Bula!
With this Fijian salutation we'd like to welcome you to this really unique place in the world (if you are interested in coordinate systems, but geocachers should be anyway...).
What makes this place so unique? It's the Antimeridian (or the 180th meridian). It's the opposite of the Meridian which goes through Greenwich in the UK. Both go from pole to pole. Each of them is a half circle on the Earth's surface. Together they are a great circle orthogonal to the equator. This place on Taveuni is the only place in the whole world where the Antimeridian is on land and crosses a road close to houses.
meridians orthogonal to the equator (source: wikipedia)
The coordinates of this puzzle head to a tree which is located next to the island's main road. This tree is nearly exact on the Antimeridian. It's an easy-to-remember waymark where the meridian crosses the road.
Next to this tree the Antimeridian crosses the main road
From the main road take the road opposite of the post office direction to the hospital. Park your car opposite to the fire station. Cross the rugby field and then you arrive at the waypoints 1 and 2 at the International Dateline Monument. Take your pictures for your friends and your own memories.
The International Dateline Monument
When you stand right in front of the monument heading to the camera of your buddy you'll have your left hand in the East (Yesterday - waypoint 1) and your right hand in the West (Today - Waypoint 2). Do you feel the split? No? OK, it's not physical, it's only in your head (and your GPS device...).
Left hand in the East (or Yesterday - waypoint 1) and right hand in the West (or Today - Waypoint 2)
Have you noticed something strange in this listing? Have a closer look at the map preview:
The map paradoxon
The two waypoints - which are in fact only in the distance of the diameter of your body - seem to be one time around the world in approximately 40.000 km distance. The cause is that many software systems use the 180th meridian as a hard border. So does open street map which is used for geocaching.com as a default. A remarkable consequence of that software border is that if you would use a drone close to the Antimeridian it might crash when crossing it. Really, our hosts in Taveuni reported this. The controlling software of most consumer drones can't handle the crossing of the Antimeridian. Hopefully your GPS device for geocaching will survive this adventure...
So many theory and stories! Now let's go to your task to solve this puzzle:
Check the internet and count the countries which the 180th meridian passes through (on land). We count Antarctica as a country (Officially it's not a country). Call this number n and caluclate the final coordinates as S16° 47.(810 - n x 11) W 180° 00.000 - 0° 00.0(n x 25)
Good luck and take care that you don't get lost between Today and Yesterday...
New: Don't forget to play our related Adventure Lab: 180° East or West? - The Antimeridian
As travelling is difficult these days: May we ask the next one who does not find the box to contact us before logging a DNF? In case the coordinates are correct we give some more hints. If the box is really gone we will kindly ask for a replacement then. Thanks in advance!