Buying sevusevu in Savusavu, Fiji
Seaduced
John & Jane Craven
Sat 21 Jun 2014 21:54
We are now starting to understand the concept of winter in the South Pacific. I think that we both expected winter here to be similar to winter in the Caribbean, sunny and dry with temperatures not much less than the summer ones, however it is not quite like that here. We have had temperatures in the low 20s for the last couple of weeks, and the evenings have been cooler still. We are really feeling the difference and have largely stopped using the fans overnight and I even suggested getting the duvet out at one point much to John's great disgust! We are also getting much more rain that we expected.
Anyway, Savusavu is not exactly a true Fijian town in the way we thought. We knew that there was a large Indian population in Fiji and this town certainly bears that out. Almost all the businesses in town are run by Indians, and the predominant cuisine is curry. We found probably the cheapest curry house charging 7.50 Fijian Dollars for super chicken curry, rice, dhal soup and roti, which works out about £2.50, less than the price of a side dish of rice in most English curry houses.
Main Street, Savusavu
Clapped out old buses!
This chap had a wood carving hut opposite the marina where we bought a kava bowl - not sure it will ever be used for its true purpose though, might remain decorative!!
Whilst we were here, we attended a seminar run by the local cruising guru, Curly, about sailing in the Fijian islands - what an eye opener! Firstly, we realised that we had way too short a time here, not so serious in the long run as we intend to come back for a whole season, but, more so, the plans we had made to visit the islands to the west of Fiji, said to be the most beautiful in the free cruising guides we had read went immediately out of the window. The islands are poorly charted and basically all resorts and hotels, nothing like the 'real' Fiji at all. To give you an idea of how badly charted they are, Moorings, a huge charter company, had a fleet here but moved after 18 months to Tonga due to the amount of damage done to their boats by skippers sailing around these islands!
The most interesting and most traditional islands are to the east. Unfortunately, due to lack of time we won't get to the Lau group this time, but we definitely want to come back and visit them on our return.
When I say traditional, I mean it. We thought we had seen a different side to life in Tonga but, here in Fiji, we were in severe danger of getting out of our comfort zone. The islands are surrounded by vicious reefs, so much so that your sailing day in and out of these places is limited to between 09.30 and 16.00. Planning a route and getting anywhere takes a lot of time but the chap who runs the seminars also has lists of waypoints for all the islands and sends you a list so you know exactly where to go as the reefs around here are very scary!
In order to take part in one of the more traditional ceremonies in Fiji, and to ensure you are welcomed into an anchorage, it is customary to take part in 'sevusevu'. This involves taking a bunch of dried kava to the village chief and asking for his permission to be on his land, in his waters and also for his protection. The best place to buy this is in the market, which on a Saturday is absolutely buzzing with people. There is even a small kava drinking bar in the market, with a prominent no spitting sign. We bought our kava and whilst doing so were invited to taste the product, it truly is horrid, but at least they laughed at my attempt to drink it without pulling a face!
Pulling a face is strictly frowned upon if you are involved in a sevusevu and the whole ceremony may involve drinking up to three cups, all downed in one. Whilst we are excited and a little nervous about taking part in a ceremony, I think drinking that stuff without pulling a face will be the hardest part! Offending the chief can result in you being asked to leave the island, an offence which can only be resolved by someone attending the village and the chief on your behalf, another thing that Curly does, and presenting him with a whales tooth, then and only then may you be forgiven.
Lastly, while we have been in Savusavu, we have been joined by Ivan. He has been on a couple of ARC boats previously, but as his last one was held up getting repairs, he is now with us until Vanuatu.
Dried kava for sale at the market
Saturday is the main market day when the whole town turns out
When we bought our kava we were given a sample to try - yuk!!
Having now had all the information it is time to go off exploring......
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