Photos

Me, Austin, and Brian on the boat to the island.

Sunrise on Bounty.

Sunset on Bounty.

Acadamia and Bounty Island

Sorry for the lack of update. I spent the week and a half after my trip to the West furiously working on a research project. I spent long hours in the Pacific Studies department at USP typing up my research project on World War II hertiage sites on Viti Levu. It came together pretty well. I gave my oral presentation this morning, which went pretty well. I'm not the best public speaker, but I got through it. I'm having my paper, a wopping 43 pages with pictures and maps printed and bound in the next couple days.

As a special treat for finishing my project fairly early, I took a trip to Bounty Island in the Mamanuca group with my two good friends, Austin and Brian. The Mamanucas are a pretty touristy area. We bargained some great "local" deals and got to split our own Bure on the beach. It was so nice to get away and just relax. The boys were still doing some research, but I decided to spend all my time on fun. We really enjoyed the delicious meals, cheap happy hours, and sunsets in one of the most beautiful parts of the world. I spent most of my days under the ocean water enjoying the beautiful marine reserve off the shore. I finally got to do one of my favorite hobbies in the world. Austin and Brian even came with me on one trip out to the reef and we all got to experience together. It was incredibly beautiful and exhilerating. I would love to take a trip to Fiji just to do this one activity.

I spent some quality time with my host brothers when we came back from Bounty. We all went to see a Night at the Museum with some of my visiting cousins from Niue. It was a really great time.

I'm leaving the country in less than a week. It's going to be hard to leave, and say goodbye to all the people I've grown to care about, but overwhelmingly I feel ready to come home. I'm ready to enjoy a Kansas City summer.

The West and the Coral Coast

I made it back from my travels which were part research and part vacation. Austin, Melissa, and I caught the bus to Nadi on Wednesday afternoon. In Nadi, we stayed with a Pentecostal pastor and his family. It was the house where my host brother Bill stays during his pilot training. It was nice to be able to hang out with him. It was a trip to be back in Nadi. It was the city where we first arrived and spent our orientation. It was crazy to see how badly they take advantage of uninformed tourists in the city. You really had to keep your gaurd up and be nasty to certain cab drivers.

On Thursday, I ventured into Nadi town, where I met up with my host great uncle. He drove me out to Momi, which was the location of the best preserved WWII battery in Fiji. It's a project of the Fijian National Trust. We got to the battery only to find the gates locked. I started to panic, because seeing this battery was a big part of my project. My host uncle told me not to worry. He took me to the village where the park rangers work and got the keys from one of their wives. Apparently the rangers were away for training. We headed back to the gun battery site, where my host uncle unlocked the gates and the tiny museum for me. The museum had some historical photos and info that really helped me with my project. The battery itself was amazing. It had been completely preserved. The actual guns were really impressive, and the view from the top of the battery was breathtaking. It was also awesome that I had the entire place to myself for three hours. After that, I had lunch with my host uncle and his family and then he drove me back to Nadi where I spent the afternoon with Austin and Melissa.

On Friday, we caught a bus to a beach resort where our friend Dana was staying with her American parents. We all went together to the Sigatoka Sand dunes, which was also maintained by the national trust. We hiked a trail around the dunes for a couple hours. The dunes were incredibly impressive. The views were amazing. Dana and I had a race to the top of one of them. I won the race because of a frisbee layout dive at the end. It was really fun and a little bit ridiculous. We spent the afternoon in Sigatoka and then caught a bus to a backpackers resort at Mango Bay.

Mango Bay was a pretty nice place to spend the evening. We walked on the beach, swam in the pool that had a swim up bar, and took advantage of their happy hour.

The next worning we caught a mini bus to Taunovo Bay, a super fancy five star resort. We got to spend a day there, because Austin's host sister was getting married, and his family had managed to secure local rates. We met up with some more of the students there. We spent the morning helping get everything ready for the wedding. The actual ceremony was beautiful. It was by a pool near the beach. Everything was spoken in Fijian, but it was still nice. We spent the afternoon and evening enjoying the supernice facilities. I ended up getting really sick in night. I think I had a stomach bug of some sort, but it was a pretty nice place to recover. The biggest downside to getting sick, was that I couldn't go diving in the morning like I had planned. My health keeps getting in the way of that happening. I think I'll still have a couple more chances though.

The next morning I walked on the beach and layed by the pool. We caught a van home about midday and I spent the rest of the afternoon hanging out with my host family. It was a crazy busy few days and now I'm in the middle of my research project. I'm trying to get it done as quickly as possible so that I can travel some more before I leave in three weeks.

