A Sneak Peek into Fijian Village Life

Written on Monday September 27, 2010 – by Kim

After a very relaxing and thoroughly enjoyable tour of the Yasawas, we took a bit of a gamble by heading back to the main island and 2 hours south by car to the Coral Coast and a village called Namatukula.  After reading great reviews on trip advisor, I decided that this was a must-do for Austin and I while in Fiji.  We really didn’t know what to expect, but from the moment we were met at the port by our host’s brother, Danny, and his daughter Ty, we were immediately happy with our decision to do a homestay.  Danny was very friendly and outgoing, and on the short trip from Nadi south to Namatakula, Austin and I acquired a lot of facts and insight into the Fijian people, as well as Fijian customs and way of life.  What we learned from Danny was only half of what we would learn after spending only three days with his family in the village.

When we arrived to Namatukula, even though it was quite late (9pm), we were met by our host, Tupoe with a hug, a huge smile, and a fantastic meal with her family.  One of the highlights of our stay was definitely Tupoe’s cooking.  There was so much variety and ample amounts.  From curried chicken and lamb, to coconut fish, breadfruit, rice, and salad - we were never able to finish all that was presented.  This was not only true of our first meal, but of every meal we shared with Tupoe and her family.  Here are some pictures of our accommodations while in Namatukula.

Our little bure...

 Inside our bure...

 Our outhouse washroom/shower...

 At look at our facilities from the beach...

 A picture from the main house at sunset...

 Our companion and security, Posh...

Our first day in Namatukula was spent exploring the village with Tupoe’s daughter, Luica.  We went to the primary school where they were having their annual sports day.  We watched and marvelled as every student performed track and field events without any footwear.  In fact, while in Fiji we discovered that most people opt not to wear anything on their feet.  This was true of people we saw in the village, walking on the side of the highway, and even of the boys we saw playing in a rugby game.  If we did see people wearing footwear, it was simply flip-flops.   

The school gathered on Sports Day...

 The students were diveded into four teams - blue, yellow, red & green...

The flag waves proudly above the all the action...

 The boy's relay race (notice the footwear?)...

While at sports day, Austin and I were invited to join in a kava ceremony with some parents who were also there as spectators.  We learned that it was customary to say “Bula!” (Fijian word meaning many things including, hello, I’m well, you’re well, be well, etc.), and to clap three times before drinking the entire cup given in one gulp.  To me, drinking it all down at once was much easier than sipping it as it’s chalky taste and lip and tongue-numbing effects were less noticeable when ingested quickly.  Austin found it interesting that most of the men had mobile phones and were using them during the kava ceremony.

Gathered with the parents for some kava!

 One gulp and it's gone!

The rest of our day was spent exploring the village and relaxing before having dinner and attending an open-air church service in the evening.  We were fascinated by the passion and enthusiasm this particular community demonstrated for their religion.  The service was performed in Fijian by an overly animated pastor, and it was extremely long.  The service itself was reminiscent of a southern evangelical service, complete with several healings including breast cancer and immobility!  It was an experience, to say the least.

Sporting my sarong that stated "The Lord is my Shepard" (oh boy!)  for a wander around the village...

 Taking advantage of some outdoor plumbing and giving their teeth a good scrub...

 The site of our outdoor church ceremony...

 A look inside the school's classroom...

Our final day in Namatukula was spent exploring the beach that was at our doorstep.  We walked east to a  neighbouring resort, The Mango Bay Resort.  Like the rest of Fiji, our village homestay on the coast presented us with clear blue waters and shores which were fun to explore.  Our host family's dog, Posh, came with us on the excursion and enjoyed the chance to run and play with us on the beach.  As it was Saturday, there were many local kids also out enjoying the ocean and sea life and even having a fun game of touch-rugby on the beach.

The beach out front our homestay... Sa-weet!

Some fun sealife we found...

 Some local boys that were playing rugby on the beach....

 Local kids enjoying the beach on Saturday...

