Kaye arranged for us to take a trip to Figi, then Australia, and finally New Zealand. we left the kids home with Cindy and Marjorie. First we flew to Hawaii, then took a flight to Figi. We stayed in a very nice resort in Suva. Then we took a two night boat cruise around the different islands of Figi. We went swimming and snorkeling in an underwater cave. I swam and skipped the cave. The people on the islands were very modest and didn't like tourists walking around in their bathing suits. They were very friendly people. On one island they came out and sang and danced for us on the boat. The boat was not a luxury boat. It had tiny cabins and most of the food had curry in it. It was a lot of fun.
On Sunday the Figians came to the resort in their sulus (wrap around skirt) and white shirts. They sang for us. People from India ran the shops, banks, and desks at the hotel. The government jobs were reserved for the people of Figi.
Australia
When we left Figi somehow our make up bags and all of my clothes didn't arrive in Sydney. At that time things were very formal in Sydney. You were required to wear a coat to all of the nice restaurants. Mostly we ate at McDonalds. A couple of times we went to a nice restaurant and they loaned me a coat to wear before we went in to eat. Just before we left Sydney, my clothes caught up with me, but our make-up bags, with my razor, never were seen again.
While we were in Sydney we toured the beautiful open house and the city of Sydney. The bay reminded me of San Francisco. Then we took a tour that took us up to the Blue Mountains and to a cavern that was there. Outside there was a souvenir shop. They had some tropical birds there. A parrot came and landed on my head.
The people of Australia were very friendly to Americans. They seemed more American than we were at that time. Iran had taken Americans from the American Embassy and held them hostage. They couldn't understand why our wimp of a president, Jimmy Carter, didn't just go in and rescue them.
New Zealand
Next we flew to Aukland, New Zealand. We loved New Zealand. It was so beautiful and clean. Their main livelihood was sheep and fishing. There were more sheep than people. The fences were green hedges that were all neatly trimmed. The grass was very green.
We drove to a Maouri Village. We learned about these native New Zealander's culture. The village buildings were all carved and painted with Maouri symbols. Many of the people had tatooes which were sacred to them. The surprising thing was that all the villagers spoke with a formal clipped English accent. We bought many Mauori souvenirs there. We bought boomarangs, war clubs and poi balls.
Near Auckland, we bought sheepskin muc-luc boots for us and the kids. We bought a big sheepskin rug.
In New Zealand everything closed down on Sunday. You had to plan ahead to get gas and food if you were traveling. There was an LDS temple there. We would see "Happiness is Family Home Evening" stickers on cars there. Then we flew back to Hawaii and went to Kona and stayed in our condo for a while before we went back to Soquel.
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