Bula! Greetings from Fiji

Bula Vinaka! (Greetings!)

First, the facts:

We (35 of us) arrived on the 20th of May into Fiji. The demographics of the group are 19 men, 16 women. Many recently graduated from college. 4 guys older than I am (one is about 70). 2 married couples. Generally, a really cool group of people. Only a couple of people who have me scratching my head.

We spent the first few nights in camps (dorms) doing rudimentary language and cultural training. mostly bonding with other volunteers. it was all very exciting and new. On Monday the 24th (it is Saturday right now - we are 19 hours ahead of pacific daylight time), we were placed in our pre-service training villages. These villages are all located due east of Suva. I'd paste google earth, but the villages aren't listed. We are all located about 10-20 kilometers south of Nausori. (see google map link at the bottom of the page).

I think I had more apprehension about the village placement part of the process than anything else.

Each peace corps volunteer (PCV) is placed with a host family in a village for the first 7 weeks for language and culture training. 4 of us are in the village of Lomino Koro. I have the COOLEST family. Na (aka Lilly or my "mom") and her 3 sons - William 20, Jeremy 15, and George 10. The father (William Sr.) is currently serving in Iraq as part of Fiji's peacekeeping force for the UN. He is a career army man and will be back in September.

Each village has a chief. Each village is part of a province. Rewa province is the largest province and is where Lomino Koro rolls into. Lomino Koro has no cars, only a concrete footpath that runs through the village. It is an island community accessible only by small boat. About 200 people. Has the oldest Catholic church (though it is primarily a Methodist village) in all of Fiji. Most of the residents have indoor plumbing, running water (at least sometimes) and electricity. I really don't know if the tap water is treated. I think so, but we were issued a water filter that my host family was very appreciative of.

So here's the really cool part. Lomino Koro's chief is the chief of all of Rewa province. All other chiefs roll up to her. Yes, I said HER. She was the Minister of Education in the gov't that was ousted in the coup in 2006. Very well educated woman. I met her last night. My hope is that I will be able to cultivate a relationship with her as she is excited about the Peace Corps being in Fiji. Her name (if you wish to google) is Ro Teimumu V. Kepa. If you are interested, poke around a little. She actually was detained during the coup in 2006.

My na - Lilly my host mom - is head of the Ladies committee.....and she basically acts on behalf of the chief. They are quite close. In other words, again, I got really lucky in this part of my placement.

Now, it's a really long story, but the bottom line is that it appears that the women are the ones who get things done, but they don't get any credit (this is the stuff I can't put in my blog - it's also JUST MY OPINION). Grog (kava) is involved. See the Wilipedia link below

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kava

(Parenthetically - Last night we went to a party that was thrown for us in the village. Like all parties, Kava (or grog) was involved. My dime store reaction is that many of the young men in Fiji do little more than drink a lot of grog. Grog is the most apt description of what it appears to do to people. It's like a mild sedative. A major demotivator. I probably will continue to write about this, as it is a very interesting cultural phenomenon).

Anyway, Lilly is head of the Ladies committee in Lomino Koro and is super tight with the chief - of all of Rewa. Head of the largest confederacy in all of Fiji. She lives 300 yards from my house. I'm looking at her house as I type. And they want to get stuff done. So it's very exciting, as I will have many opportunities to meet with this woman and learn from her what she's looking for from Peace Corps. I don't know what's in store, but it should prove to be interesting. More to come on this for sure.

Now, on to Fiji. You know the picture you have in your mind? The one where when I told you that I was being assigned to Fiji and your reaction was "Wow - that's great!" and silently (or some not so silently) you said "you f*&^ing A**h&^e! How could you be so lucky?" Well, it's not exactly like that. It is extremely poor. It is a developing country. It is an emerging culture. It is very backward. You do not want to be a woman in this culture. You cannot show any skin if you want any respect. EXTREMELY male dominated culture. It is difficult for me to get used to how the social hierarchy sits. I will continue to write about this in emails as well.

