Land of many islands

see all photos »

TONGA....A land of many islands(3-21-01)

Tongans are happy and proud people; their warmth, generosity and hospitality was overwhelming. The weather in the Kingdom was considerably cooler than in Fiji, where I sweated like a fountain. Unfortunately, there were still tons of swarming bloodsucking mosquito’s, giant flying cockroaches and tiny translucent ants…Oh, and let’s not forget the intense rainstorms, the trademarks of the tropics.

Here are a few trivial facts before I describe the enticing islands that make up the Kingdom of Tonga.....The King Taufa’ahau Tupou IV is healthy and continues to promote weigh loss for the island people (The King was once 444 lbs.); Tonga is still the world’s most powerful monarchies, according to the local papers; Tongan language (is beautiful) it consists of 5 vowels and 11 consonants (and humor is used in every sentence); Captain Cook named Tonga “The Friendly Archipelago/Islands”; Tonga, situated just west of the International date line, is among the first inhabited places on earth to greet each new day (you can imagine that the millennium celebration was a huge tourist pull).

Ok, now onto a description of the 3 (out of the 4) island chains that I was fortunate to visit. Tongatapu is considered the capital island and has the majority of the country’s population. It is pancake-flat with a myriad of beaches and caves and beautiful quiet villages. The South part of the island is famous for the numerous blowholes and good surf. Nuku’ alofa “abode of love” is the capital of the country and is the home to the royal family, government seats, industrial center and is also the transportation hub of the country. One of the unique attractions are the fishing pigs of Talafo’ou, these porkers have learned to wade in the low tide searching and eating shellfish…..it was very entertaining!

The middle chain of islands is named the Ha’ apai group. Ha’ apai has expansive and deserted white sandy beaches, balmy breezes and an uncanny sense of timelessness. Ha’ apai is had 2 major historical events, first was the Mutiny on the Bounty and the other is the sacking of Port-au-Prince. Not much has changed in Ha’ apai for the pass 100 years, it is a place for complete relaxation and solitude that just so happens to be surrounded by a pristine natural untouched environment. Ha’ apai is where I learned about and perfected the “Polynesian Paralysis” syndrome.

The third group of islands (and my favorite) was Vava’u. Vava’u is often referred to as “the jewel of the King’s crown”. It is like turning on the Travel Channel and gazing through a dazzling broken necklaces of palm studded islet…. Vava’u reminded me a lot of my Peace Corps days in Republic of Palau. The islands are lush green with turquoise water accompanied by a magnificent underwater world. I was unlucky (too early) with my timing for the Humpback Whale season, but did some fantastic SCUBA diving with the playful clown fish and saw unbelievable soft coral formations and some sizable fish. The diving soothed my soul and rejuvenated me for my next adventure wherever that will be. Vava’u is also a favorite of the yachting community, in fact I almost crewed on a yacht headed for the San Francisco Bay but decided to stay course and head for New Zealand. As promised when I get to New Zealand, I will begin to send pictures of the trip. Next letter will be from the land of the Kiwi’s.