Bula! (Fiji)

Hi again everybody,

      I have just spent 2 weeks in Fiji and I thought I would tell you a little bit about it. First of all, if you fly to Fiji you will fly into a city called ‘Nadi’ (pronounced ‘Nandi’ by Fijians). You will be wasting your time if you stay here too long…. it is full of touts trying to rip you off. But one good thing is that it is very cheap. We stayed in dorm rooms for $8.80 a night (roughly 3 fijian dollars to a pound), and a filling chinese or indian meal can be bought for about $3. So stock up on stuff in Nadi and then head out to see the beautiful Islands Fiji has to offer.

Mana Island - closest island to mainland, so has more supplies and stuff for you while youre there. Very cool place. There is a fire every night on the beach where everyone goes to socialise, and beer is fairly cheap. You’ll meet many fantastic people. The dorm bed cost us $45 a night, but this includes three meals. If you come here you’ll definitely end up doing the ‘Bula Dance’, so watch out!

Tavewa - This island is in the Yasawa group of islands and it takes 4 hours to get there by boat. It is a beautiful place and you will not find better beaches anywhere. The food is very good, but lots of people complained that there just wasnt enough ( including me obviously :) )

The Fijian people themselves have a legendary reputation for being warm-hearted, a lot of fun and very generous. All this is true and more. You will hear the word ‘Bula!’ ALL the time…. and it means a variety of different things, but most importantly it means ‘Hello’.. so dont be afraid to use it generously, as the Fijians do themselves.

Kava is the national drink of Fiji and it has a great cultural significance to them. If you are offered a cup of it say ‘Bula’ clap once and down it all in one. When youve finished, clap three times and say ‘Venaka’, which means thankyou. I wont spoil your first experience of kava by telling you how it is, but lets say it makes you feel strange.

WARNING - if you go to the islands, do NOT expect good facilities. There are NO washing machines, NO hot showers and no shops anywhere. I spent a very boring hour in the company of one girl from Liverpool who complained constantly that there was no hot showers. Dont be like her!

I’ll sign off by saying Fiji is an amazing place to visit… and i would reccommend it wholeheartedly.

Thats all for now,

Lunny :D

Also, dont be afraid to wear a sulu. You dont look like a girl in Fiji!

Bula Venaka!

I’m flying in to Nadi, I had no real intention of going there at first, but then a ticket included it so thought, why not :D

How did you get from Nadi to the islands, and how much did it cost roughly?

Any other bits of info would be cool :)

Hey sorry only just seen this. We arranged our first trip to an Island (Mana) within minutes of landing at the airport. There are agencies there… keep your wits about you and you’ll geta good deal.  :)

I know that Fiji is a popular destination for people on a gap year and from your post I can see why. It seems that Fiji is a great place with friendly locals, sandy beaches, cheap beer and a good atmosphere. I enjoyed hearing about the traditions of Fiji such as the drinking of the Kala drink, it is those kind of things which make visiting other countries worth while. It’s good that you visited other Fijian islands because that gives you a better understanding of what Fiji is like away from the usual tourist track. You give good advice for prospective travellers to Fiji such as the price of accommodation and food, what the locals are like and which islands to visit. It is useful for travellers to know that they should not expect certain facilities on the islands to avoid irritation. I didn’t go on a gap year before I went to university but if I had I think that Fiji is definitely the type of place I would have visited.

Jonathan Paice

well said!!!  :D

Hello,

I’ve posted a couple of messages on this site, but to no avail, so I’m contacting specific people who contribute regularly through their diaries.

I’m currently writing an article on gap years, for a magazine called Careers Adviser. The piece is about what advice CA’s should give…

I am hoping to hear from anyone who has completed/nearly completed a gap year to quote in the piece. Ideally, I would like to hear a positive angle about how life skills (languages, hobbies/pastimes etc) learnt on a gap year, have had an impact on people about to start uni; developing confidence, encouraging pro-active/can-do attitudes, etc… Although both good and bad opinions are welcome…

I don’t need huge quotes, and may be able to use material from your diary, but obviously I would need your permission to use it…

Thanks in advance,

Finn