Tonga, a study in contrasts

Five weeks in Tonga and the answer to the question "What is Tonga like?" is not an easy question to answer. For us Tonga was a series of contrasting events.  Let's start with the weather. Tonga was either cloudy and grey, with high wind warnings, or calm and absolutely beautiful.  When the sun was out the contrast between the green hills, the blue skies and the turquoise waters was stunning. 

 

A watercolor I did of our anchorage at Port Maurelle, one of the many anchorages in the Vava'u group of Tonga. Many of the islands have undercut limestone cliffs and caves.

Greetings from the future

 We did it! We crossed the International dateline and traveled into tomorrow. While I can't give you tomorrow's winning lottery ticket number, I can tell you the answers to tomorrow's Wordle or tomorrow's New York Times Crossword puzzle. I am reading tomorrow's news while you are still in yesterday.

We crossed the dateline out at sea somewhere between American Samoa and Tonga. We were sailing along, enjoying our Tuesday when, out of the blue, it was suddenly  Wednesday. I looked for the dotted red line in the water marking the change, but I didn't see anything, I just don't understand. We did, however, see a complete double rainbow just after we crossed the line.

A Welcome Port in a Storm

As we last left our intrepid sailors they had just arrived safely in Pago Pago, American Samoa. 12 hours of big seas and high winds and they were exhausted.  There is only one port/anchorage on the island and it has quite a reputation. It is a long thin bay that acts as a wind tunnel, accelerating the winds off the sea and adding the catabatic winds off the mountains. Other bonuses of this anchorage include very poor holding for the anchor and strong smells from the Starkist Tuna Cannery right next to the spot designated for small boat (as opposed to tankers) anchoring. Ahh, tropical paradise! 

Where to Next?

 During our 15-month stay in French Polynesia, we thoroughly explored the captivating atolls and islands. However, as all good things must come to an end, the time arrived for us to chart our next course.

Goodbye French Polynesia 

Help us to bring better vision to Tonga and Fiji

As we continue on our journey around the world on our sailboat, we have become more aware just how fortunate we are to be able to do this, and we have been looking for a way to make a more meaningful impact in some of the smaller communities we visit. Unfortunately, due to our wandering, unscheduled nature, volunteering opportunities can be limited. We are never in one place very long, and cannot commit to recurring volunteer opportunities. However, we have discovered a solution that will enable us to make a difference: Global Vision 2020 is a company that provides glasses to people in remote areas without access to optometrists. With your support, we aim to purchase one of their kits, allowing us to give glasses to 250 individuals and provide 300 pairs of reading glasses. Join us in bringing the gift of better vision to those in need as we sail to Tonga and Fiji!

Our GoFundMe page

Hype or Reality? Exploring Bora Bora

Bora Bora, a name that evokes images of pristine beaches, turquoise waters, and luxurious resorts. It's a place often associated with dream honeymoons and celebrity getaways. . My son, Rivers, and his wife, Laura have a Screensaver on their TV that flashes up a scene from Bora Bora.

I wasn't able to exactly replicate it for several reasons. 1) The peak of Otemanu is almost always at least partially covered by clouds. 2) This picture was taken from one of the resorts, across a reflecting pool with the overwater bungalows between the camera and the mountain 3) I did not see the "No Signal" sign floating in the air.

Sharks!

Sharks are fearsome, sharp-toothed predators that can smell blood from miles away, and they have been known to attack and kill humans with their powerful jaws and razor-sharp teeth. This is the picture that many people have of sharks and the thought of diving with them can be rather daunting. 

Oceanic Black tipped reef shark