Tuesday, April 16 – Friday, April 19
It’s difficult to follow up the amazing experience with the Malakati people! They took me by boat to meet the Yasawa Flyer (all drop-off and pick-ups are done mid-water which is amazing to me!) and I rode about an hour south down the Yasawa Island chain to Barefoot Manta. There I also had a single bure with communal bathrooms and showers, but it was definitely more refined than the village facilities.
My upgraded Barefoot bure
Front door view
Hiking the island (sweating like crazy)
I did a tour of the resort area on the island and right away I realized this was a diving destination! They even have their own resident marine biologist and marine biology center- I was impressed! I have been PADI certified since I was 13, so immediately I went to the on-site dive center to talk to them about the options. They had a group going out the very next morning, so I decided to sign up and go for it! And I’m so glad I did! It was my first dive in years so I was nervous, but it’s like riding a bike. Once I’m in the water, all the nerves subside and I just love being in the ocean.
We took a small fiberglass boat out to the Garden of Eden dive site only about 10 minutes from the resort beach. It was only me, one other guest and the dive instructor which is an extremely small diving group! The dive was around 18 meters deep but it was truly spectacular! This was definitely the most spectacular reef dive I have ever done. The colors and diversity of the reef corals and plant life was unbelievable. It looked straight out of a Dr. Seuss book!
The rest of my visit was pretty relaxing. There is a hike with three beautiful viewpoints that I did one day, I spent some time at the beaches, read my book, caught up on my digital life, and took some naps! I would love to return to Barefoot with a group of friends. The people who work there are predominately from local villages, so they have the warm Fijian demeanor that the Malakati people also possessed.
I would also stay longer in the Fijian islands and island hop around a bit more. It’s expensive, but as long as you’re there you might as well live life on Fijian time and enjoy!
Where's Lindsey? 