Fiji, etc

Hello all. I haven't posted recently (or recently enough for my family) because nothing very exciting has been happening in the past couple of days. It's been rather rainy and a bit dreary, so I haven't done much besides go to class, buy a wireless modem, and work out. But, the masses want a post, so here it is!

The only truly exciting thing, I would suppose, is that I am in the process of finalizing my trip to Fiji. Want the breakdown?
August 16 - fly to Nadi, spend the night there
August 17 - cruise out to outer Yasawas to arrive at Tavewa by lunchtime; promptly chill out
August 18 - still on Tavewa, take a cave tour (swimming) through Sawailau Caves
August 19 - cruise on over to Manta Ray Island
August 20 - relaxing on Kuata
August 21 - still relaxing on Kuata, taking time for a guided kayaking tour
August 22 - chill and snorkel on Bounty
August 23 - spend the day sailing outer the outer Mamanuca Islands, complete with an awesome reef to snorkel, a Fijian island visit, and Kava ceremony; includes a stop on the island from Castaway; spending the night on Beachcomber
August 24 - spending a full day and night on Beachcomber
August 25 - staying back on shore (if you can call the main island 'shore') in Nadi
August 26 - flying back to Wellington through Auckland

Sounds like the trip of a lifetime, doesn't it? It is going to be amazing. We are completely finalizing it on Monday, so this isn't confirmed yet. August 16th is Meredith's birthday, so it is a really special trip for her. Meredith, Amy, and I are going to have a blast. Especially since it is winter here and we're still not quite used to it!

On a completely seperate note, and to prove how I am still fascinated by time zones, the British Open began this morning at 1:30 AM. It is actually not being broadcast on any of the stations that I get in my room (you have to have satellite), so that is that. Still, 1:30 AM!

I have my first Rotary speech on Monday, so Mark is coming over at 11:15 to check out my presentation and everything. I hope that he likes it. I am slightly disappointed at his timing because HARRY POTTER comes out here at 11:01 AM! Meeting him means I have to wait til later to pick up my copy. Oh, well, we have waited years, a few more hours won't kill me. Besides, I have plenty of other things to read. I haven't taken a true humanities class in awhile, so I have forgotten a little about how much reading there is. I have two essays due within the next two weeks, each of which is 40% of my grade in the respective class. I haven't written an essay in awhile, and I am not sure exactly what kind of style the professors are expecting over here. I am sure that I write differently than the other Kiwi students.

Hm, that is about it. I don't think I have taken any pictures at all this week because it has been overcast and rainy, but I will work hard today to get some for you all tomorrow!

Oh, and I have the internet full time now, so no more of the internet cafe business. I broke down and bought a wireless broadband modem and subscribed to a service. Expensive, but with all the research I have to do online plus the fact that those 6 computers for all 200+ students were always crowded plus I can't access my banking information on them meant that I was getting frustrated with the internet. This is much more satisfactory, and now I am on AIM all the time! It's been good to chat with people that way.