Tears and laughter greeted a long-awaited reunion at Hong Kong International Airport this week as four-year-old Mia Taubale was reunited with her mother, Reyape Taubale, after two years apart. The emotional meeting, captured on Reyape’s phone, unfolded in the arrivals hall after Mia and her uncle, Kilimo Vueti, completed a multi-leg journey from their home in Vanua Levu to the Asian city.
Mia and Vueti left Labasa by domestic flight, connected through Nadi on a Fiji Link service, and boarded Fiji Airways flight FJ393 from Nadi to Hong Kong, which departed at 11:30pm on Thursday. The flight was reported to be full of Fijian supporters travelling to Hong Kong for the famed Hong Kong Sevens tournament, where the national sides have long drawn sizeable followings overseas.
Reyape, who lives and works in the United Kingdom, had travelled to Hong Kong for the dual purpose of watching the Fiji sevens teams and finally seeing her daughter. The two embraced tightly in a scene by arrivals gates that drew smiles and tears from fellow passengers. “She held onto her mother after two years of being apart,” a family member said, describing the reunion as both jubilant and poignant.
For Vueti, the trip marked a personal milestone. He said the journey to Hong Kong was the farthest he had ever travelled from his village of Nukusa, in Udu, Macuata, on Vanua Levu. The Nadi–Hong Kong leg was his first overseas flight; his only previous plane experience was the short domestic hop from Labasa to Nadi. Nervous beforehand, Vueti accompanied his niece to ensure the long trip went smoothly and spoke of relief and joy once they were through customs.
The reunion comes amid an influx of Fijian fans and family members in Hong Kong for the sporting festival. Many supporters book travel to the city each year to follow the sevens teams, and this year’s flights carried a significant number of Fijians eager to cheer on the national sides and take the opportunity for family reunions. Fiji Airways flight FJ393 was among the services connecting the Pacific nation to Hong Kong’s international hub late on Thursday night.
Family members said Reyape filmed the arrival of her daughter and nephew, preserving the moment after a prolonged separation driven by work and life abroad. The brief visit will allow mother and daughter time together in the days surrounding the Hong Kong Sevens, bringing a deeply personal note to the larger sporting gathering that has drawn Fijians from across the islands.
Leave a comment