Gregg - Market in Vaileka

Note Index | Erinn Gregg

Tuesday, September 7, 1999
(written Thursday, September 9)
MARKET IN VAILEKA
by Erinn Gregg
I. Layout

The market is designed so that there are both indoor and outdoor booths. Outside the market there are approximately ten booths with women stationed around them. The food is placed either on the top of the table or on the floor. Upon entering the inside market there is an increase of booths, long rectangular tables set around the perimeter of the room and continuing to the inside. The inside market holds close to twenty-three booths. Bags hang from the rafters above the tables to place the food in upon purchase. The food is placed on top of each booth with boxes of additional produce stored underneath or behind the tables. In addition there are rooms along the left side of the building which are identified as Shop One and so on by signs that hang above the door. These are not actual booths but rather rooms where the sellers of the nearby booths rest. Along the back of the market there is a Kava Saloon with a table in front of it. To the left is the office of "The Market Master". There are five doorways leading in and out of the market. Two in the front, one in the back, one in the far left-hand corner and the far-right hand corner. The majority of the men and women tend to enter through the front doors. The indoor market includes a Refreshment Stand that is located to the left of the front doors. The indoor market is completely enclosed but has windows on each of the walls.
II. Products

The outside market has two booths of yaqona sellers who sell both roots and stems either whole or ground. Inside the market booths sell a large variety of produce including: cabbage, bananas, eggplant, cucumber, beans - long and short, tomatoes, radish, pane leaves, radish, ginger, chile, okra, spinach, coriander, eggs, peanuts, apples, pineapples, coconuts, tobacco, rice, kava, chicken food - for both small and large chickens, dall, bailey leaves, onions and potatoes.
III. Prices

The prices of the food vary according to product but are generally the same from booth to booth.

cabbage - $1/head peanuts - .50/bag
eggplant - .50 eggs - $3/dozen
cucumber - $1/3 tobacco - large bundle $250
short beans - .50/heap    - small bundle $7
long beans - $1/bundle     - also any specified increment
chile - .50/bundle kava - pounded root - $30/kilo
tomatoes - .50/bundle     - pounded stem - $20/kilo
ginger - .50/bundle okra - $2/kilo
radish - .50/bundle papaya - $2/kilo
spinach - .50/bundle

Booths

Sellers pay different prices for different sized booths. In addition the booths outside are cheaper to rent than those inside. Inside the market the booths are equivalent to an average sized folding table in the United States. They are then broken down into sections by red tape and the sellers pay per section.
outside - .22/stall
inside - .88 - $5
IV. Sellers

The majority of sellers inside the market are Indian men and women who are considered regulars. They come to the market every day and are required to pay for the booths regardless of if they show up or not. Most of the sellers inside the market are middlemen. They do not grow the crops themselves but rather purchase them from farmers at a certain price and sell the goods at a slightly inflated price to make a profit. Outside the market the majority of sellers are Fijians who grow the crops themselves and sell them for a profit. The generally come to the market on the weekends but there are a number who sell throughout the week as well.

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V. First Impressions of the Market

We arrive at the market at approximately 1:30 on Tuesday afternoon. It is not a very busy day and inside there are approximately four other buyers other than us. Andy, Megan and myself walk around the inside of the market to get a sense of the products and the layout of the building. We look for kava that Steve has asked us to purchase and find a booth in the back of the market across from the Kava Saloon. We purchase $4 of ground kava and continue to the other booths. The inside is humid and smells of rotting fruit in certain areas. Fruit flies fill the air.
VI. Sellers at the Market

