Hi
from Clare, 6-2018 Vava’u and Ha’apai Group, Tonga 18th August 2018
GETTING
TO KNOW YOU
Since
we last wrote we have slowed down considerably and after talking to
some local people we now understand a little more about Tonga time;
basically nothing happens in a hurry. For example the Inter Island
Ferries don’t work to a schedule, they just arrive when they get
here. The Postal system isn’t speedy either. One of our cruising
friends posted a letter in Vava’u to his wife in San Fransciso and
it took forty five days to arrive. We have posted some birthday
cards from Vava’u to Australia but after hearing that story we just
hope our mail arrives before we fly home later this year:)
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| Neiafu Harbour |
We
talked to a New Zealand woman who has owned a resort here for ten
years, she claims to achieve anything here one needs patience and
persistence. Most of the businesses are run by Ex pats and almost all
the little supermarkets are run by Chinese. We mentioned to one of
the Ex pats how disappointing it is to see that the Tongans don’t
run the shops and she explained that it is not in their culture. She
said their culture is to share everything. So if a Tongan owned a
shop, relatives and friends would expect to just get things from the
shop without paying. The Tongans who have moved to New Zealand and
Australia to work, send money home to the family as their wages are
considered to be family money. The Tongan people are proud of their
Kingdom but exposure to the western world has caused some confusion.
It appears that half the people want what western society has to
offer and the other half want nothing to change.
 |
| Main street Neiafu |
 |
| Village homes on nearby island in Vava'u |
GOING
SOUTH
We
sailed seventy odd miles south to the Ha’apai Group of islands.
Unfortunately for us we did not get the timing right. This
destination has no anchorages with protection from the west. So in a
westerly breeze the water is choppy and in calm conditions the boat
rolls in the ocean swell. There is a very small harbour at the main
town of Pangai which offers good protection. We spent eight of our
ten days in the Ha’apai Group in this little harbour sheltering
from westerly winds. As you can imagine we got to know the township
of Pangai pretty well. It has a small population but there is at
least seven or eight Chinese general stores, all selling the same
thing. There is also about the same number of churches. Some a quite
big, and we doubt if there is enough people on the island to fill
them. The township has a lot of Chinese sponsorship and they have
paid for new concrete footpaths. The funny part is that the footpath
is only wide enough for one person so we had to walk in single file.
It would have looked hilarious if there were six of us. However we
had the footpaths to ourselves as the Tongans all drive cars which
they rent from the Chinese. One Ex pat commented that the Tongans in
Pangai have forgotten how to walk.
 |
| Pangai village main street |
 |
| Long beaches in the Haapai group |
Whilst
in the Ha’apai, we did get two days of easterly breeze and spent a
very enjoyable time walking along magnificent sandy beaches, swimming
in gin clear water and watching the numerous whales frolicking with
their calves. Our early morning entertainment was a coffee in the
cockpit watching the whales breaching and slapping the water. Some
were only fifty metres from the boat with their babies close by.
PERFECT
SUNNY CODITIONS
We
sailed back to Vava’u under spinnaker last Thursday in time to
catch up with Aussie friends Ian and Helen Potter whom we know from
our days at the CYCA in Sydney. We have cruised with Helen and Ian
in the Med and the Caribbean. They sailed their boat
Sun Dancer 11 back to Oz in 2015. This trip they are helping with a
delivery with the Aussie owner from Hobart to Sydney via Tonga and
Fiji. The boat is a beautifully renovated ex Tasmanian Cray Fishing
boat and just superb inside with many luxuries. We spent a few very
enjoyable hours aboard socialising with sundowners on the large
foredeck.
 |
| Hunga Lagoon |
A
PERFECT LOCATION
We
are now anchored in Hunga Lagoon in Vava’u. The lagoon is an
old crater and is protected all round by wooded hills. The birds are
magnificent and we are in glassy water. It is so calm and peaceful,
I could stay here for a long time. We know five other boats here and
so we have plenty of company. Yesterday morning we went for a walk
with Dutch friends Ellen and Martin on ‘Acapella’ up to a
plantation. Then a second walk from another little beach to climb
the hill to a lookout over the lagoon. In the afternoon the crews
from ‘Eye Candy’ and ‘Acapella’ joined Dutch friends Agnus
and Baz on ‘Tisento’ and went for another walk up over the hill
to the other side of the lagoon. Here we met German couple
Elke and Werner who retired from sailing in 2010 after twenty two
years and settled here. Werner who was an Architect in his working
life built a wonderfully solid and unique home from scratch. The
house is made of concrete which he mixed by hand. He embedded
coloured glass bottles in the concrete walls in decorative patterns. He
made all the interior cupboards and furniture. A big feature window
in the living area invites the surrounding tropical paradise into the
house. It is all extremely well done and Werner and his wife Elke are
living off the grid in their relaxing environment. We walked down to
the water front where they keep their power boat which Werner has
converted into a floating camper van so they can still enjoyed life
on the water. Before leaving we all enjoyed coffee on the patio and
Werner played Waltzing Matilda and the Dutch National Anthem on his
harmonica. At eighty years of age he is an inspiration. He initially
met us on the beach and walked us up over the hill and down the other
side to his home and then back again when we left. I’m pretty sure
he found the hills less challenging than the rest of us. It was
inspirational to meet Werner and Elke who are obviously enjoying life
to the full.
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| Werner and Elke's home |
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| Garden at Werner and Elke's house |
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| The explorer gloup Ellen, Martin, Agnes, Baz, Clare and Andrew |
SOME
MENTAL EXERCISE
Andrew
is earning himself quite a reputation within the cruising community
as the radio fix it man. There are no repair places here and so
Andrew has been pretty busy. He has helped countless cruisers with
their radio problems and is now thrashing himself because he has
encountered a radio he couldn’t fix – you can’t win them all!
He has established a new Radio Net called the South Pacific Cruising
Net which will take us through to Australia. We had ten check ins
this morning which is pretty good considering it has only just
started. Andrew loves the radio and spends a lot of time listening
to various nets. I have jokingly asked him for a two way radio for
Christmas, so I can get to talk to him. Let’s hope he doesn’t
take me seriously:)
SO
WHAT’S NEXT
We
are now off for a snorkel as there is an area here inside the lagoon
which has a lot of fish. We will stay here till Monday and then
sadly go back into town for supplies. We will be looking for an
opportunity to sail to Fiji within the next few weeks.
Love
Candy xx
PS
It is now Sunday and we just felt an earthquake from inside the
boat. We could feel it through the floor and noticed that the
curtains were shaking slightly. We have just heard that the centre
was near Fiji and measured 8.2 on the Richter scale. We have also
spoken to cruisers located in Fiji and surprisingly they didn’t
feel a thing.
Love
Candy xx
