After the Beach

At night, we checked out the Farmer’s Festival going on in town, which was basically a carnival. The three of us guys decided we wanted to ride the Ferris Wheel (the only big ride there) and left Tomi to take the pictures. Almost immediately after getting into a seat, I realized there were a few issues. One, the Ferris Wheel let people on and off in a strange, almost random pattern. As in, one group would get on a seat, and then it would revolve nearly halfway before letting another group on. Two, it was freaking high, a fact we came face-to-face with when we got stuck at the top of the wheel for two minutes right after getting on. Three, it looked freaking scary. As in, its design looked like someone built it with oversized K'NEX pieces. The seat the three of us were in was a simple metal seat with a back, and we were ‘strapped’ in by a piece of plastic hose. Oh, and if anyone leaned slightly forward, the whole chair would tip forward. Drastically. The first thing I heard Toyo say was “I’m going to piss my pants”. And the first thing Shin did was to lean forward.

Terrible terrible decision. But after the ride started (literally took like five minutes) and started going at a good speed, it was actually really fun. Except when the chair would rock forward as if it was going to throw up off. Thankfully, we made it out alive.

Later on, I found out from my hosts that apparently someone had died from this ride the year before, because the screws fell out when she was sitting at the top. And another had died in a nearby city. And many more in years past. WHY IS IT STILL RUNNING?

Sigatoka Sand Dunes

7/25

I met up with Hitomi and two of her friends (Shin and Toyo) to check out the famed Sand Dunes of KuluKulu (a village in SIgatoka). We climbed into a shady minibus andarrived shortly after noon.

The national park was very well kept, and the guide gave us the option of the one hour or the two hour walk. We’re lazy, so we picked one.

We walked through the forest, with me repeating myself a lot because I tend to talk too fast and they were still English-learners. We arrived at a gorgeous view of the surrounding ocean and hills. We could actually see where the other trail was cleared on another hill, giving it a ‘cracked’ appearance.

Getting close, we climbed up and down hot sand dunes to get to the beach.  They were several stories high! Next time, we’re gonna bring surfboards to go ‘sand surfing’ down these dunes.

On the beach, we found these flat red stones on the beach with an almost veiny appearance, and then realized they were coconut seeds. And while taking a picture, the ocean snuck up behind me and Shin, and completely drenched our pants.

Walk walk walk. We crossed to a more inland area of the beach, and found…horses on the beach. Wtf?! At first, I thought they were owned by the village, but there was no one looking after them and talking to another person confirmed that they were indeed wild horses. Whoa.

These little kids came running out from the village entrance waving a flag, and running up and down the sand dunes to our left, which was pretty amazing, considering how steep and high they were—literally 5 storie! I was itching to try, so I jumped onto one of the dunes and tried to run up. I didn’t get very far before I had to use my hands too, and pretty much clawed my way to the top. Sand kept coming down around me, and I had this uneasy view that I was gonna trigger a sand avalanche. But getting to the top, I found an absolutely sensational view and waved to my friends below as king of the hill haha. Now, getting down was awkward. I ended up doing his crab like crawl down, with my legs before my torso, so I ended up shoveling a ton of sand down with me. That was tiring.

We realized we didn’t have much time before the park closed so we started heading back, but not before taking a wall on this piece of land in the middle of the ocean that was covered in life/bits of coral. On the way back through the forest, we came across a sign that said “Tree of Lost Soles”. I was thinking it was a spelling error, but then we saw the tree. Holy crap. It was actually a tree, with dozens of shoe soles dangling from its branches. Wow, the Fijians must love their puns.

Ladies of the Night

When the ladies of Fiji come out...

July 17

So Ana got me a minibus to take me back to Lautoka. It dropped me off in front of Microfinance West, at which point I realized the town was completely empty. Great. I run around looking for a taxi, circling to the bus station, back to MFW, then to the main road. As I walk, I start running into these girls on all these block corners, and quickly realize that they’re ALL prostitutes. Thinking back, it was actually the first time I’d run into any, let alone by myself at night. Sketch. I just keep walking, and you know, politely declining their offers to “Have good time!” But they kept coming, and approaching me for cigarettes, to go ‘sit down’, etc. This one even yelled out “Ni Hao!” I was really impressed, actually, but she followed up with something like “Chingchong”. Fail. Ironically, this is the first time that someone got my race right on the first try in Fiji. And she’s a whore. I was getting, really, REALLY annoyed. Seriously, what part of ‘dude walking at night with backpack’ screams ‘I want a hooker’?! After I reached the electronics store, I realized I didn’t want to keep walking because there weren’t any lights. Luckily, I ran into a nice drunk man, who advised me to go to this nightclub and wait there for a taxi since there were muggers roaming around at night. After about twenty minutes and more conversations with drunk dudes, I finally got a cab back.

