Posts Tagged ‘Nakavika’

I opened my eyes as if they’d been closed for only a few seconds. Stains decorated the holey mosquito net, which now ensnared a circling bunch of blood-filled bugs. Though I’ve never been physically beaten up, I imagine the next morning would have felt akin to how I felt there, in that bed, feeling the [...]

What you’re about to read is the final event we took part in, created, or witnessed in the Fijian Highlands. It occurred on a Saturday, fifteen days before we were scheduled to leave the islands and thirteen days before we initially desired to leave Nakavika. It was because of this event and the clash of [...]

Last I left the tales of this Fijian adventure, there was a major event that happened – one which led us to doubt the possibility of our project coming to be. After issues were resolved (in the eyes of the elders), we asked the Turaga ni Koro (village spokesman) to hook us up with a ride [...]

How does that make you feel?
Go on…let it out.
It’s okay to feel these feelings.
Let’s talk about that…
We all shake our heads at the shoulder-patting, “aww gee”-inspiring cliches from the psychology world, but there’s no doubt they come from a necessary concept. When the traumatic, the all-of-a-sudden, the shocking occurs, our heads are wired to be [...]

It didn’t matter how many times people clarified the schedule for the funeral arrangements, they never began at the designated time. It wasn’t about timing, though. It was about flow. Only when one group assembled could they continue with the next event, and with weather that echoed the widow’s eyes, every moment was contingent on [...]

Jackie, you’ve come into the village at an incredibly rare time. Gare, this is big. Abel just told me Elias, Mario and Eta’s father, just died an hour before we pulled up. He had a heart attack. I’m not sure what happens next, but all the boys are stressed and silent. I asked what we [...]

It was odd seeing Garrett in such sour spirits on the road. The intense foot infection he contracted sapped him of his usual energy. I had no idea how to make him feel better. He needed a breather from the project and to relax in Suva for the days between doctor’s visits, but meanwhile, the [...]

Returning after our holiday, we had not only our backpacks but boxes worth of books, school supplies, and ingredients for a week of comforting menu items. Fane gave us no hint as to when she would return to the village, and we were given permission to run her household to our liking, to cook and [...]

Even if the only information one is exposed to is from cable TV and the local newspaper, Americans know what makes them unhealthy, and many continue to live as though they don’t. 34% of us are obese, so to travel globally and point fingers at people’s awareness of their own health seems little hypocritical.
However, these [...]

I’m up before the crack of dawn.
My family is enjoying Christmas brunch.
I’m a pack mule walking a kilometer down the rocky road toward a bald cavern – one that I must then traverse.
My niece is probably opening her first present from Santa (or at least watching since her motor skills aren’t Olympic yet).
Garrett and I [...]

There’s only been one other time when my Christmas wasn’t filled with earmuffs, slick roads, and airings of National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. And the night we left for Maui with the rest of the holiday escapists was a tad doleful as we left winter in our contrail.

One of our last mornings in the village, we awoke early to join the kids at school, helping them brush their teeth and watching their military-esque line-up and discipline hour.

Subscribe to Nomadderwhere’s posts via RSS feed or e-mail

Welcome to Day Four of my Carnival of Blogs, celebrating one year at Nomadderwhere.com!
For those of you who have followed my most recent adventures through the Fijian interior, you know I’ve been working hard, alongside my project partner Garrett, to self-start a humanitarian effort focused on health and education in the village of Nakavika. I’m [...]

Subscribe to Nomadderwhere’s posts via RSS feed or e-mail

Traditional Fiji is all about formalities, paperwork, and figurative curtseys. Sitting next to the Turaga ni Koro (village spokesman) one rainy afternoon, he invited us to come to the youth break-up party on Friday evening. The official invite came one hour later in the hands of one of his children. On a sheet of college-ruled [...]

Subscribe to Nomadderwhere’s posts via RSS feed or e-mail

Something Garrett and I took full advantage of was the easy access to an incredible swimming spot, fit with rock jumps, mini-rapids, sand bars, bamboo for building “bilibilis” (or bamboo rafts), and tons of kids always wanting to join the fun. This spot in the Luva River is called Nabukalau, or Black water, after a [...]

The aftermath of Cyclone Mick kept the skies gray and misty for the following three days. Nearby villages sent word of their damages; Nakavika was one of the luckier communities, thanks to their relocation. For decades, Nakavika sat in a nook of a river bend, level with the mighty Luva, until the mid 1950s when [...]

Peeling the rain shell off my pruning body, I layered on socks, pants, shirts and hats, using every available clothing item in my bag, and walked outside to watch Cyclone Mick blow by. [This is a continuation of Bracing for the Cyclone: Day 13]
Garrett and I, both equipped with our arsenal of cameras, sat atop propane [...]

After seeing three year-olds throw nails around the village for weeks, we finally saw that which we were anticipating with worried brow: someone stepped on a nail…and that unfortunately fellow was Garrett.

Subscribe to Nomadderwhere’s posts via RSS feed or e-mail