Transportation Inspiration

You don't have to be in Fiji long to get acquainted with some of the quirks of living here and transportation is one of them. When trying to get from A to B in Suva there are only two options - bus or taxi. I wish I could say one is more "unremarkable" than the other, but both are fantastically odd and will ever-amaze you with their tackiness. In fact, I think it is each driver's personal mission to deliver the highest quality of ridiculousness in their little moving houses of fun.
When I rode the bus for the first time a couple of months ago, I wasn't sure what I was in for. Yup, let's just say it was a little strange. The decor was pleasant to say the least - plastic covered seats with pealing paint on all the metal-worked framing, matted looking tassels dotting the front windshield, faded pictures of Hindu deities taped up along the dashboard, and this huge pleather-tassely thing covering the stick-shift (driving with one of these appears similar to palming a basketball... seriously). I gotta say the combination of all of it made the ambiance strangely charming. The music really topped it off though. The radio blared hit after hit of today's chart-toppers from India. It was like listening to the soundtrack to the Bollywood version of 'You Got Served' - epic! If it weren't for the sounds and smells of the transmission about to drop, I'd have thought I was in a nightclub. Meeting capacity standards is not exactly priority for the good ol' 'Central Transport, Ltd.' It was incredibly packed. I've never seen anything like it actually; there were three to a seat all the way back and the people in the aisles were practically on top of each other. It was, of course, a million degrees out as well, so the bus created a sort of solar oven in which all of us would eventually roast to our death. Let me tell you, it was a good time.
There is equal effort put into the "entertainment" sector of the taxi industry here as well. Often the dashboard will be plastered with bumper stickers or bobble heads and tinker toys. The seats are almost always covered in plastic so that your butt sticks comfortably to the surface and usually makes a squeaking sound as you move in and out of the cab. Again, you'll commonly find yourself listening to 'Hindi-Hop' (as I have affectionately termed it), and staring bedazzled at the enormous and fantastically stupid-looking tassely stick-shift cover. The makings for the best of transport atmospheres is, of course, when there is an additional seat cover placed between the plastic one and the seat itself (they really like their seat covers...). The most tasteful of these 'tweeners' are made of fake animal skin (leopard is my favorite) or out of a gigantic doily. So avant-garde!
Regardless of whether you take bus or taxi, if you're headed out for a night on the town in Fiji, the entertainment starts before you even get to where you're going!