Fieldwork fun

Sorry for the late update. I've been really busy planning travel and working on my independent study project. My main contact for the project is Elia, a really nice guy who works at the Fiji Museum. He's been guiding me around alot of the World War II remains near Suva. So far we've been in three sets of tunnels, to three defensive batteries, a radar station, and to the army camp in an unsuccesful attempt to gain access to their archives. Trekking to the remains has been really fun. I wear a headlamp and protective face mask in the tunnels. We found some 1940's coke bottles in one. The trip to the army camp was pretty hilarious. I was a bit nervous because its "the" army camp, that's headquarters to the interim regime, aka, the belly of the beast. We essentially just kept getting passed off to different people until we were finally told we'd have to wait to hear from their superiors, which I'm still doing. I doubt I'll hear from them. They're kind of busy at the moment. Elia has been amazingly helpful throughout the whole process. I'm so grateful he's around and willing to help a lowly undergrad.

This past weekend was really fun. I've been hanging out with my family alot. I played touch rugby in the rain with my host brothers. It was a blast. We were diving in puddles and sliding all over the field. Last night I saw Star Trek with Brian and Austin. It was really good and I highly recommend it. Seeing movies here is really cheap. It's five FJD for a ticket, which is a little over 2 American. There are also tons of dvds for sale around the city for 2FJD. Movie watching is a big part of the city culture.

One part of the weekend that sucked was my brother Danny getting really sick. His intestine ruptured because of a weak muscle and he had to go the hospital for emergency surgery. It was really frightening. I spent a lot of yesterday visiting with him at the hospital. He's doing better now and getting discharged today, which is a relief. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.

I'm traveling this week on a mega roadtrip around the main island of Viti Levu. I'm planning on going to Nadi to see a gun battery, Sigatoka to visit some awesome sand dunes, and to Pacific Harbor for a Fijian wedding and some diving. I'll keep you posted.

The Coke Games and a Busy Weekend

This past week was our last week of official classes. I had my Fijian language final exam as well as a couple projects to present. It feels really nice to be done. Now we just have five weeks left. 4 of those are dedicated to ISP, our month long research project. I've been working on mine pretty consistently. I'm hoping to finish early so I can have time to travel. I'm going to start my fieldwork tomorrow by exploring some World War II tunnels attached to the Fiji Museum. It should be a good time.

My home-stay house has been crazy lately. The New Zealand family left for home, which was sad. I really liked a couple of the kids. My two brothers, Dan and Bill, are both back for the week. I love having them home because I have people to laugh and hang out with.

There's also 4 pastors from the Pentecostal Church staying at our house for a huge conference. A few of them are pretty nice, but there is one guy who drives me crazy. He told me the Lutheran Church was falling apart and that Martin Luther's life meant nothing now. He also preached about the evils of Harry Potter. I've decided to just not have anything to do with the conference. One of my friends here is living with an Anglican priest and his family so I've started attending their church. It's a beautiful building and a nice community.

The biggest homestay news is that I have a dad now. He came back from his UN mission in Georgia for this conference. He is super Pentecostal. I haven't connected with him very well yet. I think it bothers him that I don't want anything to do with his religion. He's a pretty nice guy though.

This past weekend I went with my brother Danny to the Coke Games, which is the highschool track and field championships for all of Fiji. It's a huge deal. Everyone wears their school colors and has special cheers. It was definitely the most exciting track meet I had ever been too. Whenever a race was remotely close, everyone would stand up and start screaming at the top of their lungs for their racer. It was intense.

This weekend was also my friend Lindsay's 21st birthday, so we all went out to celebrate. It was really fun. We had a nice spagetti dinner at her house last night. Her dad is a famous Fijian politician who vocally opposes the government and loves to party. It was cool to meet him. He's one of the few Fijians I've met who actively speaks out against what's happening to his country. Overall it was a hectic fun weekend.

Al's Perfect Day

It's been a crazy stressful week. We had our research project proposals and lit reviews due on Friday so most of our time was spent studying. I decided I wanted to do something more adventurous outside the city on Saturday.

I talked about plans with my friend Austin, and we came up with the idea of ziplining. There was a place that did it about half an hour outside of Suva. No one else from our group felt up to it. We went to the bus station and asked about transportation to the village it was near. It turned out that the bus we needed was right next to the stand, about to leave, and only cost 1.30FJD. That was the first part of our day that went right.

We took a pleasant half hour bus ride to the area and followed directions towards the mountains. We found the zipline crew and they eagerly welcomed us. There were 4 Fijian guys who taught us the safety rules and then took us out on the course. There were 8 lines and 10 platforms in the jungle. It felt so amazing to be soaring through the treetops. The views were amazing. We passed over rivers and valleys and would land on hanging platforms in the treetops. Once we finished, the guides said that since it went by so quickly, they would take us again. That was the second awesome thing that happened.

We went around the course a second time. The guides got great photos and videos. When we finished, we asked them how much we owed them. They cut the price from the website in half. That was the third cool thing that happened.

