Tribewanted: Vorovoro

I am finally back on the island after some delay in arriving. Travelling in Fiji you have to take in to account small things, like cyclones. Cyclones stop the planes from flying and the ferries from leaving the dock. So, being on the small island about 50 miles east of the town of Savusavu, Vanua Levu, just before coming here, and just as the cyclone hit, meant…I was stuck until the ferry decided to run. I got here, just by chance on Saturday, three days after I had planned to arrive. The ferry finally left at 3AM, and I and a couple of other non islanders “kaipalangi” were able to depart (I was the only “guest” on the island, everyone else is from there or building a home there).
I met some really nice Indian-Fijian people while waiting for the ferry to dock (the docking takes about an hour, the ferry is a prewar Greek ferry, even older than the ones we travel on in the Greek Islands, and probably running on one engine! These gentle people quietly waited for disembarkation, (unlike the Greeks) and exchanged conversation with me. When they found out that I had to get to Labasa and Vorovoro, they started talking to other people that were headed this way.

To further problems getting to Labasa, the road had been closed to public transportation as a slide had carried the road away on both sides (a bridge is needed) and only private cars were going through, even though a “road closed” sign was posted for the section of bad road, a ever narrowing strip about 100 feet long. A very decent fellow who was coming to a town above Labasa to remodel a building offered to give me a lift that far, and then arranged with the driver to take me on to Labasa. He squeezed his large frame in between myself and another person who needed a lift and we rode the 2 hours sharing his big bottle of coke! The helpfulness and kindness of these people is something that I find nowhere else, and I have traveled extensively, normally spending time in 4-5 countries a year.

Often hardship and constant difficulties breed this kind of helpful attitude-but of course, these very wonderful characteristics are already part of the Fijian character. The people here are very philosophical. Getting angry or blowing up about all the delays, the problems that they face daily, about a lack of infrastructure- is not going to change things; they don’t waste their energy on anger, you just never see it. They live with difficulties that would make most people have daily heart attacks! It is a good lesson for those of us who might get agitated about a bus or train arriving 10 minutes late…

The Chief ceremony was yesterday. The 7 of us here on the island along with Carol and Giles, worked on the Meke. Lottie has been here the longest and knows the 5 that we use in the ceremonies almost by heart; and along with Carol they were able to keep the ladies in line and make a performance that pleased Tui Mali. The men held their own as well, Giles led them and the enthusiasm was high!

Tui Mali makes a speech each time he bestows the chiefly garb on the new chief, and his speech is much more than a few words about the new chief taking over. Tui Mali instills in us the significance of the Tribe project. He asked us to join hands and continue to work together to make the project as successful as possible. The last time that I was here, he said that we were a family, and they truly treat us as just that; it is not a thing taken lightly here, family is what saves these people from oblivion.

The knowledge of Tribewanted is now growing in the islands (as I found during my travels) and he was personally congratulated recently by an important government official at the tribal chief’s meeting. This is very, very important recognition, and signifies a lot for the Mali people. Obviously the Fijian council of chiefs regards this as a possible model for further healthy “tourism” projects which directly involve the native peoples of Fiji and which foster the local economy and community involvement. Giles, Tui Mali and I talked at length about more possible direct involvement of the various villages on Mali. The possibility of buying our produce, of purchasing crafts and needed items from them, instead of Labasa may soon become a reality. These things don’t happen over night here however. Change comes slowly; many people have to be consulted. The presence of the Tribe here on Vorvoro has been a very big event for the local people on Mali. Many traditional people have been unsure about bringing tourism to the Mali islands. Out of the 300 islands here in Fiji, maybe 30 have some sort of tourism, and most of it will not help the local people. The tendency is for foreigners to take over every aspect of the resorts, leaving the locals very emarginated; it is easy to understand why the locals question the project. Obviously we as members of the Tribe, and Tui Mali, are convinced that this is a model of “tourism” (I would call it cultural exchange) will fill a huge gap which exists here in Fiji in the “tourism industry” -in bringing the right kind of people to visit these islands and the revenue to the Fijian people themselves. Slowly people here are also beginning to believe that this is really a very special project. What is happening here could have far reaching results all over Fiji.

Right now here on the island the 7 of us are quite content, apart from more rain than we would like. This is what the rainy season is all about! We have to be happy about having plenty of water this time of year, and deal with humidity and the off and on showers all day! Having said that, the last two days have been less rainy and today the sun is peaking out. There is a delicious tropical breeze as well, so the mosquitoes are not around to bother us either-as long as the breeze persists!

Marau blessed us with about 15 kilos of fish yesterday and after the ceremony, we ate well. The menu included the fish cooked in coconut milk with chives. Today, we will have more of the fish, smoked. There are good green vegetables to compliment the fish, and we have started eating the bread fruit (like potatoes) and finding that it is great! These huge green globes hang from the trees around our tribe village and also other places on the island. The bread fruit when first cut from the trees tastes more like potato; if it is left for a day in the sun, it ripens and becomes quite sweet. Va, who is heading up the kitchen this week, has just revealed that we have some ripe avocados, they will probably be added to the menu in a couple of days. The papaya (pawpaw) are also ripe and now regularly on the menu. It makes no sense to be buying expensive imported fruit, like apples with the abundance of the tropical fruit!

Chief Sharon departed from Vorovoro a day before I could get here, but her presence lives on! Sharon has left quite an impression on the Mali men working here on Vorovoro. Her gift of Colorado T-shirts has the boys now considering themselves the “Colorado Gang” and they all wear them to the ceremonies! I think it will now be necessary to teach them to sing and play “Colorado Rocky Mountain High”! Silla, Tavita’s wife, already knows one song about Colorado. How wide reaching now are so many aspects of our various cultures, even here, where fortunately, the bad aspects of so called progress have not made too many inroads, and where a simple, healthy way of life still prevails…how lucky for those of us who have the chance to experience it.

Ps. I don’t have much time to go over this, excuse any errors! Also, I have pictures, but I am afraid that this time I will not have time to upload them.