 

July 18

So today, I found my way to Suva. Dante and I were on our way to this bistro to meet up with his friends, these two kids Beth and Brad. Anyway, we hailed a cab and got going. Halfway there, we realized we didn’t actually know where it was so we stopped to ask directions. Immediately, and I mean immediately, these four girls swoop down on the taxi. At first, I thought they were either Dante’s friends, or girls who were really really desperate for a cab and thought we were getting out. And then we saw their skanky outfits. Oh shit. One of them grabs the door, and forces her way into the other back seat. Yes, literally just climbs into our damn cab. “You want to have a good time?” I am starting to get really tired of all those hoes. Both of us tried to be nice and tell her to leave, but she kept insisting that she wanted to go where we were going. We did however, manage to get directions to iCrave (the restaurant that should be an Iphone app). Finally, after like five minutes, we managed to get her to leave when we told her she would have to walk back alone from iCrave. All this time, the cab driver was just looking really smug. Dammit, I bet he’s got a deal going on with these hookers! But seriously, what is up with Suva? It was only eight pm…

July 12

Today, Josh (the two year old nephew) came running out of the kitchen while we were watching friends…waving a knife that was at least three feet long, almost as tall as he was. 

I reached out to take it from him, so I grabbed his little hand. The knife swung up and hit me in the arm. I let go, and he dropped the knife  almost on top of his mom’s foot. 

Am I going to survive six more weeks?

VIII: One Lucky Bastard

One inch. Just one inch more. And I would not be here typing this. Today at lunch, I decided to get my butt over to the gym on top of the pharmacy.  Arriving, the only people there were the two trainers, both very friendly. After introductions, I moved on to the free weights to do some curls. Then, I decided to try the bench press. Each side was loaded with 30kg, so I started removing the two weights from the left side. 

            BAM. The bar came flying up and slammed across my head, falling to the floor with a clang as I realized what had happened. Removing the weights from one side made it completely unbalanced. There was no hook, no stop to the bar. I clasped my hand to my face, thinking it was a small scratch…and pulled away with a hand of blood. Shit. I immediately turned to the mirror, and saw the blood streaming down my face. My image in the mirror shocked me, and I just stood and stared for a second, horrified. I turned again to the trainers and yelled for help.

            They came running up, very worried, and got me a cloth. I asked for a bandage and Joe went running off. Looking at the wound in the mirror, I confirmed that it had completely missed my left eye (THANK GOD), which relieved me so much that I didn’t even care I was bleeding profusely.

            I used the cloth to block the bleeding, and when it stopped, applied the bandage. The two trainers were extremely worried, originally thinking the bar had slashed my eye. One whispered, “Are you going to sue us?” I tried to stay in good humor and explained what had happened. Later, I realized that the main reason the bar had come flying was because it only weighed roughly 10 pounds, whereas I’m used to the 45lb bars of the US. So therefore, it couldn't be unbalanced AT ALL. Assuring them that I would not be going to the hospital, I left the gym.

            And the more I thought about it, the more it frightened me. The cut was less than an inch away from my eye. If I had stood a tiny bit, just a tiny bit more to the left, the bar would have gone completely through my eye and brow, and ruined my vision forever.  I felt so lucky, yet terrified at the same time. Luck. It all came down to luck. Or perhaps it meant God was watching over me. Was this a sign? Thoughts rushed through my head and I knew nothing for certain, except that I wanted to head back to the sea. 

