Fiji Times

Where do I even start. I am sorry it has been so long. It is really a good thing because I am finding myself much more occupied and less bored with time. Also, my computer keeps breaking and I hate typing on my phone. February flew by so incredibly fast. On February 15th Nina (my cousin) arrived in Fiji. It was a wonderful visit. We went to the beach, sand dunes, a small island, saw a bit of town life and spent a couple days in the village as well. 

Reasons Nina was a great visitor:

1. She was flexible when Fiji would happen. This was the week leading up to cyclone Winston and so we were always on our toes.

2. She asked the locals a lot of questions. They love having someone genuinly interested in their world!

3. She told stories. "talanoa" means to tell stories and it is what Fijians spend a lot of time doing-it's great. 

4. She brought them "American" lollipops aka Tootsiepops. It is important to have tasty chasers during grog sessions. They lovedddd the tootsiepops. 

5. She was patient in living the village life (eating other food, showering in cold water, taking buses everywhere, etc)

Now- everyone come to Fiji and be like Nina. 

In school I have a "question box" where students are encouraged to anonymously (or not) submit questions about anything that they would like me to answer. Fijian students are usually discouraged from speaking up or asking many questions and so my hope (and success) is to have them feel more comfortable in asking the questions I know they have about Family Life Education (sex, nutrition, lifeskills, feelings, hormones, puberty, relationships, college, gender identity, etc). I am doing the same with my blog. I have encouraged readers to submit questions in the comments section anonymously or not ;-} that I will try and answer. Here are some of the questions so far....

How many different Fijian dresses do you have?

I would say I have around 5 Fijian dresses and am always looking for more. I buy about 3 meters of the material and then pay someone in town or in the village to sew it for me. There is no such thing as patterns here so I just tell them what 'style' I want and hope it looks nice. My favorite style is butterfly-nice and cool and comfortable compared to the other styles.

What did you bring that you never need/use?

Honestly there isn't much I brought that hasn't been put to use. Almost everything I would want or need (besides a lot of processed food/cheese/some veggies, etc) can be found in Fiji but it is expensive (especially on a volunteer budget) or difficult to get (in the city). I wish I didn't bring extra batteries. They are easy to find and cheap. And most of the ones I brought dont work now anyways due to humidity, etc.

How is the gardening going?

It started off wonderfully. I planted 24 cucumbers and they were growing rapidly. They should take about 2-3 months in Fiji. However, at about week 7 of growing they were murdered when a neighboring garden full of rootcrops (cassava) was sprayed for bugs and the wind blew it over to my cukes :(. I still have tomato, zucchini, long bean, chives, basil and carrots I plan to plant when all this rain stops. 

What is you favorite type of fish?

I don't know what types I am eating. I can say tin fish is not my favorite.

Why do you think Fijians ask if my parents are dead/alive?

I think they ask this because life expectancy in Fiji is very short. I don't have the stats on hand but I would say to pass at 60 is not abnormal here, mainly to non-communicable diseases.

How often do you get to see other Peace Corps Volunteers?

I am lucky and in a position to see other volunteers really whenever I would like. One of my good friends lives in my town (15 minute bus ride away) and the main city (Suva) is less than 2 hours bus ride from me. I probably see someone every 2 weeks on average. 

How fluent in Fijian are you?

Ha. Hardly. It is really hard for me to learn another language...or more so speak it. It is definitely about my confidence. About a month ago I started with more formal tutoring lessons though and so that has helped. I learn best by visually seeing words. 

What is something Missy in the US wouldn't recognize about Missy in Fiji?

Hmm. Probably my coping ability to sleep with rats. I will have to think more on this one. Good question.

Okay so those are the questions I had. Please submit more! 

I feel like I have talked Cyclone Winston to death. But I will say a little bit. During the cyclone I was evacuated to one of the large cities (Nadi). It was nice to be looked after by the Peace Corps but at the same time I felt guilty and privileged. To have the ability to be evacuated. To have the ability to know ahead of time how bad the cyclone was going to be (radio, phone, internet access). To have the ability to leave my home because I am single, healthy and financially capable. To have the ability to be in a well built structure with plenty of food, friends, and a generator. Privilege is a tricky thing. It is so easy to be taken advantage of but it is so important to recognize that I was one of very few in Fiji (and in many ways in the world as a white middle class woman) who had this privilege. It was the longest 36 hours of my life before I made any contact with my village after Winston  left and it was a very short conversation to hear if everyone was safe and alive. It would be another 8 days before I spoke with anyone again as they had lost phone service and power. I cried that day. I had been somewhat numb before that, but on that day to just be able to hear someone's voice was a wonderful feeling of relief coupled with grief and guilt. "When are you coming back" I was asked...having to explain that I couldn't go back until it was deemed safe, for me. 

Okay, that is all for now. I have a lot more to say but I will look for your questions on what you want to hear. 

The contents of this Web Site are mine personally and do not reflect any position of the U.S. Government or the Peace Corps.

Above: Me with the Minister of Education when he came for an unexpected visit to the school after Winston.

Above: Me and one of the teachers. This is my favorite butterfly dress.

Above: Nina and Lepani at our waterfall

Me and Nina on a boat on our way to a small island