included their epic swimming pool. They quickly stripped down and headed to the swimming pool ready to go for a dip. The swimming pool at the resort was pretty amazing and it featured a very large water slide. Instantly the captain was attracted to the landmark. He dashed up to the top of the stairs and asked the Admiral and Cadet to follow. He went down with a whoosh! What he did not realise was that the water at the end of the pool was quite deep and he could not touch the floor after he landed, which was very unusual for him, he struggled and swam to the side considering his swimming, skills are not at A level.

Worriedabout his beloved Admiral and Cadet who would soon be hurtling down the slide into the deep blue, the Captain saved himself by climbing out of the pool first. He then yelled out to the Admiral of the dangers below, but it was too late as she was already sliding down with the Cadet on her lap . The Cadet splashed in and the admiral was flapping around. Unsure if he could help or if he would drown, the Captain stood on the poolside and reached out to grab them but they were too far away. So he proceeded to cheer on the drowning pair instead with well intentioned yelling that he was safely out of the water. The Admiral was heroic. Her mother's senses activated and she held the Cadet above her head as she was under the water. The Captain edged closer and was able to grab the cadet saving his life while the Admiral struggled. Was a big debacle but they came out untouched.

Just as they were recovering from their water adventures, they got a call from the admiral's mother. Turns out that her father had reached the airport and was waiting for them to arrive in Melbourne. He had arrived one day early to pick them up. After a pretty hilarious phone call, they sat around tanning by the pool, staying far away from the waterslide that almost cost them their lives, until their room was ready.

Finally, they checked in and it was a wonderful room just as the resort was extremely pretty. After a quick nap They headed into the city to pick up some remaining souvenirs. The issue was that they were already running low on time and by the time they got to the city everything would start to shut. They hustled, and just as the Captain had predicted everything had started to close by the time they got in. It was going to be the last day that they were there so they had to grab everything as fast as they could. In a bit of a flurry they started going down some side streets to see if anything was open and ended up in a fruit and veg market. The Cadet was very patient, during this ordeal and through exploration they were able to find some shops that they could buy things from. Although it was very stressful at the time it was a fantastic experience for the Captain as he had the opportunity to feel like a local and shop like a local at smaller stores throughout the small town.

Finishing up the crew headed to an Indian restaurant that they saw on their previous day’s adventures.Once they arrived, they were pleasantly surprised by the food and the ambience. The cadet loved the food and basically picked up everything and ate it himself which was unusual for him. It seemed like his genes kicked in and he was craving the subcontinental cuisine.
The successful expedition was over after a good feed and they headed back to the hotel for a good night's rest, getting ready for their last day in the tropical paradise

The last day began with an early start. They contacted the driver that they had met on their way back from the Japanese restaurant. To take them to Natadola Beach, which locals classified as the best beach on the mainland. The driver arrived and asked if he could bring his wife along for the long journey. The Captain and Admiral thought that this was a bit random but agreed instantly.

They went to the village to pick up his wife who was a friendly old lady. It turns out that the driver and his wife did not have children and loved kids so the whole ride over to the beach she was talking to the Cadet and instantly had fallen in love with him. The whole drive she chatted and entertained The Cadet. They were both very nice people, and the absence of a child can be seen in their lives with the amount of love they were giving to the squad.

After the long drive to the beach, they were welcomed by locals on horses that were selling coconuts, given the extreme heat, the captain and Cadet bought some straight away, the local came over and chopped it fresh for them. It was the most refreshing thing they could have asked for at the time.
Following the coconuts ceremony, the Captain and Cadet, headed towards the water and started playing. First a game in which the cadet threw a stick into the water and the waves brought it back, then a game of dig your way to China. Both activities providing enough entertainment to keep them occupied for hours.

