from w
As I read a story in today's Fiji Times about a Fijian couple boarding an Air Pacific plane for Fiji carrying flowers I was astonished because normally you are just not allowed to take flowers, seeds, leaves etc. to another country. What about customs and taking Ozzie bugs to Fiji via the plants! Then I read the name and story and realized there was a Labasa connection. These people are going to their youth training centre next to our land at Nukutatava. It was a 60 acre freehold land (once owned by our relatives and lost for a gun possibly) that was just grass and rolling hills - typical babasiga land - owned by Halka.
Anyway a wealthy church group bought the land to make an excellent development project. But they did remove some mangroves which was very naughty because my sister-in-law Evia and I used to collect oysters off the mangroves there.
The site has been cleared nicely, replanted and buildings erected as a place to train youth. Well, as you might know, I am not a fundamentalist in my religion but rather liberal and even inter-faith, though in Fiji my heart is that of a Methodist of the 60s kind - into social justice etc. Hmmm.
Anyway here are a few pics of their development and of course the man with flowers, Pastor Inia Rokovosa and his wife Bose at the Northern Horticulture Workshop in Labasa yesterday.
2 comments:
Dear Peceli and Wendy,
What a beautiful site you have!
I study floral customs around the world on the Human Flower Project
http://www.humanflowerproject.com
and came upon your wonderful photograph of the newlyweds wearing beautiful floral garlands/shawls (Feb. 19). Would you please teach me about this amazing custom? What are these garments called?
Thank you!
Julie
Julie@humanflowerproject.com
Julie, I guess you have been looking at various South Pacific countries and the way that flowers are used as crowns, garlands, waistbands etc. Hawaii, Tonga, Tahiti, Cook Islands, Fiji. Today we were at a wedding and a little girl wore a floral crown made just with what was growing in the garden. I didn't have a camera though. Good luck with your project. ?he salusalu (garland) in Fiji incorporates flowers with hibiscus fibre usually.
w.
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