The Longest Day (or Three) - Night 0

Technically October 9th began at Justin’s house in Tucson and ended somewhere over the Pacific Ocean, however, for me it stretched all the way to my landing in Fiji early on the morning of October 11th.

The Big Board

First off, a big thanks to Ed for letting me drive his truck down to the airport. The flight to LA from Tucson was rather non-descript, with the mild exception of flying over that accidental oasis, the Salton Sea. After gathering my baggage and bussing it to the Bradley Terminal, I was immediately accosted by a group of Mormon missionaries upon entering the food court. They were quickly shoed away, only to attack a nearby elderly couple. If I had it my way Evangelism would be illegal at the airport.

I lucked out on the flight to Fiji and had an empty seat between me and my rowmate, Rahim. Rahim works as a shelf stocker for Costco in Oakland six months out of the year, the other half he spends back in Fiji. He was a friendly, older man, who turned into a whiny bitch after he didn’t get the special Muslim meal that he ordered. He verbally berated the flight attendant, who had no control over the situation, for about 15 minutes. Finally, one of the flight attendant sacrificed her fish meal just so he would shut up. When his breakfast came with a sausage in it, the same process was repeated.

I slept on and off for about half of the flight.

Landing in Fiji

It was my first time on a double decker 747 and the leg room was plenty adequate. The media options were rather poor, but the service was excellent. We crossed the equator southwest of Hawaii at 2:46 local time (whatever time zone we were in). A few hours later we crossed the International Date Line, and my nearly non-existent Wednesday, October 10th passed into the dark ocean night.

We landed in Nadi, Fiji at 5:10 local time. Stepping out of the plane I was greeted by the rising sun and perfectly still, warm, heavy tropical air. Inside the terminal a band of Fijian men in skirts struck up a tune for us. I lay down on the floor of the airport for a quick nap thus ending one of the longest days of my life.

What I Learned Today: Bula is Fijian for Hello, Danaka for Thank You.

written by

exumenius on October 10, 2007 from Suva, Fiji

from the travel blog: Kiwis and Kangaroos

tagged Fiji

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I think you meant to say Vinaka for Thank You in Fijian...

written by Frank Black on July 24, 2009

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