Feeling snotty in Taveuni :(

Helen: Well, it had to happen sooner or later. I haven't been sick for at least a year and now, one measly week after the kids on our boat went to school with OTHER PEOPLE and came home all snotty, I have a horrid, stinking cold. My head hurts, my nose is running and I have a sore throat. Not a happy camper today :( But a camper nonetheless - we are having a week off from the boat (yes, that would be a 'holiday from a holiday') and have made it to the island of Taveuni. We're camping about 6 feet from the high tide water mark on a beautiful white sandy beach with a reef and clear blue sea. Only problem is it rains. It rained all last night and most of today. It's not like this on the main island. Just here. Think it's because of the big mountain here... We couldn't go hiking today as the roads were all slippery from the rain, but we did get taken to see the 180 meridian. Not the world's most exciting tourist destination...but we had our picture taken by the sign (and then C got his handheld GPS out and found out where the 'real' 180 degree line is - about 20 feet to the right (but then, this is the same handheld GPS that told us we were 12 metres above sea level one time when we were sitting on the beach with our toes in the water...)

It's lovely to have some time off the boat. The people we're with are great...but there's only so much time you can spend together without going mad. C has been alright this last week as he's been fixing the rudder with Pete. They get on really well and also have a job to do - I don't have any focus though, and not much in common with Alice, I reckon she feels my offering to help clean or sew or whatever is my way of saying the boat is dirty or needs repairing. It's not like that at all, I just want to help, but maybe she just feels that I'm trying to take over her home. Anyway, for whatever reason, I've been bored silly the last week (there's only so much sewing one woman can do) so it's good to have a project again. It has made me think about what I want to do when I get home too - made me realise that not having anything to do is not fun. At all. Neither is working all the hours that God sends. But doing nothing sucks - which is not an intuitive thing to say and an important lesson to have learned. So, as is so often the way, compromise is the way forward.

Actually, we're learning things about ourselves all the time. For example - Mr P needs to be less negative. We got the bus and a ferry here, and all C could say about the journey was that the bus was late and overfull and dusty and uncomfortable. It wasn't until other people started being seasick that he started to perk up (when I pointed this out to him though he said 'well, I'm not nice, am I - you knew that') I, on the other hand, tried to enjoy the different smells, sensations, views and ways of life. For instance - to you and me, a packed lunch is a sandwich, an apple and a packet of crisps or something similar. Out here, even on a dusty busy bus, lunch is a full on curry with roti, served out of several containers onto plates with knives and forks. Fried fish at 8.30 in the morning anyone?!

OK, probably better go. Sounds like it's stopped raining.

Lots of love
H&Cxx

PS did I mention that I'm writing this at a computer in a supermarket? Wierd.