Popcorn

It is inevitable that when you go someplace new you will discover new food items that quickly feel indispensible. I’ve always been lukewarm on papayas, but the local ones here are to die for. The pineapples are also probably the sweetest I’ve ever eaten. Passion fruit, I’ve discovered, is pretty good. Lettuce can be harder to find but there are small heads grown hydroponically that are quite good. Marie at the farmer’s market makes something called Fijian “bread,” which doesn’t actually look anything like bread. It is made from coconut milk and plantains and comes wrapped in a large leaf of some kind. It looks like a large glue stick left too long in the sun, but is actually really tasty. Marie is also going to make some homemade coconut milk for us using the liquid from inside the coconut plus scrapings of the coconut meat. She says it is good with cooked taro leaves, which will also be a first for us.

The Indian influence is widely felt in the markets here as well. They have all sorts of crunchy snack foods with names like Chevda, Fried Ghana and Mix Bhuja. I’m a sucker for crispy munchies and like most of these, although Deborah complains that certain ones give my breath a pungency that no amount of teeth brushing will remedy. She swears it even oozes out of my pores. I tell her it’s to repel the mosquitoes but apparently it is she who is being repelled.

Another really good crunchy treat we’ve discovered are dried peas rolled in soybean oil and salt. I don’t even like normal peas, mushy little green phlegm balls that they are, but these dried ones are delicious (and addictive). Unfortunately for Deborah, her many food allergies and sensitivities have a striking correlation with the types of foods that are available here, and her health has been suffering as a result. We think the soybean oil on the peas is a problem for her, as are all the split peas and lentils (Dhal soup), wheat products, MSG in some packaged foods, lots of dairy (no rice milk or almond milk here), beer (more wheat) rather than wine, which is expensive here, etc.

Deborah also misses a good cup of coffee and ice cream, although we did find a shop that had ice cream cones. You don’t get to pick a flavor; it just comes as a three-colored variety – white, pink, and green. We couldn’t detect any difference in taste between the different colors. I mostly miss the almond milk and a good selection of cold cereals. The choices here are really limited. Bread is mostly boring white; none of the hearty multi-grain loaves that I prefer. One thing we missed until spotting it today in one of the grocery store is popcorn. Deborah cooked it up with Ghee (clarified butter, another Indian favorite) and it tasted like decadence.

The cat likes popcorn too. She continues to come around more and more, and doesn’t just take off as soon as she is done eating. She is a little less scared of us and more interested in exploring the house. We are now even able to pet her a little bit as she is eating. It’s progress.

_

_

Fiji Critter Profile: Little Black Vampires (aka Mosquitoes)

The mosquitoes here are black rather than brown, and a bit smaller than those back home. The size may give them an advantage because you can’t feel them biting you. You just have to be lucky enough to see them on you and then hope your hand is fast enough to yield a tiny but satisfying splat on your leg.

What the Fijian mosquitoes lack in size they more than make up for in number. Our first couple of days here we pretty much got eaten alive (I counted eighteen bites on my left foot and ankle alone) partly because of the rains the previous days, which always seems to make them more plentiful, and partly because we hadn’t yet mastered our pest defense techniques.

Now we know that personal repellant is best applied in early morning and late afternoon when the little vampires are most active. We know that the itch can be calmed with calendula cream or Purell (thanks for that last tip, Sandy). We know tea tree oil also helps with itching and is great as an anti-inflammatory and disinfectant. We are also now well-equipped with mosquito coils, which burn slowly and release an acrid smoke that deters the bugs, but smells so nasty that it also deters us sometimes. Citronella candles aren’t quite as effective as the coils but are sometimes enough and they smell much better. If we were veterans of lakeside summers in Minnesota maybe we would know all this stuff already, but our home in Olympia is pretty much mosquito-free so this is a new challenge for us.

