South Pacific days 9 through 17

En route to Blue Lagoon Resort

        Our three flights on day 9 were all on time or early, and the last one, a seaplane, brought us to the beautiful Blue Lagoon Resort in Fiji.  Months ago, we had hesitated to book a place named after that stupid Brooke Shields movie—how cheesy can you get?  But after reading the high praise from others (and learning the price included all meals and the seaplane ride), we took the plunge.  Now that we are here, on the island of Nacula, we find that the resort is actually not located on Blue Lagoon Beach.  In fact, Blue Lagoon Beach is not even on Nacula, but on the island of Nanuya Lailai, just south of here.  We must have seen it from the air, while the pilot was showing us the resort of Turtle Island ($2,700 per night per person, so we skipped consideration of that one).  Oh, well; that’s about $2,650 above Charlie’s price range . . .

Disembarking the seaplane

          Wireless and Internet service here is almost nonexistent, and since we will spend the next few days eating, sleeping, snorkeling, and being generally worthless, we are going to thrill you with one final brief report from the South Pacific before beginning the two-day trek home.  First, a bit about the country.

Resort from the water

          Both the Melanesians and the Polynesians came here in canoes, beginning around 1200 B.C.  No written record exists of their history in these islands, and regular European contacts began in the late 18^th Century. Captain Cook named the place, apparently misunderstanding what the natives called it, and Captain William Bligh passed through in his open boat in 1789 after the mutiny over in Tonga.  By 1850 the missionaries had begun convincing the natives to put some clothes on, and today they are very conservative, even prohibiting that disgusting European practice of going topless on the beaches.  Thank goodness for the missionaries!

Beach in front of the resort

          This was also one of the two thousand places on Earth colonized by the British, who imported thousands of Indian laborers to work the sugar plantations before granting the place independence in 1970.  By now the Indo-Fijian people made up more than 40% of the population, and before you knew it, they had a majority in the Fijian parliament.  This ticked off many of the “locals”, and a lieutenant colonel named Rabuka took over in a bloodless coup, invalidating the constitution, declaring himself the head of state, and kicking out of office those pesky Indo-Fijians.  This was disastrous to the economy and 50,000 or so of the minority members left the country.  Finally, a new constitution was adopted in 1997, and wouldn’t you know it—the Indo-Fijians won most of the seats in Parliament again, and one of them was even elected prime minister.  In a case of deja-vu all over again, another coup by the indigenous people in 2000 resulted in the revocation of the constitution, and politics has been a general mess here ever since.  The latest constitution, adopted in 2013, seems to insure that the minority Indo-Fijians will never be much of a force in the government.  Good thing we never had such political foolishness in the good old USA.

Blue fish on coral

          OK, back to the beach, where we are spending 5 nights before a final day on the main island.  But what can you say about a beautiful beach with a huge reef out front for snorkeling with beautiful fish and fantastic coral formations?  There are plenty of activities, including visits to native villages, mountain climbing, partying, kava ceremonies, and hammock-tending.  That last one is particularly appealing, and while we engage in that one, a few final photos from a great trip to the South Pacific.

           Sleeping on the beach every day and snorkeling over a fantastic reef between naps has made writing a blog just too much to bear, although we made the effort every day--honest!  So after five more flights over two days, we’ll be back home soon. It has been an exciting and relaxing trip to the South Pacific, and we hope you have enjoyed coming along with us.  Until next time . . .

Charlie and Tricia

© 2015

South Pacific days 7 and 8

          Day 7 was spent on the open water, this time with a marine biologist, and while we sighted many whales, they were not interested in interacting.  Instead, they performed for us, with breaching, slapping the ocean with pectoral fins and tails, and generally just frolicking in the water.  Charlie was able to have a short swim with a mother and calf, but the rest of the time the whales would move away when we entered the water.  It was a great day, in any event, and we learned a lot about the whales.  One of the surprising facts was the information that the calf consumes up to 100 gallons of milk each day to feed its rapid growth and creation of blubber in preparation for the trip south to Antarctica.

