Bula, Beer and Backpackers
Trip Start
Sep 27, 2004
1
13
19
Trip End
Sep 27, 2005
Suva, Fiji
Thursday, January 20, 2005
Let us pause and spare a thought for the victims of the tsunami and wish all the best to those involved in the relief effort. A tragic event indeed, but the show must go on...to Robinson Crusoe Island, 2005 and beyond!
Walking through Suva with my backpack on, I couldn't help but feel like a tourist and
it was amazing how many more people tried to sell me things than normal. I caught a bus out of Suva heading up the south west coast spending the bus ride trying out new Fijian words and phrases and offering fellow passengers mangoes, that I picked up on the way to the bus station. Arriving at my pickup point an hour early I was lucky enough to catch up with one of the owners of the island and hitched a lift down to the boat ramp. Robinson Crusoe is a short boat ride 15 minutes up a river and then 5 across a small passage of ocean. The island is small and we are talking serious smallness here. A 20-minute stroll will have you from the bar, round the island and back again, scratch exploring off the list!
Robinson Crusoe (R18+)
Contains
- Excessive alcohol consumption
- Sex Scenes
- General stupidity
- HIGH LEVEL CHEESE
With all the staff trained to greet guests with "Bula" (G'day) regardless of the time and "traditional dance" 3 times a day, cheese factors were high. Lucky the guests were all pretty down to earth and chilled out. I did a fair bit of snorkeling and although the visibility was not great I saw some really interesting things, most notably 3 small stingrays. Other activities included kayaking, swimming, general chilling out and the obligatory consumption of many beers. My bar tab was seriously scary and far exceeded the cost of my actual accommodation.
New Year celebrations were good fun, the staff put on a 2 hour show of dancing and fire twirling, which although high on cheese was quite spectacular and enjoyable. Afterwards we danced in the sand to Ministry of Sound tunes, until the rather drunk staff threatened us and changed the music to Fijian tunage. Way to kill a party man! We spent half an hour trying to convince them to change the music back again, succeeded for one song, packed the dance floor, then back to reggae. The party over we headed to the eastern side of the island to watch the sunrise on the New Year. Being in Fiji on the international date line we were some of the first to experience the first sunrise of the year. I ended up staying awake all day until 11:30pm, chilling on the beach and swimming. Then it was most definitely time for bed.
"Babies don't sleep this well"
My last day on the island was spent relaxing in the lukewarm sea with beers and newfound mates, culminating in watching the sunset. An ideal end to what had turned out to be an enjoyable time, despite frequent cheesy moments.
The people I met have really inspired me to travel when I return to Australia. This week's plan is return to Oz for a while, then South East Asia, India and then over to England to live and work. 8 months is a long time so stay tuned, my fickle mind will soon be devising some new fantastic plan of action.. Look out!
Waiting for the bus back to Suva I was offered a game of pool by the local policemen, who asked if I knew how to play. I demonstrated by beating their station champion quite convincingly, much to the amusement of the other officers. The bus ride back to Suva was tortuous, a hot, smelly, loud bus was the last thing I needed post New Year debauchery. To make matters worse I sat next to an Indo-Fijian lady with 3 kids, one of whom spent the entire time kicking me, while his brother stretched out over my legs and slept. I just wasn't in the mood.
Parents have come and gone. Kinda miss them actually, but it's great that they came over and saw where and how I am living for a year. Nice to catch up too, a shame it was raining the entire time. It seems they were starting to get into the Fiji lifestyle reasonably well and may have a hard time getting back into fast paced living in the big city of Adelaide. Mum is now prescribing kava to her clients for relaxation (joke) and Dad is missing the quality journalism (also joke) of the Fiji Times (www.fijitimes.com.fj).
