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Fiji Islands

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Christiana Hanaman
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« Reply #15 on: January 01, 2012, 12:00:58 am »

The island is 60 kilometers long, with a width varying from 365 meters to 13 kilometers. The island is almost sliced in two at the narrow Namalata Isthmus, which separates Namalata Bay on the northern coast from Galoa Harbour on the southern coast. Within Galoa Harbour lie Galoa Island and the tiny islet of Tawadromu. Kadavu is characterized by its rugged and mountainous terrain. The tallest mountain is Nabukelevu, also known as Mount Washington, which stands at 822 meters high, on the western end of the island.

Kadavu still has 75% of its original rainforest cover and a rich bird diversity, including four species endemic to the island, the Velvet Dove, the Crimson Shining-parrot, the Kadavu Honeyeater and the Kadavu Fantail, in addition to several endemic subspecies (such as a subspecies of the Island Thrush). Offshore, stringing around the south, east and then away to the north, is the Great Astrolabe Reef, a large barrier reef that is one of Fiji's premier scuba diving resorts.
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Christiana Hanaman
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« Reply #16 on: January 01, 2012, 12:01:31 am »

Kadavu is one of the least developed areas of Fiji. There are few roads, and the local economy is largely dependent on subsistence farming, supplemented by exports to Viti Levu. There are no banks on Kadavu. Tourism is becoming popular, however, with snorkeling and diving among the major attractions. The chiefly system in Kadavu gives much greater authority to local chiefs than most other areas in Fiji, where local chiefs are more often subservient to a few "paramount chiefs."

On 17 December 2005, Ratu Josateki Nawalowalo, Chairman of the Kadavu Provincial Council, announced major development plans to build roads throughout the island and to upgrade jetties, improving Kadavu's links with the mainland. He revealed that much of the finance would be provided by the government of Taiwan.
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Christiana Hanaman
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« Reply #17 on: January 01, 2012, 12:02:02 am »

History

William Bligh was the first known European to sight Kadavu, which he discovered in 1792 on his second voyage to Fiji on the HMS Providence. He was followed in 1799 by the United States vessel Ann & Hope, skippered by C. Bently en route from Australia. In 1827, French commander Dumont d'Urville nearly shipwrecked the Astrolabe on the reef that now bears the vessel's name. The island later became home to beche-de-mer traders, as well as whalers from Sydney, Australia, and New England in the United States. Galoa Harbour became a regular port of call for vessels carrying mail between Sydney, San Francisco, and Auckland.
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Christiana Hanaman
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« Reply #18 on: January 01, 2012, 12:02:22 am »

Notable Kadavuans

Well-known Kadavu names include Foreign Minister Kaliopate Tavola, Forests and Fisheries Minister Konisi Yabaki, James Ah-Koy, Senator, former Minister for Finance and businessman, Akuila Yabaki, a Methodist minister and political activist, and Ratu Josateki Nawalowalo, Chairman of the Kadavu Provincial Council and of the Fiji Kava Council. Yet another noted Kadavuan is Jesoni Vitusagavulu, Fiji's current Ambassador to the United States. Also Colonel Matereti Sarasau of Dagai village, Dr. Sitiveni Ratuva of Yale village, and Rev. Inoke Nabulivou of Dravuwalu village, past President of the Methodist Church in Fiji.
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« Reply #19 on: January 01, 2012, 12:03:08 am »



Compiled and drawn by J.P.Thomson
from his own survey and exploration of the island
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Christiana Hanaman
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« Reply #20 on: January 01, 2012, 12:03:45 am »



Kadavu and the Great Astrolabe Reef from Matava on the south of the Island
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Christiana Hanaman
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« Reply #21 on: January 01, 2012, 12:04:53 am »



Vunisea, Kadavu Island, Fiji Islands, Pacific Ocean. Additional note from the author: Corrugated iron or concrete buildings as seen here occur in many Fijian villages, being preferred over more traditional construction largely due to their resistance to cyclones. Mountains near many villages provide water pressure and protection from storms in addition to the dramatic view.
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Christiana Hanaman
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« Reply #22 on: January 01, 2012, 12:05:42 am »



Bildbeschreibung: Kadavu Hotel
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Christiana Hanaman
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« Reply #23 on: January 01, 2012, 12:06:21 am »



