Day 3, since October 10th countries out of No flight, no return home, min 24 hrs in each country and 1 pandemic! The opinions expressed on this site are my own, and do not reflect the position or policies of the Danish Red Cross which I represent as a Goodwill Ambassador. We have returned the Saga to Fiji for the third time of four. That relates to the logistics of this project. But it is also always a pleasure to be back in Fiji. The Ukrainians onboard were joyful as news had received the world, that the city of Kherson, which lies beautifully on the coast of the Black Sea, had finally come back under Ukrainian control.
You could see the happiness pouring out of their eyes. I thanked Captain Kannangara and his brave crew for all their kindness and wished for all of them to have fair winds and following seas. Then Fritz and I walked down the gangway and followed the marked walkway through the port area. I wore a hardhat and a high visibility vest provided by the ship as Fritz explained that his parents came from Fiji and Tonga, and that there was some German in the family tree on the Tongan side.
Customs was really easygoing and I was soon after cleared to walk out of the port and into central Suva. I handed Fritz the hard hat and kept the high visibility vest as we parted. Then I made my way through the busy market area which was bursting with fresh produce.
I turned around and saw Tevita from Swire Shipping. He was talking to a friend at the market and waved me over to say hello. Tevita was the ships agent back in August when I left Fiji, and he brought me to the gangway of Vanuatu Chief back then. It is always good to see a familiar face. The reality of the Saga is that I reunite with very few people after I leave a country.
After a short while I was on my way again. Back in August I met Joji Tamani who runs an adventure tour service. Joji was kind enough to store a box with my belongings when I left Fiji in August and now that I had returned, Joji offered that I could stay in his spare guest room. When I met Dave, he had a toddler on one arm and a puppy circling his feet. Dave shook my hand, handed me the keys and asked if I drank beer? We agreed to get together later that dayβ¦. A formidable host : We saluted a few times to the world population reaching 8 billion people that night.
