Grind and Grime

Bula vinaka

For those of you who are hurried, I will include an abstract first and then go into some detail for my more diligent followers. The learning curve is slow for me here. I have thus far been on a roller coaster ride in 90 degree heat fluctuating between love for this place, the culture and my new friends, and utter frustration and awe over societal differences. Plus I have spent the last two weeks being slightly--to very nauseous all of the time. A combination of heat, aggravation, and getting used to the water--in addition to my 25 mozzie bites (mosquitoes) and the slight sunburn I received one my one and only lounge day--Sunday Fun Day! My new flat mate Mike, who is also an Ambassadorial Scholar, from Iowa, is my domestic soul mate and my rock here. He has pictures, which I will post next time. I'm lucky to have found him--we are very similar in mentality/preference and style--but also uniquely different.

Abstract: Rotary Club of Suva Peninsula sunset: Rocks! Lisa Apted, who put me up in her house, for not one night, as I had planned on prior to my arrival in Fiji, but two weeks, is an Angel. Timetables/schedules don't exist here. Everywhere here is dangerous--but mostly safe in the day. Our neighbors have barbed wire, while we have 40 keys to all of the doors and pad locks that go to the burglar gates that enclose our impenetrable fortress, I mean flat! I have lived my the ocean my whole life, but only now do I have a top floor veranda and a 270 degree ocean view. There is a squatter settlement at the bottom of my hill. Dogs Pow-wow in the street and move in packs, while barking 24/7 at--you guessed it--not a damn thing! They team up and go out on the prowl--I'm thinking maybe to score some chicks, or see the latest movie???? I just can't be sure. 

There is no recycling here, which pains me--I won't even tell you about the litter that is everywhere. Apparently sea foam green and Salmon pink are desirable colors b/c my flat exclusively sports these fab tones--along with many other buildings in Suva. Quality and follow through are disregarded for fast and cheap. Every office, or errand involves taking a number ticket like the DMV and waiting until your hair turns gray before you get to the front of the "cue," so that the friendly employee can tell you to come back another day, or go stand in another line and take a new ticket before you come back to their line. Air conditioning is not a necessity here, but a very rare and blessed occurrence. Buses are actually moving night clubs, with a .50 cent door charge. I am a minority and thus I am treated as one, especially when purchasing expensive items like beds, or trying to apply for a saver card at the grocery store. Taxis are plentiful and cheaper than walking, since you sweat so much, laundry is counted as a monthly bill here. Broccoli is $25 dollars per 1/2 head, but all local veggies and fruits--if you can locate them are $2 per bushel. I'm actually wondering if I moved to Fiji, or Little India...leaning towards the latter since my flat smells of curry every morning. I have been here over two weeks and haven't gone to the beach, but found the Holiday Inn pool side ($5/day), of all places, to be refreshing and gorgeous--really, five star resort. I am addicted to books/reading/pens and my upcoming research on the ineffectual policy of "No Child Left behind." I miss home, but find myself laughing a lot here b/c the people are great and living in a third world city is an art in itself. It rains here when the sky is blue--and rainbows appear randomly. I am either greeted warmly because I am a Kaitani ("Ky-langi"-white foreigner), or I am taken advantage of--but always receive nothing less than a smile and some sweet talk. I love life and living abroad. I miss you all and I do think of everyone all of the time because this place is so magnificent and different and wonderful and scary and new. If I didn't have my home network, I would have no thoughts and memories to ground me in what I accept to be true as a member of the global community.

Story:

Everyday I wake up and chuckle at my life. I laugh because if I were to get angry with Fiji time, I would get no where. Life here moves at a very slow and laid back pace. It is definitely third world, but deceiving b/c of technology and the global community. Toyota's numbers are still doing well here in Fiji. It is weird because there are seemingly regular first world amenities everywhere you look, but they are inconsistent and may disappear at any moment. Items may, or may not get re-ordered at grocery stores. A store may, or may not expect you to pay the price on the price tag and will swindle you because of your skin color--it is all about who you know.

It is not an easy place to navigate and finding a flat was very hard due to safety and the standard of living here. Places were either too cheap here (with 10+ roommates), or way too expensive. Plus since I am not of Indian decent, I got hung up on a lot when I called to inquire about certain rentals. 

My first two weeks here were both exciting and depressing. Luckily I was staying with Lisa Apted and her beautiful family. She has two young boys--Connor (6) and Toby (3) and a wonderful husband (Brad) and three wonderful house girls: Ana, Salina, and Venina. I have struck up lasting relationships with them and was exposed to rural, village Fijian culture and food, and also to the dangers of a third world country and luckily was housed in a first-world house--which helped to ease me into my flat. 