A beach of Kadavu (Kandavu) Island, Fiji
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Christiana Hanaman
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« Reply #24 on: January 01, 2012, 12:06:52 am »

Taveuni

Taveuni (pronounced [taβeˈuni]) is the third-largest island in Fiji, after Vanua Levu and Viti Levu, with a total land area of 435 square kilometers (169 Square Miles). The cigar-shaped island, a massive shield volcano which rises from the floor of the Pacific Ocean, is situated 6.5 kilometers to the east of Vanua Levu, across the Somosomo Strait, and is part of the Northern Division. It had a population of around 9,000, some 75 percent of them indigenous Fijians, at the 1996 census. Taveuni has abundant flora and is known as the 'Garden Island of Fiji'. It is a popular tourist destination.
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« Reply #25 on: January 01, 2012, 12:07:28 am »



NASA Space Shuttle image of Taveuni, a massive shield volcano which is the third largest island in Fiji. Top of image is NW.
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Christiana Hanaman
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« Reply #26 on: January 01, 2012, 12:08:03 am »



PNG map of Fiji from CIA World Factbook.
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« Reply #27 on: January 01, 2012, 12:08:31 am »

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« Reply #28 on: January 01, 2012, 12:08:53 am »

The island of Taveuni, about 10.5 kilometers wide and 42 kilometers long, is the top of an elongated shield volcano which erupted from a northeast-southwest trending rift on the ocean floor. About 150 volcanic cones dot the island, including Uluigalau, Fiji's second highest peak at 1,241 meters, and Des Vœux Peak, next in height at 1,195 meters. There have been at least 58 volcanic eruptions since the first human settlement around 950-750 BC, all of which affected the southern two-thirds of the island. Major eruptions from 300–500 AD caused abandonment of the southern areas until about 1100 AD. The latest eruption produced a lava flow at the southern tip of the island around 1550.

Lake Tagimaucia is one of Taveuni's most famous tourist attractions. It occupies a volcanic crater at an altitude of 800 meters, and is the habitat the rare tagimaucia flower. Fiji's most famous waterfalls, the Bouma Falls, are also on the island, located in the Bouma National Heritage Park. As much as 10 metres of rain falls annually on the eastern side of the island, but the western side is sheltered from the southeast trade winds by the ridge that runs the length of the island. South of Vuna village and the lagoon, jet black rocks litter an area known as the South Cape where Taveuni's last volcanic eruption spilled into the sea around 500 years ago. The highlight of the region is the Matamaiqi blowhole with geysers created by trade winds crashing into the volcanic rocks. About 20 minutes by foot from the town of Waiyevo is the Waitavala Waterslide. This entirely natural streambed chute plummets for about 50 meters down the lush hillside and is a favorite haunt for local children and brave tourists.
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« Reply #29 on: January 01, 2012, 12:09:14 am »

Many of Taveuni's best known attractions lie underwater though. There are three major, distinct diving areas around the island. To the north of Taveuni lie in close proximity the islands of Qamea and Matagi with their surrounding reef systems. The Rainbow Reef and Vuna Reef are famous for diving and snorkeling, respectively. The Rainbow Reef, on the western side in the narrow Somosomo Strait between Taveuni and Vanua Levu, is known as one of the world's premier soft coral dive areas. The horseshoe-shaped Vuna Lagoon, near the southern end of the island, is much appreciated among divers for the opportunity to see larger pelagic and schooling fish species on the exposed southern side of the reef, whereas the sheltered western parts provide pristine soft and hard coral gardens. There are plans to erect a surfing camp at Lavena Point.

Nearly all plants and animals indigenous to Fiji are found on Taveuni, which has suffered less devastation from land clearance than other areas of Fiji. The absence of the mongoose, a major predator, has also played a part in the survival on Taveuni of land crabs, the unique Fiji fruit bat, the Taveuni Silk bat, and some unique species of palm. Taveuni is also home to the Taveuni Beetle, Orange Dove and the kula parrot, and the Australian magpie, introduced to control coconut pests, has proliferated on the island. To protect Fiji's wildlife, two sanctuaries have been created on the island of Taveuni, namely the Ravilevu Nature Preserve on the east coast, and the Taveuni Forest Preserve in the middle of the island.
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