Fulaga, Fiji

SEPTEMBER 20 - OCTOBER 9, 2015

FULAGA, SOUTHERN LAU GROUP, FIJI

The weather window we had been waiting for finally arrived, so Theo and I sailed the 48 hours to Fulaga. We were especially happy because our friends on the S/V Field Trip (Mark, Sarah, Elizabeth and Michael) had also left Port Denarau for the same destination. We knew we were going to have a fun time sharing our adventures in Fulaga with them. A few years ago Fiji's Southern Lau Group was closed to visitors, so we were all felt very privileged to be able to experience this remote island. We reached the pass leading into the lagoon around noon and the tide was just right to enter. It is always nerve-wracking to motor through a channel that is 60 yards wide and lined with coral reef. We have done it so many times before, but our hearts were racing until we were safely through it. Once inside, we took in our first glimpse of Fulaga. I will never forget the feeling I had as I tried to absorb my surroundings. It was astonishing and I had to pinch myself to believe that I was truly there and seeing what I was seeing. The lagoon of Fulaga is vast... about 10 miles wide and 5 miles across. The water was a surreal color of mouthwash blue and scattered everywhere I saw jagged rocks, mushroom shaped islets and white sandy beaches lined with palm trees. I was standing on the bow trying to help Theo navigate the coral heads that appeared to be closer to the surface than they actually were because of the crystal clear water. I tried to do my job and look in the direction the boat was headed, but I kept getting distracted by the view! Theo was yelling "Wanda, look forward please!!”. This was the loveliest place I had ever seen....truly magical.

We anchored by the trail that would lead us to the main village of Muanaicake. Field Trip had arrived just behind us and we all wanted to go to the chief's home right away to introduce ourselves and present our offering of kava. The village is an easy 20 minute walk on a very pretty dirt track. Along the way, we were greeted by villagers with a loud "Bula" and gracious smiles. Everyone stopped to shake hands, told us their names and welcome us to their island. It seemed that no one was empty-handed. Women had sacks full of clams strapped onto their backs and men carried baskets woven from palm leaves that contained freshly caught fish. This was going to be fun!

We were always greeted with warm smiles along the trail

Hand woven baskets full of freshly caught fish from the lagoon

Muanaicake Village

Once we arrived at the chief's home, we left our shoes outside and sat in a semi-circle on woven mats that were on the floor. He accepted our offering of kava and began the sevusevu ceremony by speaking in Fijian for a few moments. He wanted to know where we had sailed from, so wetold him, exchanged a few stories and signed our names in his guest book. He then asked if we would like to be assigned to a host family. This has become a common practice since Fulaga was reopened to boaters a few years ago, so Theo and I said yes. We were then introduced to Mere who, along with her husband Jone, would be our "family" during our stay. She took us to her home and we sat on the floor and talked about our lives and why we sailed to Fiji. She went on to tell us about her village and the events that were going to take place in the weeks to come. Her cousin Bill was having a 21^st birthday celebration, there was a youth rally coming up with singing competitions, a fundraiser for the school and a big lunch after church on Sunday. We were welcomed with open arms and it was clear from the beginning that we were going to be very busy!

This photo was taken after our sevusevu ceremony...the chief is sitting next to Theo

Mere and Jone's home

Hiking with Mere

Mere with her grandmother

These drums are a traditional call to church on Sundays

Preparing for a big, traditional lunch after church on Sunday with Mere and her family...I brought a pasta dish made with fresh scallops that Theo gathered from the lagoon. 

 In Fiji they have a big celebration for the 1st birthday and 21st birthday...this photo was taken at Bill's party.

Fulaga is the ultimate disconnect. You will find no cell phone reception or internet here...as a matter of fact, there are no cars, motorcycles, stores, electricity, running water or flushing toilets. We saw some solar panels that were used to charge batteries which in turn powered the lights and maybe a television. The television was for education in the school and for watching rugby matches. Amazingly, despite these conditions, I never got a feeling that they were in need of anything. Ironically, they were always very generous to us! They exude happiness, calm and are always laughing their high pitched laughs. Their graciousness is humbling and I am in awe of how they make the most of what they have on the island. The lagoon is their "garden" and they rely heavily on the abundant clams, scallops, octopus and fish to sustain them. It seems that everything that is caught or grown is shared among the entire village. Only a few families have ovens for cooking and most meals are prepared in an underground earth oven called a Lovo. Large aluminum pots that are balanced on coconut husks over a fire are also used to make stews.  They are able to grow cassava, but not much else that requires watering. The mango trees have fruit, but it seems that the bats gobble it before it’s ripe. Another staple in their diet is coconuts...there are soooo many coconuts!