a) dynamics of product buying and selling, products and purchasing ginger
The first seller we approach is an Indian woman from Vaileka. She grows the products herself and comes to the market on a daily basis to sell. Her table includes tomatoes, ginger, pane leaves, curry, chile, and radish. We relay our interest to purchase a small amount of ginger but could only buy a bundle at .50. She informs us that Tuesday is not a very busy day for the market but rather Saturday is the busier day.
b) eggs, apples and peanuts
The next seller we speak with is a woman named Nania. She appears to be the only seller in the main room of the indoor market who had peanuts, eggs and apples. Nania is a middleman who purchases the products from someone else and then sells them at the market. She walks into town three miles each day but enjoys selling at the market more on the weekends because it is busier. A man stationed at the booth behind her directs us to the back right of the market saying, "Pineapples over there".
c) Bruce- bargaining, kava drinking, table prices, Market Master
We walk over to the booth with the pineapples and met the next seller, Bruce. Bruce is a regular seller at the market. He resides in Vaileka but is originally from Sigatoka, a town past the Nadi Airport. He was formerly employed by A.R.Dos and Sons a small hardware shop in Vaileka but after an injury to his back, which he later described as a slipped disc, he retired from the job. His old boss paid his fare to go to Australia which at that time, in the 1980s, was approximately $650-$700. It was here that Bruce learned to speak excellent English. His dialect is clear and his vocabulary skills are broad. In addition to pineapples he sells watermelons, cucumbers, eggplant, cabbage, spinach, brown coconuts, onions and potatoes. He said his favorite products were the pineapple, watermelon and onions. We purchase four pineapples at $1/each and then inquired about price bargaining. Bruce explained that generally the prices remain the same for all people but occasionally people bargain with the sellers for a lower price. The sellers aim to have the better prices because, "When you put a reasonable price, people buy more." Bruce asked is we have tasted kava yet and we replied that we had just purchased a small amount for a sevusevu later that evening. "Kava has a good taste but the more you drink you become sleepy and lazy. It is not like beer and whiskey. Before I used to drink a lot of that but now I drink little." Bruce recalls that somebody was exporting kava to the United States but it was stopped because somebody became ill. [He seemed a little unsure of what had actually occurred]. Now people come from America to buy kava and then sell it there. [Perhaps there is a market for this at Union?]. We ask about the price of the tables and Bruce explains that there are different prices for different tables. He pays $5/day for six tables but the man next to him pays .88 because he has fewer tables. "It depends on how much they have and how much they can afford". We ask Bruce about the dynamics of the market and table positioning. "It is the market master who assigns the tables. If you reserve and do not show, you still pay". This leads us to inquire about the market master. Bruce points out his office in the back left-hand corner of the market but says that he is out to lunch. He explains that the market master is chosen by the government and overlooks the entire market. Bruce tells us that he prefers the indoor market to the outside because it is shady and you are out of the rain. In addition the vegetables become very dry outside. Bruce points us to the table to his left where the seller has Fijian tobacco.
d) Tobacco
We speak to the man selling tobacco and ask him what they do with the tobacco. [We were attempting to discern how the tobacco is smoked in Fiji. Was it used for cigarettes, cigars, pipes or perhaps another way?] He explains that the tobacco is for pipes but can be smoked in paper as well. The largest bundle of strong tobacco was $250 and the smaller bundle of weaker tobacco was $7. Buyers can also purchase smaller amounts for a lesser price. We inquire if he grows the tobacco himself. It is grown in Lautoka and then brought into the market each day by a group of men. This particular man walks into the market each day to sell. All the goods are sold at a slightly inflated price than for what they are purchased. The man explains that he buys bananas for .30 and then sells them for .40. Andy, Megan and I disperse to different sections of the market. Megan goes outside, Andy to the Market Master and I remain inside.
e) rice and chicken food
I approach a table with a variety of what appears to be grain and inquire what the products are. The seller does not speak much English but relays that he is selling rice, dall and two types of chicken food for large and small chickens. [Good thing I asked because I thought it was some kind of grain that people ate for breakfast!] I ask about prices but he continues to point out what he is selling. I move towards the left side of the market where the indoor shops are. I approach Shop One and inquire what is for sale. I think the woman says soap but as she points to the table of bananas outside I realize that I am behind the table of products. [For a second I got excited thinking that I had found some new product in the market.] The shops are not selling products but rather are used as storage for the goods of the tables and resting-places for the sellers. She does not understand my English and likewise I find it hard to understand her.
f) Bruce - buyers, uses for different foods, winter
I return to Bruce because not only does he speak and understand English but also he is very enthusiastic about sharing information. I ask Bruce who the majority of buyers are and what they purchase. He says that Europeans come in and buy a large variety of food. "They come in and buy all kinds of stuff because they stay in motels in the area. Then they go there and cook". I ask Bruce if he can explain how the fruits and vegetables are used in Fiji. Cucumbers are generally used for salad but they are also cut into strips and eaten with salt. Eggplant is cut into strips and fried with onion, chile and garlic. They can also be soaked in coconut juice. Spinach, cabbage and fish are also soaked in coconut milk. The uses for coconut depends on the color; green ones are mostly drank and brown ones are eaten. Potatoes can be boiled, fried, used for masala soup, chicken curry, stew, eaten with lamb chops and many other meats. [I immediately associate with dinners at home...meat, potatoes and a vegetable]. I am interested to know what happens in the winter months. Bruce explains that there is no real winter as Americans known it but that it does get cooler in the months of May, June and July. The market is still opened and sellers generally have the same products but in much smaller quantities. The supply of bananas, tomatoes, chile, eggplant and cabbage is noticeably less. "Big farmers will still have plenty to sell in the winter. It is the small farmers who will have less". Andy returns from his discussion with the Market Master and we head outside.
g) Outside market-kava: types and prices
Outside I notice two large booths with kava stems spread on sheets on the ground in front of them. I approach the first booth and the seller introduces himself as Dhirendre Kumar. He is a policeman from Vaileka who has a regular outside booth at the market. He explains that his wife usually sells but she has been in the hospital so he has been coming to the market until she gets better. Dhirendre has two brothers in Australia and one in California. He owns the booth that he sells at but pays $1.32 per day for the land space. He tells us that you can buy two parts of the yaqona (kava), either the root or the stem. The roots called waka are stronger than the lewena or the stem that is weaker. Both are available in powder form. Hs mother grounds the kava that he sells. He relays to us that he knows our "master", Steve and has told him that we do not have to stay at the hotel but we can pay him and stay at his house. Steve arrives and asks if we have found out the prices of the kava. We have not and Dhirendre tells me that the pounded root sells for $30/kilo and the pounded stem sells for $20/kilo.
VII. The Market Master at the Vaileka Market - politics of the market, sellers, bargaining

