Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Colo-i-Suva Forest Park
Daily 8am-4pm • F$5; guides F$30 for a 2hr walk • 332 0211 • Take a Saweni- or Serea-bound bus from the
Suva bus stand (hourly; 30min; F$2) or a taxi (20min; F$12)
Around 25 kilometres north of Suva is
Colo-i-Suva Forest Park
, a pristine area of low-alti-
tude rainforest. It's a pretty place, dominated by mahogany trees, their trunks thick with para-
sitical tree ferns. There's a good chance of spotting
wild orchids
in the park as well as en-
demic
birds
, including the Pink-billed Parrotfinch. An easy one-hour
nature trail
leads to a
couple of small
waterfalls
with pools good for swimming and nearby picnic benches.
Unfortunately, the park has a reputation for theft from cars and occasional muggings - the
attendant at the park entrance can arrange a
guide
, and can look after valuables.
ACCOMMODATION: COLO-I-SUVA FOREST PARK
Raintree Lodge
Just before the park entrance 332 0562,
raintreelodge.com
.
A pleasant
retreat with three large dorm lodges with small rooms and kitchens and five quaint wooden
cottages embedded in the surrounding forest. The lodge has an excellent restaurant, which
puts on a BBQ lunch every Sun (F$17), popular with Suva residents. If you're just here for
the d
ay, stop
in fo
r mornin
g coff
ee or a
fterno
on tea. Restaurant open daily 7am-10pm. Dorms
F$25
; rooms
F$65
; studios
F$135
; bures
F$165
The Rewa River Delta
East of Suva, the landscape is dominated by the snaking tributaries and mangroves of the
Re-
wa River delta
, dotted with small fishing villages. At the eastern end of the river is
Kaba
Point
, where the great war between
Rewa
and Bau came to its bloody conclusion in 1855
with a battle involving five thousand warriors and a hundred war canoes.
Bau Island
Seven kilometres north of Kaba Point is Bau Landing, access point for the chiefly island of
Bau
. To visit the tiny island, reached by punt from here (F$6), you need to ask the
Turaga-
ni-Koro
or village spokesman ( 362 4028) for permission. If you receive an invitation you
should bring
yaqona
roots and dress respectably. The island is small in size but has over two
hundred houses and a fascinating history (see
The rise of Bau Island and King Cakobau
)
. The
mound in the centre is where the chiefly families live, while around the perimeter are sub
clans: craftsmen from Lau, warriors from Botoni and fishermen from Kadavu. The island's
Methodist
church
, dating from 1859, was the first to be built in Fiji. It was erected under the
orders of King Cakobau, the fierce chief of the island who converted to Christianity in 1854.
All the ancient temples on Bau were destroyed, and their stone used in the construction of the
church. The baptismal font beside the altar is reputed to be Cakobau's killing stone, where
the skulls of his captives were smashed before being eaten.
