About Fiji
Click here to see a map of FijiFiji is a beautiful, tropical place. It is perfect for diving and and it has excellent facilities for travellers, whether you are on a low budget or you wish to splurge in one of the luxury resorts. Fiji has an interesting blend of Melanesian, Polynesian, Micronesian, Indian, Chinese and European influences. Indigenous Fijians, have managed to hold onto their traditional culture with such practises as: mekes (narrative dances), bures (houses), kava ceremonies, tapa-cloth making and pottery. Suva, located on the south-eastern coast of the big island of Viti Levu is Fiji's capital. Suva is home to half of Fiji's urban population, and is also one of the South Pacific's largest and most sophisticated cities. It is home to many must see attractions such as the Fiji Museum, the many colonial buildings, mosques, temples, churches and cultural centres and the most famous, The Roman Catholic Cathedral. The waterfront area is a great sight, being the main port. The Suva Municipal Market is a must for visitors with its exotic fruits and vegetables, kava, fish and seafood, and spices. It has an exciting multicultural flavour, with vendors selling brightly coloured Indian sweets and savouries, and fruit drinks from glass tanks. Nadi is Fiji's third-biggest town, set against a mountainous backdrop on the west coast of Viti Levu. While in Nadi you can see following The Sri Siva Subramaniya Swami Temple, located at the southern end of the main street, the numerous restaurants and shops and of course the Nadi markets. The Mamanucas are a group of small islands just off the western coast of Viti Levu, these are easy to reach by boat from Nadi. The islands are particularly popular with divers, snorkellers, surfers and anyone who wants to lay about on open stretches of white-sand beach. The lovely reefs and colourful fish make snorkelling around these islands a fantastic experience. Sigatoka is a small town on the southern coast of Viti Levu. The highlights here are the big produce market, a large mosque, the Sigatoka sand dunes, the Sigatoka Valley and the magnificent fantasy-style mansion on the hill behind the town. East of Nadi, are the fantastic landscapes and remote villages of the Nausori Highlands. The village of Navala is probably the most picturesque in all Fiji. Almost all of Navala's homes and buildings are traditional bures. They don't get many visitors here, and Sunday is a bad time to go as it's the day of worship and for spending time with the family. Bukuya village is further west and is a worthwhile excursion.
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Culture
Fijians practise many traditional arts and crafts.Dance is strong in Fiji and the narrative meke performances rest on strong oral traditions. Dances are passed down from generation to generation, and in their strict forms the dancers' bodies are said to take on spirits of the netherworld. Mekes accompanied special events like births, deaths, calls to war, marriages and property exchanges. Traditional Indian dances are still taught in Indian communities.The missionaries brought hymns and choir singing to Fiji, and local church singing is heavenly. At Indian cultural centres performances and lessons are given in traditional Indian music featuring vocal, harmonium, tabla and sitar ensembles. Fiji is famous for its pottery and wood carving is important. Fijian carvers make war clubs, spears and cannibal forks. Carvings in areas that have a Polynesian influence feature inlays of shell and bone. Bark cloth, known in Fiji as masi, was traditionally made throughout the Pacific. Ceremonial robes, waistbands, trains and turbans were once made from masi and the cloth was decorated with symbolic motifs in ochre-rusts and charcoal-blacks. The weaving of pandanus leaves into mats and baskets has a long tradition, too.
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Local_Currency
The current currency is the Fiji dollar.Travellers' cheques can be exchanged at banks and exchange houses as well as most larger hotels and duty-free shops. The most useful currencies in Fiji are Australian, New Zealand and US dollars. Visa, American Express, Diners Club and MasterCard will be honoured in most restaurants, shops, middle and upper-end hotels, and tour and travel agents. Some resorts will levy a five percent charge if you pay by credit card. You won't be expected to leave a tip when paying for goods or services, and, as in most South Pacific cultures, bargaining is not considered polite. The exception to this rule is with the Fiji-Indians, with whom you can be quite comfortable haggling the price of almost anything.
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Transport
There are good transport connections in Fiji. The quickest and most expensive way to travel between islands is by plane. You are also able to travel by ferries and small local boats.Ferries are inexpensive, frequent, reliable and very seaworthy. Ferry routes connect most major coastal areas of Viti Levu and Vanua Levu with all the major islands. You can charter boats as well, or catch one of the smaller unscheduled local boats between islands. The larger islands have good bus networks, and outside the towns you can often just hail down a bus wherever you see one. Express buses travel between major centres and local buses seem to stop at every village they pass.
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