Unemployed and homeless

I am sitting in Melbs, on a beautiful autumn morning, ruing the cold and frustrated cause I wrote this last entry in Nadi airport yesterday and for some reason only half of it saved.... so try again.

It was with a heavy heart I said goodbye to Suva last week. As smelly and noisy as it is, annoying as the sellers can be and as bad as the taxi drivers are, it has grown on me and I am going to miss the place. It also indicated the end of my time was drawing close and soon it will be back to the real world.

On the 8:15am Sunbeam Express bus I headed back north to Ra province to actually be a tourist and hang out at a resort and dive the coral reefs of Fiji. Four hours later I got off the bus in Rakiraki. Traveling the roads in the bus as a tourist was a nice way to head back north. I have driven those roads any number of time, but seeing the villages and forests and rivers from the bus and not having to concentrate on avoiding the pot holes is another perspective and again enforces how pretty this country is.

Rakiraki (actually Veileka) is the bus hub, and I wasn't even off the bus before I had my taxi sorted and someone carrying my luggage (it does pay to be white in this country sometimes). My taxi driver Dave is from Rakiraki village and has worked at a number of the resorts/backpackers in the area for the past few years. He was talkative and quite charming, but unfortunately for him I was not looking for a tour guide or driver, but he did drop at Volivoli resort with no problems so score one to Dave the taxi driver. Much better than the ones in Suva.

The resort I stayed at is on a point and is surrounded on 3 sides by water. Vanua Levu is visible on the horizon and it was peaceful and beautiful and I have found my "island paradise". Although the "Fiji Experience" bus stops at Volivoli over night the place is NOT full of drunken english backpackers, and apparently has a bit of a reputation of having no atmosphere. Well for me there was atmosphere a-plenty, it was serene and relaxing and had the BEST HOT showers I have found in Fiji, and this was in the cheap $30 dorm room, so imagine what they would be like in the expensive suites.

I arrived early afternoon and was promptly handed a book and question sheet and I made a start on my dive course. Three hours and a swim later I had finished the paper/book (note to anyone wanting to do SSI diver training the last chapter is a waste of time and is gratuitously self grandstanding by the organisation) and was ready to embark on the video the next morning. My dive instructor was a very handsome and charming Taveuni-ite by the name of Pola, who has been diving for who-knows how long, and spear fishing since he was a kid. He brought in a MASSIVE snapper one morning which he told me he free dives to about 10m off the shores of Malake which is just north west of the resort.

Anyway, after some time in the pool and getting used to the respirator and breathing underwater we headed out to the bay, where I promptly freaked out as every time I turned my head, my mask filled up with water (this is why I don't like snorkelling). So being the good instructor Pola gave up his own personal mask for the next four days so that I could dive. With the mask issue resolved it was all go.

By the end of the first day I had made it to 12m, the second dive down to 16m and finally to 18m, so for someone who freaks out in small boats I am very proud of myself (please don't ask why I freak out in small boats cause I don't really know myself. Logically I can swim, I surf/boogie board, spent god knows how much time in the water in Tas and now can dive, but still am not comfortable in small boats...go figure. I took out a sea kayak one afternoon as the tide was turning for a paddle around the bay. was fine heading out, but on the way back in it got very choppy, and I got very uncomfortable on the kayak. However it must be noted that the water was less than 1m deep. I can swim and I was no more than about 10m from shore, so not like I was going to get into any trouble if something did happen to the kayak, but I was still not completely comfortable. On arriving back to my launch site I dragged the kayak out and promptly went for a swim in the choppy water that whilst on a large floating device scares me , but I feel completely comfortable swimming in...... go figure).

So 4 days and 7 dives later I now have my open water certification. I also have the urge to sell up all my assets here and buy a piece of land in Ra on the water where I can grow Daro and chickens and eat fish. Is a very romantic notion, but appealing all the same. Most of the land in that area along the water is free hold, having been given away for a bottle of whiskey or two in the past. In fact one of the cleaning ladies at the resort tried to sell me her house when I mentioned that I was thinking about running awy to live in paradise for a bit, so if anyone wants to buy property in Fiji, can put you onto a good deal .