Whale breaching day 7

Whale playing

Whale tails

Whale heading down

          We should also tell you about the local entertainment.

Native Dancers

          One night a week the local village sends a contingent up to perform for the guests here, and it is quite a show.  One of the adults describes the meaning and history of each dance, followed by a demonstration by the local youth.  It’s an interesting way to educate the visitors and at the same time raise a little money for the local school.  We brought a small bagful of school supplies to donate to the cause, for which the people were very appreciative.

Tricia dancing with the natives

          We spent the following day relaxing, snorkeling on the reef out front, bicycling down the island, and doing a bush walk in the afternoon.

Sandy Beach Resort from the water

          This is our last day in the Kingdom of Tonga; tomorrow we have three flights to get us to one of the out islands of Fiji.  It’s a tight schedule, so wish us good luck.

Charlie and Tricia

© 2015

South Pacific days 5 and 6

        Day 5 was a Sunday, and on Tonga, everything shuts down completely, except for the churches.  No one works; no stores or shops are open—not that there are any stores or shops anywhere near the north end of Foa Island, where we are staying.  We took advantage of the lull to attend a Catholic church service on the island of Lifuka, just southwest of us by a causeway.  The service was in the native Tongan language, with a great deal of beautiful singing.  Many in the congregation wore the traditional woven wraps over modern clothing.  Even without the benefit of understanding the language, the enthusiasm of the people and the amazing harmony were an inspiration to us.

After the service in Lifuka

          While we’re on Lifuka, a bit more of the history of this area:  on April 28, 1789, Captain William Bligh’s crew on HMS Bounty—or at least most of them--mutinied in the waters between Lifuka and Tofua, the next island down the chain. Fletcher Christian’s mutineers cast off Bligh and the 18 men who did not participate in the mutiny in an open boat with the ship's log, a compass, a sextant, and limited provisions. Bligh and his men soon put ashore on nearby Tofua, but after one of them was killed by hostile natives they put to sea and traveled 42 days across 3,500 miles of the Pacific Ocean to Indonesia. To this day, it remains the longest voyage ever made in an open boat, topping even the Antarctic trip of the Endurance.

          Meanwhile, Fletcher Christian, after a stop in Tahiti, sailed the Bounty 8,000 miles to Pitcairn Island where he and his men remained with other men and women who had joined them in Tahiti. Bligh made it back to England, was acquitted at a court martial trial, and returned to Tahiti and captured many of the original mutineers who had been left there by Christian.

          Perhaps you have seen one of the four movies that have been made of the Mutiny on the Bounty; in any case, we have certainly arrived at the most historically interesting islands in the Kingdom of Tonga.

Looking across to Nuku’namu Island

Nuku’namu Island beach

        Day 6 was another day of R&R, and we used it to kayak over to the deserted island to the north, Nuku’namu, where we spent hours alone, exploring the island and picking up a few beautiful shells along the way.

Tricia’s shell collection from the Ha’apai Islands

Beach at Sandy Beach Resort

       While we’re relaxing, let us tell you about the experiences of a young British sailor.  On our trip to church Sunday, we noticed a sign pointing to Port au Prince Beach.  That particular beach is likely where the story below begins.

          In 1806, an English privateer sailing the South Pacific anchored in the Ha’apai Islands.  After a short anchorage, the ship Port au Prince was attacked by the natives and nearly the entire crew massacred.  One of the few survivors, William Mariner, the 14-year-old clerk of the ship, was essentially adopted by the king of the islands, Finau ‘Ulukalala (pronounce that for us, please).  William learned the language and customs during the four years before his rescue, living like a native in what we know today as the Kingdom of Tonga.

          Back home in England, William met John Martin, a medical doctor, who listened to his stories with fascination and disbelief.  The incredible tales of life in these islands were so far fetched that the good doctor initially brushed them off as the wild imaginings of a young man; but after meeting another man who had also been spared in the massacre and spent time in these same islands, he realized that William was telling the truth.  Martin spent hundreds of hours in interviews with William, and in 1827 published the story, An Account of the Natives of the Tongan Islands.  It is a fascinating book, still in print after all these years, and we recommend it to those who have an interest in life in these islands B.E.—Before Europeans.

