Tonga
Two days ago we spent a full day on the island of Tongatapu, the largest of the 169 islands that comprise the Kingdom of Tonga, the total population of which is 108,000. Tonga is a constitutional monarchy. The center of government is in the port city of Nuku'alofa. We started our day by participating in a walking tour of Nuku'alofa. All of the major modern infrastructure, such as the cruise ship piers and the large Parliament building, have been constructed or paid for by China which our guides and other Tongans we met all describe as Tonga's best friend. In fact, Janis had an interesting conversation with the Speaker of Tonga's Parliament who, with other dignitaries, spent several hours aboard ship. Janis inquired about Tonga's relationship with China. He forthrightly explained that China was concertedly buying influence with some 14 island countries in the region that are all members of the U.N. in order to bolster China's position vis-a-vis a number of controversial issues of global concern.
As for the status of the reigning king, all Tongans we dealt with spoke reverentially about him, but rumors abound that Tongans are divided about the monarchy. We do know that the prior king fell out of favor when substantial public monies were lost at the hands of a financial speculator and other poor economic decisions were made. There were also demonstrations, strikes and riots in 2006 over freedom-of-the-press and related issues.
Here are photos first of the Royal Palace, a wooden structure built in 1867 that abuts the shore just adjacent to the harbor, as well as of a signboard that I found amusing because of its prominant location directly in front of what appears to be the Treasury building and just below the word "Treasury." This is about the first thing people see as they enter town. Surely, something more subtle could have been arranged.
Next, the Parliament building itself.
Here is a random selection of photos I took as we walked through the downtown area. They speak for themselves.
After the morning walk we returned to the ship for lunch and discovered that a ceremony was underway in the atrium that involved a dance performance by some Tongan women and an exchange of plaques between the captain of the ship and the several government representatives who had come onboard, including the prime minister and the speaker of the parliament. Here are some photos depicting what I just described. In the group picture, the prime minister is in the center wearing a blue shirt and the parliament speaker is the young man on the far right. The latter has a master's degree in international relations and diplomacy from a university in India.
In the afternoon, we went on an excursion that took us by bus to a residential area and some family's backyard where we were treated to a kava ceremony (kava is a mildly narcotic drink made from mixing the powered root of the pepper plant; a kava ceremony is associated with a number of things, including the hospitable welcoming of visitors) and demonstrations of Togan dance, singing, baking, weaving, tapas making (tapa is a beaten barkcloth that is fashioned into decorative patterns and often worn, as can be seen in the group photo above), and wood carving. Here are photos depicting some of what we were shown.
After this visit, we continued to drive around parts of the island. Here's where Captain Cook landed in Tonga in 1777.
Our final stop before returning to the ship was the Ha'amonga, a Maui trilithon (a structure like that shown in the second of the two following photos).
My last photo is of our afternoon excursion guide. We found her particularly endearing. She is about to turn 24, is one of two children (her brother is studying theology in the U.S.), and is warm and open. She explained to the group that her passion is working in the hospitality industry, loves guiding and meeting people, but that she, too, is required by her father, himself a minister, to study theology and will be doing that exclusively when the next session of school begins in a few weeks. She told us that whatever her father says is the law and, therefore, she must obey him. All of this was explained without resentment or bitterness. She seemed equally accepting of the fact that, consistent with Tongan tradition, her brother will inherit whatever their father has, including the family home, but that she will be able to live there with him and his family should she remain unmarried. (She would like to meet a young man suitable for marriage but doesn't seem to have the opportunity to do so since her father doesn't permit her to attend parties.)
Today we visited Fiji. I will post about that visit tomorrow. In the meantime, we are at sea on our way to Bay of Islands (Russell), New Zealand where we will arrive on Sunday, the 28th.
As for the status of the reigning king, all Tongans we dealt with spoke reverentially about him, but rumors abound that Tongans are divided about the monarchy. We do know that the prior king fell out of favor when substantial public monies were lost at the hands of a financial speculator and other poor economic decisions were made. There were also demonstrations, strikes and riots in 2006 over freedom-of-the-press and related issues.
Here are photos first of the Royal Palace, a wooden structure built in 1867 that abuts the shore just adjacent to the harbor, as well as of a signboard that I found amusing because of its prominant location directly in front of what appears to be the Treasury building and just below the word "Treasury." This is about the first thing people see as they enter town. Surely, something more subtle could have been arranged.
Next, the Parliament building itself.
Here is a random selection of photos I took as we walked through the downtown area. They speak for themselves.
After the morning walk we returned to the ship for lunch and discovered that a ceremony was underway in the atrium that involved a dance performance by some Tongan women and an exchange of plaques between the captain of the ship and the several government representatives who had come onboard, including the prime minister and the speaker of the parliament. Here are some photos depicting what I just described. In the group picture, the prime minister is in the center wearing a blue shirt and the parliament speaker is the young man on the far right. The latter has a master's degree in international relations and diplomacy from a university in India.
In the afternoon, we went on an excursion that took us by bus to a residential area and some family's backyard where we were treated to a kava ceremony (kava is a mildly narcotic drink made from mixing the powered root of the pepper plant; a kava ceremony is associated with a number of things, including the hospitable welcoming of visitors) and demonstrations of Togan dance, singing, baking, weaving, tapas making (tapa is a beaten barkcloth that is fashioned into decorative patterns and often worn, as can be seen in the group photo above), and wood carving. Here are photos depicting some of what we were shown.
After this visit, we continued to drive around parts of the island. Here's where Captain Cook landed in Tonga in 1777.
Our final stop before returning to the ship was the Ha'amonga, a Maui trilithon (a structure like that shown in the second of the two following photos).
My last photo is of our afternoon excursion guide. We found her particularly endearing. She is about to turn 24, is one of two children (her brother is studying theology in the U.S.), and is warm and open. She explained to the group that her passion is working in the hospitality industry, loves guiding and meeting people, but that she, too, is required by her father, himself a minister, to study theology and will be doing that exclusively when the next session of school begins in a few weeks. She told us that whatever her father says is the law and, therefore, she must obey him. All of this was explained without resentment or bitterness. She seemed equally accepting of the fact that, consistent with Tongan tradition, her brother will inherit whatever their father has, including the family home, but that she will be able to live there with him and his family should she remain unmarried. (She would like to meet a young man suitable for marriage but doesn't seem to have the opportunity to do so since her father doesn't permit her to attend parties.)
Today we visited Fiji. I will post about that visit tomorrow. In the meantime, we are at sea on our way to Bay of Islands (Russell), New Zealand where we will arrive on Sunday, the 28th.
Comments
Post a Comment