1. Humpback whale, Vava’u.

Tonga is an important breeding ground for humpback whales
thanks to the warmer waters and food-rich Tongan Trench,
with 8km the world’s 2nd deepest sea canyon. From June
to November they come to court, mate or give birth.
Subsistence whaling (10 per year by primitive methods)
Was practised for centuries in Tonga until 1979 when it
was banned by the king. Vava’u, the most northern group
of islands, is the main center for whale watching in Tonga.
We saw a few up close during a tour; if they are with calf
they stay longer up and closer to the surface, but unfortunately
we couldn't swim with them due to rough weather.
Humpback whales do all kinds of acrobatics:
they splash the water with their fins, stand vertically upright
above the water and throw themselves completely out of
the water (breach), like this one.











2. Tongan Feast, Vava’u.

Organised by the locals at one of the beaches,
with traditional handicrafts, music and singing,
kava drinking and lots of food. People arrived also
by rubber dingy from their sailing yachts that
were anchored nearby; children performed dances
to collect money for their school.



















3. Flight, Vava’u-Tongatapu.

Our travel in Tonga was marred by delays. It started with
a domestic flight right after arrival on Tongatapu, the main
island, to Vava’u; we had to wait for a flight from Fiji
to bring in a missing part for our 20-seater plane.
We got breakfast and a little island/city tour as compensation
for the 7-hour delay. On the way back the plane was delayed,
had problems starting again and we were transferred to
another plane of the more expensive airline: an old DC-3, but
still going strong. We took the flight because of horror-stories
about the 30-hour slow ferry (a container ship)
and of course the beautiful views!









4. Hufangalupe Archway, Tongatapu.

We hired well-maintained bicycles at the waterfront
from Niko’s (who must have been there since ages,
but still only charges T$8 a day) and cycled to the
south coast. No signs, so ask the locals.
Hufangalupe? Eyebrows raise: who wants to go there?!
And see, a beautiful natural limestone archway.
A bit further we had a picnic-lunch with nice views
along the rock cliffs and the pounding sea.












5. Lapaha, Tongatapu.

In AD 1200, the 11th King of Tonga, moved the royal
capital to Lapaha, now known as Mu’a. The area contains the
richest concentration of archeological remnants in the Pacific.
The langi, or pyramidal stone tombs were traditionally used
for the burial of royalty. This is where the King’s nephew,
Prince Tu’i Pelehake and his wife, who were recently killed
in a car accident in the USA, have been put to rest.
The streets on the route from Nuku’alofa were still lined with
black banners and purple ribbons.
The Prince was very popular with the Tongans for his ideas
about democratic changes;
at the moment the King still has absolute power.







6. Ha’aluma Pool, ‘Eua.

One of the best places to snorkel on ‘Eua, an island
covered by rainforest and a 2-hour ferry ride away
from Tongatapu. Lots of fish and nice corals, but because
of the strong current between high and low tide not a very
relaxed snorkel. You had to be careful not to come too close
to the pool-exit, where the water was pushed and sucked
through a tunnel through the rocks. The see also has made
little blowholes in the rock terraces. 

















7. Matamahina Hopo lookout, ‘Eua.

The Tongan islands are limestone slabs lifted from the sea
by tectonic movements or as legend has it
 fished up by the Polynesian god Tangaloa
(others say by Maui, who has several other features
in Tonga and events in the Pacific accredited to him).
We came to this viewpoint by chance, after we missed
a turn-off to a secluded beach. From here we spotted
a couple of whales frolicking off the coast and watched
them for 20 minutes, mostly through binoculars, while they
splashed and jumped out of the water.
On ‘Eua we saw a lot of whales at several other times
and a big group of spinner dolphins, just in front of
our guesthouse where we had put our tent.









8. Banyan tree, ‘Eua.

These huge trees are common in Asia also. Their branches
grow to such extreme lengths that they need to seek
intermediate support by dropping roots back into the ground.
This one, the Big Ovava, is standing in a huge sinkhole
near a stream disappearing into a cave. What you see here
is the ‘underground’ part of the tree with the soil mostly 
washed away and the roots meandering over and through
the sharp rocks. Look at Anna for the scale of things,
if you can find her!














9. Taro, ‘Eua/Tongatapu.

A typical root vegetable like cassava, taro grows
a large and thick root and has giant leaves.
The 5am ferry brings farmed goods every morning
to Nuku’alofa, the capital of Tonagtapu for the market.

Let's go: