Blake and Deb in Fiji: Grow Your Own

It seems that no matter where in the world we go, Deborah ends up cutting someone’s hair. Fiji is no exception. The most recent recipient was neighbor Iretta, who has found the local hairdressing talent sorely lacking and therefore taken to cutting her own locks. She was very grateful to have found Deborah, who refused Iretta’s offer of payment.

As it turns out, Deborah was more than compensated when Iretta took her into town and introduced her to her favorite shops and shopkeepers, told her where to buy eggs, where to buy liquor, who were the best vendors at the farmers’ market, what some of the unfamiliar fruits and vegetables were and how to prepare them, how you can buy camphor cubes at the grocery store and place them on your kitchen counter to deter ants, introduced her to countless people on the street, and basically filled Deborah’s cranium with years worth of local knowledge.

Iretta and Steve also gave Deborah a big chunk from an even bigger pineapple that they grew on their property. The fruity beast was the size of a soccer ball, but absolutely delicious. They also sent her home with a bunch of home grown bananas. There’s a bit of a tropical orchard going on here at Tobi’s house as well with banana trees, pineapples, papayas, and probably other edibles we have yet to identify growing here and there around the property. He’s even got a little pepper plant growing in a pot on the corner of the deck. Rumor has it there’s also been a healthy marijuana crop growing somewhere up here on the ridge, although supposedly the new government has been cracking down on such unsanctioned harvests.