We headed back to the main road. We only had to wait for ten minutes when a minibus picked us up and took us back to Suva for 2FJD. Then, on my bus ride back to Cunningham, my neighborhood, a nice Indo-Fijian man sitting next to me gave me a delicious mandarin from his grocery sack.

I came home and hung out with my siblings and cousins. We watched a movie. I took care of my kittens and read a good historical fiction novel about Fiji that was loaned to me. Anisa, our family friend, who does a lot of cooking for me and helps me with Fijian alot knocked on my door. She presented me with a handicraft she had carved herself. It was a model of a cannibal fork with designs carved on it. It was so nice of her to make that for me. I really feel like I'm starting to bond with my family.

It was a perfect Saturday in Fiji. One of the few days I've had here where everything went my way.

Update from Suva City

Not too much has happened since we got back from our big excursion. The political situation is still sketch, but not dangerous, at least not for me. I'm trying to view this as a valuable life experience. Not too many kids my age in America can say they've lived under a 3rd world military dictatorship. Reading censored newspapers and driving through police checkpoints are becoming part of my daily routine.

I'm sort of in academic hell right now. We have three or four big projects due over the next two weeks as well as preparation for our big month long research projects at the end. I've finally got my topic lined out. I'm going to research the historical archaeological remains of World War II on Viti Levu. I had a meeting with the main historical archaeologist at the Fiji Museum, and he agreed to help me out. I have a lot of background in the area and am pretty excited to get to work. The guy even said he would take me to some of the sites and let me poke around, which would be awesome. The types of stuff I'll be looking at include defensive installations, tunnel systems, and hospital buildings. It should be pretty sweet.

In other news, my host family has family in town from New Zealand, so I'm not the only westernized newbie in the house anymore. There are three kids in the family. It's pretty cool to not be the focus of attention anymore. It's easier for me to just do my own thing.

My kittens are getting bigger and bolder everyday. They can now climb up my pants leg into my lap. They're also super playful. They're a good distraction from stuff when I get stressed out.

Family Fun and Government Issues

It's been a pretty relaxing Easter weekend. My two brothers who go away to school came home for the Easter holiday, which has been really fun. Danny is 19 and hilarious. He's always joking around and teasing people. Bill is 21 and really chill. Today I went to a forest reserve outside of Suva with all my siblings and four of my American friends. It was a really good time. We hiked around, had a picnic, and went swimming in waterfall collecting pools. There was a rope swing over one, which was sweet. My ear is finally completely healed, so I was able to enjoy myself without stressing about it.

I went to Pentecostal church with my family on Easter Sunday. It was intense and focused on donating money to the church. I really disagree with a lot of aspects of the organization. I've also been watching movies and playing with the kittens. We named them Black and Gold, after Wooster/MU colors. They fit in my cargo pants pocket.

The government situation has been crazy these past few days. The court of appeals ruled that the regime in charge, a military dictatorship under Frank Bainimarama, had illegally seized power, which it had during the 2006 coup. The President, who happens to be the oldest president in the world (he's in his late 80's) was charged with the task of picking a new prime minister and other government officials. The President also repealed the entire constitution. Everyone was so excited about the possibility of a new government sans corruption. The next day, the President announced that he had chosen the new government, and it was Bainimarama's regime. Now the regime has legitimate power (in that is wasn't taken in a coup), and no constitution limiting its capabilities. It has already begun heavily sensoring the news media. The people here were devastated. My grandmother was so upset. It was really disheartening to see. As much as I've grown to love this country, its hard to get over the complete lack of civil rights and freedom of speech. It's growing harder to overlook that I'm living in a 3rd world military dictatorship.

Savusavu and Taveuni

I'm finally back in Suva. The rest of the excursion was fun. I was sick most of the time in Savusavu as I said earlier, but I still had a little time to explore. Savusavu is a very westernized city. It has lots of American property owners and its known for yachting. It had some pretty sweet restaurants and it was a cool place.

From Savusavu, we headed to the island of Taveuni. Taveuni is known as the garden island. We were staying at a campground on the beach. Taveuni was probably the most beautiful place I've been in my entire life. We did some pretty sweet activities. We went snorkeling at a marine reserve, which was amazing. We also did a coastal hike and visited some waterfalls. One of the waterfalls doubled as a natural waterslide, which was really fun. It shot you out over the pool and then when you hit, the full force of two waterfalls shook you up underwater like a washing machine. It was really exhilerating. I also got to visit the international dateline, which runs across the island. I took some pretty funny time travel pictures which I'll try and post soon.

Right now I'm home in Suva. It's been nice to relax and be home. My host family also got two brand new kittens, which has been really fun. I've been playing with them alot. I've got a ton of assignments in the coming weeks, which I'm not excited about. Other then that life is going well.

