I worked in Vanuatu (close neighbour of Fiji) for 3.5 years in the early 1990s, and travelled through Fiji a few times. Although the perception of the island nations is that they are quite backward, in fact they are quite technologically advanced. You will certainly have internet access and your property may well have air conditioning. Local TV isn't much good, so be sure to have lots of DVDs with you. If you want to know more about living on an island in the SW Pacific, ask here or drop me a line to my LJ email. Happy to assist. Happy not to.
TV is indeed bad, and now that my antenna is broken and I poorly reprogrammed my channels, I'm down to one channel from 3.
So far, so good. the hardest thing (for an american) is not getting hit by oncoming traffic at odd intersections when you know people drive on the left but don't account for the sharp turns! :-)
It is thus far. imagine a world where IFLA and whatever the hell the UK org (CILIP?) are more important than ALA. Imagine a world where your library has a million volumes and still doesn't belong to OCLC.
But we're not remote enough to avoid the RDApocalypse, as we are planning to adopt when the rest of the US does. Blargh.
Also am hoping to get an ALA presentation out of this. there's gotta be room for "how to get international library jobs" amid all the "social media for your library" and "intergenerational computer tutoring" programs that are there every year.
Fijian coworker (in HR, no less) offers more advice: -- Make sure to register with the US embassy; they'll need/want to know you have a work visa, and they can keep you up-to-date on any potential unrest. -- Rent a safety deposit box at a bank in Suva, and keep your most important documents (Social Security Card, birth certificate, marriage certificate) there. While likelihood of theft is low, you just really don't want to have to deal with that. -- Suva is the capital, so there will be wireless access points available (possibly even at the McDonald's).
wifi and mcdonaldslara7October 2 2012, 09:23:07 UTC
nowhere has free wifi, which is a shock after seattle. the good news is that places like Mcdonalds that are pay wifi spots are very cheap. I'm not used to paying for it but USD$3-5 per hour is certainly acceptable.
still havent emailed the embassy but will. Had to arrange the voting thing and thought I'd contact them for that but it turns out they have nothing to do with it. I -already- have my King County ballot to print and scan so I'm feeling more connected since I get to vote for president and governor!
I am opting to lock my documents in my desk drawer at work. No one can get to it without clearance and I imagine my passport wouldn't be useful to 99.8% of all the people in the nation since I have one of those newer RFID ones that are harder to tamper with.
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Although the perception of the island nations is that they are quite backward, in fact they are quite technologically advanced. You will certainly have internet access and your property may well have air conditioning. Local TV isn't much good, so be sure to have lots of DVDs with you.
If you want to know more about living on an island in the SW Pacific, ask here or drop me a line to my LJ email. Happy to assist. Happy not to.
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So far, so good. the hardest thing (for an american) is not getting hit by oncoming traffic at odd intersections when you know people drive on the left but don't account for the sharp turns! :-)
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But we're not remote enough to avoid the RDApocalypse, as we are planning to adopt when the rest of the US does. Blargh.
Also am hoping to get an ALA presentation out of this. there's gotta be room for "how to get international library jobs" amid all the "social media for your library" and "intergenerational computer tutoring" programs that are there every year.
Reply
-- Make sure to register with the US embassy; they'll need/want to know you have a work visa, and they can keep you up-to-date on any potential unrest.
-- Rent a safety deposit box at a bank in Suva, and keep your most important documents (Social Security Card, birth certificate, marriage certificate) there. While likelihood of theft is low, you just really don't want to have to deal with that.
-- Suva is the capital, so there will be wireless access points available (possibly even at the McDonald's).
More tidbits as he drops them.
Reply
still havent emailed the embassy but will. Had to arrange the voting thing and thought I'd contact them for that but it turns out they have nothing to do with it. I -already- have my King County ballot to print and scan so I'm feeling more connected since I get to vote for president and governor!
I am opting to lock my documents in my desk drawer at work. No one can get to it without clearance and I imagine my passport wouldn't be useful to 99.8% of all the people in the nation since I have one of those newer RFID ones that are harder to tamper with.
Reply
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