Our next stop was the delightful Yanutha Island. As we entered the natural little harbor between two islands, the folks in the village hailed us on the VHF and suggested we anchor off the beach on the island across from the village.
There was a narrow gap between the islands with shallow reef across it so we had protection from the surge but a nice breeze to keep us cool.
Here are a few more shots taken around the harbor.
It was an absolutely charming village of around 150 people.
We launched the dink and headed for shore with our Sevu Sevu (Kava), and we were greeted by Jack, the Chief of the village.
Jack is standing next to a sea wall that they are currently building to protect the village from storm surge. Jack thought they would be finished when we return in August. It is hard work as all the excavation, forming, mixing and pouring of the concrete is done by hand. Then there is the backfilling behind the wall as the work is completed. All the bags of concrete have to be hauled in their open panga style boats from Taveuni – roughly an hour away over open water. It is a major undertaking.
We were invited to tour the village – here are a few pictures.
The satellite dish in the last picture is for phone communications. Cell phone service and sat phone service are revolutionizing communication in these remote islands. Cell has yet to reach here so solar powered satellite phone is the device of choice. I am really not sure how it works, but villagers have cellphones which interface with the satellite system.
This is in odd contrast to the other services available to the village. They have no running water. Most of their water is supplied from cisterns which catch rain water from the roofs of the houses. There is a small 5 KW generator which supplies power for lighting from 6 in the evening to around 10 PM at night. There is no refrigeration.
Thus what is eaten by the villagers is very much a day to day affair. It consists of what they can catch or harvest from the sea. What they harvest from their small gardens and or pick in the bush. They also raise pigs and chickens which are slaughtered. Occasional trips to Taveuni and its markets add other staples.
Despite its simple life style and remoteness, Yanuca seems to be a prosperous place. Some villages prosper from symbiotic relationships with nearby resorts which provide employment for the villagers and labor for the resorts. No nearby resorts here, but they do have a very valuable commodity which they harvest and sell – sea cucumbers. Nasty looking things that Jack told us bring as much as $100 a piece in the Asian markets. Villagers harvest them from the sea and Jack pays them $10 a piece for them. The difference between that and the end price that Jack sells them for goes to improve village life in general as well as the nearby school.
Before taking a look at the school, here are a few more pictures of village life.
These fellows are repairing one of the Pangas.
This little one has found a way to keep cool on a hot day.
These little ones are telling us how old they are.
As the afternoon went by, Deb asked to see the local school so one of the villagers went with us in the dink around the point to the school. It was quite the place as can be seen from the following pictures.
In addition to the school building, there is a large field for outdoor activities and sports.
These shots are form inside the classroom. The school teaches the children up to grade 6 or so and from there, some go on to school on the larger islands.
The school lost its roof and much of their teaching material in a cyclone a year or two ago. We promised to bring back paper, crayons, markers and beginning readers when we return in August.
This is the route the children travel to get back to the village.
After a long day, Debby’s new found friend invited her to have a suki (I think that is how it is spelled), and – no – it is not whacky tabacky. It seems that Fiji grows its own tobacco, which, in the more remote areas, is rolled in news print to form a very thin cigarette. Deb should be ashamed of herself!
We were also invited to stay on to have some Kava. Kava is a member of the pepper family and when the root is pounded in to a fine powder and mixed with water and compressed thru cheese cloth, it makes a muddy looking potion that makes your face numb and relaxes you. We were told that the resulting solution has some of the precursors of Xanax in it. Frankly, I’ll stick to wine and beer, but once invited to sit around the Kava bowl, you would offend folks if you didn’t have at least one.
After a long but very nice day, our “tinny” (Kiwi or Aussie for a small aluminum boat) waits for us as the kids play in and around her.
As we are leaving, Jack informs us that he has decided to have a great feast and a lovo the next day and we are invited.
More on that in the next post.
Cheers