We did not originally plan on stopping in Fiji, but it turned out that it was much cheaper to fly to New Zealand through Fiji, so we thought why not. We had three days and four nights, and decided to stay in Nadi (the mainland of Vitu Levu) as we didn't have the time to go to the outer islands.
Our time in Fiji turned out to be wonderful. I have never seen such beautiful smiles, from everyone we met, passed in the street, or sat next to. Such beautiful, beautiful people. Before leaving the U.S., my high school buddy Hof, introduced me via e-mail to his friend Ravu, who is an officer in the Fijian military serving in Iraq. Ravu then connected me with his wife Rose, who, at 7 1/2 months pregnant, showed us true Fijian hospitality. She took us to her village where we took part in a Kava ceremony, which involved drinking multiple gourds of the traditional alcoholic drink (me many more than Lisa) made out of the kava plant. If you read Troost's "Getting Stoned with Savages," he gives graphic descriptions of his endeavours with kava.
Rose also gave us an all day cruise out to the outer islands, which included crystal clear, blue water, snorkeling, tasty bbq meal, and sitting on the beach and swimming in the bathtub temperature water. Very relaxing last day, except for the sunburns.
The demographics and politics of Fiji are fascinating and intense. After 3 days, we cannot pretend to know much or have much insight, but did learn a lot. The population consists of approximately 40% of East Indian descent, 50% Native Fijian, and 10% other. You can double check my stats. At times, we felt we were in India, enjoying the Masala and Samosas. Many seemed to go out of their way to say there was no ethnic strife between the ethnic groups. This may or may not be true at the social level, but much of the politics, which has included 4-5 coups in the last 20 years (again, check my facts) (including an ongoing coup which began in December 2006) have involved the interactions, land ownership, and politics betweeen the two major groups.
With that said, we loved Fiji, the people, and the scenery and hope to get back at some point to explore further.
Click below to see some photos from Fiji...
http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slideshow.jsp?&mode=fromsite&collid=606468784108.150086936108.1171010154807&conn_speed=1
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An additional note on Fijian politics...
Lennie Ramacher read that following the most recent coup in Fiji, the government was in such need of qualified workers that they opened up national Cabinet positions to applicants.
I think this is good news for you, Ari and Lisa. As far as I know you're still jobless. If you finish the trip, and feel like returnig to Fiji, you may be able to apply to become Cabinet Ministers.
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