Seabreeze Park Christmas Lights

Seabreeze Park lights:

And just for Meg, Christmas-themed Peeps:

December Tropical Storm

In Suva we had three rainy weeks in a row.  There were two tropical depressions back to back, luckily they did not grow to Cyclone wind strength.  They were slow moving, however, and the amount or rain we received was beyond belief.  Local old-timers don't remember a time of so much hard rain for so many days.  This culminated in flooding along streams and rivers, as they come out of the central hills they gain momentum and move lots of debris down hill.

Rewa River out of its banks, Princess Road looking toward Nausori town.

More Rewa river.

Along Kings Road, near Korovou, power poles knocked down
by water flow.

Lane collapsed on King's on way to Korovou.

Same loss of lane.

The Christmas season, heading into the heat of summer.

We have been busy with island families in the Temple.  We have many more Temple marriages from other island nations than we do from Fiji.  We have had several couples from Vanuatu, and many families from Karibiti.  In the last two months families have been coming from Papua New Guinea (PNG).  PNG is not in our Temple District but wants to be, we think putting them back in our district is in the works.  They like coming to our island Temple and it costs them less than Australia, plus no visa is needed for Fiji.

These out-islanders are generally gentle and simple people, with great faith and frequently have strong spiritual experiences while in the Temple.  The are also very appreciative of the opportunity to come to the Temple, and are grateful for the help we try to give them.

Romain and Suziane Yunack outside the Suva Temple.

The Karibati families always bring frozen fish with them to use during their stay in Patron housing.  At home their diet is fish everyday, chicken and fresh beef are not eaten, though canned corned beef is used.  

The Angimaua family from Karibati gave us these fish to
try.  They couldn't understand living far from the ocean and
having fish be expensive in Idaho. I filleted them, wasting
 all the good head and tail parts.

Our weather has turned hot, so even morning walks are warm and humid.  Christmas decoration have appeared and we had our Temple Worker Christmas Devotional on Saturday the 3rd of  December.  We had a choir and some congregational carols, and a nice catered lunch afterward.

Sr Olsen, Pres and Sr Yee, Cindy, and Pres Anderson.

Srs Johansson, Taito, Cama, Dolokilagi, Kois, and Ceguandraus.

Sr Kelemeti

Tabutabus, Srs. Delaitabuna, Ramaga, Resture, Cagicaucau,
 and Kaititi. Sakiusa Maiwiriwiri standing.

Bro Diloi, Sr, Cava, Olsens, and Bro Cavu.

The Royal Poincianas are blooming too, an echo of Florida, and the Dominican Republic.

Tree in front of the Yee's home.

Pity the Poor Reader- or Seabreeze memories

This blog progresses in fits and spurts.  And I am putting things on here just for me to look back on and remember.  This is because some of the routine things we enjoyed in the Dominican republic have faded away.

So Seabreeze Park is right along the Suva waterfront.  We walk in the morning near ANZ stadium, just past the Marine training academy.  There are often police training groups in the streets being tested for physical fitness.  Some don't look like they would pass so it must be for office staff and everyone.

The park is quite well kept, and has some colorful things to see, even beyond the sunrises we see many days. So enjoy the pictures, or not, as is your pleasure:

The sunrise is a free gift from God, the pictures below are man's efforts to be colorful and beautiful:

White rock letters are used often in Fiji, as are
 painted rocks for borders.

These small mosaic animals are on the rocks beside the path:

Finally, the best of all gifts...Love:

Sunset vs. Super moon

Tonight was a super-moon rising, the moon appearing larger because of its closer orbit to the earth. The sunset was just our regular ho-hum effort.

Diwali Celebration and Vanuatu Families

Diwali, the Hindi celebration of light winning over darkness, stretches over several days.  It is notable for fireworks and Indian families inviting neighbors into their homes for treats. The treats are varied, but include some sweet cookie-like objects.  Bright colors are a feature.  There are some lights, usually white but also other colors.  The Vodafone micro-wave tower was brightly lit, it looked like a Christmas tree so was very welcome.  The fireworks were seen all around Suva, not from a central location but from individual homes and businesses.  They were most common on the last night of October, but were pretty obvious in the days leading up to and after the main night.  There were so many around us that it was a bit unsettling, I was glad they were for fun and not artillery.

A neighbor across the street has the senior
missionary couples over every year.

I was not able to get any good pictures, the fireworks were
surrounding the Temple, we watched for awhile from
the front steps of the Temple.

The Vodafone Tower looks like a ChristmasTree.

We had three couples from Vanuatu at the Temple this week.  Another culture to learn about, very fun to work with in the Temple housing and in the Temple.

The Leetham family, Louisa at 14 months was our favorite.

Posing with Willy George family.

The George family, Michael and Steven as tough guys.