Though we had to tear ourselves away from the beauty and relaxation of the Yasawas, both Austin and I were glad we had the opportunity to do a village stay and to get a sneak-peek into what village life is like in Fiji.  Though the homes in the village lacked most of the amenities we are use to in North America such as hot showers, reliable electricity, screens on windows, washrooms inside instead of outside our homes, furniture, cable, internet, carpet/ hardwood flooring, etc., there was something very enviable about the Fijian villagers.  It was my impression that everyone seemed happy and content in the simplicity of their lives in the village, and in my opinion it seemed like a great way to be.  We are also glad for our homestay because it gave us the opportunity to sit and chat with locals and ask a lot of the questions we had after spending a week in Fiji.  It would be difficult to share all of the information we acquired about life in Fiji, so I’ll provide you with some interesting highlights of what we learned:

·         In Fijian villages, tradition says that brothers are not allowed to talk to each other’s wives.  Sounds like it may solve some problems, but it may bring some awkwardness to Christmas dinner conversation.  But hey, whatever works for them!

·         Curry is a favourite food of many Fijians.

·         It is required that women wear long skirts, or sarongs, to cover their knees whenever they are out and about around the village.

·         A lot of men also wear longs skirts and this seems to be customary even in the larger city centres.

·         Both women and men love to dance in Fiji and there is not an ounce of self-consciousness when they’re in their element.

·         In Fiji sugarcane is still cut by hand and without the use of any modern machinery, which is why you can see and smell many sugarcane fields burning in and around Fiji.

·         The traditional kava drink of Fiji is prepared like a tea.  The kava root is first peeled, then dried and crushed before being placed into a cloth that is tightly tied and dipped into the water and steeped.  We presented kava to our hosts in the form of dried and crushed sinlge serving pouches, which seemed to be the way it is sold in modern-day Fiji.  This process is what creates the cloudy looking drink that is had most afternoons by many of the Fijian villagers.  It is not considered taboo to drink kava every day.  Here are some pictures of the process:


Emptying the dried, crushed kava root into a cloth...

 Tying it tight and soaking it...

 The "high tide" is the caldron they put the final product in and serve from...

 
-         An interesting fact that seemed very strange to us, but was completely normal for Fijians was the tradition to bury loved ones in front of their house in an above ground grave with a large monument, and a homemade canopy to protect the monument. In some cases the monuments and canopy were so large they block the houses view from the window. 

·         Christianity is HUGE.  In the village, church was the centre of their social lives.  Apparently this is common and widespread throughout Fiji.  There is also a large Hindu population.  Our hosts assured us that the very large majority of Fijians are faithful and that they are all accepting of each other’s chosen faiths and practices, whether it be of Hindu or of Christian origin.

·         There are approximately 130 dialects of the Fijian language.  The government has made one dialect common throughout the school systems in Fiji so that the people across the country can communicate.  However, the traditional dialect of some of the smaller villages is at risk of being lost.  Learning English is also a requirement for students in Fiji.

While hanging around the south pacific I’ve learned some other things that aren’t exclusive to Fijian culture, but are still discoveries for me.  For example:

·         Cold showers are fantastic!

·         Footwear is overrated, at least at tropical temperatures.

·         Sunshine is good for the soul.

·         Sand and dirt are really no big deal.

·         Who needs make-up!  It’s not worth it when you sweat buckets every day, all day.

·         Hangovers suck twice as bad in the heat.

·         I could totally live in the South Pacific. Go figure :)

That’s all for now folks.  Stay tuned for our stories from Samoa, another magical place in the South Pacific.

xoXox

The Knotty Travellers

The Yasawas

Written on Day 10, Saturday September 25^th, at Nadi airport, Fiji – by Austin

So we’re now 10 days into our trip.  It sure goes fast.  Unfortunately, we have to leave Fiji tonight, but we’re quite excited about our next stop in Samoa.  Fiji has been great!  We’ve really enjoyed ourselves and have had some great experiences in the short time we have been here.  This entry will be the first of 2 entries about Fiji, simply because there is so much to say, and Kim and I can also split up the writing this way.  I will be writing about our four nights in the Yasawa Islands, a small group of islands off the west coast of Fiji’s main Island, Viti Levu.

The Yasawa Islands first of all are remote, and are serviced only by one daily high speed ferry, The Yasawa Flyer.  I in fact had no idea that these islands even existed until we hit Fiji.  Kim however had done some research and had heard about the Yasawas, so she knew what to look for when we booked the trip at the airport.  We set out on Sunday morning from Port Denarau, which is a very nice upscale looking port right rear Nadi.  It was like entering a different world going through the gates of the port.  We went from almost third-world looking streets of Nadi right into a gated community presumably for Fiji’s ultra-rich.  I was especially impressed by some of the boats docked there; I am guessing values well into the multi-millions.  The boat we travelled on was not too shabby either, with three decks and a lounge etc, and best of all its speed of I believe about 30 knots.  Only trouble was a bit of motion sickness on the way, but nothing to spoil the experience.   The journey to our first stop was a total of about 2 and ¼ hours, with stops along the way to drop other travellers at their island resorts.  

