Rivers Fiji Kayaking

What a day! The group pulled out this morning at 7AM for our Rivers Fiji kayaking trip. We drove 2 hours deep into the Namosi Highlands of Viti Levu Island, past huge cliffs, jagged peaks, and amazing photo ops, before we arrived in Nakavika, a small village. When we arrived, we were each given a sulu to wear and were greeted by many excited children. The village was so full of happiness, and although it was by no means clean or tidy, the people who lived there were completely at peace. The village had many open buildings, placed side by side, so that members of the village were much more like an extended family rather than neighbors. After choosing a sulu and making sure our knees and shoulders were completely covered, we walked as a group to the chiefs house to take part in the kava ceremony. The Luva River we aimed to kayak down belonged to the village, and they claim that those who use it without their permission are cursed. We did this by visiting the chief’s house and drinking kava, the Fijian drink usually consumed as a ritual. Kava is made from the root of a certain plant only grown in Fiji (sorry, I forgot the name) and is ground into a powder. During the ceremony, the kava powder is placed inside a small bag and water is poured into a big kava bowl. The bag is then rinsed in the water, and wrung out, along with the kava powder. This is continued until the kava reaches a good consistency. The kava was served in small bowls, in a series of three rounds. The chief was served first and then each of us was given a bowl, one at a time. We were told that we were to clap once before receiving the bowl, and after receiving it, we had to finish the entire serving in one gulp. I was a little hesitant, first of all because we were told not to drink the water in Fiji, second, because I am not too keen on drinking after others, and third, because kava is actually a type of narcotic that can cause numbness, dizziness, and many other side effects if consumed in large helpings. We could choose whether to be given the low tide, high tide, or tsunami in relation to how full our bowl was. I drank only the low tide, and I probably wouldn’t have drunk any if it weren’t considered rude not to accept. I drank the whole bowl and immediately after, my lips, tongue, and throat were a little bit numb. The kava tasted like dirty water (and looked like dirty water too) and even though it didn’t taste as bad as I anticipated, I had no desire to participate in the 2nd and 3rd rounds. Tomorrow in Votua Village, we will have a more in depth kava ceremony, and I may decide to be bolder then!
After being granted permission we took a short hike to the river, where our kayaks were waiting. Each kayak was inflatable, and we were given a life jacket and helmet before facing the class II rapids. Ok so I know that a ranking of 2 is not very difficult, but most of the class and I are amateurs and resembled a deer in the headlights as we fought our way over rocks and tree limbs. I went over the first sequence backwards, after running straight into a rock sticking out of the water! Yea, it wasn’t a good start. It seemed like the farther I tried to paddle away from something, the quicker I headed towards it. The river, however, was gorgeous!! It was crystal clear and many small streams and waterfalls flowed into it. One of the guides even led a few of us to a nearby hot spring that flowed into the river. We kayaked for a while down the river, and pulled our kayaks up onto the beach to eat sandwiches that the guides had brought for us. We swam for a while there and jumped off a nearby cliff into the water. We then kayaked a little further down the river before stopping and hiking to a nearby waterfall that we swam and played in for a little while! The waterfall was beautiful and waaaay better than any of the waterfalls I hike to in South Carolina! We kayaked the remainder of the route and then climbed on board three long boats and traveled the rest of the way down the river, through the rainforest, and past many equally amazing waterfalls. It was such an exciting day and by far the most enjoyable one so far. It rained a little bit while we were on the long boats, but besides that, it was sunny and the weather was perfect! The guides would splash us with water every time we passed by them but we didn't even care because it was so hot. Although I’m sunburnt and sore, I had a great day! I didn't get as many pictures as I had hoped because my camera isn't waterproof, but even if it was, it would have been impossible to capture in a photograph how beautiful the river and surrounding were. As amazing and unbeatable each day seems, the next day always seems to bring a new adventure! Tomorrow we will be in Votua Village with our homestay family and I'm sure we will have a blast!