The Vonu Beer Tower

It's beer, it's cold and it's a tower. What more can you say?

Kat and Clay visit Fiji

Eric's daughter, Katherine (Kat) and her boyfriend, Clay, spent a week cruising the islands of Fiji with us where they experienced "real" Fiji in native villages.....

and snorkeled on Fiji's beautiful reefs.....

We especially liked it when the villagers dressed the men for church (Eric had his own sulu, of course, but Bear and Clay were lent skirts)!

We had a wonderful time with them and hated to see them leave so soon!

Mud Bear

Being a volcanic island, Fiji has many hot springs bubbling to the surface. One such place has capitalized on nature by offering "mud baths" in a natural hot pool. Driving by, we stopped to check it out. Bear was the only one with a swimsuit so he got in with a Fijian woman to lather up in mud to experience its "soothing and medicinal" qualities. Bear just found it slimey and prefered the neighboring clear, hot pool which felt "like the hot tub in Utah".

So much for boys wanting to play in the mud!

Religion 101

The diversity of Fiji's roughly one million people is visibly noticeable in the variety of religious edifices in the urban areas. On a recent trip to Lautoka, we visited four different places of worship - none which were Christian based.

The first was a Sikh Temple, which is a reformed branch of Hinduism begun in the 16th century. Sikh is much influenced by Islam and therefore reject the caste system and idolatry. The Sikhs are easily recognized by their beards and turbans. To enter the Sikh temple, we had to wash our hands, remove our shoes and cover our heads with kerchiefs provided at the door. The main "altar" area inside the temple reminded me of a raised four-post bed dressed in royal blue. No guide assisted in a tour so we were not able to learn more about the Sikhs.

Our second stop was a visit to James Mosque, of Muslim faith, which is a school as well as a place of worship. Upon entering, we followed the posted instructions and sought permission to enter. At first somewhat reluctant, the headmaster warmed to us, showed us the school and mosque and answered our questions. He was especially kind to Bear and engaged him in much conversation. Not being prayer time (which is five times daily) we entered the mosque. Women and men never pray alongside one another and women generally are not allowed in the central prayer area. Per our host's invitation, I cautiously stepped inside where two Muslim men were lying on the floor. One of them clearly was upset with my presence and exchanged words with our host. I offered to leave but our host stood firm and said I was welcome and to ignore these men. Some young male students came by and shook Eric and Bear's hands. They did not look me in the eye. It was uncomfortable for me as a woman to feel this prejudice because of my gender but it is part of their religious culture.

Across town, we stopped by the most prominet Hare Krishna temple in the South Pacific: Sri Krishna Kaliya Temple. Founded in the 1965 in the United States (and given a growth boost when the Beatle, John Lennon, joined), Krishna has its historical roots in Hinduism. Most of us identify Krishna's with the bald, orange robed men in airports. Their mission is to spread their spiritual knowledge and techniques to the population at large, especially through dance and song. With less than one million members worldwide, the Krishnas numbers are relatively small yet they are visible in society. Interestingly, Fiji has the highest percentage of Hare Krishnas in the population of any country in the world. We were disappointed on our visit as the temple was closed and no people were present.

Our final temple tour was the Sri Siva Subrahmaniya Swami Temple in Nadi. This colorful South Indian-style temple is the largest and finest of its kind in the South Pacific. Built by the Hindus in 1994, visitors are welcome if dressed appropriately: legs and arms covered, shoes removed, modesty and good behavior at all times. However, we did learn through experience (as my calves and arms were prominently displayed) that paying the entrance fee pretty much waived the rules. The interior of the temple was very impressive with beautiful hand painted murals on the ceilings, individual shrines to various gods and mosaic rock patterns adorning the walls. Bear thought the bright colors made the place look like a circus!

Not knowing much about non-Christian religions, we found the day fascinating and left us with the desire to learn more. We never thought that Fiji would be a place to explore this religious diversity!

Tui (like you're spitting)

In the village of Yalobi on Waya Island, we met 62 year old Tui who became our friend and guide. Insatiably curious, Tui engaged us on the beach with questions about our boat. After strongly hinting how much he'd love to see the inside of a "yacht like that", we invited him home with us where Bear gave him the nickel tour. We almost had to retrieve Tui's chin from the floor when he stepped into the salon. He seemed frozen in awe and kept repeating, "a floating house".

The following morning Tui led us on a hike up the mountain for "great views and lemons". After eight months of drought, we'd just experienced two days of downpour and consequently the trail was slick with mud. We scampered up the inclines in our Keens while Tui made the trip flawlessly in paper thin flip-flops. The views from the top were spectacular but the lemons were dry as bones.

