It has been quite some time since I've written a posting, but there is good reason. I've been traveling around Fiji for two weeks, and just returned this morning. Here's what I've been up to:
Two weeks ago today, I packed my duffel and messenger bag not really knowing what to expect for the next two weeks. I knew that I would be living with a few families, that I would be trying new food, and that I would be throwing myself into uncomfortable situations. Well, I did just that these past few weeks. On Thursday morning, March 26, I loaded all of my gear into a taxi and went to the University of the South Pacific Campus. There, we all hung around for a while (which is very usual in Fiji) until loading our gear onto a carrier truck. A carrier truck is a pickup with a tarp over the back end used for hauling people at a very low cost. Our gear was not alone: we also were loaded into the back.
From USP, we drove about 3+ hours up the east coast of Viti Levu on rough road to the village of Silana. This is an Indigenous Fijian Village right on the ocean. We unloaded our gear and had lunch in the community hall. Silana was about to be our home for the next 3 nights, and soon after lunch, we met our homestay families. I lived in a one room house just across the path from the community hall. The inside of the house had two beds (they gave me the big bed), a dresser, a small china cabinet (with one piece of broken glass), and a large, woven mat covering the 20'x2
30' floor. Outside on the wrap-around porch was a bathroom and a cooking stove. My host family consisted of my dad (who was only 32) and my younger brother (who was four). I also had a mom, but she was in the city preparing to give birth, so I never met her. It doesn't sound all that great, but my host dad was awesome, and they took care of me very well.
During our time in the village, we spent a lot of time on the beach. The white sand stretching across the bay was beautiful, especially with the backdrop of the many hundreds of coconut trees. During the mornings, we went on several excursions. My favorite had to be our time spent out on the small, fiberglass fishing boat in the sea. This particular day, we ventured out to the big, open waters to see the reef and the dolphins. Boy, did we see dolphins! Once we came into the reef, the locals from the village began to blow on the big conch shell. about 20-30 dolphins then surfaced and welcomed us into their reef. I did get to blow the conch shell, and I must say, playing trombone for 12 years has made me quite good! We then jumped into the very clear water and spent some time snorkeling. Some of the water was rather shallow, and with all of the coral, I freaked out a bit. Luckily, seeing some of the blue starfish helped me to relax! Another day, we went to a lovo, which is a type of party/cooking of a pig in a fire pit. This celebration was in honor of a girl's 1st birthday. The whole village was there, and everyone prepared a dish to share. We also spent time swimming in a waterfall. Overall the village was fun, yet exhasting and dehydrating.
Next, we were off to the second largest island of Vanua Levu (which means big land in Fijian). We took a plane, which seemed a little posh after living in a village for 3 nights. Here, we were meant to experience Indo Fijians (Fijians originating from India), as they make up almost half of the population of Fiji. The city we lived in is called Labasa. Brian and I were teamed up here with a couple who were recently made empty-nesters. They smothered us with attention to say the least! This family lived in a more rural setting in Fiji on 4 acres, and raised many animals. I felt very at home here! They had about 20 chickens, 10 goats, a cat, and 2 dogs. Brian and I each had our own room in this home, and for the 4 nights we stayed there, we stayed plenty busy. This family happened to be Hindu in religion, so we got to experience some of the different religious celebrations going on in the preparation for the birth of the Hindu god Ram (who is kind of like Jesus to Hindus). I didn't really know what was going on, but they fed us well. Here, we also visited a pearl farm ran by Fijian women in a village. We visited a school another day, which was probably my favorite part of Labasa. Also, my host mom here made Brian and I quilted pillow cases and she also bought us new Bula shirts! Our host parents were very sad to see us leave, and Brian and I miss the smothering a little bit :-).
We were now done with the deep exposure part of the trip and on to the "oohs" and "aahhhs" of Fiji. So, we went to Savusavu, a city which has been described in the past as the Honolulu of Fiji, set back about 50 years. I don't know if I would compare Savusavu to Honolulu, but I will say it was a bit different than other parts of Fiji. Europeans and Americans have loved to move to Savusavu throughout the past 100 or so years, because of the beautiful bay, perfect to keep a yacht. There were quite a few large yachts parked, and also many large homes. It was wierd to walk down the street and see white people around, as we were usually the white people being glared at. Savusavu thrived off of tourism, and this was apparent when the cruise ship came into the harbor, and bus loads of Australians, Europeans, and Americans came in by the hundreds. They were mostly ripped off by locals, but I don't think they cared much. This was the only stop for the cruise in Fiji. Most of our time in Savusavu was spent relaxing and preparing for the next stop of the trip. Though, we did visit a place where coconut oil was made.
The last stop of the trip was the island of Taveuni, the garden island of Fiji. Up to this point, I thought that most of Fji's landscapes were pretty spectacular. None compare to those of Taveuni. Lush flowers, palms, and stretching trees sprawl across the mountains and beaches of this island. We stayed on the beach at a place called "Beverly's Campground." Life was not plush here either, as we stayed in tents and cooked most of our own meals right on the beach. Not much is to be said about Taveuni, but let's just say that in the 3 nights I spent there, I took 500 photos. If there is a question to ask me when I return home, it is "what did you like about Taveuni?" I will talk for a hours and show you photos. I saw about 7 waterfalls in 1 day, and even used one as a waterslide.
Well, I am tired. Luckily, Fijians take a 4 day weekend for easter. Imagine that!
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