Travel in Viti Levu - Fiji - Australia - History

This is the flag of Fiji. It was presented for the first time in 1970, when Fiji became independent. It includes the Union flag of Britain and the shield from the Fiji Coat of Arms. Fiji's shield has the image of a heraldic lion holding a cocoa pod across the top. Sugarcane, a coconut palm and bunch of bananas are represented in three of the shields sections. The fourth contains the reproduction of a dove of peace, the main feature out of the flag before the annexation by Britain.

Sighted (1789) by Captain William Bligh of the British navy, the island is split by a central mountain range with many inactive volcanoes. The first 'tourists' in Suva where navy and military personnel stationed there from 1942 to 1946. In 1950 they were replaced by real tourists who started arriving in earnest by the sea. The boom in the tourist trade really started in the 1960's when large numbers of tourists goods were removed from the list of dutiable imports.
British influence is still seen in Suva. There are streets, squares and buildings with British names. There even is a miniature of the Big Ben. Many of the colonial homes still stand.

In 1970 Suva becomes independent, just like the rest of Fiji. Suva takes place as biggest and most influential city in the South Pacific. The end of the British government freed the small and dynamic city to become what it is today; a city rich of trade, culture and nightlife. Suva bubbles over with life. There are stores, markets, historical sights, discotheques, restaurants, cafe's and much more of everything a big city ought to have. Suva is the economical, cultural and administrative centre of the land.

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