Pumata was on her boat every day gathering clams and hunting for octopus.

Theo could not get over the fact that he could find clams in the sand whenever he wanted!

Soki and his catch

Mere and Theo tried desperately to get cell phone service after we hiked up to the look out...no luck though.

A supply ship from Suva comes into the lagoon once a month to deliver supplies to the villages. It is a very big deal when that day arrives and we were lucky enough to be there when it came in September. Many of the people in Fulaga have relatives living in Suva, therefore they spend a lot of time preparing clams, catching fish, weaving baskets and carving wooden souvenirs to send back to them. There was a lot of excited chatter going around the village in anticipation of the ship’s arrival. The island has a very steep, rocky trail that leads to a lookout with a spectacular view of the entire lagoon and the pass leading out to the ocean. Men from the village waited up there to catch sight of the ship and when they saw it approaching they would yell "Selo!". Then children who were waiting down below would run on the trail leading from the village to the beach that overlooked the anchorage exclaiming "Selo, Selo!". I don’t understand Fijian, but I was pretty sure they were saying that the boat was close by. There were many people waiting on the beach and there was a lot of excitement in the air...we got caught up in it as well! When the ship finally arrived it was almost dark. Men worked throughout the night and into the early morning loading and unloading supplies. There were large barrels of fuel, staples for cooking such as flour, sugar and rice, and off course the most anticipated item.....KAVA. Drinking kava is a daily event in Fulaga...for about two weeks. That is how long it takes them to drink it all up, and then they are left waiting two weeks without kava for the next supply ship to bring more. Come on...moderation guys!

Collecting clams

Cleaning clams

Pumata cooking her clams that would later be packaged and sent on the supply ship to family in Suva.

Children waiting for the ship to arrive

Until the last possible moment, men continued to bring in freshly caught fish for the supply ship 

Joe waiting patiently

The ship finally arrived at dusk. This boat also transports people from the Lau Group to Suva and visa versa. The trip takes four days and there are no sleeping quarters or food. In my opinion, that is motivation to stay put!

There were six boats anchored in Fulaga. We were a diverse group coming from all over the world. Et Voila and Field Trip were from the United States and the others were from France, Australia, New Zealand and Denmark. One day we had an unforgettable picnic with the other cruisers and their host families. Each boat picked up a handful of people from the village and motored over to the Sand Spitz. The Sand Spitz is is a popular anchorage with a stunning, long white sand beach littered with palm trees...ideal for the occasion. We all brought something to contribute to the pot luck, but I am still stunned at recalling what the Fijians brought. All they had with them were some onions, garlic, flour, sugar, big aluminum pots, matches, fishing nets and a machete. As soon as their feet hit the beach they began fishing, gathering clams and catching crabs in the mangroves. It was an amazing sight! The whole thing was very organized and every person was busy with their particular task. One man dug a hole for the Lovo (earth oven), one woman began cutting down palm leaves to lay down as a picnic blanket, another began chopping onions and garlic to put in the pots for fish stew. Coconuts were gathered, cracked, shredded and then hand squeezed into insanely creamy coconut milk. The remainder of the shredded coconut was mixed with flour, sugar and water and then wrapped into palm leaves and put in the Lovo to cook. This turns into a dense and delicious coconut bread that is traditional at every meal. Before long we had fish, crabs and clams galore....scrumptiously bubbling in pots over an open flame with vegetables and rich coconut milk. We all sat on our blanket of palm tree leaves, feasted on decadent seafood with our fingers, told stories and laughed a lot. It was a very special day that will not be forgotten...ever.

Theo and Bale walking to the mangroves to hunt for crabs

The Sand Spitz anchorage

Women fishing with nets

Bale and her mangrove crab

Yikes!