Lambasa Homestay

I'm still in Savusavu right now. Our departure for Taveuni was delayed a day because of high winds and threat of a tropical cyclone. I'm actually pretty grateful for the extra day of rest. I got really sick yesterday. I've had a sore throat and fever for the last couple of days and yesterday at breakfast I fainted. I don't really remember what happened, but apparently I fell out of my chair and hit my head. My friend Ariel tried to catch me but I slipped through her hands. When I woke up I had no idea where I was. It was pretty traumatizing. I went to the doctor who told me I had a viral infection and gave me some antibiotics. I don't think he knew specifically what was wrong, but the meds seem to be helping.

The Lambasa Homestay

Lambasa is a mainly Indo-Fijian region with lots of sugar cane growing. My homestay in Lambasa was with an Indo-Fijian family. I had a mom, a dad, a sister and two brothers, who were all in their twenties. This homestay was a little tougher. There was rarely running water, which meant bucket showers. Our homestay mom was also super hovery and intense. She would follow us around the house and stood by the table when we were eating just watching us. Our sister was pretty chill. She took us to a really cool suspension bridge. I of course reenacted the bridge scene from Temple of Doom, because I'm a huge dork.

We went to a pearl farm on one of the days in Lambasa. It was pretty much a little dock in the middle of the ocean. It was run by two Fijian women from a village. It was cool to see women producing an income for their families in a pretty patriarchical society. The actual science of pearl farming was pretty complex. Watching them implant the seed pearl was like surgery.

Another day we went to a sugar cane farm and spent some time with the farmers. Indo-Fijians were originally brought to Fiji in order to farm sugar cane as indentured labor. Their descendants still work the land today. The sugar cane growing process was incredibly labor intensive. We got to try some of the raw cane stalks, which were really sweet. I had to chew it but be careful not to swallow any because it would tear up your insides. Talking with the farmers was pretty depressing. The price of sugar keeps dropping and the government which is connected to the Fiji Sugar Corporation keeps paying them less and less for their product. At the same time, their ethnic Fijian landowners keep raising the price of their land rent. The majority of land in Fiji is controlled by ethnic Fijians, and Indo-Fijians are often left at the mercy of their land owners. There's been a big probelm lately of ethnic Fijians not renewing land leases for Indo-Fijians because of a ridiculous racist extremist fear that their country will be overrun with other races and they won't be in control. Despite all their hardship though, the cane farmers were really neat guys.

We accompanied our host family to puja prayers for the festival of Rama's birthday. I couldn't really see what was going on or understand what was being said so it was hard for me to get a lot out of it. One neat part of the experience was getting dressed up. Our host sister lent Malorie, Melissa and I traditional clothes and jewelry for the event. (Don't worry, there are pictures) It was kind of fun to try something completely new.

Lambasa was a pretty cool place. I'm glad I got to experience lfie there for a few days.

Quick Update from the Road

I'm in Savusavu right now. It's the third leg of our whirlwind journey. So far I've spent four days living with a family in a Fijian Village and three days with and Indo-Fijian family in Lambasa, on Vanua Levu, the second biggest island in Fiji. This excursion has been an emotional rollercoaster. My physical health has been wavering which makes the traveling tough. I've still had some pretty sweet times though.

I loved my host family in the village. I had a grandma, a grandpa, a mom, a dad, a teenage sister named Mary, a teenage brother named Ron, two little brothers called Sepo and Choelli, and a baby. It was a crazy big group but everyone was so welcoming and sweet. I had a blast playing with my little brothers. Sepo is adorable. I also busted out a disc in the village and taught some of the kids how to throw. It was a great time. We went to another waterfall (no jumping for me since my ear is still healing). We also took a boat ride out to a reef that the village people view as their sacred ancestral ground. They used a conch shell to summon dolphins to the boats we were in. It was one of the most amazing moments in my life. We also got to go snorkeling. I watched Ron spear fish, which was really impressive. We really learned how people live off the land and sea.

The downside of the village stay was getting sick. I had a headache for most of the time while I was there and I got really sick on Saturday. I think my body just didn't handle the food and water there very well, even though it was treated. I ended up getting violently ill sitting on the steps of a school house at a village child's birthday party. There were tons of kids around watching me and they all burst out laughing as soon as I puked. I ended up stumbling down the hill to my family's house and lying in bed with a fever. It was actually pretty traumatizing at the time just because I didn't know how sick I really was and we were hours away from medical attention. My little brother Sepo came in and held my hand, which was one of the sweetest humane gestures I've ever experienced.

I'll write about my other homestay in Lambasa later.

Peace.

