Moce Fiji

“Never say never,” they say.

With that mind, it’s pretty unlikely I’ll go back to Fiji for anything more than a short holiday.

Don’t get me wrong, I loved my time there. It’s warm, and the beaches are good ( enough ).

But as someone a little long in the tooth and saggy at the jaw, I’m looking for somewhere liveable for longer stretches – months at a time, and maybe years at a time.

That’s not Fiji, and here’s why, for me;

  • Accommodation is expensive, even for monthly stays. For a decent self-contained unit, you’re looking at USD $500 minimum. Real estate agents generally won’t do monthly leases for expats, they want annual or longer leases. Compare that to the $USD 175 /month I paid in Thailand ( 2019 ), and the $USD 233 / month I paid in Vietnam ( 2020 ), and even $USD 420 / month in Australia ( 2021 ). Sure, my last digs in Fiji cost slightly less than the Thai price above – but it had no hot water, or air conditioning,or ceiling fan, and the kitchen and bathroom were shared.
  • Internet is too slow, especially for someone earning money online. Fiji’s average broadband speed is 16.64 mbps, ranking it #141 in the world. It’s too slow for reliable video connections. Compare that to New Zealand at 168 mbps( 12th fastest in the world ! ), Thailand’s 212 mbps ( 5th fastest ), and Vietnams  93 mbps ( 46th fastest ). Sure, you can pay $350 / month for SkyLink, but why do that when there are cheaper options elsewhere?
  • Transport . It’s too hard to get around. Yes, buses are plentiful, and taxis are relatively cheap. But hiring your own car or bike will cost at least $45 USD / day. Compare that to bike hire at about $2 / day  to hire a bike in Vietnam or Thailand.
  • Dogs. At least in Nadi, dogs are everywhere, and yap at will. Any time of day or night you can hear a dog going off its head. Yes, sometimes you have to listen carefully, but usually not.
  • Food is only slightly cheaper than New Zealand, but not if you want the essentials, like bacon, ham, coffee, dairy products, and chocolate.

So, for me, it’s Moce ( “goodbye”, or literally ‘good night’ ) to Fiji. It was nice getting to know you, but let’s leave it at that.

 

 

 

 

Bojangles

Yesterday it was sota tale to the busy-ness and beach of Wailoaloa, and bula to the peaceful rural setting of inland Nadi. The Ideal Bed & Breakfast - home for ...

Rubbing Shoulders

Every now and again, I like to rub shoulders with the well-to-do. In Fiji, they haunt the upmarket coffee shops. And as a coffee fan, I'll sometimes be seen there ...

On The Move

I decided to stay in Nadi, and am on my way to another 'burb, Votualevu, on Wednesday. It's about 3 km away as the crow flies from here in  Namaka. ...

Urban Legends & Fake News

Urban legends are stories spread by word of mouth. Apocryphal stories.

That is,  stories which may  or may not be true,  but have a ring of truth.  And they’ve become so widespread that they’re generally accepted as true. The modern equivalent would be Fake News, but back in the day they were urban legends because – I guess – stories spread faster in cities.  Both are spread by the fastest medium of the time.

I won’t be yapping about Fake News,  or bothering to siphon through vast interweb sewer-pipes to point out what’s fake,  and what isn’t. Following those rabbit-holes leads to madness. Cynics would say that ‘news’ now falls under both categories anyway. But, I will make passing comments on news here and there.

Mostly,  I’ll be writing from a personal point of view, on topics which interest me. Maybe they’ll interest you enough to become widespread “rumours”.