Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
City centre
The lively hub of the city,
Suva Central
, is not even half a square kilometre in size and runs
south of Nubukalou Creek to Gordon Street. This is where the best of the city's eating, shop-
ping and strolling opportunities are focused.
The Triangle and around
At the heart of Suva Central is
The Triangle
, a tiny park where locals meet to gossip under
an impressive
ivi
tree. Fijian history buffs will notice three of the four inscriptions on the con-
crete historical marker here are incorrect: Cross and Cargill, the first missionaries to land in
Fiji, arrived on October 12, 1835, not October 14, 1835; the government approved the move
from Levuka to Suva in 1877 not 1882; and the Public Land Sales of 1880 were not pro-
claimed under the current
ivi
tree, but one further down the street towards Morris Hedstrom.
Heading north from The Triangle, busy
Scott Street
is home to
Village Six Cinemas
, show-
ing the latest Hollywood and Bollywood flicks. Behind the post office, between Central and
Edward streets facing Stinson Parade, is the
Handicraft Market
, with fifty stalls all selling
pretty much the same stuff and vying for your attention. Prices here start high so you'll have
to bargain to get a fair deal.
Ratu Sukuna Park
Heading towards the sea from The Triangle brings you to Stinson Parade, which runs parallel
to the harbour walkway. At the southern end is
Ratu Sukuna Park
, venue for church meet-
ings and pious preachers as well as being a hangout for drunks and prostitutes. Across the
road on Victoria Parade is the
QBE Building
, with doctors and lawyers upstairs and the
Palm
Court Café
and public phones in a quiet downstairs courtyard.
Sacred Heart Cathedral
Pratt St • Open access; services Mon-Fri 6.30pm, Sat 1pm, Sun 7am, 8.30am, 10am, 5pm & 7pm
Imposing
Sacred Heart Cathedral
is Fiji's only cathedral, and one of fourteen in the South
Pacific. Construction of the twin-towered church commenced in 1895 with stone shipped in
from the Hunter Valley in Australia and the timber flooring sourced from Quebec in Canada.
The first mass was held in 1902 but the cathedral wasn't fully completed until 1935, 22 years
after the death of its instigator, Bishop Julian Vidal from Australia.
North Suva
North of Nubukalou Creek, the Suva
bus stand
on Rodwell Road typifies Suva's bustle.
By day, Indian peanut sellers and Fijian barrow boys run around amongst the black exhaust
fumes frenetically plying their trade. By night, the area becomes desolate, save for a few
drunks and homeless people, who sleep on the benches and rummage amongst the rubbish.
