During
my stay of 5 days on Mana Island I was immersed in the culture and
life of those living on the Island. I was interested in documenting
this and the best way for me to do was to talk to the locals. I would
like to thank the Kindergarten teacher, School Headmaster Mr.
Seranaia Gauna, and one of the ladies at the hostel named Maria that
helped divulge some information on the local life.
I
learned a bit regarding the local story of the island and where it
got its name. The Fijian people had a magical box that contained
their language and culture. The people were boating by the Island
with this box and all the Fijian people valued were also contained on
the boats. When they started to approach the island a storm started
to form and then got really intense the closer they got. This storm
ended up capsizing all the boats and from then on they called it Mana
Island(Magic Island) because of the force it had to force them to
lose this box and all their valuables.
I
was able to talk to the headmaster after school was out on my last
day on the island and ask a few questions about the school and life
for the children. The kindergarten teacher that I spoke with briefly
on more of a personal level about my travels, did divulge that the
kindergarten classes all over Fiji receive aid in the form of school
supplies, teaching materials, and work shops for teachers from the
Fiji Kinde Project(USA). It was humbling to know that these children
are fortunate enough to get off to a great start in their educations
through a program like this.
She
then informed me about the structure in which the kids proceed through
school. The education system for elementary school is not free in
Fiji but as of next year(2014) the government will be paying for free
education for elementary students. Once the students finish with
elementary school on the island they then must pay for High School or
if fortunate enough boarding school, both of which are located on the main island, Viti Levu.
After High school the kids head off to University or if they cannot
afford it they return to the island to live and preform local trades.
On the main island there are two Universities and also a school of
agriculture.
The
school on the island was called the Mana Adventist Primary School. Immediately I could tell that Catholicism and religion played a big
role in the schools teachings and operation. Through further
inspection the school had children of all different religions
attending and one of the points on the Fijian Education Mission
statement was in fact to be accepting towards and promote all
religion in the schools.
The
curriculum was quite similar to that in North America, at the school
they teach Maths, English, Fijian, Science, Health, Physical
Education, and the Arts. While visiting the school I was informed
that they were in the last few days of exams before the kids are on a
7 week summer break, good for them cause it was really starting to
get hot!
Though
some may not be able to move on to University or to college, they are
taught local skills such as fishing, growing, building, and cooking
at a young age. For the 256 locals living on Mana, Fish was indeed
one of the primary diet items so learning fishing is a matter of
survival. There were many locals arriving back on boats in the
evenings with nets to bring in the daily catch. Among fish the other
major dietary items were cassava, clams, spinach, fruit, seaweeds,
and sea grapes.
There
were noticeably lots of plantations on the side hills which contained
cassava, sweet potatoes, and yams. The fruit that grew and was
consumed on Mana included coconuts, mangoes, bananas, papaya, and
bread fruit. In terms of meat and protein, all I noticed was fish and
a few goats lazing around in the small pasture. All the fruit, meat
and vegetables that are cultivated on Mana are only for consumption
by the locals. All food for the Resort and two hostels is brought in
from the mainland.
The
island has a leader, Mr. Jeramiah, who looks after the well being and
affairs of the village and making rules for the residents. After work
activities on the island were primarily relaxing, playing rugby,
volleyball, or swimming in the ocean. Most of the residents are able
to join into playing a game of volleyball at night as it is more
inclusive and does not require a lot of fitness like rugby. Most of
the men in the village and working at the resort gather on the old
airstrip to play rugby or sometimes soccer.
All
in all the people were very friendly and relaxed. On Mana Island it
was obvious that the locals are on a whole different schedule to the
rest of the world. When referring to a time to meet or do something
it was usually referred to as "Fiji Time". Even some of the
guests at to hostel were late for a boat while getting caught up
snorkeling on Fiji Time. I know it rubbed off on me while I was
there, kinda just letting things happen, no schedules, no worries.
W