I am absolutely in love with the north coast of Viti Levu, and have decided give ocean over mountains any day (even though the birds just aren't as pretty). I also think coastal Ra has some of the most charming men in Fiji I have never had such good care taken of me as I did whilst diving (can you tell I have a bit of a crush on my dive instructor? If HE had of proposed I probably would have said yes and then I could have had my house by the sea and a whole swag of gorgeous fijian children...... again a rather romantic notion and I am sure I would get bored within a month or so) and even the bus ticket checker in rakiraki was charming.

My last couple of dives were AMAZING! Both sites were a mix of hard and soft corals and the fish are brilliant. I can't get over the colour of everything (and as the waters here are so clear most things retain their colour), and am particularly impressed with the parrot fish. There are also amazing electric blue fish, and red ones and black and white stripey ones that hang out in the anemones (am such a marine ecologist aren't I??), and wow..... the numbers! After the first of the two dive that morning I was hanging out in the boat when Pola has yelled at me "Get you mask on and jump in" "Why?" "Shark" he says. SO I grab my mask and jump over board (no snorkel though....) and there below us is a white-tipped reef shark, just skulking around the coral at about 5m. I watch it for a few minutes before it disappeared to deeper waters. Pretty cool.

The second dive that morning was to another site where there were some MASSIVE soft corals, and a few caves and narrow passage ways. We saw another shark here and a HUGE puffer fish and at the 5m rest point, whilst I was playing around with my buoyancy (still trying to get that neutral buoyancy sorted...) there were columns of hundreds of fish just hanging out doing fishy things. So I hung there suspended at 5m, whilst surrounded by this moving column of red and blue and silver. Is pretty magic (as anyone who dives knows) and I am really glad I decided to do it - now just need to get the head to stop worrying about how unnatural it is to breathe underwater.

Had a bit of a laugh with a German backpacker who was sharing my room. She had been out snorkeling one afternoon and had seen a rather large shark of unknown identification. As this is not really something you want to see she turned tail and fled, though it turns out that it probably wasn't dangerous and really unusual to see one. We had a bit of a giggle over her running, and the comparison to me jumping back into the water. She had a pretty gross cockroach story too. Not pleasant when happening but makes for fine tales to tell.

So five days of doing nothing but swimming and diving I headed back to Vaileka to catch my final bus back to Nadi to fly home the next day.

The kids in these parts are very entertaining. I was sitting waiting for the bus when I heard this little voice exclaim "Kai valangi". I turned around to see this little girl of about 4 with her grandfather pointing at me. He looked a little chagrined and I think he realised that I understood what she had said, but when I smiled and said "Bula" and offered her my hand to shake he relaxed a bit. It really isn't an offensive term. The little girl, like all fijian kids, immediately get shy, but after a bit of coaxing she shook my hand, said 'bule' back and promptly hid in her grand dads legs.

I then ran into Dave the taxi driver again, we had a bit of a chat. He is too very charming and I have suggested to Lela that she should marry him though don't know if he is looking for a wife. The guy who works for sunbeam bus company is however, so if anyone wants a husband...... I worked out the easiest method of dealing with these sorts of situations is to point out after the inevitable question of "Are you married?" that if I was married I wouldn't be in Fiji. I think this highlights to the locals that I would not make a good wife as I would not want to stay at home and do all those things I am supposed to. Makes it much easier than actually having to turn them down .

The sunbeam guy laughed a bit when I asked him if he would be happy to let is wife travel to a different country alone. He claimed that it would be ok, but he was lying. The rest of the trip was pretty uneventful and I spent my final night in a rather basic hotel in Nadi. It did however have a bath and I did enjoy a long lavender scented soak - bliss.......

And now I am back in Melbourne. It that spit state of mind - excited to be spending time with people who I have missed, but not really wanting to come back to this way of life. Three hours in Sydney airport was long enough to again be disgusted at the commercialism and general consumerism of mainstream Australia (also note that every traveler I met told me emphatically how expensive it is here). So what to do? Where to go next? NOT back to full time work if it can be avoided lol.

So for now this is the end of my travels.

It is with much melancholy I say goodbye and thank you to the girls from NFMV (and Dick), to Nadala village and everyone else who I have met in passing who has made the past three months so memorable. Like any country Fiji has its problems, but I would recommend getting out of the cities and away from the tourist circuits if you want to see the real country. At no time did I not feel safe, just don't be an "obvious" tourist in the cities, but it is inevitable that you will stand out if you a kai valangi in the rural communities and there are assumptions placed on you with this.