Recently I traveled to a workmates village for New Year celebrations. Yes that's right New Year in Fijian villages goes for around a week. Makes even the most die-hard Aussie partiers look pretty soft in my opinion. The celebration consisted of lots of food, singing and dancing and even more kava. It is also customary to tip baby powder and water all over each other. I was so white with powder that the villagers took to calling me "extra kai valangi" (extra white-guy). We arrived at 7pm due to depart around 12am, but didn't leave until 7am. Hello Fiji time! No sleep and a shit load of kava later I arrived back in Suva just in time for my cricket game, where I starred with 40 odd and 3 wickets. My team pretty much collapsed in the batting department leaving me not out and a little frustrated. The combination of kava, no sleep, having lost 2 litres of sweat took its toll and I ended up going to sleep on Bec's bedroom floor during Felicity's birthday party. Sorry guys!
Although I have not been traveling as much as some of the Ambassadors, I have been making an effort to build a social life in Suva. One could quite easily, and happily for that matter hang out with ex-pats for the duration, which seems like a bit of missed opportunity. When in Fiji do as the "Fujis" do! I have been lucky to meet some great local artists, musicians and general chillers who have a great little social network going. We are currently organizing a Saturday arvo beach party at a local resort, which should absolutely go off! It's a really plush environment, with the bar set right on the beach, lots of lounges and bamboo flares once it gets dark.
After all the excitement of New Years returning to work was a struggle, and I was left feeling a little homesick. Missing Adelaide and all those things that home provides, family, friends, pubs, clubs and late night drunken yiros (kebab for those not from SA). Somehow a curry filled roti parcel doesn't really quite fill the void. Yanni's aid packages anyone??? All considered I'm pretty much back into Fiji mode now, and settled in for another 8 months, marooned on my tropical island paradise.
Things I am looking forward to are, traveling to Samoa some time mid year, people visiting and really getting cracking on my assignment after the slackness of the festive season. See you all soon. Over and out!
Next entry who knows.. I live here now... Everything kind of just melds into daily life.
PS. Robinson Crusoe peoples if you can forward this or my email to anyone I met on the island that would be wicked. Hope all your travels are going wickedly..
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Comments
Morgan/Neil
Morgan, i really appreciate what you did, it taught me a lot about Fiji........i may help a major international development develop - you know Malomalo? This is the location. Anyway, as rough and as broken - in thougth - my message was to Neil he must understand that I meant the very best for him.......let him know that I was and did get caught up in his writing style, enjoying it but then tiring of it, of course, I know you know, he is a seeker, that is good, seekes get stuck in themselves otherewise they would seek themselves to death, many have..............i have given you both the outcome of a life of being open, seeking,,,have thougth, seen, shared all that Morgan speaks..........at 30 i found a source to dispell traditonal, organized religious biblical myths...........many of them, unbelievable they are in magnitude, so fundamental yet so untrue, somewhat meaningless to those that are not led there to start, but significant as significant can be to those who have started down that road or on that road............meaning that the truth there is incredible when found out which is impossible through the business of religion found in all those with any money....if there are buildings, there is cash flow, iff there is cash flow there is a business agenday that impacts the truth so much more than I ever could have believed but then, this again, is a testimony to the depth of God's word, the length, the breath, height and width. 4 dimensions...........call or write anytime - you both have a home in Cincinnati OH, a most glorious city, on 7 hills in the spring.. the indians would not hunt it as sacred for its abundance..............Adelaide - never heard of so much home sick talk of a city I do not know.........maybe you will have me there........i feel like I know you and morgan well, real well, really well having read all of your posts both -- took hours........then writing hours..........sorry for the brokenness of the last letter to neil - it needs to be studied and reread for him......everything in there was for a purpose.......even the seemingly irrelevant had specific purpose......i really mean the best for him and you, of course.........i was not hard on you only on a fellow so common in 'road'. What led me to him was your commment on the sometimes 'obtuse' yet every so 'eloquent'
martinschumacher@fuse.net - take care - any comments on Fiji are welcome.......suggestions on someone going there to live...........there is probably a key person that you know/met that is a key to a lot of things........probably a few different people are the key to certain things......one key of interest is the person who could get behind a major development, sea side......see it at www.malomalo.com --it has been a struggle - i would go there to write, to help, to meet people..........God transforming us individually is key then we find out what else happens. god drags us through what eastern religion claims one can acheive.