Soul Searching

It's been a long time since I've felt this way. I wish that weren't true but it is. I feel like my soul is full. Last weekend I went to a boarding school in Natovi with members of my host Rotary club, Suva North, for a work day . The day was part of a project that's been going on for quite some time now. The club started out by making repairs to dilapidated buildings around the school's campus - installing mosquito screens in windows, putting up dividing walls in dorms, cleaning up rubbish built up over the years, and touching things up with a fresh coat of paint. I could tell a lot of work had been done already, not just from the project coordinator's words but from comparing places that had been improved versus ones that would make projects to come. Almost all of the work prior to Saturday's was done entirely by Rotarians, with little assistance from the school faculty or children. The purpose of going this weekend was to change that - we wanted the kids to take ownership over where they lived and teach them to care for it. To start this process, we thought we'd teach them how to paint, work with instead of for them, and emphasize taking pride in their home.
When we arrived on-site the beds and personal items were already removed from the dorms and everything was placed outside under overhangs in case of rain (it rains almost daily here). There were about fifteen kids there to start out, aged eight to twelve give or take. The others were making up classes missed during the flooding that took place a few months ago. We began by having the kids clean up the remaining trash and odds and ends on the floor and shelves; it's all part of the prep process. Next was scraping the walls to remove old pealing paint, stickers, tape, sticky-tack, etc. to get ready to apply the first coat. I could tell the kids were going to do great job already, they were attentive and hardworking. We put down newspapers as drop clothes in the center of the room with trays and drums of undercoat spread out for the them to use. I explained the importance of being careful not to splatter onto the nice hardwood floor (which were in remarkable condition by the way) and continued by demonstrating how to use a roller versus a brush. We had a kid pour paint into the trays and off they all went!
It was really cool to see what a good time they were all having just whitewashing walls. Soon the older students joined us and the process continued as the crew painted the insides of three or four other buildings, two coats each. After leading the youngsters all morning, I had a following by mid-day. I walked around with a group of little ones doing projects. It seems that all my experience in youth work was reflected in how the kids responded to me. I taught them how to clean the brushes and trays and how to store them properly and they worked incredibly hard. A couple Rotarians commented on my way with children, they were impressed by my ability to teach the kids how to do things and how much fun they had in the process. One later asked, "Hey, can you go do that thing where you get them to do everything themselves and maybe have 'em clean these brushes up too?!?" I said I would and told them how I'd always believed in the 'learning disguised as fun' philosophy. I was thankful for all the training experience I had in camping and youth work; thankful for Suz's* emphasis on participatory learning. More than that, however, I felt blessed to have the opportunity to use my skills and training here. Many of the children were from small villages and had never seen how a room is painted, let alone been able to do it themselves! It was great to be a part of such a unique opportunity for them. The day had it's hitches but we accomplished much and were exhausted by the time we headed out. It was worth it though.
I have to say this was the best time I've had since I have been in Fiji. It's funny to think that when I first came here all I wanted to experience was sun and sand, but after Saturday I'm finding that I'd take a day like that over the beach every time. It's an incredible thing to give to another, especially children, and I felt a fullness in my soul I haven't felt in a very long time. I've been reflecting on the whole 'why am I here?' thing and think I may be arriving at it. It's time for me to give myself up for awhile, to live humbly and serve others selflessly. I'm here on a scholarship through Rotary, who's very motto is Service Above Self, and I think it's finally hitting home for me. I'm considering working with the Natovi school for my on-going project here and have been putting together some ideas about how to improve their programs. I know that my experience and training in camping and at Woodward Academy would provide some valuable insight to help move things along. I'll keep you posted.
Time is starting to go by quicker now as the routine is setting in. The grad school work load is ever-increasing and I'm getting busier by the day. I still manage to miss home every once in awhile and think about my friends and family all the time. Despite the occasional homesickness, however, I'm grateful to be here and am looking forward to the seeing where the Natovi project will go. Speaking of grad school, I better go and get some reading done for an upcoming project. I hope everyone's lovin' life back home. Take care and write me if you get a chance. Peace out.



*For those of you who don't know - Suz was my camp director at both Hantesa and Toccoa and taught me practically everything I know about youth work. I consider her my mentor in camping and am continually inspired by her dedication to kids and her passion for quality program development. (Thanks for everything, Suz!)

I Won't Hesitate

I think it's time for another update, so here goes. Nina and I spent the whole of our long Easter weekend on Venua Levu, the smaller of the main Fijian Islands. We left on Thursday evening with some people we met in Suva and took a twelve hour overnight ferry that ported in Savu Savu, where we'd be staying for our time there. The group was composed of young professionals, many of which own their own businesses here or are in middle management of major companies. Apparently this is a yearly event for them; they choose a destination and get a group together to take a trip. There was plenty of drama over the weekend, but Nina and I managed to stay out of the mix of it. It was actually kind of entertaining to watch, haha! Side note: I feel it's appropriate to say now that despite the drama, I was refreshed to get to spend some time with a large group of people again. It's a bit wearing to spend all your time with only one person. Nina's a fantastic flatmate and friend, but it's nice to have the group dynamic every once in awhile. Plus, y'all know how much of a people-person I am, so I've been proud to say I have lasted this long apart from a large group of friends without going crazy!
The weekend was nice and relaxing and finding things to stay out of the drama wasn't hard to do. Whilst in town, Nina decided to buy a snorkel and I followed suit and purchased one myself. We asked around and heard that a place called Split Rock is a spot with some of the best snorkeling in all of Fiji. Since it was close to our resort we thought we'd walk. Although we were told it was nearby "just another kilometer" became an all too common phrase from the locals we met along the way. After walking about 8k there, we finally reached our destination! Despite our rantings about how long it took us to get there (we weren't expecting a hike and flip-flops weren't exactly the appropriate shoes for the trek), a dip in the ocean was just what we needed cool us down (literally and figuratively). And, though the locals don't have much sense of distance, they know their snorkeling! It was fantastic; like visiting another world! The corals formed deep crevasses you could swim between which made you really feel like you were in the mix even though you're mostly on the surface. I saw some of the most beautiful fish you could imagine in all shapes and sizes and the coral formations were breathtaking alone. Needless to say it was one of the most memorable experiences of my life. I just wish I had an underwater camera to show it off! We spent the rest of our time wandering around the island, chillin' poolside or on the beach, and taking pictures. Other than that, the rest of the trip was relatively unremarkable. Well, except for one thing...
Mom says coincidence is God's way of remaining anonymous. I'm not sure where she gets her quotes (by which I'm blessed to hear regularly), but I think there's wisdom in that thought. Sometimes I cannot explain why or how I find myself in crazy-cool situations but it happens nonetheless. Back to the ferry boat ride - About half-way through our trip I somehow found myself sitting on a woven mat with a group of ten or so Fijians, drinking kava and singing songs ranging from Van Morrison to K-Ci and Jojo. They were incredibly talented and remarkably in sync with each other; they gave each song an island feel and the harmonies were unreal. I sang with them, of course, and played a couple songs on the guitar each time they passed it to me. After a few hours of this I felt truly blessed to be singing again and to be with a group of such talented people! I found out that some of them were in a band called 128, that toured around the Pacific and that they were putting on a show in Savu Savu Saturday night. When the guy told me this, it hit me just how surreal the situation was. I was jamming with a well-known Fijian band on a ferry boat travelling between islands in the South Pacific. I should write a book! To top it off, he invited me to come to the concert and sing a song or two with them! A couple nights later I found myself in another surreal situation - I was in front of a couple hundred people singing lead on a cover of Jason Mraz's 'I'm Yours.' I only sang one song but I'll never forget it! After it was all over I kept asking myself how it all happened and thinking 'How did I wind up so lucky?' Probably just coincidence.

