Fiji is synonymous with paradise. It consists of some 300 islands and atolls dotted across 200,000 square miles of sea. The main island is Viti Levu, the next largest is Vanua Levu which makes up 85 percent of the country's total land area. Dutch explorers were the first Europeans to explore and Captain James Cook and Captain William Bligh (who sailed through the group after the mutiny on the Bounty) also explored these beautiful islands. The missionaries arrived in 1835 and introduced Christianity which ended cannibalism. Fiji is the most industrious of the South Pacific islands. About one-half of the Fijians are from ancestors who came from India, making the mixture of cultures very interesting.

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We arrived in Savu Savu, Fiji in the northeastern part of the island group. There we were moored at the Copra Shed Marina, which also housed the Savu Savu Yacht Club – the first members-owned yacht club we have been to in 8,000 miles. Here Leslie is emoting with Carolyn (NADEMIA) and Lolly (CONDOR). Other than the tropical flower behind the ear, this does look like a typical yacht club function. We did give them a Larchmont Yacht Club burgee to tack up with the other club burgees hung in their bar.
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While in Savu Savu, we had a Fourth of July celebration, sponsored by the Savu Savu Yacht Club, and complete with hot dogs and beer. The three US boats in the rally dressed ship for the day and generally made noises at our British friends about winning the conflict. By the end of the day, we all sang the Star Spangled Banner and Rule Britannia together.
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Our daughter, Sloane, sailed to Fiji from Tonga with us, and met her med school friend Norie in Savu Savu. Norie is at least dressed for the Fourth, with red, white and blue. Sloane – our national colors are not green!
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As part of the Fourth Celebration, the Savu Savu Y. C. had a fund-raiser for their Junior program, with a Calcutta (Betting Auction) of the juniors sailing a few races in Optimists. To sweeten the pot, the Blue Water Rally skippers also had a Calcutta, and got into the Optis. Here Dick crosses the finish line – in first place. (All that frostbiting taught me something.) The assessment is that Optis are just too small for full-sized adults.
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One day we toured out of Savu Savu to a more traditional Fijian village, with a hunt for the Red Prawn on an islet on the reef. The guide is showing us the hollowed-out logs they use as drums – and in this case the drums are used as church bells. (Notice the different look of the Melanesians from the Polynesians we met in French Polynesia and Tonga). The Fijians also are a very friendly people.
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Village churches tend to be very simple, but the people in Fiji are (almost) as devout as the Tongans. The village we visited had this Presbyterian church, as well as a Catholic church for a small population.
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In the village, we visited the local kindergarten. The kids normally do not see European faces, so they were enthralled by our visit. Here the teacher gets them to sing for us, including one song our kids used to sing at the same age (“The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round”).
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After an hour of walking on the reef and climbing a small islet, we came to a pool of water where the red prawns live. There are only two places in the world where shrimp are red (while still unboiled). The Fijians think this is a sacred spot, so we were not allowed to photograph the shrimp. We were told we would have to clap and sing a Fijian song to get the shrimp to come out from under the rocks. We were a bit skeptical, but it really worked; the prawns came out and they were bright red. Norie shares a laugh with the group.
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While in the village, Alistair (NADEMIA) started talking to one man, and they discovered they had been in the same division of the British Army! We were invited over to this fellow’s house after the trek for the red prawn to have traditional Kava. Here the kava is being made by the guide (who is an MP and the brother of the village chief), with others looking on. As it was our first experience with kava, we learned to clap once befor drinking and all clap three times after the cup is downed.
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The Fijian chiefdom hierarchy ascends to the level of about seven or ten local kings. During a “Fiji Day” celebration put on by the Savu Savu Yacht Club, we were visited by the King of Savu Savu, shown here.
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Kava is the standard ceremony at any social gathering. However, when making it for the King of Savu Savu on Fiji Day, the traditional dress and method of making the kava are a bit more elaborate. (The bamboo pipe holds the water; the cross legged men are mixing the kava powder with the water.)
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This photo was taken by Kimball Livingston when we all got to go forward to meet the king. Sue and Peter from SAINT BARBARA are saying hello, while Abby on MIZU BABY, with Barbie doll, looks on with awe.
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The local Fijians sang and danced for us. While much less evocative than Polynesian dancing, the Fijians had great tunes and dances. Note that it is not just young girls dancing. The men’s dances were actually very war-like.
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It is less common that men and women sing and dance together. Here a woman singing a beautiful solo is joined by a man providing a rhythm section, and having a lot of fun doing so too!
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Some young Fijian girls demonstrated traditional Polynesian(!) dances on the porch outside bar at the Savu Savu Yacht Club.
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On our last evening in Savu Savu, we celebrated Sloane’s 27th birthday. Sloane and Norie went off to New Zealand the next day, while we sailed through Fiji’s islands and reefs for three days to Musket Cove. Thanks to Kimball Livingston for this photo too.
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Musket Cove provided a very protected anchorage, once you got in through the miles of reefs. It is always easier to see reefs from up high and on sunny days. Musket Cove also had a resort in addition to a marina. ARAGORN is stern-to a floating dock in the lower right corner. For those of you into the US Ex Ex, led by John Wilkes to explore the Pacific in the early 1800s for the USA, the island on the right is Malolo, the site of the massacre of Fijians after the brutal murder of two of our officers.
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While in Fiji, Benno and Magrit on DOCTOR BIRD decided to get married! The Musket Cove Resort helped arrange the service on a small islet, and had Benno and Magrit decked out in traditional tapa-cloth wedding outfits. All the rally participants were the guests at the wedding.
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It must have been something in the water! David and Claire (CONDOR) also decided to get married in Fiji, and went before the magistrate three days before Benno and Magrit’s ceremony. Benno threw a reception after his wedding on July 12, with David and Claire as co-guests of honor, plus Dick and Leslie, as it was our 30th wedding anniversary too!
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David York, Dick’s brother from Cleveland, and his friend Maria visited ARAGORN while we were in Musket Cove, Fiji. They timed it right to participate in the wedding celebration.
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Of course, all the rally boats dressed ship for the wedding day. ARAGORN sports the red canvas.
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Musket Cove was near the large island of Fiji, so we went there for a few days. The town of Nadi was nice, with good Indian food and a Hindu temple, as well as traditional Fijian culture. This Fijian policeman shows off his formal sulu (lava-lava, or sarong).
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In the market in Nadi, you could buy kava root from this woman with it packaged in a giant cone. Or you can buy it already ground in the bags to her left
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