Andy spoke with the Market Master as we did not want to intimidate him and we thought it wise that neither Megan nor myself go to see him by ourselves. They spoke about the position of the Market Master and how the job is acquired. He said that a local board appoints the market master. There are actually two different council markets the town and the local authority. Vaileka is a town council in which the local board appoints the market master and only produce, no crafts can be sold.

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FIRST SEVUSEVU
I. The Dress

All the females are dressed in their sulus and tee shirts. The males must also wear sulus for the kava drinking ceremony.
II. Arrival and Entrance

After picking up Va at her home Karen and Va accompany us on to the house where Michelle will be staying in Navitu Levu (Big Nut). We arrive at the house and called out to the family. They do not answer and Va approached the front door and spoke to the people inside. She gives us the okay to enter and we did so, leaving our shoes outside the front door. Va points for us to sit on the couches and we do so, waiting for Michelle's father to enter the room. He is a sugar cane farmer and had just arrived home from the fields some time before.
III. House- Furniture and Rooms

Michelle's house seems to be nice in comparison to other Fijian houses we have seen. The room where we held the ceremony was fairly large with much furniture, a television, a radio and plants. When we look around the house there were two additional family rooms, numerous bedrooms, two kitchens, and two bathrooms.
III. Ceremony

Michelle's father enters the room and rolls out the mats that we then sit on. We sit in a circle with our legs crossed in front of us. We introduced ourselves and Va began the offering of yaqona on behalf of Michelle's stay. They speak in Fijian so this is difficult to understand. The offering is accepted and we wait for one of the daughter's to bring out the prepared kava. (The group actually drinks kava already in the house not the kava that was offered). Michelle serves the kava on her knees first beginning with her father. He claps once before taking the cup and then the group clapped three times when he drank. This symbolizes that he is the chief. Va was served again clapping once before accepting the cup. The group clapped twice this time to symbolize that she is the herald. This continued on for the group, chief then herald, chief then herald and so on. When the first round of kava drinking was finished we waited and talked. Andy served the second round in the same way that Michelle had and after Michelle's mother comes home, Stephanie served the third and final round.
IV. The Look and Taste of Kava

The kava in its powdered state is light brown in color. When it is mixed with water it is a light brown murky color. (Almost like water with some dirt in it!) On the first cup I am surprised - it does not taste as bad as I had expected but it does taste a little chalky. The second and third glasses are fine. It numbs my tongue and I feel very sleepy when the ceremony is over.

V. Discussion

a) American and Fijian Education Systems

Between kava drinking the Va discusses the education systems in Fiji. "I wish that the Fijian government would have a program where the students could go abroad to study". Karen explains that the schools and the program we are with are not supported by money from the government. Rather we attend a private university and our parents pay for us to go each year. They were very surprised by this.
b) Surprise at our Liking for Kava

Va tells us that she is very surprised that we drink the kava so well. "Most Europeans cannot drink it- they don't like the taste". (I don't think it's that we necessarily like the taste but we can drink it!)
c)WOMEN AND WEIGHT

This is the first time I hear a direct comment about weight. Michelle's host mother says something to Va and she relays the message to Karen. She says that Karen looks good - gaining weight. Fijians like people to gain weight. "Unless you want to be thin like those actresses". I find this interesting.

V. Closing of kava ceremony

Dali announces that the kava drinking ceremony is over. The family offers us dinner but we decline saying, Sa vu se! (I am full.).

