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Published: August 29th 2009
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Fiji
Directions outside Nadi International Airport... Location: Lautoka, Saweni Beach, Nadi, Suva, Coral Coast, Sigatoka
Length of Stay: 17 Days
Cost per Day: $32
Bula from Fiji... Firstly... most important... if you are coming to Fiji to visit anything islandy... beachy... or resorty... then dont forget the aerogard... 😊... the mosquitos can be most troublesome at nite...
Fiji has been a very curious place and nothing like I was expecting...
Interestingly, from the day I arrived here, I have been completely unsettled... My senses have been very confused the whole time... Am I in the Pacific?... In Fiji?... or am I in India?... I am not sure... I look one way and think... ah lovely Fijians, floral shirts, sarongs or sulu's as they call them and then 10 steps further on... I am seeing sari clad beautiful Indian woman and smell the fragrance of incense and curry... It has been a very odd place to visit...
In saying that... people have been spectacular... The Fijians and Indo-Fijians have completely overwhelmed me with their friendliness and hospitality... I have been made to feel like a long lost cousin to most everyone I have met and have lost count of the number of invitations to come
Fiji
On my 1st local bus... heading from the airport to Lautoka... the 2nd biggest city in Fiji... visit, stay or eat in someones village or home...
Of course... there have been a few testy moments... where not everyones intentions were honorable... I am learning very quickly that as a single woman backpacking... it is wise to not reveal too much about ones self... especially to the male species...
Girls... while I have generally felt very safe here... dont go out at night on your own and dont tell men where you are staying...Standard questions right off from just about everyone will be your name, age, marital status and where you are staying... so be careful and keep alert.
It is amazingly simple to travel around here... The bus system is very easy, cheap and convenient...The 2 main bus companies for distance travel are Pacific and Sunbeam... Sunbeam is the more modern and plays dvds on longer journeys... My trip from Nadi to Suva was amusing as they played a dubbed Jackie Chan movie and then a B grade or maybe C, D (if they exist) American horror flick called Razorteeth...It was pretty bad and hardly the type one would have expected Pacific Islanders to be watching... still, was funny to see everyone on the bus so
Fiji
the bus... engrossed... 😊
Food.. well what can I say.. I have been in heaven with all this wonderful Indian food... definately gone over budget and definately blown my healthy diet... Oh and I have been a bit naughty and indulged in the odd Fiji Bitters and Fiji Gold... I didnt really get into sampling the Fiji food... very big, hearty meals and alot of deep fried things...didnt really appeal much...
Had some interesting experiences with accommodation... My very 1st nite in Fiji was a bit of a nightmare... checked into a dormitory at Lautoka hotel in Lautoka... and had to contend with the hotel nightclub directly below me and an Indian nightclub next door till nearly 3 in the morning...music was quite hip though... a bit of bollywood and islander disco...😊. The Suva soccer team were staying at the hotel as well and so they were up at 6am clapping hands and singing songs of praise that they would win the National semi-final being played that morning... Needless to say, neither one of us (myself and Robert - an English lad sharing the dorm) got much sleep... Yay... thanks for that...
Then 2 nights in Nadi at Downtown Backpackers...I
Fiji
The bus driver... had more of the same... no music this time... just that awful doof.. doof sound through the walls... It would be nice if they informed you when you checked in and paid your money...
However, the most horrific experience was at Mango Bay Resort... stayed in a dorm in this cute little bure... pine double bunks... private netting around each bunk to add to that island atmosphere... how nice I thought... There were 3 of us staying in the dorm... Isla from Holland, Henry from New Zealand and myself... I was the first one in and once the lights were off and I was all settled into my private little enclave, I heard this noise behind me and turned to see some creature attempting to crawl down from the top bunk into my little retreat...I initially thought it might be a cute, furry, baby pacific version of a little possum or some such thing... Well... I nearly had heart failure when I turned on the light and saw that it was a HUGE rat... 😊 I mean like way, way bigger than a guinea pig... It was monstrous... Oh my goodness... Oh my god...I was beside myself...
My mother will
Fiji
Charles - an Irish/Fijian befriended me as soon as I arrived in Lautoka... He spent the afternoon with me, 1st helping me find somewhere to stay and then as a tour guide for the rest of the day... Charles actually spent 17yrs living in Sydney - Bondi. tell you that I go absolutely beserk at the mere sight of a cockroach... so...well... you can imagine how I might have reacted coming face to face with Mr Rat...
He ran off and climbed the beams of the bure to an opening in the roof... ahh... thank god he's gone...
I thought... Then I spied his brother climbing onto the pillow of another bunk... I was completely mortified...
Anyway, I moved to another bunk and dragged it into the middle of the room, we slept with the light on and got no sleep... Boy oh Boy... Funny though because my favourite animated movie came to mind... Ratatouille... Have you seen it?... its fabulous... Maybe these little visitors were just like Ratatouille... leaving the confines of there village nest to go exploring and to check out some of those strange human creatures...
All in all... a nice visit to Fiji, although I did bring my departure date in by 1 week as ready to move on elsewhere...
A quick Indian recipe I found in a local paper in Sigatoka that some of you might like to try:
RICE BALLS
Ingredients: Rice 250gmns, Sugar 125gmns, Cardamoms 3
Fiji
I arrived in Lautoka on one of their biggest sporting weekends... Lautoka was host city for the National Soccer Finals... This was at the soccer grounds... Nos, Milk 250gmns. Sugar to taste, Cinnamon I inch stick.
Method: Cook the rice in the milk, with the sugar and cinnamon. Cook until the rice is cooked and has absorbed all the milk. Add crushed cardamoms and mix well. Let it cool. When cold enough to handle, butter your hands lightly and make balls. Roll into desiccated coconut and serve with cream.
Hmm... sounds ok...
Also, with Indo-Fijians making up nearly 1/2 the population... Arranged marriages are quite the norm as they are back in the motherland... I found this Matrimonial section in the paper... The ads are placed by the parents seeking mates for their children... Here are just a few....
HINDU PARENTS seek matrimonial proposal from Doctors/Dentist for their daughter 26. Dentist must be working in Australia.
BRIDAL ALLIANCE invited for 1980 born, 5'-7', Hindu Rajput guy. Never married, good looking, graduate eligible to file for Permanent Residency. Reputed agricultural family from Hoshiarpur, Punjab. Family members live in India as well as Australia. International students from Punjab welcome.
PARENTS seeking a well educated Sikh male professional for their beautiful daugher born and raised in Canada. 25, 5'-1'" tall, cast no bar.
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The finalists... The men in Black from the town of Ba... Currently pursuing her CA in Calgary with PriceWaterhouseCoopers. Only brother studying in MSc. Both parents professionals.
So...onwards we go... Due to a complete modification to my itinerary, I am now leaving the Pacific and next stop will be Indonesia and the beautiful island of Bali...
See ya.. xx
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krainbeem
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BRAVO!!!
The Mosquitos (Midgy's) here carry flick-knives!!! The Martimonial section was hilarious and I'll have to attempt the "Rice Ball" recipe.....x