One Month

Today is the one month anniversary of my arrival in Fiji. So far my favorite highlights are: the swing at the beach house, sea kayaking, water fall jumping, eating fish in coconut milk, learning how to make curry, and tossing the disk at Natadola Beach. It's been one hell of a ride. We leave tomorrow for a two week excursion to a traditional village, the Indo-Fijian community of Labasa, a fancy yacht city called Savusavu, and Taveuni. Taveuni is known as the garden island. I'm ready for some intense experiences.

Things have been a little better with my family. I'm trying to focus on my time with my siblings, especially my brothers. Today we had a guest lecturer who is a high chief. He used to be the vice president of Fiji but was deposed during the coup. He was an incredibly intelligent man who had some very forward thinking about the problems facing his country.

Today I also lucked out in terms of my potential research here. I got contacted about working with a collection of artifacts from the Bourewa site, which has the oldest documented occupation of people in Fiji, roughly 3500 years ago. The site was inhabited by the Lapita people, who are most well known for their pottery style. I would probably be working with a lithics collection, which is stone tools and my advisor would probably be a phd student here at the university. I got some books at the library today and I'm pretty psyched about the potential of the project. I also might get to travel to the site with this project, which would be awesome. I also might be able to finish early, which would be perfect since I want to travel more. It feels good to be in the process of researching again.

I'll try to update from the excursion, but no promises.

The Beach House and a Harsh Reality

I had a great weekend. We went to a backpackers' hostel on the Coral Coast called The Beach House. It was 25 dollars a night for a dormitory style bed, breakfast, afternoon tea, and free use of sea kayaks. The beach was beautiful. There were swings that went out over the water. Kayaking was a blast; Austin and I went out on the water. We saw blue starfish, some coral, and lots of fish. I grabbed my mask and hopped out for a closer view. It was awesome. We also swam out to a bamboo raft in the lagoon area and played around on that. I definitely want to go back there soon.

It was so nice to get a break from Suva and my host family. I like them, but don't like the Pentecostalism and the attitudes that come with it. I don't like feeling like I'm being judged or converted, especially by hypocritical evangelists. That's only from my Mother though. I need to work at focusing on other aspects of her personality that I like. She really is a caring woman who's just trying to do what she thinks is best. I get along with my siblings really well. My brother Danny is back from boarding school at the moment which is definitely a good thing, because he's hilarious. He makes me laugh really hard.

I'm definitely moving past the honeymoon period of my stay. Don't get me wrong, I love it here, but Fiji is definitely helping me appreciate life in America. Especially when it comes to civil rights and freedom of speech. Since the coup in 2006, the government has been a military dictatorship. Some would claim that Commodore Bainimarama is benevolent, but I would disagree. Censorship seems to be on the rise as well as incidents of violence. My friend's host father is a former politician who frequently speaks out against the government. So far, he's been taken to military camps and beaten, his house has been stoned, and someone broke into his car and shattered the windows. Other people like him have had molotov cocktails thrown at their house. It makes me really concerned for my friend's safety, especially since the situation seems to be escalating.

Other things have been frustrating me alot too besides the government and my host-mother, mainly a lack of consistent running water. I only have running water at my house about half of the time. It's really affecting my workout schedule because I'm not sure if there will be water to shower with when I finish. The power will also cut from my area of the house sometimes, and I have to go to the breaker box and turn it back on. I also have about twenty mosquito bites on my body at any given time, even when I apply bug spray. I'm really hoping I don't get dengue.

If the bitch fest above isn't any indication, homesickness has been hitting me pretty hard lately. Phone calls home are becoming more and more crucial. I did luck out at the video store though. I was feeling kind of down and then a solution just appeared in front of me: Stargate Continuum. In Fiji. For two dollars. It definitely made my day and helped with my homesickness.

We're leaving on Thursday for a two week excursion to a village, Vanua Levu, and Taveuni. The itenerary sounds pretty sweet, so I'm psyched.

Volcanoes, Tsunamis, and Curry.

Today was intense. On the ride to school this morning, the radio show was interrupted with an announcement that a volcano eruption/earthquake of 7.7 magnitude had occurred in Tonga and that all of Fiji was on tsunami watch. My host mom started freaking out about how close that was. The DJ said all people near the coast should get to higher ground immediately and apparently they canceled school for all the kids in the area. She dropped me off at school and told me to call her if our activity was canceled and I needed a ride. Campus was pretty deserted, which freaked me out. Someone on their cell phone near my class room was talking about finding the highest point on campus. Then I heard if we were going to get hit, it would happen in the next 20 minutes, which freaked me out. Morning classes were canceled at the university. We had a field excursion planned for today, and since I hadn't heard anything else, I decided to just go to the designated meeting spot, at Cost-U-Less, aka Fijian Costco. There I met up with my friend Austin, which was a relief. I kept glancing towards the coastline trying to catch sight of a wall of water. Austin and I waited together for people to show up, but we didn't see anyone else from our group. We jokingly made up a safety plan, which consisted of buying a raft at Cost-u-less and riding the tsunami across Fiji. We decided to call some of our friends, and found out that they had been told to meet at someone's house in the hills, but we hadn't recieved the text about it. A few minutes later we finally heard that the warning was removed, and that a tsunami wasn't going to hit. It was pretty anti-climactic, but it had been a terrifying half hour of my life. The worst part of it was the uncertainty. I didn't know if it was gonna hit or what I would have done if it did.

