Nalutu, Fiji

We started our day snorkeling at a crater off of Nalutu.  It was the best snorkeling we have had yet.  The water was a little rough but visibility was excellent and the coral and the fish were abundant.  We spend two hours in the water admiring the beauty.  We came across a group of 30 or so squid which was a first for us and we really enjoyed watching them manouver in the water.  The lead squid is multi coloured to warn the rest of any danger and was quite beautiful.  Reluctantly we got out of the water to prepare for our afternoon.

Our visit to the village of Nalutu was truly special.  This is a village of 45 residents and they had never received so many visitors.  They apparently were worried because they did not have enough chairs but why would they.  On arrival we were greeted warmly and then we went to greet the two village elders who were in their eighties and told us excitedly that in all their lives they had never seen anything like this and that they had been so excited waiting for our arrival. As it was low tide when we arrived we had to wade in quite a ways to reach shore but eager residents were on hand to lend a helping hand if needed.  Once everyone was ashore we were welcomed by the chief and minister and then had the traditional kava ceremony.  The villagers had made traditional costumes so was really delightful.  Following kava tastings there was lots of singing and dancing to round out the afternoon.  Curious children were constantly checking out the odd strangers and were eager to have their pictures taken..  After encouraging us to participate in a dance around the village they all got together for a farewell song and many of them had tears in their eyes as well as farewell hugs were exchanged.  What genuine and welcoming people and how strange it must be for them to live in such isolation. The one thing that was out of place was the number of cell phones.  These villages are heavily subsidized by New Zealand and some of that money certainly goes to electronics.  They must run their generators just to keep their phones charged.

Beautiful and different corals 

Colourful fish eating off the corals

Like swimming in an aquarium 

The squid on the right was the leader of the group and was bright colours compared to the relatively dark rest of the group. Kept thinking about dinner

The cardera where we snorkeled the morning away

The village of Nalutu 

Making our way to shore. The bottom was muddy in places so tried to suck your shoes off.  Those who wore thongs regretted their decision.

The welcoming arch 

Waterfront real estate 

All the homes had solar panels and water barrels and out houses

A peak at a kitchen

The chief performing the kava ceremony 

The kava bowl being presented 

The water is added through a bamboo trunk

Squeezing the kava into the bowl in the traditional method 

The elder women of the village.  Alice in the chair is the oldest at 80

A budding young musician 

This young girl stood off to the side and watched us very seriously.  Probably could not believe what she was seeing 

The women of the village ready to welcome us with leis

A small but enthusiastic band

Most of the dancing was done sitting down and was accompanied by singing 

The men work hard at physical labor. There is no gym here but they certainly have muscles

I think they took as many pictures as we did

This is the school bus as 5e children have to go to the next village for school

A warm goodbye at the end of a wonderful day

Another piece of paradise that we have been blessed enough to visit