German Couple Captivated by Bula Smile

Uschi Giese and her husband Jurgen from Bremen, Germany, were captivated by the Bula smile and greeting on their first trip to Fiji.

They decided to spend 117 days seeing the world to commemorate their 25th wedding anniversary. Their brief stop-over in Fiji was sufficient to witness the warmth of our people.

Mrs Giese, a retired journalist, and her husband, a retired German Navy captain, were passengers on board the AIDAsol cruise ship that arrived at the Lautoka Port last Sunday.

According to the Cruise timetables website, the 872-foot AIDAsol vessel has a passenger capacity of 2500 and is currently carrying 2174 passengers with 635 crew on board.

Mrs Giese said the vessel made its first stop in Suva upon arriving in Fiji last Saturday.

The AIDAsol cruiseliner at the Lautoka Port on December 24, 2023. Photo: Salote Qalubau

“We made a trip to the National Forest, walked around, had a swim, and so it was our first time in the jungle. It was just one day and not enough to see everything. Fiji is so different, and it’s nice. The people are very friendly, similar to when we went to Tonga,” she said.

“We don’t have children, so this trip is for our 25th anniversary, which was in August, and this was our mutual gift to each other. The next stop will be Vanuatu, and then we go to New Caledonia, and then for New Year’s Eve we will be in Sydney.”

Mr Giese said they left Germany on October 27 and would be returning by February next year.

“This is our first trip to Fiji; every time you see somebody you meet, they say Bula, and they are friendly and smiling. I think this is typical for the South Pacific area as well, but this cruise might cover, I think, 45 countries,” he said.

Feedback: salote.qalubau@fijisun.com.fj