So Moethe Fiji and Vinaka.

My final week began really well. I took Litia to a place called the Gardens of the Sleeping Giant. This is about halfway between Nadi and Lautoka. It is the private garden of some dude who bought the place in the 1970's to house his collection of orchids; apparently the largest private collection in the country. It is a beautiful place, but like most of Fiji in the wet season a bit muddy. Has a feel of 1920's colonialism with high backed cane chairs and felt like I should be drinking some extravagant cocktail not the juice I was sipping on. Was kinda odd to see so many white people in one place

So after a lovely day on Saturday I was looking forward to a leisurely Sunday, with a bit of a hike planned for the morning/early afternoon and a restful afternoon. Didn't quite happen. I yelled at one of my guides twice instead. The first time was when he asked with a sense of entitlement that I would leave my boots for him when I left. Now, these are $400 hiking boots that I invest in for work (my last pair lasted me 5+ years and only fell apart when they got too dry at Scotia and the gortex tore), but it wasn't so much the cost of them (we had just finished talking ab out how I am unemployed) that pissed me off, but that assumption that I would just hand them over. I got rather shitty and presumed to lecture him about how I have had to work for what I have. Probably would have laugh it off if it wasn't, again, this assumption that I have wealth and why should he have to work for anything when I should just give it to him. Anyway, apologised to my other guide and explained why I was pissed off.

The second instance was after 5kms of slogging through Fiji forest (well old forestry road that is rather overgrown and muddy) when I asked how much further to our destination. We had walked half this distance on Wednesday the week before, and my guide had told me there was a reserve further along the road. I asked him at that point how much further would we need to go to get there and he told me it was only a little way further, so me thinking this had planned for a fairly easy walk, and as such had not packed either food or much water. SO 5km into the walk it turn out we probably wouldn't reach the reserve until 4 tht afternoon (was about 11:30 at the time). So in fact it wasn't a "little bit further" but rather than tell me this they guide decided to tell me what he thought I wanted to hear... so I yelled, stormed off to calm down, apologised and explained why I was upset, which seems to have had an affect as I asked about another road later in the week and he said that he didn't actually know where it went. Apparently this telling people things are not far is typical of Fijian guides. What I don;t understand is why it is put up with. Tell me if you don't know cause we can always find out if necessary or if something is a far off then the necessary plans need to made to allow to get there. Is not a bad thing to not know and can be remedied, but it seems that rather sort this out, people here just accept it......

Anyway, Monday after the aborted trip I realised I had broken myself. Physically had pushed things too far (which would probably explain why I had been so shitty the day before) and upon trying to get out of bed a 4am for another day of field work, was physically unable to. Is the second time I have pushed my body to that level of exhaustion and is probably not a very smart thing to do. So skived off and slept all day. Guides were getting to a similar state after 6 weeks of surveying so was probably better for them as well to have the day off.

Final four days were spent round Monasavu dam where the Vuga was flowering. Alas can not report the rediscovery of the red-throated lorikeet. Did see Pink-billed Parrot Finch (IUCN Vulnerable) which was a bonus, but not what I was looking for. OH well - is not survey #3 that has failed to find the species. Have a number of theories on this (like the wrong time of the year) but will all go into report and probably not off any interest to you, the reader.

One morning (that was subsequently rained out) a song came on the radio. Have since looked up both the song and artist and found this chick from the US called Ingrid Michaelson. Have not heard any of her stuff and am somewhat surprised that the crappy dated stuff that Fiji radio plays, would result in the discovery of a pretty good artist. Is that kinda quirky, folky pop music, a bit like a female Darren Hanlon, in the simplicity of the lyrics and melodies, but beautiful because of it. Am diggin' it....

I am now packed up and out of the village, looking forward to NOT eating tinned meat for a LONG time.

Few more days in Suva and then.... well it feels odd to think I have been here since January. Suva has kinda grown on me and I will definitely miss the warmth when I leave. But on the flip side I am looking forward to coming home, but know that will have itchy feet within a few months..... have applied for a few jobs and am trying to scrounge some casual field work, but still unsure as to where I am going and what I am doing..... is part of life and I would be miserable if my life was planned out... how mundane to know that in 12 months time I would be doing the same thing as I am doing now. Stability....... I suppose most people would call it but...... urgghh....... anyway, next entry will probably be the last (though if some of this field work pans out maybe not...) and will be after a week of diving and resorting. AM quite looking forward to being a tourist.