Since the natural disaster was non-existant, we ended up going on our planned field trip to and Indo-Fijian community to cook with some of the women there. We learned how to make curry, chutney, roti, purri, vegetables, and these little bits of fried dough. It was a great experience. The women were really kind and patient. Most of the food was pretty tasty too. Indian food is still not my favorite, but I'm slowly developing a taste for it. There were also some adorable kids there, who we got to play with. They were so much fun. I have a great video of one of them dancing that I will try and post soon.

Tomorrow some of us are heading to the Coral Coast for a couple days of relaxing at the beach. It should be really fun. I'm ready to get out of the city for awhile. It's been a stressful week. I also hit my head really hard yesterday. I was sitting at a desk in my classroom and a projection screen fell on top of me. The metal pole that held the screen hit me square in the back of the head. I don't think its concussed but my head has been killing me.

I put pictures on facebook. Email me if you would like a public link to the album.

-Al

Ni sa bula. Sa Vakacava tiko?

Sheesh. I have a lot to write about and the only thing more neglected then this blog is my personal journal.

I'll start by saying today has been pretty shitty. The computer I brought with me (not my beloved mac, a borrowed pc) died and has to be reformatted. So I'm losing some pictures and the paper I've been working on all week. FML.

We went to Levuka for Friday and Saturday. We rode a ferry from Viti Levu (the main island) to Ovalau, where Levuka is. Levuka is the former capital, so there's a ton of history there. We took a tour on Saturday morning and got to see some cool places. There were several old churches that were really pretty. We also saw where the Deed of Cession was signed. This was the document that gave Fiji to great Britain as a colony. The main town area of Levuka consisted of one big street of shops and restaurants. The main industry of the town is tuna processing, so the place smelled lovely, as you can imagine. There were also dead frogs everywhere. It was disgusting. I'm pretty sure everytime you lose a game of Frogger, the corpse is deposited in Levuka. Don't ask me why.

The hotel we were staying in was called the Royal Hotel, and it was the oldest hotel in Fiji. (hundreds of years.) The hotel was really creepy and historical. We asked the staff if it was haunted and they said yes. Apparently a sailor hung himself on the staircase. Since it was Friday the 13th and all, a few of us decided to not waste the amazing opportunity and have a seance. We did it in one of the parlor type rooms near the lobby. We lit nine candles, placed bread in the center, held hands, and did a chant. It was pretty terrifying. We heard really faint footsteps coming towards the room, but then they stopped outside the door, and we didn't see anyone. It was a really interesting experience. We ended up breaking the circle, ending the 'connection' and channeling our inner scooby doo characters as we hustled back to rooms.

Saturday night all the students and their host families gathered for a big party. We ate some delicious food and got to know everyone elses' families.

Sunday morning I went to church. My host mother is a hardcore Pentecostal Christian, and is determined to save my soul. I've never missed my Lutheran upbringing so much in my life. The service was intense. People were falling on their knees and rolling their eyes into the back of their head, singing to the heavens, and dancing. There were also people there dressed all in silver who were playing tambourines. I don't know why. I tried to find out, and failed. The highlight of Sunday is the lunch. Everyone has a big meal for lunch after church. We had roast chicken, fish and ferns in coconut milk, cucumbers and potatoe salad. It was very tasty.

Things I'm Still Adjusting to:
1. Being white. Everytime I get on the bus to go to the suburb where I live, the bus driver stops me and asks me if I'm sure where I'm going. I'm going to start responding in Fijian that I'm going home. (Au lako i vale.) Maybe that will shut him up.
2. Watching movies constantly. That's the main activity here. You can buy cheap dvds most places and everyone watches them all the time. Not good movies, mind you, crap American movies from the 80's and 90's you forgot existed. I'm trying to find a copy of Indiana Jones for my 12 year old host brother because he's never seen it.
3. My host family's intense faith that I don't necessarily agree with.
4. Feeling like a child again. My host mom makes my lunch. I have a curfew. It's a weird time reversion.
5. Sweating constantly. Powerade has become my favorite treat. Anything isotonic really.

I don't have pics today, because of the aforementioned computer problems, but hopefully tomorrow.

Au lesu mai na wavu.

