Fiji

Viti Levu is the largest of Fiji’s 300 islands at several hundred kilometers circumference, so we
opted for a bus tour instead of bicycles. First stop was a model village sponsored by Rotary
International and the New Zealand government to address the cycle of poverty and
unemployment. They accept motivated families that have no other means of escape from that
cycle, and teach them the skills necessary to cope in a modern society. All children attend school
through the 12th grade, all adults work at learning a trade, and everyone learns how to live in a
productive democratic setting. These are pictures of the kindergarten, village, and Margie’s
attempt to bring home an 18 month old souvenir.


























Next we went to an original sugar cane plantation house. It is no longer a working plantation,
but the descendants of the original settlers still live there, growing flowers, and showing tourists
what life was like for the landed gentry.








































The country of Fiji is approximately 50% Indo-Fijian, so our final stop was a traditional Indian family, where we learned how to make their ubiquitous flat bread and cocoanut curry. Yummy!!!
On the way back to town we passed the incredibly ornate Hindu Temple, the largest such structure in the South Pacific. We weren’t allowed in, but the view from the street was beautiful.