September 27 – October 26, 2013
By the end of our first week back in Savusavu, Rich had researched outboard engines, chosen one, and had it shipped from New Zealand. While we waited, we focused on making needed repairs (Rich’s job) and getting the boat cleaned up and put back in order (my job). It all went really well, but we had one unexpected repair: our outboard engine finally arrived (yay!) but the handle had snapped off during shipping (waah!).
Rich, thankfully, was able to make a repair by cementing a big, stainless bolt in the broken handle. First though, we took many photos and put in a claim with the shipping company. Now we’d just have to wait and see if they’d cover the damage (they didn’t).
Repairs finished, we could now plan to head south and visit a few more islands before finishing the season in Suva. Frankly, though, we weren’t in any hurry to leave. Life in Savusavu was pretty wonderful. We enjoyed our eateries, the local people, relaxing on the boat, working on the computer, being cozy and watching TV at night, and being someplace to take a break and not worry about water, electricity, weather, etc. The couple of times when we checked weather for the coming week and determined that we needed to stay put, and I found myself secretly happy. Here’s a link to a post Rich did early in October that sums up how we were feeling.
It wasn’t just pizza we were enjoying. Our favorite places were Hidden Paradise for amazing Indian food and Savusavu Wok for the dumplings we’d become addicted to. We’d also fallen in love with the salad nicoise and kokoda (raw fish salad) at the Surf n Turf, chicken tikka masala at The Captain’s Table, fish curry at the Decked Out Cafe, and pleasant meals served on the waterside deck at the Captain’s Cafe.
In the evening, we’d often head to the Copra Shed’s bar for a sunset drink on their deck, a fun and sociable activity. And having lots of ingredients available from nearby markets made cooking much more enjoyable. Below, a few photos recycled from previous posts of our favorite eateries.
While we weren’t actively cruising, we did get out on the water by taking a long dinghy ride to Split Rock near the Cousteau Resort, a small but fantastic area to snorkel that we’d visited once before. Here’s more about that. Once again we were impressed by the number and variety of colorful fish. This time we brought along crackers so we could feed them, instantly becoming extremely popular with our many new fishy friends.
Our main reason for doing this was to test our new outboard engine, but we enjoyed the outing so much we came back again the next day, this time bringing friends (the human type) along. We also brought our camera and Rich made a video.
There was one challenge we faced during our time here: the heat. It wasn’t hot every day, but we had some uncomfortable spells. Spring had arrived, the trades were dying down and the conditions were getting more rainy and humid. It wasn’t bad when it actually did rain, but sun plus humidity was uncomfortably hot. Naturally, rainy days were anxiously anticipated, but as often as not the rain didn’t happen—very disappointing!
We coped by frequenting the air-conditioned Savusavu Wok restaurant on hot afternoons, taking our time eating lunch. Afterwards, we’d get some ice cream at the Captain’s Deck or Ram Charan’s market. Then we’d head back to the boat and wait for evening to bring some cooler air. Thankfully a period of cooler rainy weather finally arrived and brought us relief from the heat. More here.
The weather had gotten more comfortable after the rainy spell, but it was time to head south and see more of Fiji. When the next weather window arrived we cast off the lines and said good-bye to beautiful Savusavu.–Cyndi