Michael, crab (in the tree), Lutu and Elizabeth

Preparing vegetables for fish stew

Hand squeezing freshly shredded coconut into insanely creamy coconut milk

Coconut bread just coming out of the lovo (earth oven)

Our picnic...what a feast!

Field Trip's host family was a couple named Lutu and Bale. Bale has expressive eyes and a big smile. She also has that aura of serenity and pride that I love so much about the Fijian women. Lutu has a fun personality and shares Theo’s quirky sense of humor...so they got along especially well together. We really enjoyed their company and became quite attached to them. One day we met on Lutu's property (which is exploding with coconuts) to make coconut oil. We gathered about 40 coconuts and Theo and Mark husked them until they had blisters on their hands! Then we cracked, shredded and squeezed them into coconut milk. Two large pots full of the milk were set over flames to boil for about 3 hours. After this, the oil was strained through a piece of palm fiber into a bowl. Bottles were then filled using a funnel made out out palm leaves. The end result was three clean wine bottles filled with pure, golden coconut oil. This is what the Fijian women use as a moisturizer for their skin and hair. I will never look at a coconut the same again...what a great day!

Bale and Sarah outside of Bale and Lutu's home

Lutu giving Theo a ride on his Proa

Lutu almost always had a smile on his face! Here he is with his catch of the day... a boxfish,.

The view from Lutu's property where we made the coconut oil

  

Husking the coconuts

Cracking the coconuts

Shredding the coconuts

Squeezing the shredded coconut into milk

Boiling the coconut milk

Straining the oil

We used fiber from a palm tree for a strainer

Then Lutu made a funnel out of a palm leaf to pour the oil into the bottles

Lutu digging a hole for the lovo (earth oven)

Sarah and Lutu preparing coconut bread for our lunch. Some of the dough was wrapped in palm leaves and some was put into emptied coconut shells.

Sarah and Mere covering the lovo while our bread was cooking inside it

After a few hours in the lovo, our bread was ready...

Gorgeous and delicious!

Lutu was tired, so he sailed his kayak back to the main beach...he used his paddle as a rudder!

Making the coconut oil from scratch was another experience that opened my eyes to how EVERYTHING is used on the island. It took time for me to break old habits and wrap my head around the fact that nothing is thrown away here. Sarah and I were always a bit nervous cooking with Bale because we thought she might see us wasting something! For example, when you cut the skin off of a pineapple, it is then boiled in water with sugar and strained to make juice. Even then, the remaining pineapple skin will be saved and fed to the livestock. I thought that living on a boat made me less wasteful and more savvy about conserving food, but watching and listening to the people in Fulaga has made me realize how much I still have to learn.

The villagers here are known for their weaving and wood carving skills. We had heard that Mini (Lutu's brother) was an amazing carver, so we went to visit him. His work was truly stunning, and after much thought, we decided we wanted him to make us a bowl for one of the tables on Et Voila. The boat has become like our home, and I enjoy having souvenirs on the boat that remind me of special places we have visited over the years... and Theo and I were definitely enamored with Fulaga. On the day that we had the picnic on the Sand Spitz, I heard a chain saw. The noise sounded so out of place to me because the island is always quiet and peaceful.  I looked at Lutu and, with a shrug of my shoulders, asked him what was happening. He said, "Mini is cutting down a tree for your carving". Sure enough, a few minutes later we saw Mini sitting on the ground, measuring a gorgeous block of wood that would eventually become our bowl. The name of the wood in Fijian is Nowa Nowa and it had very dramatic changes in color from light to darker brown. From that moment on, we would visit Mini daily at his workshop to see the progress of his carving. It was amazing to be able to see his work evolve from a block of wood from a tree that he had cut down himself, into the beautiful bowl that is now a part of our floating home. We love and treasure it.

On Mondays, the women of the village get together and weave...on this day we made mats.

Mini and his chain saw right after he cut the wood for our bowl

He began carving it right away as we watched

We walked by Mini's workshop daily so we could see the bowl in its various stages. 

