Australian Gourmet Traveller - (02)February 2020 (1)

(Comicgek) #1
I

havediscovereda newstateofbeing.It
sitssomewherebetweendeeprelaxation
andfullcatatonia.I’vedecidedtocallit
obscenerelaxation.It’sa stateI enter
repeatedlyduringmytimeonKokomo
PrivateIsland,a resortfound 45 minutes’
flightsouth-eastofNadi.Eventhinking
aboutit nowslowsmybreathingandwarmsmy
skin,a phantomsunbeamingdown.
I firstenterthiscuriousstatewhileswinging
inmyoceanfronthammock,strungbetweentwo
perfectlyangledcoconuttrees,asa lightseabreeze
gentlyrocksmelikeaninfant.It strikesagainas
I floatinmyprivateinfinitypooloverlookingthat
samehammockandtheshallow,azurewaterof
theisland’sbeautifuleasternshore.
It comesasnosurprisethatwithinhoursof
arrivinginthistropicaloasisanddiscoveringthisnew
stateofcalm,I immediatelyfallill,finallysuccumbing
towhateverlurgyhadwipedouthalfourofficeearlier
intheweek.Typically,sucha maladywouldspellthe
endofanyholidayfun.Butnotat Kokomo.
Myfirststopis toseetheisland’snaturopath,
KimCampbell,whodevisesa custommenuofnatural
remediestospeedmyrecovery,allsourcedfromthe
island’sfarmandnativebush.Pineappleandginger
juiceis themostpalatableofthepanaceas,while
a herbalteamadefromdriedpapayaleafhasto
beforceddownwithseveralteaspoonsofhoney.
Anythingthatunsavourymustsurelybegoodfor
you,andwhenI wakeupthefollowingmorning,
I’mstunnedtofindI’malmostcompletelyrecovered.
She’snotdonewithmeyetthough,issuingme
withtheisland’sanswertoBerocca– a shotofnoni
juice.Nonifruit– alsoknownasblue-cheesefruit


  • isa particularlypungentpomethatlooksa bitlike
    a green,sproutingpotato.I’vebeenwarnedit tastesas
    foulas it smells,butwilldeliveranimmediateenergy
    boostandincreasemyliverfunction– aninstantcleanse
    ofsorts.I bracemyselfforhorrorbutit’snotthatbad.
    Thejuicehasbeencleverlymixedwithlemonandfresh
    ginger,andtheresultis entirelypalatable.Astheday
    rollson,I realiseI’mfeelingbetterthaneverandby
    lateafternoonI’mhappilysnorkellinginopenwater,
    entrancedbya rainbowcornucopiaofcorals,tropical
    fishandtheoccasionalreefshark.
    ThewarmwatersaroundKokomoarehometo
    a spectaculararrayofsealifefromturtlesandsharks
    (harmless,I’massured)tomajesticmantaraysand
    spinnerdolphins.EvenbyFijistandards,Kokomo
    is somethingspecialandtheresort’sownerLang
    Walkeris committedtoprotectingthisunique
    paradise.TheAustralianpropertydeveloperpurchased
    theislandpropertynineyearsago,aftertheglobal
    financial crisis forced the previous owner to abandon


130 GOURMET TRAVELLER

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