I return from the wharf. Cultural lesson of the day: Girls should not say this, because females at the wharf are prostitutes. Vital info.

We've started our Fijian language course. It's not terribly hard to pick up the basics. We've learned phonetics, sentence structure, verb tenses and basic greetings.

I've also moved in with my host family. I have a Na (mom in Fijian), three brothers, a female cousin, and two girls who live at the house with us. William, Danny, Mike, Sereana, Una, and Mary. Two of my brothers are away at boarding school. Mike is 12 and I'm teaching him to throw the frisbee. Sereana is my cousin, and she's a student at USP too, so she helps me navigate the bus system.

I have my own room, study space, and bathroom which is a big deal. My host mom is an excellent cook. So far I've eaten: shepard's pie, cassava, meatballs, and really delicious chocolate cookies. She also makes her own guava jelly. The one thing I tried that I didn't like was fermented seaweed in coconut milk. It was like really nasty jello. I had to work hard not to gag when I tried it.

My host siblings really enjoy American pop culture. They listen to music and watch movies from the states all the time. My family has a farm, and on the farm were a dog and some puppies. My siblings had named them Beyonce, Chris Brown, Rhianna, and Akon. It's insane.


Here are some random pictures from around Suva:




A flamingo flower at the Suva produce market.



Fisherman with their catch at the fish market.


The view from the balcony at the hostel.



A woman selling souvenirs to tourists.



Low income housing outside the city. This is what housing looks like in squatter settlements.

We've leaving on excursion tomorrow to another island. I'll try and post some pics of my house when I get back.

Ear update: Turns out I burned the interior surface of my left ear and got water in my right one. I'm on antibiotics right now which should help my hearing get back to normal, but I might have permanently lost some hearing in my left ear. Whoops.


This is Natadola Beach. The Seventh most beautiful in the world. That was a great day.


I was wandering around Suva taking some pictures, and these construction workers really wanted to pose for me.


I call this one, "Unsuspecting victim meets 'The Deafener'."


Who wants some Kava?


I do! One and done.

Rough Adjustments

I'm getting over an ear injury today. Yesterday we visited a lower economic class neighborhood to do some community service. We picked up trash and helped plant flowers. Once we were done some of the youths in the area took us on a hike to a waterfall for swimming. The waterfall was amazing. Swimming was really fun. I climbed to the top with our guides and my friends Austin and Brian to check out another waterfall. This one was much taller and really cool. In order to get down though, we had to jump off a ledge into the collecting pool. I pushed myself off as far as I could so that I wouldn't hit any of the rocks and ended up hitting the water ear first. When I came to the surface all I heard was a high pitched beep. I saw Brian swimming towards me mouthing the words "Are you OK?" It was intense. I think my ear filled with water really quickly and got bruised. I put some swimmers' ear drops in it, which seem to be helping it. If it still feels weird tomorrow, I think I'm going to find a doctor.

Beyond my ear, things are going well. We're spending some time in Suva today, which will be fun. The hostel we've been staying at has been experiencing water shortages, which is rough. I'll definitely be ready to move in with my host family on Monday. I found out some details about them. I have three teenage brothers. (story of my life) Two of them are at boarding school though, and will only be around on weekends. My other brother is 13. My host-dad works for the UN and is in Georgia right now. I'm not sure how much I'll see him. Apparently my host-mom is really nice. I'm getting pretty excited about it.

Other things that take some getting used to:
1. Taking my time. Everything from restaurant service to Kava Ceremonies is really laid back. No one is in a hurry to do anything.
2. Crossing the street. Cars drive on the opposite side of the road here, so looking both ways is taking on a whole new meaning. I almost got hit by a bus the other day because I checked the wrong way for traffic.
3. My new diet. Curry. Nuff said.
4. Navigating public transportation in a large city. I'm getting really comfortable with being lost.
5. No Disc. Anywhere. I miss ultimate, but I'm coping. Who's up for rugby?

PICTURES!

As promised, here are some photos from the first week.


This is the whole group in front of the Hindu Temple in Nadi.


I took this with the kids I met on the Lautoka drop off. They were adorable and very friendly.




This is a double sided canoe the the Fiji Museum in Suva.


One of the sunsets in Suva

More from Suva

I just got my wireless hooked up on the University of the South Pacific Campus so I'm pretty psyched to have a solid internet connection. I also just got my cell phone here and was able to call home, which was really nice. The weather is still really hot. We had more lectures today. One was about the coup cycle in Fijian politics and the other was about economics. It's kind of nice to be back into academics. It helps me realize that I'm not just here on vacation. The campus here is beautiful. It has lots of trees and flowers and winding paths. We have class in a Bure, which is a traditional Fijian house. It's pretty sweet. I've still been feeling pretty sick, but I think that once I get over it I can really start to enjoy myself. We're staying in a hostel this week which is a little tougher then the hotel we were based out of last week. I'm starting to get to know the kids in my program better. They're from all over the country, which is interesting. I promise pictures tomorrow, now that I've got set internet.

