Waking up with the daylight is a lovely way to start the morning. I enjoy connecting with the earth’s natural patterns, something that is lost in the city. I throw on a dress and walk barefoot down to Sunrise Beach to welcome in the day. I’m surprised to be the only one here. I dig my toes into the deliciously soft, golden sand and let the waves roll in over my feet.

The day is still and quiet, the morning colours soft. The clouds are painted in golds and pink from the sun rays casting out from behind the distant islands. Little silver fish dart about in the clear water. And I am the only one here to see it.

When the sun is fully up, I head back towards the dive shop and bump into Filo (the marine biologist I met yesterday) She has the drone out and is heading to Manta Beach to see how many manta there are and to try and ID them. Each manta has its own unique marking, like how zebras and giraffes each have their own unique stripes and spots.

I sit on the beach with Filo, watching the drone screen, trying to spot the manta. They are little black dots on a screen, but Filo has a great eye for spotting them. From the air, they look a bit like the batman symbol. Filo is able to fly the drone close and zoom in. This enables her to see the markings and ID the manta. The two manta we saw yesterday are back again. Champs, a black and white chevron manta and Ember, a fully black, melanism manta. Both are females.

Champs has the most beautiful markings. I saw her yesterday in the water, but seeing her from above, I can really appreciate her colouring. Filo shows me some drone footage from yesterday of Champs doing somersaults, turning in the water to feed. What spectacular creatures.

When the guests arrive out on the water for their swim, Filo is able to use the drone to signal to the drivers where the mantas are. It is a very well run operation that respects and cares for the manta and gives guests an amazing opportunity to get up close to these beautiful creatures.

My stomach tells me it’s breakfast time so I head over to the dining room. Just as I arrive, Daniel appears too. Over another delicious tropical breakfast, we talk about our plans for the day. Yesterday was very active, so we decide to take it easy today.

After a leisurely breakfast, we head out for a kayak. They have several kayaks at the resort, but with 3 beaches, the tricky part is finding them, of course they were on the last beach we visited! We launch the kayaks and head out. Initially we head towards the left, but the waves are quite strong so we head to the right where it’s a bit more sheltered. This takes us right through manta passage and around to Sunrise Beach. One of the great things about having 3 beaches on the island is if it’s a bit windy on one side, it’s usually a lot calmer on the other, so you are able to escape the wind.

It’s a pretty overcast day, warm, but grey. It’s nice kayaking weather. The water is so incredibly clear. It’s deep and a bit choppy, but I can still see so much colour below. We are paddling around the island, but out past the point, it gets really choppy, so we decide to head back to shore. I manage to stay pretty dry but right at the end, a wave comes up and over the kayak and I am soaked. Such fun though.

After a trip to the bar, it’s time to relax in the hammock with a book and find Fiji Time. The birds are chirping, the soothing sound of the ocean is right by me, bliss.

Then Cookie appears, she is the resident parrot that was rescued from the black market. We have seen her around, but not up close. She wanders around and Daniel and I quietly follow her. Next minute, Daniel is lying in the sand right next to her, taking photos. She is quite interested in the camera strap and goes up close to have a look.

Now I have the camera, I find a place to sit quietly in the grass and Cookie comes running over. I put out a finger and she jumps on, running up my arm to my shoulder so she can check out the camera again. It’s a special moment.

Most of the afternoon is spent in the hammock, it’s a holiday after all! I usually plan quiet full itineraries, but today is wonderfully slow and it feels indulgent.

After a long stint in the hammock, I have a wander on the beach and look for crabs. It’s low tide, so the rocks are quite exposed. All around me I hear scuttling sounds and see quick movements out of the corner of my eyes. I want to have a crab race so I find my first competitor, Caesar. He is brave, curious and ready to race. But I can’t find an equally matched competitor. The others just hide in their shell. So I settle with taking some photos of Caesar and then return him to the rocks.

Late afternoon, we decide to head out for a snorkel. As it’s low tide, we can’t go out at Sunset Beach. However, on Sunrise Beach, there is a channel through the coral so you can snorkel there at any time of the day. The water is noticeably colder today, but once we are in, it’s OK. The reef edge is much closer to shore at Sunrise Beach and once again we are in foreign lands, exploring the underwater gardens. On this snorkel we see some quite large butterfish and a school of parrot fish.

Dinner is quite the event tonight, there was a group celebrating a milestone birthday. When the music starts, they get up and dance. Everyone is joining in with the singing and clapping. The dining room gets very loud and festive. A great end to a great day.