Another interesting thing about the Fijian mosquitoes is that they typically stand on only four legs. Their other two hind legs, which incidentally are banded with lighter stripes, tend to sweep out behind them floating above the ground as if they were merely decorative. It’s as if the mosquito wishes not just to suck your blood but to taunt you as well by proving she can do so with two legs tied behind her back.

One of the unlucky ones

A Brief History of Fiji, Part Two

WARNING: The following contains educational material and may cause your head to explode.

_

When the British made Fiji a crown colony in 1874 they took steps to ensure the cooperation of the chiefs and maintain good relations with their subjects. One such step was to forbid the sale of land to foreigners (83% of the land is still owned by indigenous Fijians). Another was to combat exploitation of the locals by prohibiting their employment as plantation laborers. That’s why they brought in the indentured servants from India. After the indenture system ended in 1919 the Indians, who were restricted from buying Fijian land, went instead into small business (most shops are still owned by Indians) or took out long-term leases as independent farmers.

The colonial government found that the Indo-Fijians, as they became to be called, made a convenient scapegoat for the country’s problems. They also discouraged interaction between Indians and Indigenous Fijians and raised fears that the Indian population could grow to become the majority. This background played a large role in the subsequent political dramas.

Fiji became an independent country in 1970 after nearly one hundred years of British colonial rule. An economic boom in the immediate postindependence years was followed by hard times in the 1980s following a drop in sugar prices. The economic woes exacerbated ethnic tensions. What followed were a series of elections, coups, invalidation of the constitution, writing a new constitution, more elections, more coups, more constitutions... Much of the turmoil was centered on Fijian fears of losing their land rights and of Indo-Fijian political and economic domination on the one hand, and a desire for multi-ethnic democracy on the other. The result of all the political chaos has been significant emigration of Indo-Fijians from Fiji, damage to the tourism industry and to much of the rest of the economy, and widespread international condemnation.

The most recent coup was in 2006 and the most recent constitutional crisis was just last April. Despite these seemingly undemocratic developments and the finger wagging of the international community, the people we’ve talked to (mostly expats) seem to feel the new military government has actually gotten rid of a lot of the corruption, cracked down on petty crime, and freed up funds for road maintenance and school bus programs. It also seems interested in reducing the anti-Indian discrimination in official policy. From our vantage it all seems very peaceful here, with the bulk of the theatrics presumably played out in the government offices in far off Suva on the big island.

Note: much of the above was taken from “Lonely Planet, Fiji”

Beach Day

Today we finally feel like we’ve turned the corner on our illnesses. Yesterday I was in danger of depleting the island’s supply of Kleenex. Despite my runny proboscis we went to the beach that morning. Our island of Vanua Levu isn’t known for its great beaches – other Fiji island groups like the Yasawas and Mamanucas are, and they’re the ones that draw the bulk of the tourists. Also, I suspect the best of what is available on this island has already been appropriated by the fancy resorts. Still we managed to find a nice, uninhabited, mostly sandy stretch with palm trees and warm shallow water that suited us just fine. I’m not a big beach person anyway, but Deborah occasionally likes to go “sit in some warm water.” I forgot to bring my camera so the beach photos will have to wait until next time.

The cat continues to hang around, although only long enough to be fed. She (we are assuming female gender for no particular reason) is still very jumpy and will bolt at the slightest movement from us. This makes us think she is either totally wild or came from a home that treated her badly. We are making progress though. As long as we are very, very still she will eat from a bowl placed right next to us. We even got her to eat a chunk of tuna from Deborah’s hand as Deborah lay perfectly still on her back with an outstretched arm. The socialization experiment continues...

Hard at work on the blog

(photo by Deborah)

Jane Goodall Comes to Fiji

Our feline visitor continues to hang around the house, although he/she is still quite skittish. Deborah has been doing her best Jane Goodall impression by parking herself in a nonthreatening position on the deck or in the yard within eyeshot of the kitten. She places food between herself and the kitten at ever decreasing distances. Last night the savory smell of tuna drew the little fluff ball within just a few feet of Deborah. We’ll keep working at it but this socialization process could be a lengthy one.

