BULLA!!!

BULLA!!!

That's Fijian for Hello!

Fijian Fire Dancers at our Hotel

Fiji is a land of contrasts. You go from...

beautiful tropical beaches to....

...narrow streets, teaming with people & cars.

Elder Beckstead and I traveled to Fiji so he could work with The Church and government officials there concerning tax money the governet owed The Church and he also needed to look at properties The Church is leasing/purchasing for meeting locations.  This is part of the report to our children...

Corrugated metal houses, painted bright colors to reflect the sun.

Roadside stands that sell anything they can.

John:  You asked how things are going here in Fiji, so I thought I would report back to ALL of you.  We boarded a plane in Auckland for Fiji, but were hijacked and landed somewhere in a time warp!  It all started when the airline attendant walked through the plane an sprayed above our heads with an instect spray before we landed.  Although they told us to cover our mouths and noses with a cloth (seriously), I think it must have been a hallucinogen, because everything has been crazy ever since.  It is difficult to explain the contrasts we have experienced.  We bounce from the laissez fare island culture of The Church to the slums of Bombay to a tropical paradise to the opulence of British colonialism.  We are not sure what is reality!

Guard in front of the Fijian Presideent's home.

Elder Johansson and account staff from the Service Center

Beautiful Fiji Temple (right next to the Service Center

Debbi: Contrast the third world Fiji with the opulence of vacation resorts and then move to the serenity of The Church and the temple, all in one trip.  While John was in meetings, my computer and I made ourselves at home in an office at the Service Center of The Church.  I watched as men in skirts (sulu's) and barefooted women, worked happily to keep The Church organized and productive.  Elder Johansson, an Area 70, was a very kind host.  He has a twinkle in his eyes and speaks of life with child like faith.  He easily switches from a mischievous grin, to utter doctrine of Christ's church.  He is someone you would never want to disappoint with disobedience because of fear, but because you love him.

President and Sister Layton of the Fiji Mission, saved us when John didn't have any Fijian money for a cab from the airport.  They had come to pick up another couple traveling with us on the plane and provided us with a voucher to pay for our taxi to the airport.  Don't you just love his "white legs" below his sulu!

Hot and humid! Open windows only to cool down.

 At church on Sunday, we were met by the Bishop at the door, who was struggling with a toddler under his arm.  He greeted us with a huge, toothless smile and promptly said, "The High Counselor is supposed to speak today, but he may not show.  Will you speak?" We looked ar each other and smiled and said "Sure".  After all, the meeting was in Fijiian and we knew they wouldn't be able to understand us.  This woman was so sweet. These people have VERY little materially, but are happy and full of love.  She was particularly taken with John's white hair.  She kept asking how old he was.

 See these happy missionaries!  The one on the left played the keyboard for Sacrament meeting.  The one on the right sat on his folding chair on the tile floor of the chapel with his legs stretched out in front of him.  My first thought was to teach him how to sit in a skirt, then as I watched, I realized he was leading the music with his feet. They swished back and forth to the rythm of the music, as his knees and shoulders bounced.  His eyes were closed an he was singing at the top of his lungs through his smile.  I am sure he could see himself and the others there in heaven.  I will probably never see these people again, until we are all united in heaven.

Transportation is usually shared, whether it be in the back of a truck or a crowded open air bus.  No one at church had a car.  The car park was totally empty.  Most walked long distances.

Above is where a branch of The Church meets right now in Suva, Fiji.  See the sign, upstairs?  The government is building a bus terminal on the other side of the fence.

As we traveled the countryside, we saw brightly colored wash hanging to dry in the humidity.

Brightly colored houses were everywhere.  I can only imagine the heat inside a metal structure without any insulation.

The picture to the right is of a "Safeway Store".  Not like what we are used to in the States.  There seems to be no copyright laws in Fiji.

 The flats on the right are in what was considered the "slums".  A man lives there with his 14 children in one bedroom.  He said that when you enter his home, you step on someone.  But then he smiled and laughed.  Happy people.

More Fijian countryside.  A far cry from their busy cities.

                                                                                All this and then we return to our hotel to have dinner under, on the beach, under a palm tree.  We slept with visions of a happy, impoverished people.  They have so little and are happier than most people in the States.  Money does not make happiness!!

Fiji.....a contrast in beauty!