Fiji - Lautoka

On our first full day we visited nearby Lautoka, a town of around 30,000 people where Judith's brother Kevin was born. Compared to Nadi or Sigatoka, Lautoka was bustling - it was Saturday afternoon and the streets were full of people. A jubilant religious gathering seemed to be taking place in a central park area, with amplified praise ringing out, and the busy road and pedestrian traffic created quite a throng in the 30 degree heat. Tourists were conspicuous by their absence amid the Melanesian and Indo-Fijian passers by, even if the signs of western life were everywhere, from sunglasses to soft drinks. For me the experience was quite alien but completely fascinating - during this first day, and subsequent days, it often felt like I had entered another world, often represented but never experienced.





Inside Lautoka market.