Today, in need of cat food and a few other items, as well as some exercise, we decided to walk to town. The walk down wasn’t bad but the uphill slog in the full heat of a very sunny day left Deborah red faced and panting. We are both still recovering from our illnesses, plus Deborah had some sort of MSG reaction to the package of noodles she had last night. No more Top Ramen for that girl.

The plate she licked clean; the box she sniffed but didn't enter.

A Brief History of Fiji - Part One

Although some of the islands of the Melanesia group were inhabited tens of thousands of years ago, Fiji was first settled only about 3000 years ago, in 1220 BC. Around 500 BC the inhabitants got bored with their coastal fishing lifestyle and instead transitioned into the exciting world of agriculture. The population also expanded at this time, as did the incidence of intertribal feuding, ring moat-fortified villages, and such socially inappropriate rituals as cannibalism. The Fijians’ war-like tendencies were not softened when warriors from Tonga and Samoa started incursions around AD 1000.

The first European explorer to stumble across Fiji was the Dutchman Abel Tasman who sighted the islands in 1643. His lurid descriptions of the treacherous reefs kept other mariners away for the next 130 years. But eventually such infamous Brits as James Cook and Captain Bligh paid visits in 1774 and 1789, respectively.

_

As better maps of the surrounding reefs were developed the whalers and traders soon moved in. The most sought after commodities for trade were sandalwood and, believe it or not, sea cucumber. The Tongans originally controlled the Sandalwood trade but the Europeans were able to eventually cut out the middle man and deal directly with the Fijians in 1805. In just eight years of unbridled greed the sandalwood supply was depleted, but the Fijians were the proud owners of lots of gunpowder and shiny new muskets with which they proceeded to kill each other in years of violent tribal warfare.

The 19th century brought commercial settlements as trade in cotton, copra (coconut) and sugar boomed. To work the plantations the Europeans brought in laborers from other Pacific Islanders via deception, bribery, and what eventually developed into an organized system of kidnapping. By 1874 British commercial interests were sufficient such that, after negotiations with a powerful chief with large debts, it decided to make Fiji a crown colony.

Beginning in 1878, a new labor source was found for the plantations in the form of indentured laborers from another British colony: India. By 1919 when the program officially ended over 60,000 indentured laborers were in Fiji. Despite enormously harsh conditions, most decided to stay after their contracts had ended, and many brought their families from India to join them. Today Indo-Fijians, as their descendents are called, make up over a third of the population. Not surprisingly, ethnic tensions have played a large role in the politics of the last century. More on that in Part 2.

The Visitor

For a couple of nights we’ve heard what sounded like the cries of a kitten. We’d always go outside in search of the source but were never successful. Then this morning, while seated in a location that shall remain nameless, I saw through the bathroom window the likely responsible party: an orange kitten of maybe 4-6 months in age who was walking through the yard. By the time Deborah opened a can of cat food that happened to be in the house, the skittish feline had disappeared back into the jungle. But Deborah went ahead and put a dish of food out near the location of the sighting and sure enough a couple minutes later the cat came back and cleaned the plate.

It looked healthy enough so maybe it belongs to one of the neighbors, but the mournful sound of its cries the previous evenings and the eagerness with which it ate the offered meal make us wonder if it is a stray. We’ve asked a couple of the neighbors who make no claim on the cat, but there are still other neighbors to question, and we need to know why Tobi had that can of cat food in the house in the first place.

I think Deborah is hoping it is a stray so that she has a new “nurturing project” to occupy her time. She is already planning the construction of a cat bed using a cardboard box we have, and is developing a strategy of food dispersal to lure the kitten closer and closer to the house. All this is understandable given how we miss our own cat back home, even though we know it is in the tender care of my parents.

Exotic wildlife of Fiji