Arriving in Fiji and Initial Reflections

I arrived in Fiji four days before the course began, as I was planning to do some diving in Rakiraki beforehand. Getting to Rakiraki requires a bus from Nadi to Lautoka, and then a bus from Lautoka to Rakiraki. The bus was an experience in itself, and took me through towns and villages, along road upgrades funded by Malaysian banks and miles of sugarcane fields, and past an astonishing diversity of religious buildings. Churches from several different Christian faiths stood within village limits, alongside Hindu temples and Mosques. Whether it was the area and the prevalance of sugar plantations, the proportion of Indo-Fijians seemed to far exceed my expectations. They were incredibly visible in the . By contrast, the resort where I was staying was owned by pakeha Kiwis and staffed almost exclusively by i taukei, while the Indo-Fijians were largely cleaners. It was a very interesting introduction to the kind of diversity that Cattermole discusses in her article, with some indication of the socio-economic dimensions that come into play. Interestingly, the role that rugby plays in this cultural melting pot was further highlighted for me in two separate observances. The first was a pick up game that I saw in the village of Rakiraki, where most of the players looked under the age of five. One of the locals I was driving through the village with mentioned that it was one of the first things that children learn, and certainly I don't think I've seen a school ground yet without a rugby field. It's a stark contrast to Australia. Though my school in Sydney was an all-girls school, it was a concrete jungle, and the all-boys school partnered with us was little better. In Fiji, a playing field seems non-negotiable.

The second observance was the attention garnered by the Sevens tournament. This was the only occasion I saw a television turned on at the place I was staying, and there were gatherings in the village to watch the games. The visibility of rugby continued here in Suva; today, we walked past another game in the park as we left the Fiji Museum, and the students with us told us excitedly about Fiji's Sevens win. Later, we walked past a display of seven rugby outfits in the windows of the Tappoo Centre. I think I thought that the Cattermole article might have been exaggerating somewhat, that Fijians probably weren't any more or less rugby crazy than Australians. After the last few days, however, I'm convinced – there was even some discussion about a public holiday being declared following the Sevens win. If only that would happen in Australia, it might have motivated the rugby union team to win the World Cup!