Suva
Suva is the capital of Fiji and is a beautiful harbour city built on a peninsula reaching out into the sea. Suva's tall modern buildings are balanced by the rich traditional colonial architecture.
The city is perched on a hilly peninsula between Laucala Bay and Suva Harbour in the southeast corner of Viti Levu. The mountains north and west catch the southeast trade winds, producing moist conditions year round.
An exciting multi-racial city, Suva began as a late Victorian village with frame houses and stores along the beachfront. Much of its past still survives, for there are many small, quaint wooden bungalows in the
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old section which sit in juxtaposition to the modern offices and shopping plazas. Suva is the only place in Fiji where you'll see buildings taller than palm trees.
On Sundays it's well worth attending church to hear the choral singing which is magnificent. Most churches have services in English, but none compare with the 1000 strong Fijian service at Centenary Methodist Church on Stewart Street.
A vital centre, Suva offers a great selection of restaurants including Chinese, Indian, traditional Fijian and European cuisine.
There are tours to landmarks such as the Thurston Gardens next to Government
House, the official residence of the
president of the Republic of Fiji. The museum is recognised as one of the best of its type in the South Pacific.
Not to be missed is the sprawling complex of municipal markets near the waterfront which comes to life on Fridays and Saturdays. Here you'll find an assortment of artefacts and handicrafts for sale, made by Fijians throughout the Island group. There is Fiji's oldest cultural centre located at Orchid Island near Suva, where visitors can see Fiji's unique fauna and flora. For those who like history, there's Albert Park where Charles Kingsford-Smith landed his plane Southern Cross on his trans-Pacific flight in 1928.
