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| Our "greeter" at the Fijian Village |
We were in Suva, Fiji, the capital, on a Sunday when most
everything is closed. Instead of seeing
the city on our own as planned, we joined a tour organized by one of our fellow
Cruise Critic members when there was a last minute opening. Glad we did!
The tour took us by bus about an hour outside the capital to
a tribal village to learn about local life, customs, and culture. Seeing the countryside on the way was
beautiful – lush tropical vegetation – small villages – Indian settlements with
Hindu Temples and churches on every corner.
Fiji is a multi-cultural society and a deeply religious one. As the guide said – 'Everyone goes to church
on Sunday.” Along the way we noticed
every denomination represented from Assembly of God to Mormon to Baptist to
Catholic.
In the small village we visited there was a Methodist and a
Roman Catholic Church. Our time in the village was scheduled to be
between the Methodist and Catholic services.
In the church – as in the homes – there were no seats. Everyone sits on woven mats. Now this was going to be interesting for a “bunch
of Older American, Canadian, and European tourists!”
We assembled in their “meeting area” – a room that was open
to the elements on the sides. We were
led to the area by young men in typical dress carrying large wooden warrior
implements – they were the guardians of the village. Children put a garland of flowers around our
necks – something like a lei. Suddenly
the villagers appeared with an assortment of chairs and stools that were “vintage”
to say the least…a welcome sight! All
ages of the village were there. The
welcoming ceremony started with a prayer – with everyone making the “sign of
the cross” at the end before starting the Kava Ceremony.
What is kava? I need
to research more when I get home – but - It is a traditional drink in the
Pacific that looks less than appetizing, to be frank. Watching them make it is
interesting but the outcome looks like dirty water from a ditch. There is a tradition about how to accept it
and how to drink it. A few representatives
from our group agreed to “do the honors.”
Your teeth and tongue go numb and after too many drinks you are very
happy we were told!
The children sang for us and then the entire assembled
village sang with the unique South Pacific harmonies – what did they sing? The
tune was the old hymn “When the Roll is Called Up Yonder, I’ll Be There!” Some of us who knew it sang along in
English. (English is spoken in Fiji but
there are so many local languages and dialects that a common form of communication
is Pidgin English.)
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| Preparing the roasting of Taro |
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| Kava Ceremony |
We then were given a tour of the village to see how they
live. There were demonstrations of
various things – scraping coconut meat into a fine powder; wrapping taro roots
in banana leaves to put in a pit with warm stones; making baskets: how they
open coconuts for drinking; making firecrackers; etc.
What friendly and open people! They were very eager to talk to us and to
show us their way of life. I ended up
in a long conversation with one of the elders of the village who told me about
his brother who now lives in Melbourne and was married to a Maori he met while
working in New Zealand. He was so eager
to answer all of my questions and he wanted to know about California and San
Diego!!!
Their homes were simple with sparse furnishings and amenities
but the village was clean and ordered. I
suppose they would be considered poor in terms of income but they are rich in
many other ways - the land provides, family ties appear to be strong, etc. After the tour, they had prepared a meal and
refreshments for us of fresh fruits, juices, fish, taro, and various foods
mixed with coconut.
We later learned that we were only the second group to come
to the village and that they had been preparing for us for two days. It was
a fascinating day.
We had a sea day between Fiji and American Samoa – in fact
we repeated Sunday April 26 - adding back the day we lost crossing the
International Date Line going to New Zealand.
American Samoa is a beautiful island but our tour there was
limited. Tourist infrastructure seems
sparse and there are fewer places to visit.
It does not appear to be a major tourist destination.
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| American Samoa |
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