The fancy Port Denarau, complete with a Hard Rock Cafe.... 

 


Kim enjoying the sunshine on the ferry...

The Yasawa Flyer.....

The dropoff/pickup process at the side of the ferry, being met by smaller boats for transport to the islands....

We were reminded before boarding the boat that the islands had no ATMs, and to make sure that we had enough cash to take care of our bills and any incidental expenses.  Luckily Kim and I had booked a package that included our accommodations and our meals on the islands, so we just needed a bit of spending money.  Our biggest expense turned out not to be alcoholic beverages as we expected, but bottled water, as our second resort had no fresh running water.   We have been pretty lucky with drinking water thus far though, as only on the one island did we need to buy water.  Some of you may be interested to learn about our water treatment solution for when fresh water is available, as it is still quite magical to us---seeming like science fiction.  It is called the SteriPen, and it uses UV light to neutralize parasites and bacteria in the water.  Essentially we understand that it renders them incapable of reproducing, so they pass through your system without problems.  So far it has worked, and we’ve been drinking our treated water in Fiji without any ill effects.  We are told the water is safe to drink without treatment though, so the true test will be when we run into water that locals won’t drink.  The product claims to be more effective than chemical solution such as tablets, so we are really hoping it is all it is advertised as.  With the amount of water we have been drinking, it could pay for itself in just a few days with savings on not buying bottled water.   Its major downfall is that it takes about 2-3 minutes to treat 1 litre of water, and the water must be clear to start, so we will be limited to using it when we have an already decent water source, like clear tap water.   Anyhow, some photos to illustrate our water process:

The SteriPen as modelled by my lovely wife....

And in action.....

But back to our travels in the Yasawas.  Our first stop was a nice little place called Waya LaiLai Eco-Resort, on Waya Island.  Our arrival was pretty neat.  We were met at the ferry boat by a smaller boat powered by outboard motor, who then took us and our bags to near shore.   Due to a rough sea and unfavourable tides, we still had some walking to do in the ocean before hitting the shore.  That was okay, it was bloody hot so we welcomed the cool down.  We hit the beach and were guided through a village that borders the resort—I think due to the tides that day that was the best way to get to shore.   It was pretty cool though, instantly feeling we were in a very different place.  These islands are small and pretty much in the middle of nowhere, and inhabited by only a small number of people, presumably who have now recently started to serve in the tourism industry.  Waya LaiLai I believe was built in 2003, so still fairly new.  After a little walk through the village, we were taken to our Bure, which is the Fijian word for beachfront hut.  We were quite impressed with the place, as we had very low expectations in terms of amenities.  However, our little hut had plenty of space, had running water (cold only), and had electricity for the evening hours (approx. 7pm-10pm) powered by a generator.  It was more than we expected and certainly all we needed, and best of all, it looked right out onto a fantastic beach.   The Yasawas are pretty much known for great beaches, lots of sun, clear waters and great snorkelling and diving, and at most resorts it is a younger backpacker crowd, so there is a few party hotspots as well.  Each Island and resort had its own character and catered to different kinds of tourists.  Waya LaiLai had a mixed crowd, with plenty of interesting fellow travellers to talk to.  We met a nice English couple (Matt & Sinead), and a Canadian (Heidi) living in Australia, so we may end up meeting with either of them again along our travels.  

Enjoying island life at Waya Lai Lai....

The boat ride to Waya Lai Lai..

 Walking through the village on Waya island upon arrival...

We were also worried about the quality of the food on the islands, but that turned out to be a needless worry, as the food was plentiful and very decent.  In the evening at Waya Lai we were treated to some traditional Fijian dancing, which was really fun.  As to activities during the day, Kim and I took advantage of a few of them, with the highlight for me definitely being the sunrise summit walk that we did to a place called Bald Rock at the top of the island.  It was an early morning start (5am), and we walked the first 20 minutes in the dark with flashlights, and it was also quite strenuous, but it was well worth the views when we reached the top.   Our guide, an older man named Nepote, was incredibly fit, and definitely in his element on this hike and he did the whole thing in flip-flop sandals-very impressive!  Kim and I were huffing and puffing trying to keep up and stay hydrated, as we were sweating profusely from the heat and the exertion.  Hiking in plus 30 is much more difficult we learned than hiking at the temperatures we grew accustomed to in Nunavut.   Anyhow, it was great hike and we were able to grab some great photos.  