Now, the personal stuff - Imagine these two scenarios:

One, you are in a beautiful country, lush, green, tropical. Poor, but filled with extremely friendly people. Many Fijians fully understand that it doesn't cost any extra to be nice. Fijian time totally exists. It's whenever it's (it being fill in the blank) supposed to happen. Completely family oriented - there are tribes with clans and they stick together. The party I went to last night (some pics attached) was a family event. We ate dinner, and then danced for hours to this quartet (2 women and 2 men) who had nothing but a drum and their voices and it was incredible. Everywhere I walk in the village I am greeted with a "Bula" or a "Io" and a smile.

Two, you are in the same country described above, filled with those really friendly people - who have almost no concept of what privacy (as Americans define it) is/means. The greetings of "Bula" and "Io" are often followed by inquiries of "what are you doing, where are you going, where are you coming from?" (these are complete strangers asking the questions). You cannot be in a hurry here. You will surrender quickly because you won't get there on time. On a more personal level, it is a huge adjustment. The Peace Corps requires that each PCV is provided a room with a lock by the host family. I have that. It is about 6.5 feet by 7 feet. It has 2 windows, but there is virtually no breeze in Lomino Koro. Even though we are going into the cool season, it is hot and sticky. I exchanged emails with a couple of current volunteers in Fiji before I left and they both mentioned that they were going to burn every piece of clothing they have when they leave. I've heard that from 3 other current volunteers since arriving AND I COMPLETELY UNDERSTAND. It's hot. And sticky. Anyway, back to my tiny room. My concession to my station in life was to buy a fan. Thankfully, I have electricity and I am willing to pay the host family for the cost of the electricity so I can sleep, because without the fan I wouldn't (didn't) sleep. There is no privacy in the house. I have no avenue to do my yoga. I cannot run in the village. There is no soccer (only rugby). I am SO HAPPY I brought my coffee. It is my complete and utter luxury.

On the other hand, I wear a skirt every day. Actually, it's called a sulu, or the fancy ones are pocket sulu's (yes, because they have pockets). That's what men wear here and I love them. Men cannot wear shorts in the villages (the city is a completely different story). Especially older (hehe) men like myself. We wear sulu's. They're great.

Truth is this is a huge adjustment. I love my host family, but the no privacy thing will be a challenge for me for the next 6 weeks. I am struggling with the language - at least I think I'm struggling. I don't have a frame of reference of being thrust into it when I have to learn it. I know that others are picking it up more quickly and there will be a test. I can't be sworn in until I pass the test. Two years of being this dirty all the time, confined to cold bucket showers seems daunting. My brain has not been overwhelmed in I don't know how long - frankly I don't remember having to try this hard at anything (primarily the language). Because I am the elder in our group (as well as the only male), I am the one to do all the talking. For instance, this morning in church, I had to address the entire congregation and do a greeting in Fijian. Because I am a PCV, it really is not an option to say no to pretty much anything.

I am holding up well. I miss my daughters terribly but have been able to skype with them. I will have internet access during my remaining 6 weeks in Lomino Koro (I just have to walk over to the provincial office with my laptop to get close to the wireless). I don't know the what or where of my permanent assignment. I think I will request to be placed in the urban setting of Suva. It's close to this village and I like the idea of perhaps working in the Ministry of Health. Our work in our host villages is around turning people on to composting and rudimentary waste management. Some of the folks are ahead of the game (like my Lilly - she has a gorgeous garden and she composts). There is NO garbage system in any of the villages. Most burn their paper and grass clippings and bury their plastic and tin. Some villages just throw everything into the river (including human waste).

During my time here in Lomino Koro I will also be working with youth groups around sex and drug/alcohol education and trying to leverage my friend Robyn's efforts in El Salvador to build a kiln and a kickwheel there and do the same in this village. Those would be called secondary projects, which is the beauty of the Peace Corps - to be able to try and implement some difference makers of your own along the way.

All that said, it is a beautiful country. Lush, green, gorgeous. I haven't seen any of the resorts yet (though Tony Robbins was behind me in the customs line at the airport when we arrived - talk about a disconnect). One of my reasons for wanting to be placed in Suva is because we do get weekends off as well as 24 days of vacation each year.

And after I finish my training in the village, I can have visitors!

That's all for now. I hope everyone is well. Write back with news from home if you're so inclined. Below are some pics and a google map of where we are.

Moce (pronounced Mothe) meaning kind departures

Maciu (pronounced Matthew)