Saturday, 28 April 2012   When we docked at Fiji we were advised
to leave our jewellery in the safe and given lots of does and
don’t.  Like “if you take a taxi make sure that he waits for you
and that you don’t pay him until he returns you to the ship”. 
Unsurprising really as the island inhabitants are only 200 years
away from being cannibals! Indians were brought in to work the
sugar plantations because the locals were not interested in
physical work.  Now the Indians make up about half of the
island’s inhabitants, dominating the commercial and professional
fields.  They also produce most of the islands’ crops and in
elections gained most of the seats in government. The Fijians
eventually rebelled and staged the South Pacific’s first of 3
coup d’etats resulting in Fiji becoming a republic.  I went to
an “arts village” which entailed sitting on an uncomfortable,
rickety bus with no air conditioning.  Not good in temperatures
in the 30’s and high humidity.  On the 45 minute drive along the
horrendously pothol