Is This Heaven?

There are some interesting aspects about living in Fiji that are hard to appreciate (if you can call it that) unless you've lived here for a bit. I'll only share one with you now, though I assure you there are many. One of those things is the "mangy dog factor." Few realize the impact the gross over-population of dogs has on one's experience in the barrios of Suva, but believe me it can take its toll! The first time this became apparent to me was back when I was temporarily living in Tamavua at another flat. I would classify the 'Tamavuan' dogs as one of the "quieter" varieties of Fijian stock. They were well-mannered and affectionate and only bark occasionally throughout the night. The downfall of the 'Tamavuan' is its rooster-like quality - between 4-5am, you'll be delighted to be awoken from your slumber by the neighborhood pack. Strangely enough, the vocal chords of this variety are slightly altered from the norm. Instead of a bark, the mongrels make a mutant-like screeching howl for 10-12 seconds at a time, only pausing to take a breath! It's really charming.
Although my affection towards these dogs made it difficult to leave Tamavua, alas I had to relocate to my current flat in Samabula, another suburb of greater Suva. I was pleasantly surprised, however, to find that the mangy dog culture is flourishing in this neighborhood. In fact, it's perhaps the Mecca for the Fijian mutt; the "Strip" of doggy Suva. I've found that there is a thriving nightlife here for them that is unmatched around the globe! To make things even more exciting, they often congregate right outside our building at the corner! Every night the dogs make their rounds, running up and down the streets barking, howling, and fighting each other from midnight to about 3 or 4am. My favorite activity of theirs to observe, however, is what I have affectionately termed the "doggy drive-by." This is when they get together at the corner (about 15-20 dogs, literally!) and proceed to walk up the hill, barking at each house as loud as their little lungs will allow for about an hour. Let's just say the barks are a sort of Fijian hymn for me and the feral dogs are the minstrels! Their song soars through the still Fijian sky. "Is this heaven? No it's Samabula."
Hope this gave you a laugh! I gotta say the dogs have been cause for a bit of adjustment from the quiet sleep I used to get in small town Iowa and at camp. I've adapted though and have learned to turn up my fan and shut the street-facing window in my bedroom before hitting the sack. I'm sleeping better every night now!
Well, I'm off to have lunch downtown. Hope life's treating everyone well. Peace and grace always, y'all.