Mini adding the final details

One evening we invited Lutu, Bale, Mark, Sarah and kids to Et Voila for dinner. Bale and Lutu became enthralled with the Google images on Theo's computer. They were wide eyed as he showed them satellite pictures of their village. As Theo pointed out where her home and kitchen were on the screen, Bale kept exclaiming “You are a spy!” He explained that he was not spying on them and what they were seeing was not a live picture. They looked suspicious as he explained that it was an older picture...  probably taken years ago! We decided to move away from the computer for a while and begin cooking dinner. Happily for us, Lutu likes to hunt for crabs in the mangroves...BIG crabs. That night we made an impressive curry with some of his catch. A few days earlier, Bale had taught us how to make fresh roti (similar to a flour tortilla), so we made some of those as well...yum!  Thank goodness for Lutu's crabbing skills. Theo and Mark would often go spear fishing in the pass, but honestly, they are just not good at it. The joke was that the only way they would ever come back with a fish is if it was suicidal and threw itself onto the spear! Eventually, Theo did learn how to find clams and scallops in the lagoon and that alone would have been enough for me!

Learning how to make roti at Bale's home...the only ingredients needed are flour, oil and hot water

After the dough is kneaded, it is rolled into thin, round shapes

Bale used a flat, dry cast iron pan to cook the roti

Et Voila!

Theo likes to gather clams and scallops because they can't swim away from him!

When we invited Lutu for dinner on our boat, he brought this!

There was so much to explore in Fulaga and our time there went by very quickly. When we first arrived we were not certain how long we would stay, but we were hoping it would be at least four weeks. We started reconsidering this on a day that the wind was gusting powerfully. The weather in the Lau Group is a bit crazy, and we knew that it was more than likely not going to cooperate with our desire to remain on the island. We began thinking of our passage to New Zealand because we were supposed to be there by early November. We had arranged an appointment with a boatyard to haul Et Voila out of the water while we flew home for the holidays. We would have to leave Fulaga sooner than expected. It would have been ideal to leave Fulaga and go directly to New Zealand, but that was not possible. We needed to check out of Fiji before we sailed away and that could not be done from the Lau Group. The closest major port for us was Suva, the capital city. First we needed good weather to leave Fulaga and sail to Suva, and then we would have to re-provision the boat, wait for another good weather window, officially check out of Fiji and THEN begin our eight day passage to New Zealand. A lengthy process...I am tired just thinking about it!

Fulaga is one of the loveliest places I have seen while cruising and the people are equally as beautiful. Our goodbyes to them were filled with promises of visiting again soon. The icing on the cake was that we also had to part ways with our friends on Field Trip! We have had fun times together and shared a lot of adventures as well. We were going to miss them terribly, so we did the only thing that we could handle emotionally...we smiled, hugged and pretended that we would find them at whatever port they were off to next. Leaving any other way would have been too difficult and very teary. Instead of "goodbye" we said "see you soon". You never know, maybe next season will bring us all back to Fulaga so we can create more unforgettable memories together...I would love that.

 

When we first walked on this beach we were shocked to find a gorgeous nautilus shell on the sand!  After that,  we would walk it as much as possible from the village to the anchorage in hopes of stumbling upon another one....unfortunately, there were no more to be found.

Mere took us hiking to visit some caves, but she failed to mention what we would find once we got there...yikes!

No one would give us a straight or consistent answer when we asked about the human remains in these caves. I have come up with my theory, but I will let you invent your own....

LESSON:

Bigger is not always better. Oh, grow up...I am talking about our dinghy! It weighs close to 400 pounds with the console and engine. It is a lot of fun, but we have had challenges going to shore because when the tide goes out we can get stuck...really stuck. So, our lesson was to be very cautious of the changes in tide. If we miscalculated when the tide was going out, our dinghy was impossible to budge because of its weight. In the meantime, we would be stranded on the beach counting box crabs and swatting away crazy mosquitoes until the next tide came in!

QUOTES:

“Experience is a hard teacher. She gives the test first and the lessons afterwards” - Anonymous

“Don’t worry, be happy” - Bobby McFerrin

FIJIAN WORDS:

Waqa - Ship

Ivakananumi - Souvenir

Vakamoce - Say goodbye