Wednesday, September 8, 1999

(written September 10)
SUMMARY

After breakfast at the Rakiraki Hotel Steve drives us into Vaileka so we can return to the market and the shops. Andy, Megan and I look for sulus in a few of the shops and after making a few purchases we return to the market. We follow up with Bruce and ask him a few more questions. We buy a papaya and then head outside to the kava booth where we talk to Dhirendre Kumar. We return to the market and take photographs of Bruce and Dhirendre. We leave the market and return to the hotel for the afternoon and evening.
I. Purchasing Kava from Dhirendre Kumar

Steve and Karen ask us to purchase two half-kilos of ground kava stem for later that evening and we are given $40 to do so. We go to Dhirendre Kumar, the kava seller outside the market, and purchase the two kilos of kava wrapped separately. He tells us that his wife will be coming home tomorrow and introduces the woman in the booth as his sister. She married and American in Lisbon. [I wonder if he tells us this because he thinks we will be impressed that she is married to an American].
II. Bruce Rao - market master, profit and different product names

We return to speak with Bruce because we are interested in the profit of market selling. Bruce tells us that he generally makes about $15 per day. On a busy day, mostly Saturday, he can make anywhere from $80 - $150. We ask Bruce if any of the products that he sells are known by other names. He says papaya is called pawpaw in Fiji. He then tells us that pineapple is referred to as anainais to the German and Hindi people. "Americans come and always buy pineapple from me". [Interesting because on our first day at the market one seller was very insistent on showing us where the pineapples were! This makes sense now]. We inquire about the market master's name and learn that it is Rajen Dra Kumar. [I later wonder if this is any relation to the Dhirendre Kumar who sells kava in the outdoor market?].
III. Market hours and cleaning

A sign on the inside of the right front door displays the hours for the market as Saturday from 6-5:30 and Monday-Friday from 7-5. It also reads, "Market washing - once a month by order of the market master". [That sounds quite official..by order of the market master!]
IV. Photographing Vaileka

We are given the digital camera to take photographs of Vaileka for the web site. Megan, Andy and I return to the market to take a photograph of Bruce and he is very enthusiastic about it. He s all smiles and when we are having trouble with the camera he seems anxious to help us fix it asking us if it is opened enough and this and that. We ask another group of men near the kava saloon for their photograph and they are somewhat less enthused pointing us over to Bruce's table again. Outside, Megan, Apryle and I take photographs with Dhriendre. Not only is he happy about the photographs but he wants us to come over to his house on Sunday. Both men request copies of the photographs. [I am both interested and apprehensive with this photographing session. After having recently taken Photographing Culture with Sharon I wonder if we are being a little too intrusive and tourist like in manner. But I also am interested to see what students photograph...is it how they want to portray Fijian culture to Americas or how Fijian culture would truly be displayed?]

Thursday, September 9, 1999

(written September 10)
SUMMARY

We spend the day working on field notes at the Rakiraki hotel and then have class in the afternoon. There is mention of last night's sevusevu [I had not attended] and the casual references to domestic violence. [I am disturbed]. Later in the evening Steve drives Megan, Stephanie, Andy, April and I to get Va and another gentleman for a sevusevu at the family of Megan. On the car ride Va discusses a speaker she attended the night before on domestic violence. [This seems to be a mentioned quite a lot...perhaps an interesting topic to explore]. We arrive at the house and the sevusevu is performed. It is again informal and lasts not more than an hour and a half. We return to the hotel.
I. Domestic Violence

A comment was on Wednesday night, "They don't like me because I used to beat me wife". Apparently it was a very casual comment and Steve and Karen explain that domestic violence is not uncommon in the first years of marriage. [I can't stop thinking about it throughout dinner. Does anyone do anything about it?] Va later mentions a speaker she attended on Wednesday night, a social worker who discussed domestic violence with about 30 or more women. She says they were very inquisitive asking lots of questions and they were happy to learn that they could get a divorce without paying money for a lawyer. They just have to go to the social workers office and get a form signed. [I am a little more at ease learning that women are becoming educated on their rights in regards to this issue. Though I do assume, perhaps prematurely, that they have a long way to go].