Coming Home

It's not what you're thinking. I haven't called it quits or packed my bags for the U.S. Actually, the title of this entry refers to the feeling I had when I was riding the bus into town yesterday, after my weekend in Nananu-i-ra. After spending a couple of days on a remote island off the coast of Viti Levu, I was surprised at how glad I was to be "coming home" to my apartment in the city. I just had that "I'm home" feeling, you know? It felt really good.
So I went to Nananu-i-ra for a couple of days with a few students from the U.S. who are doing a semester abroad here in Fiji. In a word, it was relaxing. The weather wasn't the greatest; it was cloudy and damp the entire time I was there, but we did manage to make the best of it. I went on a hike through the jungle and up into the highlands with this kid named Josh and a girl named Elicia. There wasn't much of a path most of the time and we should have packed a machete along, but we made it there and back again against the odds. Our trek was consumed with conversations about self-discovery, books and films that inspire us, digressions of humor of course, and ramblings about God and life and our place in the mix of all of it. It was enlightening to say the least. I feel I should note for some reason I think there's a purpose behind Josh and I meeting each other. Through our conversations it's become clear that we have similar life experiences and been through some of the same hardships. I'm not sure what God is going to teach me through meeting him, but it's refreshing to cross paths with a kindred spirit of sorts whilst here in a foreign land.
The rest of our days were pretty lax. I spent some time reading, thinking, and praying about my time here. I've still been struggling to figure out the purpose for which I've been sent to this place. I believe there are lessons to be learned for sure, but I'm still grasping at straws to discern what sort of wisdom I'm to be obtaining. I read something this weekend that struck me, however - "The teacher will teach only when the student is ready." I keep saying to myself "I'm ready!" but perhaps patience is the lesson itself.
I feel like I'm starting to turn a new leaf here. I really want to dive in. I have to admit that although I was sent here as an Ambassadorial Scholar, I haven't felt like much of an ambassador. I think I was just hesitant to commit myself to being here, maybe physically, but not emotionally or spiritually. In a way, and this sounds horrible, I was just hoping to get through each day by remembering that I'm a day closer to returning home. I couldn't admit that to myself, though, much less other people. I hope that doesn't offend anyone, I'm just being honest. Due to the fact that I wasn't sure I was even going to come here until about 3 weeks before my plane took off, my shotgun trip to Fiji wasn't something I was exactly prepared for mentally. For the first time in my life, I really wanted to be home in Iowa (I love Iowa!) but then whatever higher power who calls the shots was shipping me off to Fiji and I wasn't ready. The good news: I'm ready! I don't know what happened, but I just got a feeling the other day that made me super excited to be here! It's like I got my curiosity back; I want to explore, I want to invest. In fact, although I've been here for a month or so, I've decided that today is Day 1 for me here. I may have said it already by now, but I really mean it this time - I'm excited to be in Fiji! It's about time.
I know this post is a lot more reflective than my others so far, but I hope you'll bear with my ramblings. I still haven't found a proper journal yet, so I guess I'm using this site as the outlet for my thought-vomit. For what it's worth, thanks for sticking with me. OK, I've gotta go do some homework. For any of you who were wondering, grad school is tough even in a third-world country, haha! Take care and know that you are missed! I'll let you know what lessons I learn as soon as I realize them myself. Peace and grace.

The Can Opener

Last Wednesday night Nina and I were at Cost U Less (ironically named, 'cause most things cost you more) shopping for some food and housewares for the flat. After searching high and low we could not locate a can opener. We decided we had enough food we could make for dinner that night without it so we thought we'd check out and head back home. Let's just say I'm glad we couldn't find one.
After checking out and loading up a heaping cart full of bought-in-bulk groceries, Nina and I were approached by an Australian woman named Jessica. Since she had overheard us, she thought she'd advise us on where to find a quality can opener fit for first-worlders like ourselves (one that wouldn't brake after six uses or so) and even offered us a ride home in her car. We only talked to her for 10 minutes; about the Ambassadorial Scholarship, settling into Suva, and about not having time to get to the beach yet 'cause of all the stress of getting settled. Nina and I didn't think anything would come out of what we were saying, just smalltalk. Boy were we wrong! Jessica told us that her and her husband own the Beach House, a backpacker's resort in the Western Division which was once the site for a British TV show called Love Island (kind of like Real World, ahhh YouTube!). Here comes the good part! Within a few minutes the woman was offering us her home. She was off on a trip for the weekend and asked us to stay in her house on the water, food's on her. To top it all off, she said we could take her daughter's car for a couple days, she'd drop it off in the morning! I know some of you are thinking that I'm lying, but I assure you I'm not! Needless to say, we accepted the offer.
So I've just come back from my weekend getaway at Love Island and although I did not find the woman of my dreams, I did get to relax and forget about the stresses of living in the hustle and bustle of the city. It was truly what I needed and the beach was absolutely breathtaking. Sunsets, sea, palms, sand and sky - it was phenomenal. I even got to realize one of my dreams; I got to play my guitar in a hammock on the beach. It was tough, but somebody had to do it!
Alas, the weekend is over now, but I've returned to my city dwelling renewed. Yesterday, I did laundry by hand. Let's just say I felt like Laura Ingalls Wilder. Although I did not have a washboard, it took me about 5 hours of soaking, kneading, ringing, hanging, and ironing to get my clothes ready to wear again. It really made me appreciate the modern amenities of the American household. Even the wealthy here rarely have a drier, but have their housekeepers hang clothes on the line and press them afterwards. You have to iron your clothes post-hang because it's too humid here for anything to dry before it gets musty. I think I'm going to be glad I only have lectures twice a week, not for the free time but just so I'll have time to get my laundry done. Holy cow!
Time is starting to pass by quicker now and I'm starting to get into a routine. Admittedly, I still find time in the day to miss people and places back home, but I can tell that the things I'm learning here are worth it already. I hope all of you are taking good care of yourselves and loving life as it should be loved. You're in my thoughts and prayers continually. Peace and grace, y'all.

