How to get a real taste of Fiji on Denarau Island
<p>If you're heading to Fiji for a holiday, chances are you'll soon find yourself on Denarau Island.</p>
<p>It's a tourist trap, and for good reason. Located less than a 20-minute drive from Nadi International Airport, Denarau is home to eight major resorts, perched along the beach like trophy wives.</p>
<p>This is the Fiji cliché. It's where you'll be sitting by the pool, one hand holding a cocktail, the other scribbling "wish you were here" on a postcard. If you're not careful, you will quickly turn into a pampered brat.</p>
<p>So here are four things worth leaving the confines of your resort for.</p>
<p><strong>Eat</strong></p>
<p>I know, you didn't splash out on a luxury holiday just to cook your own meals. But the <a href="http://www.flavoursoffiji.com/" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Flavours of Fiji cooking school</span></strong></a> lets you whip up a seven-course feast of Fijian and Indian dishes – and best of all, you get the recipes to take home with you.</p>
<p>We each get our own cooking station, and are led by Ethee, the Fijian instructor, and Arti, who takes the Indian portion of the class. The women refer to us throughout the class as "fellow cooks", which is a very generous assessment when it comes to my skill level. Luckily, Ethee and Arti are on hand to help with every step as we dice, chop and simmer our way through the three-hour lesson, producing ika vakalolo (fish in coconut cream) and rourou (boiled taro leaves).</p>
<p>We also make dhal soup and chicken and potato curry, accompanied by handmade roti. My favourite dishes are the desserts – tavioka vakalolo (cassava in coconut cream) and coconut barfi (Indian fudge). The cassava balls are drenched in a rich caramel sauce, and the barfi tastes exactly like a Mackintosh's toffee. We leave with full bellies, and the sweet satisfaction of having well and truly earned our lunch.</p>
<p><strong>Drink</strong></p>
<p>If you like pina coladas, then you'd better pay a visit to the <a href="http://fijirumco.com/" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Fiji Rum Co store</span></strong></a>, which is located at the Denarau Golf and Raquet Club, opposite the Sheraton Resort. Fiji and rum are a match made in heaven – the spirit's main ingredient, molasses, is made from sugar cane, which is grown organically throughout the island nation. Fresh, pure water is abundant, and the humid climate is perfect for maturing the beverage, giving it a complex flavour.</p>
<p>And flavour is what you get – everything from white chocolate, to coffee, to coconut (essentially a pina colada in a bottle). The store offers tastings of each of its rums for a small fee, and it's not long before I'm ferrying home a bottle of banana rum liqueur in my suitcase.</p>
<p><img width="500" height="259" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/22088/image-fiji-one-_500x259.jpg" alt="Image Fiji One -"/></p>
<p><strong>Explore</strong></p>
<p>A shuttle picks us up from our resort to take us to the town of Sigatoka, just over an hour's drive from Denarau. It's home to the <a href="http://www.sigatokariver.com/" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Sigatoka River Safari</span></strong></a>, where we experience a wild jetboat ride with the charismatic "Captain Jack" (whose real name is actually Josh).</p>
<p>Captain Jack, who completed his jetboat training in New Zealand, keeps up a steady stream of banter – or "bula-shit", as he calls it – as we cruise down the river. "You see that mountain? The movie Avatar was filmed there," he informs us, deadpan as anything. He's also a big fan of 360-degree spins, and soon has us all soaked and squealing. I'm sitting next to the captain, and am accidentally flung against him as we round a particularly sharp corner. He makes a big show of pretending I have thrown myself at him, telling the rest of the boat in a stage whisper: "I hope my girlfriend doesn't find out." But it's not all thrills and spills.</p>
<p>There are 52 villages along Sigatoka River, which stretches 120 kilometres. The River Safari works with a dozen of these villages, with a portion of the ticket price going back to them to help out with various community projects. The tour visits a different village every day on a rotating roster so they aren't constantly overrun with tourists.</p>
<p>We pull up to the river bank to visit the village of Vunarewa, where we take part in a traditional kava ceremony and enjoy a shared lunch of sausages, chicken, pikelets and fresh fruit. Then it's time for dancing. A pair of beautiful little girls who have more rhythm than I could ever dream of possessing take me by the hand and whirl me around, as the local men have a jam session on the ukuleles.</p>
<p>There couldn't be a more stark contrast between Vunarewa, which has no electricity and consists of a few ramshackle huts, and the glossy resorts of Denarau. But this tiny glimpse into the villagers' way of life offers a hint as to why Fiji is considered one of the happiest countries on earth. The smiles on our faces remain long after we leave.</p>
<p><img width="499" height="265" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/22087/image-fiji-two_499x265.jpg" alt="Image Fiji Two"/></p>
<p><strong>Play</strong></p>
<p>If you've relaxed yourself into a stupor at your resort, perhaps you need to seek some thrills. It won't take long to find them at <a href="http://www.adrenalinfiji.com/" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Adrenalin Fiji</span></strong></a>, the country's largest provider of watersports and adventure activities.</p>
<p>The giant, rainbow parachutes dancing high above the waters around Denarau soon catch our eye, and look like just the sort of thing that our group - who are more Bridget Jones than Bear Grylls – might be able to handle. We jump on the back of a boat, and nervously wait to lose our parasailing virginity.</p>
<p>The boat boys click us into a tandem harness, and we are swept up 200 metres into the sky. We soar over the turquoise waters, looking out over the Mamanuca Islands, and down on tiny Denarau, with its perfectly manicured resort grounds and swimming pools.</p>
<p>After 10 glorious airborne minutes, the driver decides it's time to start lowering us down – even from that far up, we can see his cheeky grin glinting in the sun. Sure enough, he's sending us into the drink. We squeal as our legs hit the water, but he hoists us right back up again.</p>
<p>It's a fitting metaphor, in some ways. On Denarau, I feel like I've only scratched the surface of Fiji – but it's still a great place to dip your toes in.</p>
<p>Have you ever been to Fiji? What was your experience like? Do you think you’d like to go back? Please share your story in the comments below.</p>
<p><em>Written by Siobhan Downes. First appeared on <a href="http://Stuff.co.nz" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Stuff.co.nz</span></strong></a>.</em></p>
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