Fiji – Just How It Is Today

Fiji – Just How it Is Today is written for the tens of thousands of global visitors who come to our country each year to enjoy its beauty, to relax and maybe to meet us. Visitors are swamped with brochures and booklets about what to see, and what to do here, but only this book will tell visitors about the real Fiji. Who were the first Fijians?How did the Indians come here; and the missionaries? What is kava made from? What is a Ratu?, a meke? Why are woven mats so expensive? What sort of ‘grass’ makes a ‘grass skirt’? How does a ground oven cook? What has Sir Edmund Hilary to do with Fiji? Fiji – Just How it Is today makes it easy for you to take a bus ride, be informed among the maze of tropical fruits and veggies in the markets, take a tour of a village, and gives you an inkling of how Fijian families ‘tick’ and manage their traditions and society. And not forgetting the magic: why pigs dig for worms; why you may not shike the table-cloth outside at night; who or what is the shark man Dakuwaqa; how die the red prawns get to Vatulele Island? Importantly, your purchase of this book will support our work of raising awareness in Fiji of human trafficking, thereby protecting our people from transnational criminals. The stories in this book will leave you feeling warm and comfortable, and they are capped off with gorgeous snippets which will make you laugh or at least, ease your visit to our country (shoe boys, barrow boys, the bean man, the taxi driver wearing his pyjamas, the ‘right’ way to watch a rugby game …). ‘What makes this book so special is the information it contains: stuff you will not get anywhere else; the stuff that will inform you in detail of the inner workings of Fiji, its society and life in general – and written in a casual and easy-to-read style.’… ‘There is no gloss or pretence in this book; it simply gives you Fiji, just how it is today. [Hank Arts, Former General Manager / Publisher of The Fiji Times]