The great Astrolabe reef

Over the week that we spent there, we went nearly everyday to experience some of the Astrolabe reef. Right from the resort we could see the ocean swell curling up in high waves onto the outer reef and then break in a splash of sea foam. There were divers here who came to ride those waves.

*That's how you can see that the reefs protect the coast. If it were not for the reef, all that wave energy would come and hit the shore", I explained to Kiran.

It was evident enough while standing here. Going south beyond the reef edge here was... Antarctica. The open ocean really has to climb up in a hurry to make it to the reef crest here.

I went underwater, with Srivas, with Pranali, with Rohan, with Kiran, and with a great sense of joy that I have groomed my family to go diving for more than a decade now. Bry and Jaya were dedicated snorkelers, coming out with the boat everyday. We were the only tourist boat and had the reef to ourselves the whole week.

The open ocean and the mostly untouched forest on the land meant that these waters were pristine. With glass like clarity, we could see upwards of 30 metres through the water. The dives were beautiful, with a rich diversity of corals and signs of a hard recovery from recent cyclones. We saw sharks and rays and fish and octopus and fan corals and beautiful walls dropping off into the deep blue.

"I think I want to stay in Fiji time", Bry concluded after a few days of meditative floating in this reef.Read more