            I tossed my backpack on the grass, and looked out over the ocean. After a few minutes, a boy asked me “Where are you from?” I was obliged to converse. Turned out, he’s attending college right now, and comes here to the seawalk in the afternoons. He told me about the fisherman who come here to fish, the yellow crabs grabbing their way out of the sand, and the huge crabs that lay in the water in between the lands. It was a strange feeling. I felt older, entertaining  a younger kid. Something about how he wouldn’t stop talking was annoying. But endearing. 

I told Roho I looked forward to seeing him on future days.

VI: Lazy Sunday

Dorinda’s church “New Life” is located down a dirt road. We enter a room of wooden benches and standing people, already in the middle of worship. Several men and women stand in front to lead the service, with a mic in the middle.

For a good hour and a half, it was all songs, dances and stories—something I’m definitely not used to. Some male teens performed a dance that involved rotating in a circle, and then the children came to sing a song. The best one, however, was the meke (traditional dance). Several people dressed up as the old Native Fijians, with leaves and warpaint, and smeared on what smelled like coconut oil. They rushed in with a war chant and ‘faced off’ against the colonists. The two groups stepped in unison, with the native group often rising up in bone-rattling chants. One woman from the audience jumped up to join the festivities. Haha I have no idea what this has to do with Christianity, but it sure was entertaining. Keep in mind, this all happened in the aisle between the two main groups of chairs.

I met D’s daughter “Chum” and her son, Christian. We sang, we clapped, we drank (juice). The speakers included this Indian woman who thanked God for stopping her from smacking the shit out of this rude smoker yesterday, and a preacher who seemed to just discover how loud his voice can get haha.

After two and a half hours, we left early to go back. Chum followed us, and we had a wonderful lunch of stir fry, tapioca, lamb (eh…)—basically the biggest meal I’ve had in Fiji. Afterwards, I took the liberty of kicking it Fijian style and took a nap for three hours. Ahh, the tropics. 

V - Nightlife

It's Friday. At night, I called a cab to go to the Northern Club, where Tim’s farewell party was being held. As I was walking down the street, this random kid turned around and called out “Konichiwa!” Why the eff does everyone here think I’m Japanese?! The Northern Club turned out to be a very nice place, where mostly the Caucasians in town go to hang out lol. I sat down at a table with a couple (who turned out to be Yalies), an old man who was getting really hammered, and this other Peace Corp chick named Kiva.

We spent the night having a few drinks (or in the case of the old man, a lot) and talking about all the spots around Fiji. I can’t wait to hit up the Yasawa islands (beach paradise!) and Taveuni now (rainforest paradise) now =] According to Nathan (the Yalie dude), Fiji has magnificient diving, better than the Caribbeans. The old man apparently lives on one of the islands, and only comes into town to blow his pension money hahaha. In the middle of our conversation, Kiva turns around and asks Nathan, “This is kind of awkward….but are you part of The Tribe?” We were all ‘wtf is the Tribe’. Well turns out, it means, “Are you a Jew” HAHAHA

This guy named Chone arrived, with his guys going in opposite directions and being rather uncoherent. Someone had been drinking too much grog lol. (Grog is the traditional drink of Fiji, made by mixing ground up Kava root and water. It makes you kinda numb and super lazy. Oh, and may contain traces of LSD?) According to Kiva, Chone is the top dentist of the entire Western Fiji LOL

Some of Kiva’s friends came and joined us, and then I met the table full of Fijians sitting next to us. Everyone was having a great time, and when it was around 10, Kiva and her friends wanted to show me the nightlife around town. We headed out after some loooong goodbyes, and they decided to first hit up this Fijian Club, which apparently was as ‘Fijian’ as you can get. The Fijian girls worked their magic with the bouncer and he let us all in for some spare change. SO SKETCH. The whole place looked like a cave, and there were bars on the windows. From what I could see, it was a bar with a small dance floor that was lit up by flashing disco lights. Oh, and no one was dancing. Apparently, Fijians only dance when it’s a Fijian song. And we quickly learned that every time a song ends, EVERYONE gets off the floor and waits to see if the next song is gonna be in Fjian or not lol.

We left after a while, because I wanted to see some of the other spots (which would hopefully be better). And soooo we headed into a…Indian club! Wow. Even more awkward. It was a rectangular room, filled with those cheap plastic chairs. And lots and lots of old Indian men. All staring at this tiny dance floor, that had even MORE disco lights. Creeeeps…we kind of went on the dance floor for one song, and got the hell out of there. Never going back. Ever.