Climbing in the dark....

We made it.....beautiful light at the top...

Photo op...

 And our guide, Nepote, defeinetely in his element...

We also took the opportunity to go snorkelling at a nearby reef, where we saw lots of nice colourful fish, and the highlight of the snorkelling---getting up close and personal with reef sharks.  Kim and I even got to touch sharks, so that was pretty neat.  Unfortunately we did not have a camera to document the experience, but we were able to steal these photos from some English friends we made, Matt and Sinead, who as it happens, are also on a 7 month tour.   They were travelling on a 14 day Bula pass and had 14 days in the islands, and could move around to different resorts as they pleased, which sounded pretty cool.  We had a quicker experience, with only 4 nights in the islands, but that was still enough I think to get a feel for them.  

The shark experience....

The sharks were not willing participants in the action at all times, but still harmless, despite a brief attempt at one of the Fijian's noses...

The Fijian dancing.....

Kim hangning out in our Beachfront Bure at Waya Lai Lai, doing some repair work to one of our little bags...

Our next resort was Korovou Eco-Haven, with a very nice long beach and fantastic western exposure for great sunsets.  We had a beachfront Bure again, which was OK, but a bit of a letdown compared to our digs at Waya Lai Lai.  At Korovou we took the opportunity to enjoy the sunshine, and we also did some really nice snorkelling right off the beach.  We had a bit of a struggle getting out for the snorkelling, as the beach is full of coral tidal flats, so they had only a narrow concrete underwater walkway to access the swimmable area further out.  The first time we tried to go snorkelling, we were scared out of the water by a pack of very aggressive and hungry fish, who we were told were due for a feeding at that time, as the resort takes out food for them every day in the same place, and as they missed their feeing that day, they were very hungry and thought we may be their food.  So that was slightly off-putting and a bit embarrassing as well, as none of the fish were big or scary in themselves, but hundreds of them biting at your ankles was definitely a bit intimidating.  Later on however we took an alternate route when the tide was up a bit, and we were able to get out into the water problem free.  It was well worth it when we did, as the waters were very clear and there was a great variety of colourful fish and coral.   Other activities at Korovou included a bonfire on the beach, where we got to chat with many other travellers who recommended things to do and see in New Zealand and Australia, so we know we have lots to look forward to in those places.  

Our bure at Korovou.....

Some hermit crabs we found at the beach at Korovou...

On our final day in the Yasawas we took in the last of the sunshine that we could, and we boarded the ferry back to Denarau where we would wait for our ride down to the coral coast, where we would do a village homestay---but I will save that experience for Kim to write about. 

Best wishes to everyone.

The Knotty Travellers

Offically En-Route!

Greetings friends and family,

We are now officially on the road!  Wow, it’s all finally here, and it is completely overwhelming.  First off, I must mention that it may say at the top of this entry that it was posted on September 17, but in actuality it's frooooooooom the fuuuturrrrre!  It is fact that for 2010, Kim and I never saw September 17th.  We left L.A. on the 16th and arrived to Fiji on the 18th.  We did not realize that our amazing adventure would also include time travel - go figure!   

I am typing this from a tiny little desk at our hostel in Nadi, Fiji – The Bluewater Lodge.  It is a nice little spot, and good for us as we need to acclimatize from the travelling to get here, but like most of Nadi, it is nothing spectacular and is just a jumping off point for most travellers en route to their next and more exotic destination within Fiji.

It has been quite a journey to get here, with a 5 hour flight from Toronto to LA on the 15^th, complete with all the incredibly difficult goodbyes.  It is strange, in our travels to and from the north, we are frequently saying goodbye for significant chunks of time, but they are not generally as difficult as the one we just had to do.  Maybe that’s because we had such a fantastic summer with everyone back home, it just could not be beat.  So thanks everyone who we shared time with this summer and who made it out to the wedding—that was an amazing day, and part of one of the best summers of our lives.   Side note here about the wedding for your amusement – we just mailed the bulk of our thank yous yesterday while in LA, and most were completed on the plane.....so it is clear to us that we have been insanely busy this summer and totally consumed by all of our activities, not the least of which is preparation for this trip.  But I digress, back to the trip.  

