Children prepare their small canoes, bakanawa, for a race at the Suva foreshore last year on Friday, August 23. Picture: JONACANI LALAKOBAU Thursday, August 07, 2014 by Sailosi Batiratu “I FLICK it from the inside and I will know from the sound whether we have the required thickness.” The it, Walesi Jone Tukana Temo was […]
Saturday, August 24, 2013 by Daniel Naidu ABOUT 30 local sailors took part in the annual Veitau Waqa traditional canoe race which was held yesterday as part of the 2013 Hibiscus Festival celebrations. The wet weather experienced by the Capital City this week was replaced with sunshine and blue skies which saw a large crowd, […]
Friday, August 23, 2013 by Daniel Naidu THE Veitau Waqa, the annual traditional canoe race organised by Pacific Blue Foundation as part of the Hibiscus Festival celebration, takes place today. And 2012 champion Joji Misaele is ready to defend his crown. “We have been preparing for this race for almost two months now,” said […]
Friday, August 23, 2013 by Fred Wesley THE Veitau Waqa, or traditional canoe race, is set to take place today as part of the Hibiscus Festival in Suva. The event is organised by Pacific Blue Foundation and pits the best of our traditional canoe builders in a race around the Suva Harbour. But today is […]
Thursday, August 22, 2013 THE signs on the horizon are that this year’s Veitau Waqa — The Boat Lives races could signal a resurgence in the dying art of crafting traditional sailing vessels. With 10 vessels entering the competition this year as part of the Hibiscus festival events, one can’t be blamed for being more […]
The head of the Fiji National University’s Mechanical Engineering has his sights set on proving that his camakau design — a fusion of traditional boatbuilding knowledge and modern engineering techniques — makes waves in another category.
Tuesday, August 20, 2013 by Tevita Vuibau THE Methodist Church in Fiji has voiced its support for moves to revive the sailing of traditional i-Taukei canoes as a viable option for inter-island transport. Church general secretary Reverend Tevita Banivanua said sometimes the key to the future lay in the past. Traditional sailing, which has a […]
Monday, August 19, 2013 by Ilaitia Turagabeci UNDER the watchful gaze of Semiti Cama, the camakau took shape on the shore where a dream to turn the canoe into money was born. There is no mistaking the passion in his eyes. He points out the weaknesses to the builders and they rectify. The camakau — […]
Saturday, August 17, 2013 by Ilaitia Turgabeci PREPARATIONS for the annual Veitau Waqa have encountered a big surge in entries a week before the race. From what was initially planned for a 10-camakau race, the event will now cater for 45 entries in the bakanawa category. The bakanawa, a model-sized canoe up to a […]
Monday, August 12, 2013 by Ilaitia Turagabeci WHEN dawn breaks over the horizon on the tip of the Suva peninsula, they appear like sharks racing just beneath the surface. It’s only when they draw closer, and in the visibility of day, when the black silhouette of fins become the sails that once graced the waters […]