My week back in Suva is coming to a close. I head back to Nadala on Monday for the final two weeks of the kulawai survey and to be honest I am not really looking forward to it. Suva kinda grows on you, once you get past the street vendors and the taxi drivers. I actually know my way around now so am not totally lost when trying to drive from one place to another.

This week saw me not really doing much constructive. Due to the sevusevu requirements of going onto village land it is hard to just pick a spot and go do some bird surveys so I was hoping to hook up with the other terrestrial birdo in Fiji (the first one is the guy I am working for) and go and have a look at a few sites about Suva. Unfortunately this didn't happen as the only day he had free was one I actually had plans for, so maybe we will get to meet up later this week in the mountains or maybe we wont at all..... who knows and I am really at the point where it makes no difference to me.

So my week has involved a bit of data entry, a freebie rafting trip and an assessment/survey of eco-tourism potential.

Rivers Fiji (who run the kayaking trip I took; see last entry) also run a rafting trip down the Upper Navua River. This is a little different to the kayak trip (doesn't involve grog drinking) and runs through Fiji's only RAMSAR site (for those who don't know RAMSAR in international convention on wetland conservation). The trip itself is 25km of the river in a multi person raft, with much of this through the ramsar site. It is a long canyon that ranges from5-25m in width and has some very unique biodiversity values. Also has some pretty cool rapids - or would have if the water levels were higher. Was pretty low and a bit slow when we went, but pretty and is kinda cool to get out the rafts and just drift along through these canyons. The guides were intent on getting us in the water and a few people were bodily tossed in, I was dragged in, and for revenge my guide was pushed (I only did it the first time, the second time he lost his balance). The funniest part is trying to get back into the rafts as there is nothing to grab a hold off. The guides will physically lift people back into the boats by the life jacket - these boys are strong!

So myselt and one of the NFMV girls got a freebie ride down the river (normally about $190 USD), on the agreement that I was to go back the next day and walk a 4km stretch of road and have a bit of a look at the avifauna there - so really they were not loosing any money as I am worth a little more than that for my professional skills

So leaving Suva at 4am, to get to the site by 6am I walked this 4km stretch, and walked back., This would have been fine except I totally smashed a tyre on the way up and had to change it on return to the car. Was an utter pain. Took me about half an just to find the port to drop the spare from under the car and I had a minor melt down - hours from anywhere, no phone reception etc etc frustration got the better of me, deep breath and a look in the manual and all was back on track until I had to dig around in rock under the car to drop the jack low enough to fit under the jack point etc etc. Anyway, got it changed and set off again only to be pulled over at Pacific Harbour. I am paranoid about speeding here as the speed limits are a bit ambiguous. Speed limit is max 80km/h, but 50-60 through the villages. It increases back to 80 at the end of the villages...problem is I don't always know where the villages end. Some are obviously delineated others......hmmm..... so seeing a police officer on the side of the road with a speed gun, and then getting pulled over about 1 km up the road I was a little worried (have no idea what the fines are like). It was just a check of my license, though the guy did comment on the dirt on my clothes "How you get so dirty?" "I have been in the UNCA and had to change the tyre" "You changed it all by your self?" "Yep... not much choice" "Oiy that would have been hard" (looking mildly impressed). Is hard to explain that you are used to changing tyres on a 4wd in random places at odd hours of the day to most people, so I just smile and say "well you have to do it.....". Seem to suffice.

Bird survey was for American manager of eco-tourism venture in Fiji. Now the reason he was getting me up there is because the company is interested in developing this aspect of the business. There is money to be made in birding and 20 species along 4km (12 endemics) is pretty good...so I am I think being sounded out for potentially developing this. I am however first and foremost a conservation biologist so the idea of being a glorified tour guide really doesn't appeal. I also don't want to move here permanently, so if I could swing 4-6months at a time, and couple it with ecological work in the RAMSAR site... well I might consider it...otherwise...... who knows. I am not closing off the option and will give the guy a chance to put forward a proposal, but really my heart is somewhat in Melbs and I am quite looking forward to coming home.