Sevusevu

When visiting the remote islands of Fiji, it is customary to pay respects to the village chief with an offering of kava root and to receive his blessing to enjoy his island. This ceremonial process is called sevusevu. Once blessed, you are welcome to explore the island, swim the reefs and even fish.

We made our first sevusevu at the village of Yalobi on Waya Island. Upon anchoring we dressed appropriately - no trousers or shorts for women and their shoulders must be covered, long trousers for men, no hats or sunglasses when you are talking to people or in their homes - and went ashore. We were greeted on the beach by a local man and directed to the chief's house. All along the way, everyone shouted "Bula" to us and we felt very welcome. The chief, named Tom, invited us into his house and to be seated on the mat on the floor. We presented three bundles of kava which he gratefully accepted and made a blessing in Fijian of which the only word we understood was "vinaka" which means "thank you". Tom asked about us and we learned about the village. Yalobi has roughly 300 residents and shares the island with three other villages. Adjacent to Yalobi is a primary boarding school which houses 130 kids, ages 6-12. There is a resident nurse who travels to the neighboring villages when she has fuel for the boat. After sevusevu with Tom, we explored the village and met the local nurse, bought a box of milk at the only store and wandered paths through thatch huts and concrete houses. After two days of pouring rain, the colorful laundry, bedding, cushions and rugs that were hung out to dry added a festive mood to the place.

UGGs (written by Bear)

We went to the UGG factory in Fiji. At the UGG factory they make boots called UGGs. They can make a pair of boots in about twenty minutes. They are made out of merino sheep skin. The skins are soaked in salt water for one week so that the bad smell comes off the skins. They are good for cold weather. They started making them for fighter pilots in WWII to keep their feet warm. The name, UGG, comes from the initials of the creator which was U.G.G. I got the boots that are in the picture. And we got some little boots for my niece.

Men in Skirts

It is customary in Tonga and Fiji for men to wear traditional garments that we would call skirts.   It is interesting to see men wearing "dress up" western shirts, ties and sport coats along with these skirts.   We have seen some of the local Mormon missionaries wearing their white dress shirts, black ties, and long black skirts.    In our continual efforts to become part of local cultures, the men of Totem, IO, and Oso Blanco have purchased man skirts' and wear them proudly.   Check out this link to see us action  http://www.flickr.com/photos/giffordclan

 

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Roti Lady

Move over out French Baker, here comes Roti Lady! As in Barre de Navidad, Mexico, where we were greeted each morning with fresh croissants, here in Port Danarau, Fiji, the Roti Lady traverses the dock after sun-up pandering flavorable Indian-spiced fillings wrapped in flour tortillas (called rotis). Our favorites are pumpkin and egg. The one called "vegetable" can have anything in it. When it's potatoes, it's awesome, but the eggplant was too gooey! At just two Fijian dollars each ($1USD), it's the best value in Denarau!

Fiji Golf

Golf in Fiji is similar to home - and different. Here there are mongooses running across the fairways instead of squirrels. Water hazards are fed by a salt water river in which we saw coral and puffer fish. And the measurements are in meters instead of yards - which fortunately was pointed out to us before we began! Otherwise its like home where the course "eats" golf balls, trees still block the perfect shot (albeit palm trees instead of pine), and the dubious gravitaional pull of sand traps suck your balls in. Man, I love the game!

Fancy versus Exclusive

We're sitting in an anchorage between two resorts on Malolo Island, Fiji. It's guest turnover Saturday and the transports are continually arriving. Float planes taxi up to the dock at Malolo resort and spit out people to guitar playing resort hosts. Closer to us, helicopters hover, awaiting their turn on the helipad to deposit guests to the Likuliku resort. Here lies the difference between a $1000 per night abode and the $250 per night.

 

When we docked our dinghy at Likuliku resort (where no children are welcome), we were told in no uncertain terms that "walk-in patrons" are not allowed. We were discouraged from even walking into the compound to check it out. We could see the infinity pools and white clothed tables from afar but we were not to experience it firsthand. However, we were invited to visit their sister resort, Malolo, just around the corner.

 

At Malolo resort we received the opposite treatment. The restaurant host said, "As soon as you set foot upon our sand, you become part of our family." Families played noisily in the pool in a relaxed and inviting atmosphere. We were welcome to explore and come back anytime.

 

Isn't it better to be welcome where you don't have to spend as much money anyway?

A Couple of Degrees

Wow! What a difference a few degrees makes! Fiji's climate is ideal for being in the water. The air temperature hovers around 85 degrees and the water temperature is about 82 degrees. Rather than getting out because we're cold, we swim until we're too tired! The wetsuits are put away - only skins for sun protection. It's awesome!! 82 degrees - that's now the magic number!