Good Samaritan Inn Tongatapu

After a few weeks in fresh-to-cold Australia-NZ it was time to head North to one of the South Pacific islands, I chose Tonga because it has never been colonized and it's the last kingdom of the Pacific. Tourism is barely waking up here.
The country is made of 171 islands, the capital, Nuku'Alofa being on the main island named Tongatapu.
Locals are very, veeeerryyy laid-back ...

... and it won't work (was it hit by lightening? Is it related to the ATMs?). Someone goes to get some stairs, finally we can get off and descent into the damp cold of the Auckland night. It's gone midnight, I get through customs and biosecurity quickly and get a cab. For a holiday it often seemed like a lot of hard work. But that was part of the charm of the place, and I'm sure I'll end up back there one day. I have to check out the visibility in January, for starters.

On Thursday, we visited what has to be my highlight of the Tongatapu part of our trip. We drove round to the spectacular Mapu'a 'a' Vaca blowholes, timing our visit to be there at high tide. The current, swell and wind combined to create an impressive display. Along about 5km of coastline, holes riddled the shore. The surging water was forced through these holes, creating spouts of water up to 15 metres high. Add to this the powerful waves smashing ...

We woke to the buzzing of the alarm at 8am. We had booked a day trip to explore Atata Island- a boat trip out, a few hours lazing on beaches and snorkelling, lunch and home in time for tea. Two hours seemed like planty of time to get ready and make the drive into Nuku'alofa (a half hour journey). Then Tonga time struck. By 9am, our coffees still hadn't appeared, and I was starting to worry. By 9.15, we were sat waiting for our omlettes. By 9.30, we were climbing into ...

... that Rick needed to get a Tongan driving licence. Cue a trudge back into town and a visit to the police station. By 3.30 we were ready to go, but needed gas and cash. There followed more directional difficulties and turning round, before we were ready to head out to the east of the island. Our journey took us through more bright and neatly-kept villages. We dodged cyclists, dogs, pigs, chickens, enormous pot holes and small ...

... colourfully before our eyes. We decided to take a leaf out of our Lonely Planet Guide and do the walking tour of Nuku'alofa. This route took us around the main landmarks and also off the beaten track to see the quaint Churches and surprisingly brightly adorned graveyards and we sneaked a peek at the off-limits Royal Tomb from the gates. We ventured past the King's Palace, which was unfortunately in the process of being renovated. The beauty of the ...

... and friendliest i have come across.. everyone comes up to shake hands and talk to you and say hello and all are so curious as to why we would come to Tonga. Alot of the capital Nuku'alofa had been burned down and destroyed in riots a few months back.. people rebelling against the government and king which have to much power over the people. Sunday it being a very religious day we went to the local church for the traditional Tongan Mass which was really interesting.. First ...

Ihmeellisen paljon oli hyttysiä tänä yönä ja juuri kun meinasi nukahtaa, niin alkoi korvan vieressä inisemään, todella ärsyttävää!!! Ilmeisesti huono sää sai hyttyset todella vihaisiksi ja agressiiviseksi. Kaikenlisäksi kuultiin jotain todella omituisia ääniä pitkin yötä ja muutamaan kertaan piti käydä ihan ikkunalla tsekkaamassa, että mitäs ihmettä? Tämän viikon aikana on muutenkin moneen kertaan pelästytty kaikkia omituisia, joskin varmasti täysin normaaleja ...

... paljon tarjolla. Ilmeisesti tännekin on joku Aasialainen meitä ennen ehtinyt, sillä löydettiin olutpullo, jossa oli jotain alkukantaisia, omituisia extraterrestiaalisia merkkejä. Mutta, ei hätää! Niin kuin historiasta tiedämme ei Länsimaat mitään Aasialaisten tai muiden villi-ihmisten seilailuja paljon noteeraa, joten saari kuuluu ilmanmuuta edelleen Suomelle! :-) Kaikille Saksalaisille tai muille, joilta huumorintaju on ...