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Published: March 14th 2023
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The islands which collectively constitute the South Pacific were all lined up in a row, ready to be toppled like the most entertaining dominos display ever conceived, yet as I have already pointed out, this was a free-spirited travel episode, and as a result, the 4 or 5 nations originally part of the original blueprint were in the end whittled down to just one nation, that nation being Fiji. Given that it was a combination of price and flight schedule convenience, the flight to Suva, the largest city in Fiji was to be the first leg of the South Pacific episode, and even I was majorly curious to know precisely how it would measure up. Truth to tell, Suva comes across as a fairly unstructured city, with an Indian and Chinese influence running right through it, especially when it comes to the range of local food and shops available. Cruise ships may stop in Suva to give passengers a snapshot of Fijian town life, and in many ways, the fabric of the town is somehow comparable to Caribbean island life, where sun-kissed vibes are generated by an unhurried pace of life, splashes of colors, shops nestling alongside craft market stalls, and
overly friendly passers-by greeting you with a casual 'Bula!' with reliable frequency. If you seek a rural retreat just outside of town though, your best bet is probably to visit Coloo-I-Suva, a forested getaway where rivers, walking trails and a few other features will give you the chance to while away the time, which by my estimation, must surely be a broken watch, such is the monumentally laid back Fijian mindset. From Suva, public transportation took me further west to the market town of Sigatoka, where an overnight stay at an out-of-town hotel was designed to break up the journey before reaching journey's end. Sigatoka seems to have a somewhat more energetic vibe about it per square metre than Suva, and although it doesn't compare in terms of size, the indoor market, along with the shops and eateries which make up the fabric of the town, seems to indicate that commerce does play a significant role in Fijian towns, given that this island nation is not known for a sizeable industrial output. On an even more low-key scale, exploring the nearby village of Voua revealed a few homes typical of South Pacific dwellings, along with the occasional convenience store and
restaurant which you tend to associate with a one-horse town. A disused railway line running seemingly the length of the southern Fijian coast suggests that features of the past are no longer sustainable, and indeed have been part of an economic downturn which illustrates how tourism really is the mainstay of any South Pacific island you care to mention. Arriving in Nadi, the location of one of the island's two international airports, the guide book's description of the town being merely itinerant seemed somewhat off the mark, since Nadi, and the pleasant smalltown vibes it generates is, for my money, the most enjoyable of all Fijian towns, with enough features to make its appeal more widespread than the tourist potential it possesses for cruise ship passengers to call in at briefly. Far and away the single most exotic and colorful attraction is the Sri Siva Subramaniya Temple, an outstanding place of worship which would not look out of place in a prominent Indian city. As with any other Fijian town, Indian and Chinese food is very well represented, and although Fijian cuisine is hardly widespread overseas, you can find a surprisingly cosmopolitan influence here when it comes to the range
of food on offer. This has become a typical, almost cliched way of addressing a city's tourist potential, but 'If you're looking for a day trip option', then top of the pile here would surely be an island-hopping excursion to the outlying Mamanuca islands, where paradise literally awaits. You will embark and disembark at the pleasant and tourist-centric Port Denerau, where a handful of restaurants, bars and shops will greet you upon arrival, and when you set sail for the outlying islands, the crystalline waters, occasional sandbank, and terrific marine life will give the overall impression that the best of Fiji comes in the form of offshore islands where you are intended to marvel at the splendour of it all. Back on dry land, the nation's second city of Lautoka is worth a look-in, and was formed as the sugar mill trade began bolstering the local economy, to the extent of the development of a local town with no truly outstanding features, but enough in the way of amenities to be something substantial. On your way out of town, and heading back to Nadi, be sure to drop by the Garden of the Sleeping Giant, not to be taken literally, but is nonetheless a garden of a few features, to the backdrop of some tastefully collaged landscape. Finally, the Sabeto mud pools a short distance further along the road are the kind of spot where tourists act like hippos wallowing in mud, for all its curative properties, and slowly work their way back to cleanliness by entering a series of pools, each one more devoid of a mud content than the preceding one. So, the question remained - was Fiji enough of an experience to warrant cutting the rest of the South Pacific islands out of the equation, and the answer to it lies in how much you choose to connect with Fijian society. If you lock into a true Fijian groove and align yourself with one of earth's more chilled-out societies, then Fiji really could be more of a rewarding emotion rather than a collection of visuals, and success in enjoying island life here is like developing a taste for Kava, the national drink made from the plant of the same name, murky-looking and definitely not for everyone, but with an undeniable ability to at very least grab a visitor's attention and force them to pay a certain amount of attention to whatever it is that makes it so unique.
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