Uncle Pug goes to Fiji ~ discussion thread open for posting

[kalvyn]

10 pounds (6 for the plate and 4 on the belt) was definitely not too much. Later in the trip I even upped the weight on the belt.

That's somewhat surprising, UP. Perhaps it was a water salinity thing? In my albeit limited warm water diving, I've found 10 pounds (6 for the plate and 4 on the belt) to be just right for me wearing a 3 mil full wetsuit. This was in Bonaire and in Puerto Vallarta.

I sure wish I could have gone with you... I need some warm water diving!

Jimmie

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

That's somewhat surprising, UP. Perhaps it was a water salinity thing?

Or perhaps it was the pre-dive tabasco .. :11:

I'm surprised as well ... in Bonaire I used 4 lbs plus my 2-lb AL plate with a full 3-mil suit. And back here, UP uses way less weight than I do ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Uncle Pug]

Jimmie: It may have been a salinity thing. Others were using even more. I'll see in a couple of weeks what I end up using in Hawaii. I definitely wasn't overweighted with 10#s total.

Pennypue: I won the battle... didn't need the Sudafed at Beqa Lagoon during the last three days of the trip so was able to give the rest away to a fellow who had just arrived with a head cold.

 

[Uncle Pug]

Bob... really... that was part of the problem.

 

[CALI68]

I'm surprised as well ... in Bonaire I used 4 lbs plus my 2-lb AL plate with a full 3-mil suit. And back here, UP uses way less weight than I do ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

That's what I was thinking. In June I dove in Maui with a 3 mil, AL80's, a Zeagle Ranger (pre BP/W) and 10 lbs. I could have gone less too. Wierd.

 

[SeaJay]

3 mil, single Luxfer S080 = 12 pounds for me. I do six in a plate and three on each hip, at least locally... 37 ppt salinity around here.

In freshwater, the same configuration means that I take the three off each hip - for six pounds total.

 

[Scubaroo]

NOW that is what I call DIR!!!

Diving It Regardless!

 

[kalvyn]

UP, a silly question perhaps, but pertinent to me... is kava an alcoholic drink? If it is alcoholic, how would one refuse to partake without offending the culture? Linda and I really want to go to Fiji someday, but as we're non-drinkers I've often wondered about this particular Fijian practice.

Jimmie

 

[Uncle Pug]

No, kava isn't alcoholic... it is thought to have anti-depressant qualities but so far no one knows for sure the mechanism. Some folks say that it gives them a tingling in their lips... however I felt no such effect... my sleepiness was actually from being so busy and getting so little sleep.

On the other hand drinking kava is a social element of Fijian culture and even if you are a *non-drinker* taking the first offered bilo with a clap and a "bula" should not present any problem... just ask for a *low tide*.

 

[MB]

UP, a silly question perhaps, but pertinent to me... is kava an alcoholic drink? If it is alcoholic, how would one refuse to partake without offending the culture? Linda and I really want to go to Fiji someday, but as we're non-drinkers I've often wondered about this particular Fijian practice.

Jimmie

... a very low grade combo of dishwater and the remnants of a mudpuddle, but with the effects of modest hyperventilation.

I once knew the reaction, but that was a long time ago, and I'm old and stoopid now. Kava is made from the ground up root of a plant, and like many plants it has a mild narcotic effect. Less than beetlenut, less than jalapeno, etc. In quantity you can get numbed lips, but folks don't usually drink it for a buzz. Most islanders are all too familiar that non-islanders who have not grown up with it as part of the culture do not appreciate the taste. Running the cup by your lips for a faux taste is a well-understood tradition.