There is not just one 'Fiji' I have decided. There are several. But they are all Bula. Let me explain.

Bula means a lot of things in Fijian, I am told at The Westin Denarau Island Resort & Spa where I stayed once. It's the standard "hello", but also means "good" and has something to do with health too. So when I sneeze someone nearby immediately shouts a "bless you" bula. 

"Bula!" A broad smile displaying perfect white teeth, the king-sized Fijian gardener greets me as I leave my room. He says it slowly. "Buuu-la!" It's a genuine greeting, delivered as if he hasn't already said it to every guest he's passed today.

"Bula!" says the waitress as she pulls out a chair for me in the restaurant.

"Bula vanaka," (hello, thanks) I say, getting into the swing of it.

Fijians are friendly people. It's part of their culture and personality, making them ideal hosts. They love children and food and hospitality. This is why one 'Fiji' is concerned with hotels and resorts. There are dozens throughout Fiji's 110 inhabited islands. Some, such as Turtle Island Resort cover an entire island. Others, like those on Denarau just a causeway from the main and largest island of Viti Levu, and twenty minutes from Nadi (pronounced NAN-dee) International Airport, are positioned together, making it possible to sleep at one and eat at others; play here, relax there.

Many of Fiji's hotels and resorts are located on beaches, most of which are protected by an outlying coral reef which makes for calmer waters and safer swimming conditions. Of course snorkelling and deep sea diving are also sports that visitors love to try and some also hire craft like this, modelled on the native Fijian's outrigger canoes used for centuries by the locals.

Many beaches are temptingly remote and quiet, ideal for relaxing in Fiji's tropical marine climate. The warm season is from November to April and the cooler season May to October when the temperature still averages 22 ºC (72 ºF).

For a chance to see more of the area, including some of Fiji's 330 islands and 500 islets, take a boat trip. Some will anchor so passengers can swim, snorkel or scuba dive and may put ashore for a picnic lunch on a secluded beach.

But then there is another Fiji that is much like Fiji has been for centuries. This village in the north of Viti Levu has opened its doors to tourism and is happy to share its culture with visitors while its residents still live a traditional village life. 

To wander amongst the huts is to glimpse the way the local Melanesian Fijians have lived for many years on these islands these islands that adventurer Tasman explored in 1643. Of course he just stumbled upon them in one of his peripatetic journeys, and found there a Melanesian-Polynesian people, and the highly prized sandalwood. By the time his sailing vessels hove into view on the permanently storm-clouded horizon beyond the reefs and their frill of waves, the locals had been well established for around three thousand years. Where they had come from is lost in tribal histories, but most Fijians today seem to believe that their ancestors voyaged from mid-eastern Africa. Skirting Australia (too barren, too forbidding?) sidestepping the spice islands, and then carried past New Guinea on strong currents and they were eventually deposited in a land they could not resist.

Fijian people, like the African negro, love to sing too. Their natural harmonies and sense of rhythm pervade everything. On a cruise, your breakfast will be eaten to a gentle serenade backed by strummed guitars; by night, everything is done to music, from celebrating a passenger's birthday (with a second verse of "Happy long life to you...") to a singalong of local ballads with refrains that will follow you home, murmuring in your head. If you are invited to the village church on a Sunday go, and revel in the a capella hymn singing.

On a sunny day it's hard to realise that all was not so halcyon in times past. There are stories of warring tribes, terrible battles and, yes, cooking pots to thoroughly prove the victory. The murderous ebony clubs hang in pride of place in most cultural displays. One look at the size and strength of the Fijian people you see today, who will tell you their ancestors were really big, makes most people shiver to think of them armed and intent on proving their point with those weapons.

Yet something happened. Was it the rush of Christian missionaries in the 19th century, and the widespread conversions of the locals to one denomination or another that toned down their impulses? Was it the influence of communication, integration into the British Commonwealth in1874 and the maturing world as a whole? Was it kava?

This drink, made from the powdered root of an unattractive bush from the pepper family is a national calmative. One drink, offered in welcome at almost any social gathering - a visit to a village, a chance meeting, a formal meal - will do little more than gently numb your tongue, and make you wonder what on earth the locals see in this slightly bitter, mainly medicinal-tasting brew that looks like dirty dishwater.

Kava is the national drug of choice, sold openly in markets, grown in every village, and used as a nightcap after dinner most nights by the locals.

Persevere though, as you will be greatly encouraged to do, and follow the etiquette of one clap and a gracious "bula" before you drain each half coconut shell, followed by three claps after, and soon you will settle into a pleasant lethargy where conversation is not necessary. The desire to go out and start a war evaporates, and maybe the only thing that would rouse you to anger would be the thought of your precious kava plantation being imperilled!

This is the chief's hut - but in this village it comes with a difference. He will gladly vacate it for visitors (on a paying basis) and may well be the only ruler's home that also operates as a bed and breakfast!

In 'village Fiji' handcrafts are carried out by all. As you can see the ceiling of what could be your B&B for a few nights is painstakingly made using local leaves and straw and bamboo. The floor is covered with practical yet beautiful woven matting.

And as you can see, women are not the only fijians with nimble fingers and a careful eye for detail. These men are weaving walls for someone's cottage and where better to do it than out of doors in the sunshine?

The last 'Fiji' is the day-to-day one where people live in towns and larger villages much as people do all around the world. Of course food is an important consideration and the fijian diet, like much of the Pacific region relies heavily on starchy roots such as taro, sweet potato and yams and adds flavour to these sometime bland ingredients with the wide range of tropical fruits. Coconut is king of course, providing flavour, nutrition and even materials for craft and housing.

Protein comes from chickens and eggs, and of course the wealth of seafood from the islands' abundant waters. Tropical fruit grow easily in this climate and the huge jakfruit are delicious fresh or in a curry. Fresh ginger adds spicy interest too.

Papaya and pineapples and a range of vegetables will always be seen in town markets too. Over a third of Fiji's population is from Indian labourers brought to Fiji by the British in the 19th century, and many of these have become traders and shopkeepers.

Whether you visit 'resort Fiji', 'native village Fiji' or 'town Fiji' the greeting will always be the same - smiles and a friendly and welcoming Bula!

FIJI FACTS:

Fiji is a Pacific island country noted for its tropical beauty and relaxed lifestyle, attracting many international tourists annually.

LOCATION: Southern Pacific Ocean. 

CAPITAL & LARGEST CITY: Suva (pop. 175,000)

POPULATION of COUNTRY: 849,000 (156th in the world)

POPULATION DENSITY: 46.4 per square kilometre 148th in the world)

AREA: 18,274 square kilometres (156th largest country - about the size of New Caledonia)

INDEPENDENCE DAY: 10^th October

CURRENCY: Fijian dollar (FJD) currently about 1.8 FJD to the Australian dollar.

CLIMATE: Tropical marine climate with warm season November-April; cooler May to October.

OFFICIAL LANGUAGES: English, Bau Fijian, and Fiji Hindi. English is spoken by approximately 20 percent of the population. 

RELIGION: Christian and Hindu            DRIVES ON THE: Left

TIME ZONE: Central Pacific (GMT + 11 )

PHONE PREFIX: 679 

FLAG: Sky blue with Union Jack in top left corner and coat of arms on the right.

CUISINE: � read more 

NATIONAL SPORT: Rugby Union

MORE INFORMATION: �..read more