Alright, last hope. The Zone, apparently the most Americanized of the clubs in Fiji. To get in, the Fijian girls with us went to giggle up to these guys sitting outside the entrance, while the rest of us stayed back (THE way it’s done in Fiji haha). After a while, they beckoned us over. Apparently, the deal was that all of us had to drink a cup of the murky grog they had in a pan... Well, you only live once. Anyway, we got in, but the place was again, rather sketch. Small dance floor, disco lights, surrounded by nicer couches filled by workers, etc. English music, but nothing I had ever heard of before. We danced, we chatted with the workers for a bit. And then I calmly proceeded to get the hell out.

Getting back to Dorinda’s house, I found a strange man with dreds lying on the floor. At first, I thought it was Droinda, but then I realized it was a he. Ok, not my problem. Good night. 

III

At work, I took a trip to Nadi with Sam. We chatted along the way, and he’s a really cool person. Promised to take me fishing/diving with the sharks. HA. Along the way, we passed by a truck labeled “Red Lite District Truck” Kinda of awkward, no? I mean, what do you do with that? Get dropped off in the middle of the road to pick up a whore? Who would want to be seen boarding that bus? Oy. Sam also kept talking about this substance called ‘grog’, which is apparently some kind of alcoholic substitute that makes you extremely lazy and your tongue go numb. Later on, I realize that this is the infamous ‘kava’, ground into powder and mixed with water.

We met the workers at the Nadi office, and I followed Naina into the ‘field’ to see the work of an FCO (field credit officer). Landing in a large village, we walked about the roads and visited several members of MFW, starting with another Sam who ran a small shop. The rest of the members were in their own houses, which were nicer than just shacks. They resembled D’s house, except much smaller and dirtier. Small mats covered the dirt floor. Still comfy though. One of the ladies even offered us tea and bread and butter (all things that people of this country like WAY too much). Unfortunately, even though most Fijians speak English, their native Fijian is the language of choice when conversing. Meaning I didn’t understand a damn thing. Anyway, we were in the car back to Lautoka by noon.

At night, I stepped out of the shower to find about ten people in the living room. Was not prepared for this. Apparently, one of the family’s relatives had died a few months ago, and this Saturday was to be the ‘Hundred Days Ceremony’, where the family of the deceased gather to celebrate his life. With lots of grog. So in front of me were mostly relatives of Sam, including his bro Freddie and his sons: Walter, Eddie, and Henry. There was also an older women, and Josh. They spent most of the time making fun of Uncle Tom (who loved the attention), most of the time in Fijian. Grr. Supposedly, Uncle Tom has been getting too fat living at D’s, and now his legs can’t support his weight haha. No real decision seemed to be made about the ceremony, which was to be held this Saturday in Kulukulu, their native village located by Sigatoka. Everything was ‘ok, I’ll call tomorrow and tell you’.

Oh, the Fiji lifestyle.

 

Fiji: Day II

EFFING DOGS! Won’t let me sleep. They just stood outside my window and kept barking for two hours straight, starting at 3 am. And when they went away, the Rooster started crowing. Yes, the roosters next doors. Funny thing, they actually sound like “Cockadoodledoo”! Except that it’s not funny at 5 am.

Today, I met Dorinda’s husband, Sam, the ex-soccer player who used to play for Fiji and now researches new sugarcane crops. Exciting switch. At breakfast, he told me that it normally takes 17 years to develop a new crop, and guess what? This is the 17^th year.

Work. I finally talked to Timothy, the Peace Corps Worker, and he gave a rundown on the issues and projects that he’s spent the past two years working on. Seems to include a lot of brochures, overviews, training, and unfinished projects. He gave me another viewpoint on the issues occurring in the country, including how the military takeover is screwing the economy over. Apparently, this Good Friday, the President just suspended the Constitution and fired EVERYONE else in the government. And the next Monday, he rehired all his buddies to the posts of government, minus all the judges who told him he couldn’t suspend the Constitution in the first place. Surprisingly, there has been very little reaction on behalf of the Fijian people to this military takeover. My hosts told me that Fijians only talk, and never act. They weren’t kidding.

