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Backpackers and Billionaires |
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Written by avid Stanley
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It used to be that backpacking
trips to Fiji involved a bus ride from Nadi to Suva, then a ferry to
somewhere like Ovalau, Savusavu, Taveuni or Kadavu. No more. These days
young budget travelers are lining up to go to the Yasawa Islands, a
chain of 16 large volcanic islands and dozens of smaller ones roughly
35 km off the west coast of Viti Levu. The dazzling white
beaches, clear warm waters, colorful coral reefs, and sunny dry climate
make the Yasawa Group an ideal tourist destination, but until recently
a visit involved a rough sea voyage from Lautoka in an unsafe village
boat—or an expensive seaplane flight from Nadi. Blue Lagoon Cruises has
been plying the Yasawas since the 1950s, but passengers aboard those
upscale vessels sleep in staterooms and local residents receive few
benefits from their presence.
Until the 1987 Rabuka coups in
Suva, it was the policy of the Fiji government that the Yasawas were
closed to land-based tourism. The long years of military-backed
government brought few changes to the Yasawas, although Australian
investors were allowed to construct the deluxe Yasawa Island Resort
(www.yasawa.com) in 1991 and a couple of village-operated backpacker
camps sprang up on Wayasewa and Waya. Since the early 1980s, local
families have operated three small low-budget resorts on Tavewa Island,
thanks largely to Tavewa's status as a freehold island beyond the
authority of the Fijian chiefs. For decades local church leaders have
portrayed tourism as a corrupting outside influence to be kept at arms
length from village life.
It would be hard to imagine anything
more removed from real Fijian life than Turtle Island Resort on Nanuya
Levu Island, Fiji's ultimate hideaway for the US$1,500-a-night crowd.
Nanuya Levu has been freehold land since 1868, and in 1972 Richard
Evanson used US$300,000 he earned in the Southern California cable
television business to buy the island.
Evanson's Turtle Island
Resort (www.turtlefiji.com) became the prototype of Fiji's current crop
of boutique island resorts, hosting notables like Hollywood stars and
millionaires. Brooke Shields stayed here during the 1980 filming of the
escapist classic The Blue Lagoon.
A self-styled
environmentalist, Evanson has planted thousands of trees on his island,
and has converted the mangrove forests into tourist attractions by
cleverly creating boardwalks. The resort's food is grown in organic
gardens and power is generated using solar and wind energy. Each year a
group of volunteer California eye specialists visits Turtle Island
Resort to perform eye surgery on needy villagers or to equip them with
donated prescription glasses.
Yet for most Yasawans, life has
changed little since 1789 when Captain William Bligh and loyal members
of his crew paddled past the group in an open boat shortly after the
famous mutiny on the Bounty. Even today, most villages are without
electricity or running water, and opportunities for economic
development are very limited. The Yasawans have felt neglected by
politicians in the distant capital, envious onlookers as mini-cruise
ships and yachts carried wealthy foreigners along their shores.
In
May 2000, rabble-rouser George Speight and assorted thugs seized the
Parliament building in Suva, turning Fiji on its head. Speight's
pro-indigenous rhetoric struck a chord in the Yasawas. Villagers from
Nacula Island staged a mini-coup on Turtle Island, locking Evanson in
one of his 14 luxurious bungalows as village youths rode wildly around
Nanuya Levu on Evanson's golf carts.
When the excitement died
down, plaited mats were spread and kava roots were pounded, and over
many bowls of grog, Evanson and the villagers came to an understanding.
Rather
than killing the golden goose, Evanson convinced the Nacula people that
they'd be better off opening resorts of their own and allowing him to
continue running his business in peace.
Evanson offered
interest-free construction loans and promotional support, and the
Nacula Tikina Tourism Association was born. The association's Web site
(www.fijibudget.com) currently describes a dozen locally-operated
resorts around the Blue Lagoon in the central Yasawas, including the
three existing properties on Tavewa. All resort operators must conform
to a strict code of conduct intended to preserve the environment and
guarantee acceptable levels of service. Though primitive compared to
the luxurious Mamanuca resorts off Nadi, the Yasawa backpacker camps
provide basic food and accommodations at a relatively low price.
The
mass influx of backpackers only began in 2002 when Awesome Adventures
(www.awesomefiji.com), a subsidiary of New Zealand-owned South Sea
Cruises, launched a fast catamaran service up and down the chain. You
can now depart Nadi's Denarau Marina on the Yasawa Flyer any morning at
9:15 a.m. and be at the resort of your choice in time for lunch. As
many as 150 backpackers do this every day and the village-operated
resorts on Kuata, Wayasewa, Waya, Naviti, Tavewa, Nacula, Nanuya
Lailai, and Matacawa Levu are booming.
Reservations can be made
upon arrival at Nadi Airport through any one of a dozen 24-hour travel
agencies right in the airport terminal itself. All of these offices
sell catamaran tickets with a bus transfer to the harbor included.
Deluxe lodgings and gourmet food should not be expected at any of the
Yasawa resorts—yet the friendly people, spectacular natural beauty, and
low prices make most travelers overlook these inconveniences.
David Stanley is the author of
Moon Handbooks Fiji http://www.southpacific.org/fiji.html and his
online guide to Fiji may be perused at
http://www.southpacific.org/text/finding_fiji.html
You have
permission to publish this article electronically or in print, free of
charge, so long as the byline and resource box are included. Please do
not use this article without the byline and resource box. Many thanks!
This article is reprinted with permission from www.WritingCareer.com |
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South Lake Tahoe
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