Bula! by Peta Mason
Bula! (G'day, cheers, say it twice for bless you in Fijian...) I had read up on my Lonely Planet and was preprared for the hagglers at the airport and I dressed conservatively as to not offend the locals. There were a few concerns on arrival in Fiji. I emailed home and reported Nadi was "edgy" to my mum. I got to where I was staying fine, but was a little worried about the eserted streets and barred shops on the way. It was all similar to Samoa, nothing too bright, buildings are old and the paint is whitewash, no clean and clear lines. There were random men standing on the side of the roads every few hundred metres and no markets. There were numerous warnings in reception about not leaving valuables unattended, and the sign on the back of the dorm door said "Keep this door locked at all times," which would have been great if we had a key...!
But hey, that's culture shock, and it all got a lot better once we found out that everything was shut because it was a public holiday for the Hindu Diwali festival - festival of the lights.
There are a few dodgy types, and the cities are the places you should be most careful, but I got over the 'edgy-ness' quickly.
So that was all just to build it up, everyone knows Fiji is great. Though you can do it different ways, and I think my way was experiencing a bit more of the real Fiji. However I did drive through the resort-posho-area and if someone wanted to take me to the Hilton resort, just to hang by the pool and shop in the boutiques, I wouldn't complain. I spent 4 days touring around the main island and then 2 nights on Beachcomber Island, a 2 hectare pretty as a picture, exactly how you would imagine a tropical island to
be, oasis. Here are some highlights...
Bartering with the Indians at the handicraft markets and local shops. You've got to be ruthless. And the best part, bartering for my duty free alcohol at the airport before I left. It's a real shop, like our airport, asking for their best price!! And, got you a special price for that Southern...
On the more adventurous side we did a 4 hour trek through the rainforest of the highlands, tubbed down a river and then took a ride on a long boat. Did bilibili rafting, the most random boat made of long pieces of bamboo tyed together to form a narrow fan. They sort of float... Sat in a mud pool, and hot springs. I'm sure there would be health regulations for something like that in Australia. We visited some villages and schools, having the kids show you around and peeking into their daily life. No internet, electricity, get water from a well. Kid's jobs include fishing and gardening. Having a traditional kava ceremony with the village chief was great. Kava was great. It has anesthetic properties, makes your tongue go numb first and then makes you mellow.
Yelling 'Bula' and waving from the bus at everyone we passed through the countryside. The Fijians are so friendly. A girl I met at one of the schools said I could come and stay in her village when I next come over. Ate real curries, dahl and more fresh fruit than you can imagine. You could buy 5 or 6 large pawpaws at the markets for $2! Sunbaked, read, slept, ate, drank daquiris, swam (and then repeat in any order) on Beachcomber Is.
It was all great. On the less desireable side the goat curry didn't go down so well so I consumed a lot less food for 2 days while it was going through me and I got attacked my bed bugs, but I am recovering well. And.... I also got offered a Fijian necklace from a 15 year old boy from the village visit who had some love for me.... We smashed it up in Suva on the dance floor and I got pulled in close by a Fijian lady smashed off her head. I turned to walk away and she kicked me in the arse, not impressed that I was ditching her - I even thought I looked like a girl that night!
I saw posters of Lote Tiquiri and Isireli (runner for those out of the aths circle) throughout the country, and everyone knew of both of them. I saw Lote's village and his house 'where he stays with his Aussie girlfriend' as our tour guide said. Small world. Some of the young boys were impressed that I knew the famous pair.
As always, met the coolest people from all over the world (surprisingly hardly any honeymooners) and drank lots of the local beer.
