Currency
2.00 Tonga Pa'ang (TOP) = US$1.00
The
Kingdom of Tonga are the first islands to see the dawn of each new
day. Each morning I wake up with the sound of angles singing. The
church near by has choir practice at 6 o clock in the mornings. Tonga
is a nice laid back kind a place – the people are refreshingly
friendly and humble after French Polynesia. The general impression of
happiness being inversely proportional to wealth was very evident.
The people are not wealthy but they can afford to smile. The
archipelago was very aptly named the Friendly Islands by Captain
James Cook in 1773.
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| Tonga, Neiafu anchorage |
Anchored just off Neiafu town, in the evenings I
often heard
to the dolcet
strains
of Jimmy Buffett
from
the
bars and restaurants.
Friday nights was jam session at the Aquarium
restaurant
– cruisers get together to
play music, socialise and sing.
Cruisers
that I met up with in Neiafu, Tonga:
“Fair
Winds” with Sherman and Judy from USA and Australia.
“Fagel
Blu” with Olli from Finland.
“Korbut
Rose” with Bruce and Sandy from Seattle, USA.
“Angela”
with Philip and Barbara from Tasmania.
“Kiwi
Dancer” with Grant from New Zealand.
“Seacher”
with Paul from New Zealand.
“Jenny”
with Alan from UK.
“Georgia”
with Paul and Chris from Seattle, USA.
11-09-15
Friday
I
decided to explore some of the many anchorages in the Vava'U group of
Tonga. Many of the anchorages are numbered and well documented. There
is a fairly large charter boat fleet operating out of Neiafu –
Sunsail and Moorings. I motor sailed to Anchorage number 11 near
Tapana island. There was a Spanish Paella restaurant near there that
had been recommended to me. At $50 USD a head I abstained. The
skipper was having to exercise some monetary restraint due to the
falling Aussie dollar and Aussie share prices. I met up with Judy and
Sherman on “Fair Winds”. We had dinner on Fair Winds as their
fridge had packed in. I met Paul and Chris on “Georgia”. The
following day we decided to head to Euakafa Island or anchorage 32.
In the mid afternoon Judy spotted the blow of a whale. There was a
boat near by and people in the water swimming with the whales. In the
evening we enjoyed a BBQ onshore with Brett, an Aussie and his dogs,
who has found paradise and lives on the island. Brett is a yachtie
friendly guy who welcomes cruisers. Look for his blue house on the
north side of the island. Beware of the not so cruiser friendly
resort to the west with a pack of nasty dogs.
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| View from Euakafa Island or anchorage 32 |
Sunday,
being away from the many churches on the islands I did not wake to
the sound of choral angels singing but whale song. At first I wondered
what the sound was then remembered the whales the previous day. I
could not see them but could hear and feel their song through
Sadiqi's hull.
Monday
I headed a little further west to Vaka'Eitu Island (anchorage 16).
While
the anchorages are all well marked the anchoring is not simple. If
one can find a sandy spot, clear of the many coral heads, the sand is
thin over rock. Hearing the anchor chain grind over rock and coral is
fairly normal – not the most pleasant of sounds.
The
wind was due to pick up with the passing over Vava'U of the South
Pacific Convergence Zone (SPCZ). Georgia and Sadiqi headed to Port
Maurelle (anchorage 7). This is a very pleasant anchorage and
understandably gets a little crowded at times. Also, it is safe in
strong winds from the east.
Paul
and Chris on Georgia invited me to join them snorkelling in the the
Swallows Cave – what an experience. There were several vast
schools of fish swimming in the shelter of the cool cave. The entire
school would swirl – synchronised - as swimmers neared them. Paul
had an underwater camera.
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| Swallows Cave - swirling schools of fish |
I
broke out the Cobb BBQ to cook pizza on Georgia. I had not used the
BBQ since being in the San Blas before Christmas. It was a pleasant
evening despite a few rain showers passing every now and again.
On
the Sunday we returned to Neiafu. The beer and wine stocks onboard
were severely depleted. For some reason I only had one can of beer
left in the fridge – bad organisation.
I
was chatting with cruisers Paul & Chris on yacht "Georgia"
in Tonga. We were talking about the Panama canal transit. I mentioned
the boats' name that I was tied up to "Nirvana Now" for the
canal transit. They said, "you know that a yacht with that name
sunk after leaving Galapagos back in April". I had heard of a
yacht sinking but did not know its name.
I
looked on the net and it was the same boat, same people. Around that
time I was suffering my stupidity with my attempted Ecuador
escapades.
If
you have some time have a look at the link below.
I count my lucky stars and hope that my luck
continues to hold out.
A
few days ago I heard on the local VHF radio net that a solo sailor
was rescued just north of Tonga - the boat “Liberty Call” was
lost.
Apparently
the solo sailor had left Bora Bora. The seas were rough near Tonga
and he became seasick. He took some medicine and unfortunately fell
asleep – the boat ran into one of the islands of the Vava'u group.
A whale watching boat spotted him and picked him up off the rocks near
where the boat sank.
Watching
the weather. We have not seen much sun for well over a week here in
the Vava'u group of Tonga, with the South Pacific Convergence Zone
hanging about. I was looking for some nice, 15 to 25 knot, south
easterly winds to sail further west. The hovering SPCZ was making
passage planning difficult.
The
beginning of October was looking good for a departure from Vava'u,
Tonga.
My
liver was given a reprieve when I started treatment for an amoebic
parasite that I think I picked up drinking the water in Fatu Hiva.
General fatigue
and lethargy
being the least
offensive of
the symptoms.
The
treatment - flagyl is one of the few
antibiotics to that can cause issues with alcohol.
02-10-15
Friday I made ready to clear out of Tonga. I had to take the boat
around to the fisherman's wharf so the officials could come on board.
1030
Sadiqi departed the fisherman's wharf and headed to Port Maurelle
(anchorage 7). I had 24 hours in which to leave Tonga.
At
Port Maurelle I met up with Harry, Leanne and the girls on “Ulysses
Blue”.
