Fiji has many different dialects of Fijian, but the official standard is based on the speech of Bau. This dialect stands right in the middle of where the most common Fijian dialect originated, and it helped with my integration.
While in Ovea, I lived with my host family, my Na (Fijian for "mother"), Grandpa, brother, sister and a grandchild. I learned a lot from my host brother and sister, whose names were Bili (Billy) and Wana. They taught me fun card games, and we would also play board games, go swimming, and, most importantly, play rugby. I did not know the rules of rugby, so when they taught me to play, all of the other kids would come to play. After playing for a while the adults would come to play rugby, too! It is surely everyone's favorite sport to watch and play. When we played, everyone spoke Fijian, so it was a good chance for me to learn Fijian while having fun. With my host family, I also learned how to cook Fijian meals, do laundry in the river and go to church.
The church is a very important part of every Fijian's life, which is very uncommon for me because I am Jewish. Most Fijians have never met someone that is Jewish, so when they taught me about their church I taught them about the similarities and differences between the religions. In Fiji, the vast majority of the population is Methodist, a branch of Christianity. Going to church every Sunday and then having a big lunch after the service is what most Fijians do on Sunday, so that's what I did each Sunday, too. The service was spoken 100% in Fijian, so it helped me learn more words in Fijian.
Another big part of the integration was learning to dress like someone from Fiji.
