Say it in Fijian

To walk the walk first you must talk the talk.  Every time I head to a new country on holiday I like to first try and learn a few common phases for when I get there.  Like how to say hello, good-bye and of course how to order another beer.  For those of you getting ready for your trip (or planning a trip) to Fiji here is your first Fijian language lesson.

First we'll start with a few rules.  
   "A's are long as in master
   "E's are long as in pet
   "I's are pronounced as a hard "E" as say street.  So Viti would be 'vee-tee'
   "O" and "U" are long say like in logo and lucy
   "B" is "mb"  as in member
   "C" is "th" as in the
   "D" is "nd" as in candy
   "Q" is "ng"  as in tounge

Now about about some common words and phrases.

English		Fijian
Hello or Greetings		bula
Good morning		yandra
Excuse me		tulou
Good-bye		moce
Yes		io
Thank you		vinaka
No		se'ga
No worries		se'ga nalanga
Eat		kana
village		koro
Lady/madam		marama
Mr/sir		turaga
A little/small		vakalailai
Great/a lot/more		vakalevu
Fast		vakatotolo
House		vale
toilet		vale lailai
One more		dua tale
One		dua
two		rua
What is this		na cava oqo
Slowly		vaka malua