Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
side. Old clothes are recommended, and if the water is foaming in the lower pool at the bot-
tom it means the currents are fast - in these conditions it's wise to watch a local slide down
before giving it a go yourself. The water slide, lying south of Vuniuto, is a little tricky to find:
walk north from
Garden Island Resort
for five minutes and turn into the hills at the wide dirt
track beside a wooden bus shelter. From here it's a twenty-minute walk to the bottom of the
waterslide - fork left just past the sign for the prison, then right after 100m on the narrow
path which leads up to the pools.
Waiyevo
Three kilometres south of Naqara, the hillside settlement of
WAIYEVO
makes up the is-
land's administrative centre. There's no beach here, but it's a good base for
diving
- access
to
Rainbow Reef
is only ten minutes away by boat, and non-divers can snorkel at
Korolevu
Island
, a five-minute paddle by kayak from the coast; kayaks can be rented from the
Garden
The 180 Degree Meridian
On the unsigned road leading from central Waiyevo up to the hospital and police station
At Taveuni's quirkiest attraction, a small information board covered by a tin roof marks the
exact spot of the
180 Degree Meridian
. Fiji is one of only two places in the world where
this line of longitude passes through land, the other being at the far eastern tip of Russia.
The meridian theoretically marks the beginning and end of each day, although for the sake of
convenience the International Date Line kinks eastwards to avoid splitting Fiji into two time
zones and two different days. In colonial times, several unscrupulous planters justified the
working of labourers on Sunday by claiming they were actually working on Monday's side
of the dateline.
Wairiki
The new
wharf
of Nayalayala, where all large ships dock on Taveuni, marks the division
between Waiyevo and
WAIRIKI
, which otherwise seamlessly merge. The pretty settlement
revolves around the imposing
Catholic Mission
, where a two-hour Mass is celebrated every
Sunday at 7am - it's said that the congregation sing with such enthusiasm that cracks have
appeared in the windows. Located on a hill, the Mission overlooks the ocean where the is-
land's warriors fought thousands of invading Tongans in a
sea battle
, fighting with clubs
from their canoes. The Taveunians won the day, promptly ate their adversaries and halted the
Tongan invasion of Fiji.
De Voeux Peak and Lake Tagimaucia
From Wairiki, a dirt road heads to the telecoms station at
De Voeux Peak
(1195m). If you're
fit it's not difficult to walk to the top, but it will take a couple of hours from the turn-off just
before the Catholic Mission. Once at the
summit
, the view overlooking Taveuni, Vanua Levu
and south to Gau and Koro is incredible on a fine day. Be warned, though, clouds often ob-
scure the peak and whilst it may be sunny by the coast, rain could easily be falling on the
