Tonga

Tonga was our first Polynesian stop. After four Melanesian’s countries (Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and Fiji), Tonga was a bit different. Where the people from the Melanesian countries expressed gratitude that we were there and showed extraordinary hospitality, we didn’t experience that as much in Tonga — perhaps because our second stop was expecting 31 ships this year so they aren’t as excited about cruise visitors though they were polite and welcoming. 

Tonga was pretty. It was very green. Much flatter than Fiji, and I’m not sure there were any ferns though there were plenty of coconuts and breadfruit trees. Also lots of pigs as apparently many Tongans keep pigs.  

Admittedly, our first day, in Vava’u was disappointing. It was cloudy which was great as it was cooler than it might have been, though gray days sometimes have a way of being less exciting than sunny days. There weren’t many things to photograph. The geocacher group tour was disappointing in many ways, with the highlights being a visit to a small cave with water in it (first two photos) and some pleasant swimming at a resort. And there was a nice sunset from the ship. 

The second day, in Nuku’alofa, was much better. Nuku’alofa is the capitol and clearly a much wealthier place than Vava’u (or pretty much anywhere we’ve seen since Australia). The pier was near the Kingdom of Tonga’s palace. Apparently the King was there, though we didn’t see him. It’s an inherited position that goes to the oldest son, though if there are no sons it goes to the oldest daughter — the second Tongan king was female. 

Our Nuku’alofa tour included guides, something my van lacked on Vava’u.

We passed a (rare) three-headed coconut tree; like all palms, coconut trees rarely have branches. 

Our first big stop was at the Blowholes. Wow! Waves crashed into the holes then water spouted up and out. Yes, holes, as in many of them. It was beautiful, and the sound of the waves crashing was powerful and fascinating.  

We then visited the appropriately-named Tsunami Rock which was very large and, according to the sign, had arrived “approximately thousands of years ago.” Tree-covered on the inland side, many fossils, black on the water side. 

The tour highlight was a lovely flat beach with warm pale green water. The waves were much higher than we’ve seen elsewhere (despite the apparent serenity of this picture), though it was easy enough to go into the water. 

I remembered my snorkel gear but chose not to use it as it was delightful to bob in the water just beyond where the waves broke so we got the undulations but not the whitewater. There was a small rip tide which made it a bit challenging to get out, though I managed without falling. As we dried off we were offered coconuts and I drank maybe half of mine before giving up, then had another taste of fresh coconut which is ever so much better than anything we get at home, but I’m now confident that coconuts are not my favorite fruit. 

The last stop before returning to the ship was at a tree with many huge bats sleeping in it. We returned in time for end of the event cache that June hosted at this fountain. 

All in all a very pleasant time in an interesting place. But if someone offered me the chance to visit some of the places we’ve seen this trip again, Tonga would not be on the short list of places to revisit (and that’s ok).