My new top floor flat (a necessity to ward off an infestation of creepy-crawling-critters and low-light)  has a beautiful view of Laucala Bay, in addition to a front yard, a garden, wild green beans (which are a foot long), a relatively safe neighborhood (none are safe here, even the upper class ones due to obvious reasons); a neighborhood overflowing with the laughter of children and barking of dogs and the squealing of tropical birds and a rooster crowing and curry-cooking and baked-goods baking. My flat also has burglar bars on every window, a key chain with 30+ keys--going to every door and the assorted, rusty padlocks on all of the gates. Our carpet was so dirty from the last tenants, it turned our feet black when we walked on it. The shower is beautifully tiled and the size of a walk in closet--but was covered with black mold (not the dangerous kind, just the musty kind). The toilet room was the same way, along with the walls, which I have washed the dirt off of. The hot water didn't work--and hot water was one of the selling points of the apartment (most places don't have that here). I was almost asking too much when I asked Champak, my awesome landlord and fellow Rotarian, for a refrigerator to complete the kitchen. (Unlike at home, people move with their refrigerators here.) We spent hours wiping out all of the cabinets--freeing them of dead cockroach bodies and grime, so we could spray them with cockroach spray, that will lure and kill about 10 different kinds of bugs for up to 6 months...with the occasional one that gets away. And we are hoping to paint over the sea foam green trim and doors, and the salmon pink walls to bring out the simplicity and beauty of our flat. P.S. the other day, while some workers were bringing in our fridge (which sounds and alarm every couple of hours telling you that the freezer temperature is off) a feral dog ran into the apartment, growled at me as I tried to shew it out the other door, peed in my hallway, growled a few more times and then left my flat..I proceeded to clean the rug.

Taxis cost between 1.50 Fijian and 3.50 Fijian--divide that by two and you have a girl who will be taking taxis everywhere b/c it is dangerous for her to walk anywhere alone--definitely at night, sometimes in the day and the buses are a little bit of awesomeness. People, including myself--who seems to be suffering from mild heat stroke every afternoon--just have sweat seeping out off all pores, at all times of the day and this is normal and accepted. (Thank goodness.) There are hardly any Americans here in Fiji and when you hear an accent, you get excited and have made a life-long friend. In fact there are hardly any white people either and being of a liberal mind, and someone who fights segregation/racism and believes in post-colonial concepts of "the other," I find myself discriminated against at least a few times a day because of my skin color. It is something I am getting used to and have now figured out that if I go somewhere with a local, I am more apt to be treated fairly. It is not that people are mean to me, they just don't notice me, purposefully make me wait, hang up on me, or charge me a considerable higher price for goods and services. So I need to "go native...."

I am learning Fijian in my spare time from a quirky older English professor. Most Fijians in Suva say he is more Fijian than they, themselves. He is funny and I am already finding it easier to learn this second language since I am surrounded by it all the time. People speak English here, but they only do it when they need to. And Fijian English is just a tad different and faster than American English. So the communication barrier is up a lot of the time. In addition, we should throw in Hindi and all of the other Pacific island languages...it's like one big Charlie Foxtrot of language and culture. But instead of forming a hybrid culture, like America's melting pot, all of these cultures and people remain segregated. Not in a violent way--just in a we will maintain our own culture, separate than yours. 

The food is plentiful and people want to feed me all of the time--even walking up stairwells, strangers will offer you snacks. At first I was eating a lot and tried everything that came my way. A lot of Chinese food and curry and Fijian leafy greens, root veggies and fish--lots of fish. Fish soup, fish head, fish bones, fish broth for cooking the veggies etc. But recently, the last week, I really haven't been feeling 100%, so I am not eating as much and am trying to stick with plain and familiar food. Everyone says that in a month I will be used to the water and climate here--I hope so. In addition Mike and I went to the Rawaqua (Rye-wanga) health center the other day and got 10 pills each to ward off the possibility of Elephantitis--and mosquito-borne illness. Luckily the pills are taken all in one go, after dinner and make you sick with all of their side effects--the usual like vomiting, nausea, aches, restlessness, diarrhea etc..and if you already have parasites in your body--these side effects will be much worse, but they only last for about eight hours and then I am protected against parasites for a while! We are looking forward to taking those on Wednesday night, since we have nothing to do on Thursday. Also, since our carpets are being cleaned, we will be having a sleep over in the living room because it is so humid here, our bedrooms will be out of commission for a few days.

So I guess what I am trying to say is Fiji is humbling me and although I want to be the independent go getter I always have been, I must have patience. I must embrace this culture and soak it in, while being aware of the differences and dangers. I evolve as a person.

Cheers mates...coming attractions on my blog: Fijian phrases and pictures--also since I now have Internet and a place to live, posts will be more frequent and shorter in length!