FRIDAY, September 10, 1999

(written September 10)
SUMMARY

We go on a field trip this afternoon to snorkel and relax. [Though we have been doing a lot of that at the hotel this week]. It is only a day trip as we are heading to Drana Friday evening for the sevusevu to my host family. [I am very excited to meet them all day]. After dinner Michelle, Andy and I go with Steve to pick up Bill, the chief in Steve and Karen's village and drive approximately ten minutes to Drana. The sevusevu is performed by Bill to Michael, the chief in Drana, at Michael's home. [The "Big Man" as Bill refers to him]. They accept the offering and thank us. We drink the kava and I meet my Fijian mother and her children. I already know from Steve, and Karen that she is a widow but mentions that she has no husband when we look at the house. "It is just me and my children here". Michelle, Andy and I go back to the sevusevu and drink more kava. After roughly five rounds of kava drinking the sevusevu is complete. We thank the people of Drana and return to our hotel for the evening. On the ride home Steve explains that we have seen a more traditional sevusevu. [I am starting to get nervous about heading to my village. We have not been alone yet...no more Union faces].
I. Traditional sevusevu

The sevusevu is performed in the chief's house that is on top of the hill in Drana. We are positioned by Bill who sits at one end of the room while Michelle, Andy and I sit across the circle. The sevusevu is performed as on other nights with a few exceptions. When my host family arrives I am told by Bill to go down and sit next to them. In between rounds Michael plays songs while the people from Drana sing songs. I think they just like to sing but my new sister explains that they are singing the songs for us to welcome us to Drana. There is a lot of talking and singing as well as cigarette smoking by the men, which was not present at the other kava ceremonies.
II. Cigarette smoking in Fiji

When we arrive at the chief's house Bill asks us if we smoke. We reply with a no [we are under the impression that it is taboo for women to smoke in Fijian society] and Michelle asks Bill if women smoke in Fiji. He says "Oh no. In the U.S. do they?" When we say yes he seems taken back. [This is confusing for me. Why does he ask us of we smoke when women are not supposed to?] During the kava ceremony my host mother smokes a cigarette. [whoa...now I am extremely confused! I am not sure what the outlook is on women's smoking but I consider many things. Maybe it is not bad for women to smoke but many just choose not to. Or perhaps women are not considered to be acceptable for marriage when they smoke or are thought of as bad wives and since my mother is a widow it is okay for her to smoke? I really don't know but I will figure it out!]
III. First impressions of my family

My family is very friendly asking me questions and introducing themselves. My mother speaks excellent English and appears to be a very caring woman. She asks me numerous times throughout the kava ceremony if I am okay [apparently I appear tired] and tells me that I do not have to drink any more kava if I don't want to. My oldest sister speaks excellent English and translates much of what is being said at the ceremony. "He [Bill] is telling everyone that you drink a lot of kava". Later, "Michael says you are going to learn the Fijian songs next Saturday". [I perceive that she will be very helpful for understanding and translating. However her enthusiasm and desire to hang around and help may become a problem at times.]
IV. First impressions of my home

The house where I will be staying appears to be very clean. [I am surprised and extremely excited that I see no large bugs in the air! Although looks may be deceiving.] The house is small. There is a large front room with mats on the floor and no furniture. A small kitchen is to the back left of the room and in the back of the house there is a large bedroom where I will be staying. I don't look in but Michelle and Andy look in and see a bed and a table. [I wonder where the family sleeps - mother and three children. Am I kicking them out of their room? I could sleep on the floor I think...but then again, for ten weeks that might be quite a problem.]

WEEK ONE REACTION - FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF FIJI

When arrive in Fiji I am overwhelmed by the sites. Flowering plants and palm trees. Sugar cane fields, banana trees, and lemon trees. Cows and goats alongside the roads. The majority of them seem to be very scrawny in comparison to those I have seen in America. Similar are the small, thin dogs that run about the roads, village and fields. I see mountains in every direction. It is hot and humid. Bugs fill the air: small and large, all sorts of colors. [I am not very enthused about them. I stare at the lizards on the walls watching their every move...not letting them out of my eyesight.]

I am surprised at the development of Fiji as I expected a country that was very much underdeveloped. The picture in my head had been dirt roads everywhere and small houses with the bare essentials. Although the country is in no way as developed as the United States, they are very much developed. Many of the houses we have seen have furniture as well as indoor bathrooms and showers. A few have televisions and radios. The stores in town contain a multitude of products - one can even purchase a Sony Play Station.

cabbage - $1/head		peanuts - .50/bag
eggplant - .50		eggs - $3/dozen
cucumber - $1/3		tobacco - large bundle $250
short beans - .50/heap		- small bundle $7
long beans - $1/bundle		- also any specified increment
chile - .50/bundle		kava - pounded root - $30/kilo
tomatoes - .50/bundle		- pounded stem - $20/kilo
ginger - .50/bundle		okra - $2/kilo
radish - .50/bundle		papaya - $2/kilo
spinach - .50/bundle