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