Anyway to complete my week, Fiji was on Tsunami alert last night. I was here on my own with messages telling my to be prepared....how does one prepare for a tsunami? For all those Australians who have ever registered with DFAT before heading off, you will be pleased to know they do actually contact you if there is a warning. I receive not only an e-mail but also a text warning me of the tsunami alert and to 'be prepared'. So I packed all my important documents into one easily accessible place, filled up about 12L of water incase drinking water was impacted, turned on the radio and was in for a long night (not as bad as Nunia who was off to a wedding and ended up spending the night in a bush shelter as it was higher ground than the house she was supposed to be staying in). Oh btw the warning was cancelled at about 5:30 this morning after a 0.3m wave hit Lautoka and a 0.1m wave hit Suva.

At the moment I am physically wrecked after no sleep last night and rafting and surveying and early mornings so today has been very nonconstructive. Most productive thing I did was go to the supermarket so I could make nachos for dinner. I should be getting all the fresh fruit and veges I can before heading back up the mountains (my diet becomes pretty much tinned), but no I am craving re-fried beans and corn chips... go figure.

So a little over 3 weeks to go..... I fly straight to Melbs when I get back to Oz. Friends from Tas will be in town and Sach and Anna have a new house for me to check out amongst other things (such as babies and boys). I guess I will also have to start thinking about what I am going to do with myself, where I am going to plant myself and all that....anyway time will sort that out.

I have decided to run away from the village for a week. It has been a bit of a conundrum as I feel like I am abandoning my project, but I need some time away from the demands of the place. It is really quite hard as there is this perception that because I am white I am rich, and certain people in the village try and take advantage of this. This is quite disappointing because it leaves me feeling resentful and bitter about living in the village. There is a real generosity in the Fijian people, as well as a naivety. The flip side of these characteristics is a sense of entitlement (to my money, phone, vehicle) as well as an irresponsibility. If I wanted children I would have had them, I don't want to be taking care of adults because they "forgot to bring food" even though they knew we were camping away over night and had been told to bring dinner and breakfast. So - instead of letting this get to me any more, and thus leaving me with a very bitter feeling, I overcame my guilt of leaving the survey for the week and am back in Suva. I am going to continue with bird surveys around the place here, but it is even less likely I will find Kulawai here.

I traveled back to Suva via the Queens Road on Friday, so I have now circumnavigated Viti Levu. Traveling along this road I have retraced my original path to Suva from Nadi. It was interesting to re-visit this road after 2 months in the country because my perception has changed quite significantly. What I saw as ramshackled, poverty stricken villages amongst the 3 and 4 star resorts I no longer see like that. Now they are just Fijian villages and really, the wealth in these places has become more obvious. Whilst the architecture is typical of the villages, I now see the fresher paint and the new tin roofs or concrete structures, that indicate the benefits of the proximity of the resorts. Obviously, there is still a discrepancy between the resorts and the houses, but by fijian standards these villages are doing well.

The drive back along the Queens Road is right along the water line and though 100km longer than if I had taken the Kings Road, it took a shorter amount of time due to the condition of the road. There are ongoing works on the kings road, where it will take 1hour to travel 10km, and other sections are so pot holed that you can't travel more than 40km/hr. Once the road is finished and repaired however it is going to be a great drive through the mountains. Unfortunately I wont be here to see this.

So back in Suva for the week. This was started with a night out with a few of the NFMV girls to the local club, a few too many drinks and a bit of flirting with a kai valangi across the dance floor. Flirting is all (my parents read this so would edit it anyway), and he would probably have turned out to be an accountant....... so home by 2am (early night cf to olden days; by olden I mean pre 30), but needed to be up by 6am anyway (sorry Tamara I have no more gossip than this).

Why you may well ask am I getting up at 6am on a Saturday morning after an evening of binge drinking and dancing on tables (well not quite tables, but Anna, Lela and myself were up dancing on the chairs). Was asking myself the same thing on the drive to Pacific Harbour, but we were heading off to kayak the Luva River.

I have never done anything more than paddle a canoe around the Menindee Lakes, having previously avoided much boating as I tend to feel a little freaked out in small boats on large bodies of water. However, this was an opportunity not to be missed and as I was getting it for "mates rates" (Rivers Fiji are highly supportive of NFMV and also have a lease, which is now Fiji's only Ramsar site) I thought I might as well give it a go. So myself, Lela and 5 lucky NFMV volunteers were off to play with another 8 real tourists (2 Aussie couples, a couple from the states and a couple from Tokyo).