In the afternoon, I went with Tim to his ‘Ministry of Youth’ session, where he brought this Jeopardy-esque game, with little pieces of construction paper stuck onto a board and given values of 100 to 500. This was his final time here. It was pretty amazing how into the game each of the four teams (Rose, Eagles, Cheetahs, and Sharks) got into the game. And how little I knew. Eesh. A lot of them actually seemed to care. It was a runaway victory for the Cheetahs, but everyone played til the end. I had my moment when I got to chuck the prizes (lollipops) at the winning team…and some others haha. Afterwards, one kid missing his front teeth stood up and expressed his gratitude for Tim coming and teaching them about starting their own business, which I actually found rather touching. I’m sure it was prompted beforehand, but even so. The trainer came in and led everyone in a ‘farewell song’ for Tim.

Annndd….met Hitomi! The elusive Japanese student who's also staying with Dorinda. Oh man, she is far more entertaining that I expected. She walks out of her room in an oversized tshirt, hair tied so that it sprouts up at top. She’s very skinny, and walks with a shuffle. Everytime she talks, she bows her head slightly, and when she wants to answer affirmatively, she goes ‘Hai!” I went into her room to talk to her, and found her listening to Japanese music. Turns out, she’s twenty-nine! WTF. I thought she was my age! And she acts like a fifteen year old lmao. I’m kinda curious about Japan now haha.

Fiji: Touchdown

It was still dark as we drove along the countryside away from the airport. Dorinda, my host, introduced me to the surroundings and answered my questions regarding Microfinance Unit West; namely, why they charge a savings fee (5 cents per dollar) and a withdrawal fee (3 dollars). Wouldn't that actually discourage the poor from using microservices? Apparently, banks in Fiji have a monthly charge for keeping savings, making them even more expensive than our group, Microfinance Fiji West (for the poor).

Going up a steed driveway, we arrived a D’s house—a nice place surrounded by coconut palms, banana trees, chili plants, and taro. I met an endearing old man, the uncle of D’s husband (also Sam), named Uncle Tom. And no, I was so tired Uncle Tom’s Cabin didn’t even come to mind. Haha anyway, Uncle Tom was sitting outside with a huge barbell (wtf). Turns out, he was only using it as a support to weave his fishing net on.  He had a quick breakfast of bread, eggs, and tea, and headed off to work.

The office is located in the middle of town, yet is completely inconspicable. It’s located on the second floor of a building, and the only sign is so small that I barely noticed it when I stood right by the doorway. Walking up some stairs, we reached the main office and I met the current employees of the Lautoka office: Dorinda, Sam, John, Ravi, Ana, Vina, Vena, Joey, Emma, Kini, Louis. Yep, just eleven employees here at the main branch. Apparently, there are 3 more branches with a total of thirteen employees. Welcome to the biggest Microfinance Organization in Fiji.

The Peace Corp worker, Tim, arrived later in a Hawaiian print shirt and a traditional Fiji garment, the Sulu. A skirt. Can’t quite get used to the look lol. Apparently, I was quite tired (aka dozing off), and Dorinda noticed. We left the office around 11 and she dropped me back at her home before leaving for the Sigatoka Office.

I went straight to bed, and repeatedly fell asleep/woke up, so many times that I would have sworn it was night except for the fact that it was still light out. Finally getting up, I headed to the living room and found Uncle Tom, who was watching some English show about stealing cars. And Power Rangers. Apparently, he spends the days making his net (just a month more to complete) and watching TV. We talked about his life, which mianly included him talking excitedly and gesturing while I nodded and laughed like a I understood what the hell was goingo n. I did get that he played rugby , likes fishing, and once landed a shark (what a BA). According to him, he was fishing when a shark ate his hooked fish, so he and his buddies pulled it up, and chopped off its tail. What a fun guy.

 

Interesting tidbits:

Sam: “There’s few shark attacks. Like once a year. And that’s cuz one fisherman tie his fish to his pants, you know. You can’t blame the shark, we’re the ones trespassing in his territory”

Uncle Tom (about Hitomi, the Japanese girl living here): The Japanese girl! She’s moving out with her boyfriend. Eh? Coming to Fiji to make love with Japanese heh.

Everyone thinks I’m Japanese. Everyone.