Day 55, Nukuʻalofa, Tonga
Welcome to Tonga
After our tender port in Rarotonga, it was nice to arrive in a port where we could walk off the ship. We arrived early, around 7 AM, and the first thing that struck me was how modern the city looked in the port area. There was a new looking pier, and a government building, called St George Palace, which was completed in 2017 and is home to many government offices. The city looked, in many respects, more modern than the town on Rarotonga. For some reason I expected Tonga to be a little less developed than it turned out to be.
As we closed in on the pier we could hear a band playing. We learned that the previous four cruise ships had not been allowed to dock due to fears of the corona virus. The locals did not know if the Amsterdam would be allowed to dock until the day before we arrived. We were only permitted to dock after all passengers completed a health questionnaire certifying that they had not been to a corona-virus affected country within last 14 days.
Tonga Island Tours
Judy, Susan and I booked a tour with a private driver, Collin Johansson, who runs Tonga Island Tours. We met him at the Friends Café, about a quarter mile from the ship. Price $60 USD per person.
I didn’t have any local currency, so I decided to stop at an ATM and pick up about US$50 worth in case I needed to buy something where credit cards or US dollars were not readily accepted. As we left the ship there was a money changing kiosk set up right on the pier but the line was already 20 people deep and I didn’t want to wait. There was a bank with an ATM very close to the pier and I paid US$72.31 for 150 TOP. The bank exchange price was US$64.72 which was the exchange rate they were using on the pier, but I don’t know if there was an additional service charge.
Along the pier were a about a dozen vendors selling T-shirts, wood carvings, jewelry etc. One popular item were Maui Hooks, fish hook shaped carvings, that symbolize the fishing hooks used by the ancient God Maui when, according to legend, he pulled up Tonga and other islands from below the sea.
We decided we would stop by the souvenir shops on the way back to use up any remaining local currency.
We arrived at the Friends Café, met our driver and we were soon on our way.
ROYAL TOMB
Our first stop was the Royal Tombs which is where members of the Royal Family have been buried since 1893. You can see them from outside the fence, but you can’t get any closer.
ROYAL PALACE
The next stop was the Royal Palace which was next to a park with a nice view of the ship. We mingled with a few large buses filled with HAL tour people and another local private guide. It was a bit crowded here but we left after we took a few photos from the gate.
TASMAN’S LANDING
We continued on toward the end of the island, to a point that marked Dutch explorer Abel Tasman’s landing place in the 1643. We stopped here to take a few pictures before moving on to the other side of the island.
BLUE BANANA
Our next stop was the Blue Banana Beach House which has 4 bungalows for rent right on the beach. There is a small museum of historic items found on the island and a small gift shop that sold some handicrafts but no restaurant or bar. The beach was pretty with a picture postcard view of South Pacific island scenery. Chris, the owner told us that there are fantastic opportunities for whale watching during the season when they are in the area. The area is very private. Before you book here, keep in mind that the bungalows are not air conditioned.
FRUIT BATS
Continuing on back toward the center of the island we stopped by a tree that is home to a large number Kolovai Flying Foxes or fruit bats. We got out of the van and walked around to the other side of the tree and watched as half a dozen or so bats would fly to and fro before settling in some of the branches.
TSUNAMI ROCK
Our next stop was Tsunami Rock which is a large coral rock, probably the size of a two story house, sitting by itself far from the water. How this rock ended up on this spot is not known, but people speculate it was tossed here during a volcanic eruption or a tsunami. Surprisingly, there was a porta-potty restroom here, which was very clean and well-maintained.
BLOWHOLES
The blowholes were next on our list of places to see. There was a whole series of these blowholes stretching almost a quarter mile down the coast. Unlike other blowholes where you may see one or two there are probably over 100 that, depending on the wind and tide conditions, may erupt with varying degrees of intensity.
3 HEADED COCONUT TREE
On the way to our next stop, we paused briefly to see a 3 headed coconut tree. I’ve never heard of this before, our guide told us, this is the only tree like it in the South Pacific.