The first hour or so of the trip involves a drive through the southern highlands of Fiji. These are around the same altitude as Monasavu area I have been working in and nerd that I am I was looking out for any sign of flowering vuga and possible Kulawai habitat. Alas like Monasavu there was nothing in flower.....

As per all Fijian things there is a need for a sevusevu upon arrival in the village. This not only ensures the villagers know what is going on and shows respect for their traditional lands, ensures that no tabau are broken, but also provides a great tourist experience. So we met the head man, introduced ourselves, drank a bit of grog and had photos taken. This was kinda interesting cause one of the guides was a guy from Colorado. We ended up having a bit of a discussion about what I am doing in Fiji with all these tourists listening in, and me throwing in the odd fijian reference, and then having to explain what it meant to the tourists and who Nature Fiji - Mareqeti Viti are, what a kulawai is etc etc. Was one of those moments when you realise that you don't live a 'normal' life, and have more in common with the fijians you are with, the american river guide who has run away from home to work in Fiji, than you do with your compatriots.

So a couple of bowls of grog and I was a little bit..... well groggy. I managed to impale my little toe on a piece of bamboo (don't walk bare foot in villages without lifting your feet), which when I pulled it out was about 1/2cm embedded in my toe. This is almost an all the way through puncture, and a little painful. But I am tough, so pulled it out cleaned it up and was on my way.

The walk down to the river is a fairly steep track of about 300m. No one fell which was a good thing and I managed to hobble on down. After a safety talk we took to the water in our inflatable kayaks, had a bit of a paddle about to get the hang of it and off we went. The Luva River is a grade 2 river, so some small rapids, but good for beginners.

This was great fun! Again why have I waited so long to give it a go? By the end of it I almost looked like I knew what I was doing, I avoided falling in the water and am off to do it again this week - only this time it is for work and is down a different section of river, through the Ramsar site. I do have to do some bird surveys, but will do a bit of a recon trip Wed, play on the water, then head back out Thursday morning to survey a 4km stretch of road. Only bugger thing is that daylight savings has now finished here so sunrise is now at 6 instead of 7 and is a 2 hour drive to the site.....oh well such is my life.

Amongst all the fun of the kayaking I had a bit of a chat with Rob the river guide. He was telling me how he had impaled his knee on a steel post and ended up with a staf infection. The doctors in Suva were going to amputate his leg because they were unable to control the infection. He ended up heading home and still has his leg. I must say this is not what one wants to hear after impaling toe, though to amputate my little toe is not so bad as a whole leg. Anyway we bonded a bit over injuries, remote living and how what we do is not really real work, and well blue eyes, scruffy out doors dude - what can I say? Is a bit of a bummer that he is off back to the states for 3 weeks cause he would have been cool to hang out with - oh well, maybe in another time and another place.......seems to be the catch phrase of my life LOL.

Anyway, more photos of the trip in my album and I have uploaded some into FB too. The wonders of modern communications methods

Will have more stories by the end of the week I am sure as I head back up the river and down a different section in a four person raft. Then back to Nadala for a another 2 weeks and then a week at a resort where I plan on getting my dive ticket and then well...... back to Australia and whatever happens in the future. Really don't want to think about the getting of a real job, and maybe I wont have too.....hmmmm...more on that one in the future.