          The belief was that death in battle was a great honor, and the various villages and islands seemed to be constantly at war.  The canoes used to transport the warriors were quite large, holding dozens, and some of the distances covered are difficult to imagine.  It’s hard to imagine the sailing skills that were required of a people with no written language and no navigational tools.  William Mariner said the people didn’t consider it any great feat to travel between Tinga and Fiji, a distance of 450 miles.  It took us 90 minutes by turboprop aircraft, and even today making the trip in canoes stretches the imagination.

          The king had absolute power, and the brutality William described is proof enough.  The Tongans had unloaded everything from the Port au Prince after the massacre, and now had cannons, muskets, and plenty of powder—after they gathered all the musket balls they had first thrown away as seeming useless.  To verify William’s claim that the muskets would kill a person, the king had one of the natives shoot a mentally ill woman who had been harassing the people of the village.  It was proof enough, and much more efficient than the traditional method clubbing out the brains of enemies.  Attacks on other islands or villages sometimes involved clubbing to death everyone in the village, no matter what the age or gender.  And if the king’s warriors were hungry, they feasted on the bodies of those they had killed.

          The priests of the time had power similar to those used in the Inquisition, which they used to extremes at times.  One of the sacrifices their gods told them to make required the strangulation of young children and babies.  And when a powerful chief died, his wives were honored to be buried with him—never mind that they had not yet passed away themselves.

          While the kind of warfare and brutality William described would lead most people to think of the Tongans as pure savages, there were quite civilized customs as well.  When William reported to the king, after several days on the island, that he was starving without food, the king indicated he thought William quite foolish.  All you have to do, he explained, is to go to any house and tell the occupants you are hungry; it is the obligation of every household to share everything, including food, there being no concept of individual ownership in the islands.

          Today the people share that latest quality, and they are indeed friendly, reserved, and helpful in any way possible.   They are a beautiful people in a most beautiful country.

Charlie and Tricia

© 2015

South Pacific Days 3 and 4

       Our next two days have been spent on the open water, masks, snorkels, and fins at the ready to observe the humpback whales that frequent the area.  Unlike the more touristy island of Vavua, the guides here are much more respectful of the whales, and there is much less competition.  So the boats never come closer than 150 feet from the whales, approaching from the side; and no more than four persons and a guide are allowed to approach a whale at any one time.  Much of the 7-hour boat trip is taken up by a search for females and their calves resting at the surface.

15-foot flipper slapping the water

          During the search, you might see whales slapping the water with their huge pectoral fins or tails; if you are really lucky, one of them might even put on a show for you, breaching near your boat.  Sometimes they even poke their heads out of the water to see what’s going on; their vision is just as good above the surface as it is below the surface.

        Whale breaching near our boat

          Whale calf observing the tourists

          Tourist preparing to enter the water

          These two days have been a fantastic experience.  Several times we were able to approach to within a few feet of mothers and the calves that were born recently in the area adjoining Foa Island.  It is always a single calf, about 15 feet long, with a mother often exceeding 50 feet.  Sometimes the calf has developed a sense of curiosity, coming up take a close look at the swimmers.

          Whale and snorkeler at the surface

          Snorkeling near a big one

          Calf and mother

          Years ago, someone observed that whales’ tails are like people’s faces—you can identify and therefore name each whale based on markings on the tails.  That has enabled the marine biologists to show that the same whales return to Foa each year, making the incredible 5,000-kilometer trip from Antarctica without eating, and arriving in time to give birth, and afterward to mate again if they are interested.  Some of the females do not mate every year, but during their 80-year lifespan they produce quite a number of calves.  No one can explain how they can navigate over the same course on the way north, or how they know to take an entirely different course back south to Antarctica.

                                          Calf near the surface

Calf coming at us

          What an amazing first two full days in Tonga it has been. 

Charlie and Tricia

© 2015