Fiji NE

After leaving Suva again we caught some fortuitous SW winds that blew us to to the NE part of the Fiji islands. Our first landfall was Ovalau, site of the first capital of colonial Fiji. Today it is home to a large cannery, which processes 15,000 metric tonnes of fish per year. Living downwind from such an establishment is like living inside a can of tuna. We'd prefer a bakery.

Here's a shot of the Catholic church in the center of Levuka. Note the orange triangle on the top of the spire; it's part of a range marker that leads the mostly Chinese fishing boats to the cannery wharf. The water looks inviting but is full of sharks drawn by the sudsy effluent from the cannery. Absolutely no one goes in the water.

This is a shot of the ruins of the Masonic Temple in Levuka. Built in 1875, it was the targeted by the local Methodist Pharisees during the 2000 coup. They told their followers that it contained a tunnel through the earth to Masonic HQ in Scotland; it was duly put to the torch.

We occasionally play tourista, so in this case we took a tour of the village of Lovoni, nestled in an extinct volcano SW of Levuka. The village has a tragic history. After the villagers mounted repeated attacks upon the colonial settlers, their protector, the great chief Cakobau retaliated by capturing them and selling them off as slaves. Three of them, two warriors and a dwarf priest, were even sold to the Ringling Bros circus as sideshow freaks.

This is the main meeting hall in the center of town. Such buildings are a standard feature of a Melanesian village. Note the traditional architecture executed in steel instead of thatch.

Here's the village elders having a noontime kava break. The communal bowl is called a tanoa. The "shots" are served in a coconut shell, human skulls being out of fashion these days.

This is the Melanesian version of a church bell tower. The blue things are tree trunks hollowed out as drums.

A slice of domestic life.

Swimming holes make for fun anywhere there's a kid.

Here's our local guide Epi, who has a degree in English from the University of Manchester.

We finally had to leave Ovalau for points NE. We include this pic because it is a view of Cape Horn, at least the Fiji version.

A glorious sunset over the N coast of Viti Levu from the island of Nagani.

We departed first for Nagani, then Koro. The latter was significant because it was there we hit an uncharted reef. We arrived at the right time of day but the weather was so thick we could barely see the island, which was usually visible 50 miles away. We got away with scratches and a renewed respect for the hazards of sailing in Fijian waters.

Our original destination was Taveuni, the third-largest island in Fiji. However, our intend\ed anchorage at Somosomo proved way too rough. So, being newly paranoid as a result of our Koro mishap we bravely sailed on to the much more secure anchorage of Buca Bay.

After a few days spent in Buca fixing the usual boat problems we sailed on to the island of Rabi. It is unusual in that it is inhabited by Polynesians. They were resettled from Ocean Island in Kiribati, aka The Gilberts, as a result of phosphate mining and Japanese depredations.

Here's the captain, wearing basic black, on the beach at Albert Cove, Rabi. We ended up being "stuck" here for almost a week as high winds kept us in hiding. Most people might not say we were not all that stuck.

Here's a shot of part of the beach; note the mushroom-shaped rocks and the beautiful range of blues in the shallows.

Here we see a beachcomber; not much to pick up besides blue skies and clear water.

By the time we could leave Rabi we decided we didn't have time to visit a number of other nearby locales, so we sailed for Viani Bay on the SE coast of Vanua Levu. We wanted to dive some famous sites on Rainbow Reef, so called because it has so many colors of soft coral. We weren't sure how we could do this but had heard of Jack Fisher, who lived in the bay and helped yachties visit dive sites. This turned into the highlight of our visit to Fiji.

Here's a shot of Jack amidst his motley crew. Jack has been doing this for almost 20 years. For a modest charge he will take you in your own dinghy to various dive sites and follow you on the surface while you have fun.

Here's Jack in fine form. If he doesn't look Melanesian, it's because he's English-Samoan. His family has lived in Viani Bay for about 150 years.

Here's a happy diver in front of her boat, which is anchored just behind Rainbow Reef. We'd go to the reef during the day and return to moorings helpfully provided by Jack for his guests.

Here's a view of the tub from the porch on the back of the house that Jack built. It was his 55th birthday and we were invited to a party.

A meeting of minds; Vera loves children. This is their granddaughter Tiare.

The birthday boy and his lovely wife Sophie.

Anyway, we can't say enough good things about Jack Fisher. If you want to dive Fiji, have a boat and desire great company, you can do no better.

Here's the soggy-but-happy couple on the reef in Somosomo Strait. The current was like a hurricane and the corals were glorious. We have many underwater pics but have limited sharing them so as not to bore non-divers.

After Viani Bay we sailed west to Savusavu, the second-largest town on the second-largest island of Fiji. We had heard there were a lots of boats there.

There are 40-50 boats in this scene, which is in the mouth of a creek. It's so crowded you can't anchor but must use moorings. We're not quite sure why people come here, there's no particular attraction beyond lots-o-yachts, and a few watering holes. We went there for groceries.

The lowlight of our visit was when the mooring line parted and the boat drifted onto the rocks of the opposite shore. Some Good Samaritan locals rescued it and returned all 24 tons to another mooring. We have been repairing the damage and seeking the do-gooders.

This concludes our second installment of our Fijian adventures. . .

On to our last bit-o-Fiji West

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