Tuesday I got Thursday on my mind

I could be in England: the Union Jack is flying everywhere; the Queen's face smiles from the $10 notes: the natives are complaining about immigrants taking all their jobs. There are a few differences: it is mid-winter and the temperature is 75F; the immigrants in question came to Fiji about 70 years ago as a result of British colonialism; there is an interim military government as a result of a military coup a couple of years ago and there is live food sold everywhere. I hadn't realised. just how Indian Fiji was: from Patel's supermarket to the magnificent Hindu Temple shown below; from the Prince Charles and  N V  Patel national stadium to the roti and sari shops.

There is an ever larger and growing resentment among the indigenous population about the Indians' position of privilege; the Indians think the Fijians are lazy. Depending who your taxi driver is you get a different view of the future of these beautiful islands.

Arriving there was confusing because I lost Wednesday as a result of  crossing the international date line. The beauty of Fiji is that there is no-one hassling or hustling you; there is no tipping and it is not encouraged. What surprised me is that it was so much more a developing country than I expected. I thought it was going to be more of a developed and sophisticated tourist venue - something

 like Hawaii but it was closer to  Gambia. The streets aredusty and the market is crowded, dirty and full of exotic foods both dead and alive. the last time I saw anything like this I was in Vietnam.This paradox will be explained later. The new colonialists are the phone companies: Vodafone sponsored everything. There is only one McDonald's and there are queues to get in. Brands,too, are everywhere - why are a 19 year-old woman and her 3 year-old daughter wearing Ramones' T shirts?

The buses of Fiji are amazng: they race taxis; there is no such thing as a full bus; there is one every 5 minutes and they are so cheap - it is the only way to travel

on the island until 11pm. Nadi (pronounced Nandi) was particularly busy because it was the Fiji cup finals of soccer. I managed to watch 3 games including the final. I also watched the final of the Super 14 on TV. This is Rugby but not as I know it. Waratha from Sydney were playing the Crusaders from Christchurch. The game was played at such a pace and with such finesse that I believe a Northern hemisphere side will find it difficult to win the World Cup for the next decade at least. In the end Christchurch won because their South Pacific players were better than Sydney's. All over the island you can see home-made pitches with bamboo rugby posts.

Fiji was my first real experience of backpackers. I stayed at a hostel and was treated as a bit of a curiosity. The backpackers' life is not as I expected: it is quite staid compared to, say, my retirement party in Vegas. Much of the day is spent playing cards or Pictogram or sunbathing. A lot of the nights are spent watching movies. Friday and Saturday are party nights where the whole of the night is spent holding digital cameras in the air to take shots for Facebook or other social networking sights.

 The islands of Fiji are beautiful and many. I went on a sailing ship to the island featured in Tom Hanks' Castaway. On the last day I discovered Denarau Island. This is the Hawaii of Fiji: manicured or herbicured lawns; $1 million houses; golf and racquet clubs; the finest hotels and massive yachts. And yet it is only 2 miles from the shanties outside Nadi. How long can they co-exist? It puts me in mind of the Waterfront in Capetown co-existing with the townships only miles away. How long can that last?

On the iPod: Coldplay

Reading: Einstein

Published: Due to technical difficulties and the lack of Apple stores in the Southern Hemisphere there will be no Shirt of the Villa for a while. Normal service will be resumed as soon as possible.