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Geography of Fiji |
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The Geography of Fiji indicates that it is a group of volcanic islands in the South Pacific, lying about 4,450 kilometers southwest of Honolulu and 1,770 kilometers north of New Zealand. Of the 322 islands and 522 smaller islets making up the land of Fiji, 106 are inhabited permanently. Viti Levu is the largest island and covers about 57 per cent of the total land area of the nation. It consists of two major cities, the capital Suva and Lautoka. The other major towns are Ba, Nasinu and Nadi that contain about 69 per cent of the population. Vanua Levu is located 64 kilometers north of Viti Levu and covers over 30 percent of the land area and has a population of about 15 per cent. Its main towns are Labasa and Savusavu. Geography of Fiji as well as the geography of these islands are primarily mountainous with peaks up to 1300 meter rising abruptly from the shore. These mountains are generally covered with thick tropical forest.
The island receives heavy rainfall of about 304 centimeters or 120 meters annually. The windeard side receives heavyfall and hence covered with tropical forest. Lowlands on the western portions of each of the main islands are sheltered by the mountains and have well-marked dry season that favors the growth of crops like sugarcane.
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Other islands and island groups that make up the Geography of Fiji covers 2.5 % of the land area but house some 16 % of the population. Taveuni and Kadavu, the third and fourth largest islands respectively, the Mamanuca Group and Yasawa Group, to the north of the Mamanucas is a popular tourist destinations, the Lomaiviti Group, outside of Suva, and the remote Lau Group complete this group of monir islands in Fiji. The only major town on any of the smaller islands is Levuka, Fiji's old capital, on the island of Ovalau.
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