Okay, so here's the thing. My vocabulary is well below subpar when it comes to describing Fiji. (I guess I shouldn't plan on quitting my job to be a travel writer anytime soon.) Beautiful, really and truly doesn't do it justice. I don't know what it is about the South Pacific, but it really is an amazing part of the world, and the islands there are just breathtaking.
We turned Fiji into our second honeymoon in addition to our Christmas break, so the hotel had a bottle of champers (Aussie for champagne) and a nice note ready for us when we checked into the room. Bonus!
We stayed at the Hilton resort on Denaru Island in Nadi, Fiji. Denaru Island is a small island just a few kilometers from Nadi where all of the resorts, hotels, and golf courses are. The people are insanely friendly and warm. 'Bula!' is the word/phrase that we heard incessantly throughout our visit. It means hello/goodbye/thank you - sort of a catch all.
The resort was gorgeous - seven pools, two restaurants, a cafe, and a few bars. We enjoyed several lazy days lounging by the pool, sipping cocktails, and just catching up on all of the little things that you can't fully capture in a weekly skype date.
It was purely perfect.
There actually isn't really a ton to do in Fiji. Besides laying by the pool, walking on the beach, and snorkeling...well, yeah, that's about it. It was perfect for us since we hadn't seen each other since Thanksgiving, so we were happy to just laze, graze and catch up. And how many other people get to say they spent Christmas in Fiji?!
After a few blissful days in Fiji, we jetted back to Sydney for a day then hopped in a car for a road trip up to the Hunter Valley. The Hunter Valley is a wine region in New South Wales a few hours north of Sydney. My husband, who his friends say was raised by wolves, was happy to get out of the city for a few days and see another side of Australia.
I must admit that we were hoping to see some Aussie wildlife once we were out of the city.... and of course by we I mean my husband. You know how I feel about animals - we should both be scared of each other. I'm just sayin'. So my hubby's eyes were peeled on the drive up for some kangaroos or wombats or something interesting and Aussie.
The drive up to the Hunter winds through the hills, forested areas, and lots of water. It's a beautiful, relaxing drive, especially after driving only in Sydney traffic for so many months.
We stayed at a really quaint bed and breakfast type hotel called The Carriages.
It had sort of a carriage house with about eight rooms/suites. We checked in, dropped our things off, and set off to explore the different wineries in the region. A few tastings and some dinner later, we head back to the hotel to find the front porch full of people. Including people sitting right in front of our room. Hmmm....
Well it turns out that there was a wedding and they thought they had booked all of the rooms... all except one I guess! They were a great couple and it was fun meeting some new people and hearing about their wedding.
My favorite thing about The Carriages was that each day they would leave a little basket in front of your door for breakfast each morning! Tell me, that's not the cutest thing you've ever seen!
I think we really enjoyed exploring the area and driving around just as much as the actual wineries and tastings. It was a great change of pace and interesting to see more of Oz. And fortunately for me - no run ins with wild life. Whew!
