Sevusevu and kava: how to take part

What sevusevu actually is

Sevusevu is a gift, and the word is used for the whole welcome ceremony around it. Tourism Fiji explains that it is customary to present a small bundle of kava root to the village chief to ask permission to enter the village's land as guests. The ceremony opens with scripted words of respect and gratitude between the visitors' spokesman and the host. Kava itself, called yaqona in Fijian, is Fiji's national drink. It was traditionally used only at important ceremonies, and today it is also a social drink. Across the Pacific, kava has medicinal, religious, political, cultural and social uses, and in Fiji a formal yaqona ceremony often accompanies important social, political or religious occasions.

A formal sevusevu and an evening show

The formal version happens in a living village, with seating rules and a chief. Tourism Fiji calls it the most formal way to drink kava. On the Fiji Culture Village night tour, you take part in a kava ceremony and learn about its significance as one stop in the programme. That is a guided introduction, not the full protocol, and nobody expects you to know the words. Tourism Fiji says resorts offer a more casual version, either as a nightly gathering with talk and music or at a themed Fijian culture night with a lovo and meke. If you want the formal version, visit a village on a village tour elsewhere in Fiji.

How kava is made and what it tastes like

Kava comes from the dried roots of a pepper plant, Piper methysticum, which takes three to four years to mature. The roots are sun-dried and ground to a powder. For the drink, the powder goes into a straining cloth, is mixed with cold water and squeezed until an earth-coloured liquid collects in the tanoa, the kava bowl. Tourism Fiji describes the taste as bitter and the effect as mildly sedative. The tingling, slightly numb feeling in your mouth is normal. Don't expect it to taste like anything you already drink.

The three steps for taking a cup

Tourism Fiji gives three steps for accepting a bilo, the cup, like a local. Your guide will talk you through them on the night, so you do not need to memorise anything. The part to remember is the second round of clapping: you clap once before you drink, then three more times after you hand the cup back, and finish with vinaka to thank your hosts.

• Clap once, loudly and cupped, and take the cup
• Say Bula to your hosts and the others, then drink in one gulp
• Hand the cup back, clap three more times and say vinaka, which means thank you

Low tide, high tide, or watching

Hosts usually offer two sizes. High tide is a full cup and low tide is a half cup, and Tourism Fiji says hosts tend to go easier on first-timers. Take low tide if you have never tried kava. If you would rather not drink at all, tell your guide before the cup reaches you. Kava also has health cautions: Wikipedia's summary notes that caution is advised during pregnancy and for people with liver conditions, and that kava should not be taken with alcohol. If any of that applies, ask your doctor first.

Read next: Fiji Culture Village: how to book it

The lovo, the earth-oven feast

A lovo is cooked in a pit. River stones are heated in a fire and covered with banana or palm leaves. Tourism Fiji says the food goes in layers: root crops first, then leaf-wrapped meat and fish, then vegetables such as palusami. More leaves go on top, the whole pile is buried under soil or sand, and it cooks slowly for one to two hours. Tourism Fiji describes the lovo as the way to cook for weddings and other celebrations, with family and friends all helping. On the night tour, the village's schedule has the food unearthed before the kava ceremony, and dinner served as a buffet afterwards.

Read next: The lovo: how a Fijian earth oven actually cooks a feast

Meke and the fire dance

Meke is the Fijian art of song and dance. Wikipedia describes it as a narrative of an important event, such as a war, a chiefly installation or even a scandal. Some mekes are generations old and form part of Fiji's oral history, and each district has its own form, performed in the local dialect. A meke may include the seasea, a women's fan dance, or the meke wesi, a men's spear dance. The night tour's programme lists a meke show and a fire dance, but not which pieces are performed, so the guide will explain what you see.

What to wear and how to behave

Tourism Fiji's village etiquette guidance is a good guide for the night. Cover bare shoulders and legs: women often wear long skirts or dresses, and men wear T-shirts and knee-length shorts. Take off your hat and sunglasses, and carry bags in your hands rather than on your shoulder. Ask before taking photos, take shoes off at the door of any building, and do not touch anyone's head, which many villages consider sacred. Speak softly, and join in when you are invited. That is a respectful way to spend the evening.

Getting there and back

The night tour includes return transfers from hotels in Denarau, Nadi and Wailoaloa, so you do not need to drive after drinking kava or arrange a taxi. Your booking confirmation shows the pickup time for your hotel. The village is in Navo, Nadi, about 1.5 km from Nadi town according to Tourism Fiji. The tour runs Monday to Saturday and does not run on Sundays, in line with Tourism Fiji's advice that most village tours do not operate on that day.

Who this isn't for

If you are pregnant, have a liver condition or take regular medication, ask a doctor before you drink kava. You can still watch the ceremony and enjoy the rest of the evening. If you want the formal sevusevu in a working village, with a chief and full protocol, this evening will feel like an introduction. If you are travelling with small children, ask the village about its age rules, since its website lists a child rate for ages 5 to 12 and says nothing about younger ones. If you dislike group activities, note that the kava ceremony is a group moment, and the evening follows a set programme from start to finish.