Settling In

I've been in Fiji for two weeks! I've been wanting to blog for quite sometime now, but just haven't found the time to sit down and write. Plus, I've been consumed with finding a flat, getting registered for classes, and adjusting to the super-heat that is the Fijian climate.
I must admit it's been a rocky couple of weeks for me. I've been in paradise for longer than most people take vacations here, but for awhile all I had was a farmer's tan to show for it! I've finally moved into a flat though and am getting settled into my life here. If any of you want to visit, it should be noted that I have a fantastic ocean view from my apartment so it would be wise to bring a book or two to read while chillin' on the balcony!
After moving into my new place, I finally felt ready to enjoy myself a little and do something fun. This weekend was the perfect opportunity. I was invited by my roommate, Nina (another Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar), to do a canopy tour in the mountain jungles outside of Suva. For those of you that don't know what a canopy tour is, essentially it's a series of zip lines set up in the canopy of the jungle. You zip from platform to platform through the trees and over rivers and gorges and such. Needless to say, it was a blast! Nina and I decided we needed some R&R after our adventure in the jungle, so we chilled ocean side on Sunday. We caught some rays and evened out the tan-lines. It was a rockin' weekend!
I gotta thank Rotary for the chance to do the canopy tour. Nina's Rotary host (prior to the move-in) was the one who invited us to come along with her on a company outing for the day. All the Rotary people here have been super helpful with flat-searching and getting settled. Plus, getting to do something like that would have been a lot more expensive than it was with they're help. The volunteer projects are on the way too, so soon I'll be blogging about that as well!
With the adventuring and R&R, I have to say that I still miss America from time to time. I don't think I quite knew what I was getting myself into coming to a developing country. Sometimes I'm a bit taken aback when I see the divide between the rich and poor here or sense the divisions between different races, which is a different story altogether. I cannot even count the number of times a day I hear comments that refer to the racial and cultural tensions that exist in the Fijian society. I remember reading in my Lonely Planet book (thanks Mom!) about the distinct cultural groups that are here in the Islands, but of course the tourist books won't tell you about the tensions that exist as well. You begin to get a sense of this within the first couple of days. It became clear to me that discrimination is common practice as well when I went to the High Commission to get my Visa processed. While I sat in a row of chairs waiting to be served, I watched others with darker skin walk through the door and get served immediately. At first I thought it was my fault; perhaps I wasn't being assertive enough, it had nothing to do with race. But when a white woman from Australia came in and joined me in a prolonged wait, I knew it was because of the color of our skin. It's been a really humbling experience living here and being judged by my skin color. The positive side is that I've grown in my empathy for those who've been discriminated against back home. I have an invaluable experience with knowing discrimination, a feeling which many white Americans will never fully grasp. I must admit this has caused me a lot of frustration in these past couple of weeks, but in the end I know it is a privilege to truly know that feeling.
So those are some of my first impressions/experiences. That's all I've got for now. I'm looking forward to getting into some volunteer projects here with Rotary and venturing outside of Suva a bit. I'll keep you posted. Overall, I'm excited to be here and adjusting to the idea that I'll be here for awhile. The biggest thing I miss from home is the people. Please stay in touch and know that you're in my thoughts and prayers daily. Peace, y'all.