If we happen to hear "Malo e lelei" today, we will know we are being welcomed to the Kingdom of Tonga. It simply means hello or welcome, but nothing can compare to the live music of the Police Brass Band and dance of Tonganese men and ladies we witnessed after the Zuiderdam docked in Nuku'alofa, the capital of Tonga. The total population of all of the Tongan islands is 106,500 in an area of 747 square kilometers. Much smaller in comparison to where we just came from. By the way, the money is Tonga pa'anga with 2.25 equal to $1 USD. The US dollars are gladly accepted.
Their favorite foods are all types of fish and sea creatures, as well as pork and chicken. Small pigs are roasted on a spit over an open fire, while a very large pig would be cooked in an oven in the ground. The most common veggies are taro, sweet potatoes, and yams all of which are commonly grown on these islands. Most of the green veggies we have at home cannot be grown here easily. Many fruits compliment their diet such as coconuts, bananas, papaya, mangoes, guava, pineapple, and passionfruit. Kava, a pepper root drink is widely consumed and used in ceremonies. While on past tours, we have witnessed these ceremonies, and even participated in the drinking of the kava liquid. Well….almost. After seeing how this drink is made, we simply pretended to drink it, as did most everyone else.
Since there was a football game on TV at 9am, we stayed onboard and watched the first half of the 49ers and Eagles game. We left at halftime since it was not the 49ers best game ever. And we had the cleaning crew on the veranda hosing everything down. Good time to leave. Even at 11am, the local music was still playing when we left the gangway. One thing we noticed that was different was the fact the wharf area had dozens of containers on one side of the road. Even some souvenir tents were set up in front of them. We noticed that these containers had Chinese markings on them, and we guess they may be related to some ongoing reconstruction here in town. We never found anyone to ask.
One thing about today that stood out the most…. was the heat and humidity. It sure was different last fall when it was raining and way cooler. We took our usual path to the produce market, dodging cars and trucks all the way there. Not sure why, but the traffic was the worst we have ever seen it. We had to be most careful crossing the street or walking up the narrow side streets with no sidewalks. This particular market is quite dark on the inside. There were several tables of locally-made purses and fans. Most of the jewelry was made with seashells or carved bone. Half of the market was dedicated to produce which included root veggies and tomatoes, cucumbers, long beans, cabbage and some lettuce.
We ran into Greg and Heo touring this market like us. They had already decided it was time for beers, if they could find a place that sold it. Way too hot and humid, we hope they found it. From there we wandered up the ramp to the second level. There are usually many tables of jewelry and carvings, but today only half of the place was occupied. Clothing and shoes were also sold up there, but they appeared to be more for the locals.
Making our way up the side road, we located the Catholic Cathedral by the name of St. Anthony of Padua. This church is more modern and new compared to the very old church up the road. Two tall spires are about all that is left of the roof these days. The church itself was made of basalt rocks, but sustained much damage during the last storm that hit here causing a tsunami. Many years ago, we had toured the interior of this church, but these days, it is off-limits to all. Rumor has it that the king is unwilling to spend the money needed to restore it.
Across the street from the church is the Royal Tombs and surrounding grounds. Many kings are buried here along with their families, so it is considered sacred.
Walking towards the water, we came across the Methodist Church, the one that the king and his family attend. We have seen their entourage leaving the church a few years ago. The king actually rolled his window down, and waved as did the rest of his family. Just happened to be in the right place at the right time. This is also the area that fruit bats can normally be seen hanging from the branches of the large mango trees. However, some of these trees have been cut down, and the remaining mangoes have no fruit yet. So therefore, there were no bats.
On this same corner is the Royal Palace, which is closed to the public. Photos can be taken from the fencing that surrounds the property. Turning left from here, we walked the water's edge until we reached the Seaview Lodge, a nice place to find ice cold beers and a good lunch. However, it was closed today, just like their website said. Never hurts to try. It was so uncomfortably hot and sticky, we decided to head back to town and the ship. For the first time we can recall, there was absolutely no other cruise ship guests walking here today. We did pass some local families enjoying the shade, and they were most friendly.
Back in town, the traffic was almost at a standstill. We had passed by two school buses, which doubled for tour buses today. They were open-air ones filled with many people we knew from the ship. Being on foot today, we ended up back to the gangway before the bus folks made it back. Reaching the opening of the gangway, it was like walking into Alaska with the air-conditioning.
We did not leave the room after that. Missing the end of the game, we discovered our home team lost big time. The following game had begun, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Bengals. So we ended up watching some of that while having a wonderful room service lunch. As the day advanced, many more clouds appeared and it did begin to rain before we left. The sail away party was moved to the promenade deck, but we did not attend. Watching the sail away from our veranda was so much nicer.
Captain Friso came on the speakers and mentioned that we are still awaiting the final word on whether or not we will go to Auckland in a few days. He said we will continue as planned, doing 20 knots, to arrive there on February 2nd. We left the port a bit later due to strong winds, and eventually passed a pod of lazy dolphins. Nice way to say goodbye to Tonga once again.
Dinner was fun as we all had stories to share. Barb and Woody held down the fort, while Heo and Greg ended up back to the ship never stopping for lunch. Susie had wandered off, but soon came back after a run through the marketplace. Entrees were different again tonight. Never heard of breaded lamb chops, but some of our tablemates tried it. Barramundi was the fish dish, as well as sauteed salmon, which I ordered. Chicken scallopini rounded out the choices. The chefs are getting quite creative we think.
As on many port days, the Mainstage featured a movie called Joyride. None of our group planned to attend because we were all beat from the heat.
We will have two lazy sea days as we head south towards New Zealand. The Captain promised more comfortable temperatures, except we might be hitting some rain.
Bill & Mary Ann
