Standing in between Yesterday and Today on Taveuni
Take Off
Jörgen Wennberg
Sat 18 Jun 2016 19:38
We arrived early in the mist of the Fidjian morning at Taveuni.  We had hardly entered the Viani Pass onto Viani Bay on Vanua Levu that Jack Fisher the chief of the village came to guide us where to anchor correctly. Yes here too the charts were not accurate. Another beautiful place on earth!   The same day we experienced the commuting, the “school boat” from the remote villages bringing the kids to the local school.   We had breakfast and then took the dinghy to the village where we visited the local school, Ucunivatu Primary School.      We were warmly welcomed by the classe’s teacher, an Indian guy. The Indians in Fiji Indo-Fijians or Fijindians are Fiji citizens who are fully or partially of Indian descent, which includes descendants who trace their heritage from various parts of the Indian subcontinent. They number 313,798 (37.6%) (2007 census) out of a total of 827,900 people living in Fiji. They are mostly descended from indentured labourers, girmit, from northern part of India brought to the islands by Fiji's British colonial rulers between 1879 and 1916 to work on Fiji's sugar cane plantations. Mahendra Chaudhry became Fiji's first Indo-Fijian Prime Minister on 19 May 1999. We were welcome into the classroom and we told our story as well as the kids told us about their schedule.   The teacher told us how they work and inform about the danger of using drugs. They also have “cleaning” days where they pick up trash. So good!   The school is very well kept, clean and nice. The kids got very curious about Alex and Inez and integrated them straight away in their games….     … as well as doing painting with them!      As usual they quickly found some friends!   We thanked the Indian teacher by giving away a few school paper and pencils and the Indian teacher was as thankful for our spontaneous visit.   Alex and Inez proud of their paintings made at the Fidjian school.   Later on that evening we moved over and anchored by the island of Taveuni. TAVEUNI We had dinner and spend the whole evening by Taveuni Dive Resort.  The day after we went diving at Rainbow Reef: Lodge and Fisher’s Reef. And wow what a diving! First the Center itself took care of the kids, thumbs up! We also met a lovely guy from California with an Egyptian background and half Swedish (!), Karim. Really nice guy.       The beautilful black little sea anima is called a “Spanish Dancer”. It real fits its name!    When we came up at the surface there was an amazing big rainbow.   The day after we attented a Sunday service at Wairiki Mission Church. As usual lots of singing, praying and lovely people!       We then drover further to visit the Real International Dateline: In the 19th century, needing to establish an International Dateline to distinguish one day from another for navigators, a line was drawn right through the middle of Taveuni and the island was forevermore divided geographically into two days. On a road near Waiyevo village is a sign, which marks the location of the 180th meridian of longitude. Another marker, more precisely placed, can be found beyond the end of the Waiyevo village football field overlooking the sea. Here you can have your photo taken and have a little fun with time travel     |