We elected to continue with our tour rather than take time out to stop at a restaurant. Instead, we made a pit stop at a convenience store to pick up a few snacks. I got a can of peanuts and Judy got a chicken and potato puff pastry.
CAPT COOK’S LANDING SPOT
Captain Cook’s landing spot was our next stop. We found a place in the shade and spent about 25 minutes here discussing the history of Tonga and some of the experiences of Capt Cook and his crew. Colin told us some interesting stories about what transpired and recommended a book by William Mariner about his time living on Tonga during those times.
STONEHENGE OF THE PACIFIC
Often called the Stonehenge of the South Pacific, the Ha’amonga ‘a Maui Trilithon was built sometime in the 11th century. The method of construction and who built this and why is the source of speculation.
NATURAL LAND BRIDGE
It started to rain as we approached Hufangalupe a natural land bridge. It was still drizzling as we started down an overgrown trail that was pretty rugged and slippery. Judy stayed by the van and Susan did not go to final 20 yards as it required you to scamper and go hand over hand to avoid falling. Here is a picture of where I ended up.
The natural bridge was the final stop on our tour before we headed back towards town where we good bye to Collin, our wonderful guide.
POLICE SPEED CHECK
As we were driving down the road, we noticed a police officer step into the road with a radar gun and wave over a motorist. We learned later that this was a cruise ship passenger who had rented a car and was stopped for only going 5 KPH over the speed limit. They were sent on their way with a warning, but speed limits appear to be strictly enforced.
They enjoyed their car rental and would recommend it as a way do to a self guided tour. The rental company was at the airport, but they picked them up at the pier.
BACK IN TOWN
Driving back to town, we noticed lots of schoolchildren getting out of school, all wearing uniforms, which has been the norm in most of the countries we have visited this cruise.
We had 140 TOP left as we started looking in all the shops along the pier. The T-shirts were far too loud and large screaming TONGA! and we didn’t find them particularly attractive. Judy bought a small Tapacloth from the artist for 25 TOP.
I was going to change my remaining 110 TOP into New Zealand dollars. There was only one person in front of me at the money changer booth, but she was a vendor converting a large number of multiple currencies and denominations back into TOP and it was taking FOREVER. After waiting 20 minutes another vendor behind me in line realized the All Aboard was in 5 minutes and offered to buy my 110 TOP back for $50 USD.
As we boarded the ship exactly at the All Aboard time, we asked if we were the final passengers to board. The security officer told us there was one more person. He they told us a story about how on one cruise there was a passenger with the goal of was being the first passenger off and the last passenger to return in every port.
As we were leaving port, the Captain typically makes an announcement welcoming us back onboard with an update about the time and distance to the next port. Today’s report was different as he announced a major itinerary change. All of our Indonesian ports are canceled and we would proceed directly to Sri Lanka after Darwin with an extra stop in Hambantota, Sri Lanka before continuing on to Colombo and then Mumbai. Our visit to the Maldives and Kenya were also canceled and we would pick up our schedule with our stop to Tanzania. – More details here
Tonight’s show was a comedian from Australia named Ben Price. His claim to fame was as a contestant on Australia’s Got Talent. Part of his act was doing imitations. He had to explain who some of the personalities were that he was imitating.
NOTE: There won’t be many more original guest entertainer photos. The ship decided to strictly ban and aggressively enforce any photography during guest entertainer shows, including non-flash photos taken with my Sony A6300 which operates silently and emits no distracting illumination. The pre-show announcement used to only prohibit flash photography, but now states that the Mainstage is the same as any theater on the West End or Broadway. I wonder if they will start to not seat late arrivals until the first break just like they do on Broadway and the West End.
There was an attempt to ban all photography in the Mainstage, including during lectures and cultural presentations, but they seemed to have backed away from that policy.
I will use file photos I have taken over the years, or shots during the curtain call after the show is over and the house lights are up.