Fiji

Fiji is a country that consists of more than 300 islands. It is located in the middle of the south central Pacific Ocean. It is near where the international dateline should pass. Fiji has two main continental islands which are called Viti Levu and Vanua Levu. The other islands are either small coral atolls or larger volcanic islands. However, only about 100 of the islands are inhabited. The capital of Fiji is Suva which is on Viti Levu. Suva is one of the most modern cities in Fiji. Fiji also has many tall mountains and rivers. Fiji has a rainy climate. Winds that come from the north and east bring rain clouds to the east of the islands. On the other hand, the west side of the islands are much drier because the mountains block the rain clouds

This is because Fiji is in between Melanesia and Polynesia. However, Fiji is much closer to Polynesia. In the past, Europeans thought that Fiji was not a safe place for sailors. The Europeans also thought that the Fijians were savages. Then, many beachcombers started coming to the islands. Many of these beachcombers were people who had run away from whaling ships. Eventually sandalwood was discovered. Sandalwood was soon cut and shipped to China and in a few years there were no more sandalwood trees. Soon, Europeans came to trade for sea slugs since there were a lot in Fiji. Missionaries also came and tried to convert the islanders into Christians, but they didn’t succeed. In the 1850s, there was powerful Fijian chief named Cakobau who said that he was the chief of all Fiji. However, this wasn’t true. He owed a lot of money to the traders so he wanted to make an agreement with Britain. The agreement said that Britain could have Fiji if they could pay all the money that Cakobau owed to the traders. At first, the British didn’t like this, but soon the British started to settle in Fiji and they agreed. Workers were being brought in by blackbirders, but Britain stopped this. Soon, the British needed more workers, so they bought workers from India. In the 1850s, there were more Indians than Fijians. Then in 1987, there were problems and some Indians left. Now, there are more Fijians. The Fijians have a custom of walking on fire by walking on hot coals. They also drink yaqona which numbs the mouth and acts like a drug. The Modern cities are Suva and Lautoka which are in Viti Levu. The rest of Fiji is made up of smaller farms and villages. Many people that farm for a living live