The journey has been long---about 16 hours of flying time this far.  We had an evening flight to LA that as good, as we pretty much hit the hotel and crashed after the flight.  Yesterday we spent much of the day tackling odd jobs and last minute preparations to leave the amenities of North American consumer civilization, and had a few hours to kill at the beaches before heading to the airport.   Our flight to Fiji was an overnight’er, so that was great, as I was able to sleep on the plane.  It left at 11:30PM, and I was well ready for sleep, so I was able to sleep on the plane for a good 7 hours with a little extra help from a sleeping pill.  Kim tells me I was a bit ‘weird’ off the pill, but I don’t know, I think exhaustion just did its thing, on my body AND mind.  Anyhow, we are both all back to normal now for the most part, just a bit of jet lag.   When we arrived at Nadi airport at 5AM we were greeted by a live band playing island music, and were ‘assisted’  by some very friendly people, namely ‘Big Joe’, who managed to sell as a 4-night 5-day island hopping tour before we even left the airport.  So we shall see what the next few days hold, as we depart early tomorrow morning on a shuttle bus to Denarau marine terminal for transport to the Yasawa islands.  We have been told to expect very modest accommodations, with only occasional electricity, no hot water, and certainly no internet---so that was another motivating factor in getting this entry out today.   

Despite the fact that Nadi (pronounced non-dee) is just a jumping off point to better places, it is still nothing to sneeze at.  We have beautiful sunshine, the beach is right there, and the surrounding mountains add to the exotic tropical island feel of the place.   Our little place is in what seems to be a ‘resort area’, but not the typical megaresort types that the Caribbean is famous for---this is a bit more rustic.   We have a room with air conditioning, which is nice, and there’s a nice comfy bed, so what more could we want.   The surroundings include some farm fields and some goats.  Town is only a 10 minute cab ride away, and it costs 7 Fijian dollars, or about 4 Canadian.   Kim and I have opted to lay low today and acclimatize, so that we have the energy to be ready for whatever lies ahead on our Awesome Adventure (not a play on words  -  that is the name of the tour company).   We are taking advantage of the internet while we have it and making all our necessary arrangements for our transfers to Samoa and New Zealand, and also notifying our families that we will likely be going silent for a while on the communications front.  

We really don’t have much more to say at this point, but I imagine there will be some good stories to tell next time we can hit the net.  For some amusement, here are some photos of the journey this far.

The Santa Monica Pier......

I took the obvious once in a lifetime opportunity to have my name forever ingrained ironically on a grain of rice, and to make it  even more punnier, I had the guy write 'Aust in Rice' - I realize now it would have worked even better if I spelled my name with an O instead of an I, but I still got a chuckle..

This is the check-in counter for our 11 hour flight to Nadi, you can just see the back of Kim's head poking out to the right slightly beside her backpack that is as big as she is.

Best wishes to all.

Cheers,

The Knotty Travellers

The Journey Begins

Greetings to friends and family interested in keeping up-to-date on our travels.

We have started this blog as both a journal for ourselves, and as a way to keep our friends and families in the loop on our adventures around the globe.   We have called it 'Knotty Travellers' as we have just tied the knot, and we are now setting out on our long-anticipated global honeymoon.

We have been saving and scheming for this trip for some time now, and to say that we are very excited that it is finally coming to fruition is an understatement.  We are grateful to the many who contributed generously to our upcoming travels through our Honeyfund registry.  The time has now come for us to begin our long-awaited journey.

Our official departure from Canada comes in only 9 days!  We leave for Los Angeles on September 15th, and then off To Fiji the following day.  We have about a week in Fiji, and then head to Samoa for a week before getting to New Zealand on October 1st.  During this time we will cross the international date line 3 times, so we look forward to not only travel geographically, but apparently travel through time as well!  We are super excited, but also a bit nervous.  We have LOTS to do to prepare.  It is amazing how much work is involved in planning a trip like this.  But for better or worse, we will be departing in only 9 days, and will be blogging as much as possible once we hit the road.

We hope this can be a bit of an interactive forum, but are new to this blog site, so please bear with us as we figure things out.  We are excited, and we hope you enjoy this blog as a way to communicate and stay up to date on our activities.

Cheers,
Aus & Kim aka The Knotty Travellers