Suva

Hey everybody,

It's been a busy few days. I've been feeling kinda sick lately with the adjustments to water and my new diet. Everyday is an uphill battle to stay hydrated. We had another Kava ceremony on Friday. It lasted much longer. I probably had ten cups. By the end of the night, it had completely lost its novelty and appeal. We explored the town of Ba on Saturday. On Sunday we went to Natadola Beach. It's one the most beautiful beaches in the world according to the travel channel. It was wonderful to swim in the ocean and toss the frisbee around. Right now I'm in Suva. We had our first lecture this morning and it was about archaeology, which made me happy. I'll try and post pictures this week.

-Al

Bula!

Last night was really great. Dinner with the Moslem family was fantastic. Abdul was such an excellent host. He gave us a tour of his farm and then showed us around the local mosque. He grows all sorts of things on his property and is also a beekeeper. Dinner was really delicious. We had chicken and fish, curried potatoes, tomatoe chutney, and roti. After dinner we listened to his stories and played with children from the area.

This morning we had our first "drop off" in Lautoka, a city near Nadi. A "drop off" is when our program director drives us to an area around the city and and drops us off in pairs with a topic to discuss with locals and vagure directions into the main city. I was partnered with Marshall and our topic was politics. We got dropped off by a housing development of people in a lower social class. The entire process was nerve wracking. The political situation in Fiji is kind of a touchy subject. A coup occurred in 2005 and the military is currently the governmental authority. We ventured into the housing development and saw some women drying out their floor mats. A flood recently devasted the region we're staying in. We approached them and they warmly welcomed us. One of them was our age, and took us around the apartment to talk some more. We learned that the people of Fiji are desperately hoping for an election so that the leadership will change, but at the same time feel like they themselves can't make a difference. As we were talking, children saw us through the windows and came out to play. The weren't used to seeing tourists and were fascinated. The kids weren't shy at all. They were very affectionate and playful. We wrapped up our political discussions and headed into town to explore. We had lunch at a curry house and ice cream at an Indian eatery. The types of food here are incredibly diverse.

I made it!

I'm finally in Fiji. The flight went well. I ended up sleeping most of the day. I met my group in LA. Everyone seems friendly and we're getting along well. Stepping off the plane was amazing. The first thing I saw were lush green mountains and fields.
Our first day was busy. We're currently staying in Nadi for orientation. We met with our program coordinators and and then were given free time. We decided to explore the city. Nadi is an incredible place. Walking through the streets is like sensory overload. We ate lunch in a place called the curry house. I had fish cooked in coconut milk and cassava, which is a really starchy root crop. It was pretty tasty. Our waitress from the restaurant led us to this little craft shop where we had our first kava ceremony with some artisans from a village. Kava is a drink that is used in a traditional ceremony for welcoming. It sort of tastes like dirty dish water. It's also a narcotic. It made my mouth go numb. I also felt light headed for a while. The ceremony in the store was kind of a gimmick to get us to buy stuff, but it was still a neat experience. We ended up walking back from town, which was about four miles because of road construction and a traffic jam. We got really muddy, but it was a good bonding experience. We spent the afternoon swimming and then had pizza for dinner. It didn't taste like anything in the states and was kind of gross.
Today we went to a Hindu temple in Nadi. The complex was covered in paintings of Hindu deities and was very brightly colored. We talked with a priest for a while about the practices at the temple. It was really interesting. We looked around Nadi for awhile after that. We went through a fruit and vegetable market. They had lots of things we couldn't identify. We had some pineapple there that was really sweet and juicy. I had lunch at a fast food place. I tried lamb curry, which was not my favorite. (Not anything like my Dad's) Tonight we're going to a Mosque and having dinner with a Moslem family. We actually met the man whose hosting us for dinner at the vegetable market. He seemed like a nice person.
The people in Fiji are wonderful. Everyone has been kind and helpful. Almost everyone greets you with a friendly "Bula!" (hello) on the street and asks you where you're from. I'm having a great time so far. I'll try and post some pictures soon.

Pre-Departure

I leave this afternoon for LA. I'm meeting the rest of my group there for our group flight. I'm feeling kind of overwhelmed right now, but also really excited. The packing and goodbyes have been stressful, and I'm ready to just be there.
I'm going to try and keep this blog updated fairly regularly, but it will depend on how often I have internet access. I'll also post photos of my adventures.

-Al

First Post

Hey everybody,

I've created this blog to describe my time in Fiji for my family and friends in the States. I'll be in Fiji for about three and half months. I'll try and update whenever I have internet access. 

-Al