So today is day three of shitty torrential rain –and when I say torrential I mean torrential. Imagine sitting under a tap on full and this is how the rain has been falling. Apparently there is a hurricane to the north somewhere which is influencing the weather. Day three and I am starting to go a little stir crazy.
Nadala is generally wet this time of year anyway (it is the rain season in Fiji). Most days will be dry enough in the mornings to get out and do some work, with the afternoons becoming wet. If lucky the rain holds off all day and we get a full day of surveying in; so it has been under these conditions I have been working. Subsequently I am missing the sun and pretty over rain.
I decided on Saturday to try and get a bit less rain and a bit of sunshine by driving down into Tavua. This was a bit fun. It never dawned on me that if it is raining in the mountains, then the run off has to go somewhere, generally to lower lying areas at the base of the mountain, and this combined with ongoing rainfall on the coast leads to flooding in low lying areas. So off I went down the mountain. I was about half way down when I noticed all the “new waterfalls” falls along the sides of the road where normally there in nothing. Hmmmm.... it started to dawn on me that this maybe wasn’t such a good idea, but my mind was made up and I did need fuel for this week.
There is one point in the road where it passes through the base of a waterfall regardless of the weather. I think it is the best part of the whole drive and was going to take pics, but it looks like my camera is well and truly stuffed. Normally this is a clear, reasonably still pool of water, about 10cm deep. I arrived at this point on the road on Saturday to find a muddy brown raging torrent. Subsequently I stopped, looked at the waterway and almost turned around. By chance an FEA (Fiji Energy Association) had reached the other side of the creek around the same time as I had. “Local driver” I thought, “He will know if it is ok to cross”. I watched the guy power through, no problems, popped my vehicle into 4WD for safety and went on though. Was surprised at how shallow it actually was and whilst it looked rough, there was no power in the current. I was though (though it did cross my mind that if it kept raining I may not make it back through later on).
Lalala... I kept driving, the rain kept falling and the road kept heading down to lower lying ground. Around a few cows that had taken refuge on the road and I came to a holt. Ahead of me was about 100m of water, no road, and a ‘taxi’ stopped by the side of the road.”Damn” I thought “I have reached the end and I will have to go back”. But not so. The taxi driver looked at the car said “You have 4WD and good clearance, you can go around on the cane tracks”. (Cane tracks are the light rail system that is used when harvesting sugar cane in the region) “Where do I go?” I asked “Around the back”. I must have looked confused cause the next thing I knew the indo-fijian passenger was offering to jump in and show me the way. What could I say? In he hopped and off we went. Up a small gravel track and then onto the cane tracks. They were a little slippery (and I probably was going a little fast.....) but we made it through and back onto the road, only to be confronted by another stretch of road almost completely inundated. A few patches of higher ground were noticeable so I stuck to these and made my way through the water. Made it.
Another km down the road I hit the bitumen, let my passenger out and headed off to Tavua. I spent a couple of hours poking around the town. Bought some curtain fabric, paint and a few other bits and pieces. I was walking down the road when I thought I heard my name called out. Initially I ignored it, but it persisted so I turned around to see a grinning 11 year old waving at me. I have no idea who it was, but is obviously one of the kids from Nadala, so I waved back and headed off. Unfortunately my quest for sun was unsuccessful as it was raining in town also.
After a few hours of aimless wandering and shopping, a quick lunch of chicken and chips (I wanted chicken and cashew nuts but due to all the rain the town was having water issues.....go figure...) I decided to head home. Quick aside – hot chips in Fiji are not hot. They are half cooked and then left to get cold. I keep forgetting this when I order them.... I wish I didn’t.
So heading out of Tavua, the bitumen is under water. This area is low lying, with mangroves on the sea ward side, so not surprising it is prone to flooding. Went a bit fast (30km/hr) though a bit of water and splashed a guy on the side of the road...ooops.....was bad enough for him to have to be walking in the rain I guess, but then to be splashed....... the Fijians are incredibly stoic when it comes to rain. I suppose you have to be when 6months of the year it rains every day.
Driving back up the mountain was rather uneventful. The road had dried out enough that I didn’t need to by pass puddles, or flooding, or anything. The highlight was a Fiji gold (beer) ad on the radio, which I mis-heard the first time. Goes something like this:

The sportsman likes a Fiji gold to relax with after the game;
The workaholic (I first though they said ALCOHOLIC, was horrified until I heard the ad a few more times and realised it was workaholic) likes a Fiji Gold to unwind with in the evenings;
The World Champions will celebrate their win with a Fiji gold every time.
Fiji Gold the beer choice of the nation..... well not those exact words but the sentiment.

So, is 11am and the tap has just been turned on again. I have no idea how I will entertain myself for the rest of the day. Luckily I have an internet connection (though very slow), some curtains to sew and a hard drive of movies. I have already made a start on the report for this survey (swat) and probably should start getting the data in the computer. So shouldn’t get too bored. I might experiment with pawpaw (have some very ripe fruit but very limited cooking facilities). I do hope it stops raining tomorrow. If not I might just run away to Suva for the rest of the week. Is not like I can do anything here, though the National Womens Volleyball Team (the Kulawai’s) are in Nadala for the week doing a training camp and HIV/Aids education thing for the local youths...... might be fun to watch.

Oh yeah - remember Sweet, my neighbour who teaches Economics. His name is Remadre (pronounced Remandra).