Finally like tearing away a Band-Aid from skin, they tore the cadet from the ocean and circumnavigated to the closest place to eat which was the intercontinental hotel. Approaching a very big and stereotypical islander who was Manning the security for the hotel, The Captain asked if they could come inside and have lunch with the Cadet. The man eventually after radioing in with his superiors declined saying that you need to buy a day pass to enter the resort which was $60 per person and then pay for lunch. After some discussion with the Admiral at the ridiculousness of the idea, they decided that they would not pursue this with the hotel management any further and left to the vessel to find an alternative refreshment station.

They did not have to travel too far as the resort next door was able to accommodate. They had a quick feed and freshened up before their long journey back with their newfound companions. Unfortunately, the newfound friendship took a toll when they decided to chat and cuddle the cadet the whole way back not giving him the opportunity to have his nap.

They reached back to the hotel exhausted from the sun soaking that they had done all day, After saying a long goodbye to the driver and his wife, they retreated to their rooms for a quick rest before deciding where to go for dinner.

It was their last night in paradise and they had been told that they had to check out the Port Denarau pier for dinner. It was an a-list tourist destination when visiting Nadi.

Arriving at the port. They could already see that the cadet was pretty cranky and despite an emergency lollipop, his temperament was not improving. Luckily there was a play centre that was strategically located on the top floor of the establishment. The Admiral and Captain split up. The captain departed for a recon mission in which he looked for places that they could eat while surveying the land. He came across the famous hot bread bakery which was famous for its cream buns. The captain quickly grabbed a few and returned with multiple dinner options.

The Admiral was very happy to see him. The cadet's mood had also much improved since they had last seen each other. He was now happily playing whilst the Admiral had captain quickly devoured their newfound cream bun love.

Once again prying the Cadet off the play equipment they headed towards the Mexican place where they could eat. Much to the surprise of the staff, they ordered a huge amount from the menu and proceeded to eat it all. Everyone was starving after their big day. Then it was time to return home. As they waited for the taxi driver to arrive, they found themselves in the middle of another traditional show that was happening in the centre of the pier. The Cadet was extremely excited by the fire dancers and joined in dancing. When the taxi driver did arrive, the Cadet already had a fan following of spectators that were watching him dance to the traditional music.
The crew headed back to the resort for one last time getting back and packing everything. They had to be up at 4:00 in the morning to get to the airport.

The alarm rang and panic ensued. They had packed everything in the previous night but still the last checks took a little while. They arrived to the front of the hotel to see a lot of people waiting for the shuttle bus. Executive decision was made to walk to the airport rather than catch the shuttle. Not realising that what was across the road was only the arrivals part and the departures required further commuting.
The decision was made and they started rushing towards the terminal arriving puffed out and sweating.
Luckily There was no line and they were able to check in quickly.

They walked towards the gate 3 hours before their flight was scheduled to depart. Hoping that they would find a nice spot to sit. The captain tried his luck with his priority pass and went to the business lounge. With some miracle he was allowed in and the cadet and captain joined them in a very luxurious business class lounge where they were able to grab some breakfast and make themselves comfortable before the long flight home.
The captain used this opportunity to go and visit the tax back place for all the stuff that he had purchased earlier only to find that they required to see all the goods, which by now have been checked in and were probably on the plane. This was something that the store had told him that they did not need to do. The Captain was very disappointed and upset. He returned to the business lounge to devour some more of the free snacks available.

Finally, it got time for them to board their flight and they boarded quickly with a cranky cadet.

After a long flight back they thought that their adventure was over. However, the Admiral had left her phone on the plane. They had only realised once they had gotten their bags and were about to depart the airport. When they realised they panicked and split up. Looking for the right contacts to get The phone back. Finally after chatting to a lot of the ground staff, they found out that they could wait outside the office of Fiji airways. They made their way up to an area of the airport that they had never seen before and camped outside the office. After about an hour and a half waiting and no staff present they were about to give up when the Captain actually approached another airline and they said that they actually had the admiral's phone with them.
A much relieved captain and Admiral retrieve the phone and finally exit the airport to a waiting father-in-law.

Their holiday to paradise had come to an end and the adventure of reality awaited them. They had survived.