A few thoughts on Fiji...

Its not even 7am in Fiji and I'm already up and sitting outside my bure, 

listening to the sea lap gently onto the sand.  There's utter silence apart from the birds, which is not surprising, considering I'm now half away from Vitu Levu (Fiji's biggest island) by boat, at a small island resort.  And it's idyllic.  The sea is so clear that when all the snorkellers had gone last night I wandered around up to my knees and fish as long as my hand swum by.  It's possibly the clearest sea I've ever seen.

But this state of general blissed-outness has taken a while to arrive at.  Fiji has been an interesting experience and the main lesson I would take away is always do some research about where you're going (you'd think I'd have learnt this by now!)  Never just assume.  Fiji is a country unlike any others I've visited and I was definitely on the backfoot for the first few days, playing catch up between my assumptions (chilled out beach islands) and the reality (traditional, village-based society with resorts along the coast).

I've also been quite cross at the itinerary the tourist board made up for me; a different hotel every night, which means constantly moving (Suva's tiny airport was quite an experience, this is the scales they use for weighing bags)

 and never getting the chance to stay long enough to really discover anywhere.  But now I'm here, on this tiny fleck in the middle of the ocean, I'm glad that I got to spend time on the main island, where I could get more an insight into authentic Fijian life.  Many visitors fly into Nadi, catch a cab through the expat houses and resorts on Denarau to the port and then spend their time here, or somewhere like it.  It's idyllic, but you don't see much of Fiji itself - this is the big market in Suva

and the open-sided buses everyone gets around on

And now is the time to come, I think, because tourism is changing Fiji, as it does everywhere.  It's seen as a force for good here - all the land on the islands is Fijian-owned, no non-Fijians can buy land, so there's no high-rise apartment blocks and even the biggest resorts are low-rise and non-intrusive.  Right now, life in the villages sounds like (mythical) Britain in the 1950's; doors are always open, everyone knows each other, people share what they have.  And a lot of cava drinking goes on.  But on every lamp-post in Suva, the main city, there are mobile phone advertisements and Stephen, the GM here on the island, was talking ruefully last night about the change he sees in what today's kids want for Christmas (iPads, phones etc) as opposed to his generation.

Change comes everywhere of course and its the classic tourism conundrum; it brings money in which is good, it often changes things for the better, but old ways tend to be lost.  In Fiji, however, tourism isn't new (my resort, Castaway, has been here for almost fifty years) so maybe the changes won't be too radical.  It is a different kind of tourism to anywhere else too - I've never been sung at so much - here's the reception committee for our arrival boat yesterday...

Today I'm moving again, to another island and there'll be another hotel tour and another hosted dinner; full-on again but a great way to gain more of an insight into the country.  Last night's was hilarious, with the hugely camp and very entertaining Lingo, who was rather like a Fijian Om Puri.  And this was my walk to dinner   

so I can't really complain.  Strolling back, the stars were mind-blowing.

Like the best of travel, Fiji has been fascinating, challenging, rewarding and utterly beautiful. Oh, and I've also learnt glass-blowing.  As one does on a South Pacific island, obviously.  Here's a pic as proof.  Happy Saturday.