TONGA
Its 169 islands, 36 of them inhabited, are divided into three main groups – Vava’u, Ha’apai, and Tongatapu – and cover an 800-kilometre (500-mile)-long north-south line. The largest island, Tongatapu, on which the capital city of Nukuʻalofa is located
On our last visit 4 years ago we stopped at the capital Nuku’alofa. Where we learned about the Kingdom of Tonga.
Their currency : Tongan paʻanga. The paʻanga is the currency of Tonga. It is controlled by the National Reserve Bank of Tonga (Pangikē Pule Fakafonua ʻo Tonga) in Nukuʻalofa. The paʻanga is not convertible and is pegged to a basket of currencies comprising the Australian, New Zealand, United States dollars and the Japanese yen.
Their King: in 2014 we visited the capital and there was still the talk about the King Taufa’ahau Tupou IV of Tonga made international headlines in 1976 when he entered the Guinness Book of Records as the world’s heaviest monarch weighing in at 209 kg (32 st).His son Tupou assumed the throne in 2006 on the death of his father but died in 2012. His brother Tupou VI has been formally crowned King of Tonga and is the reigning king till now.
beautiful, peaceful entrance to the bay
This time we visited another island : Neiafu, ava’u group
Jost stayed on the ship, still suffering from his nagging cough. I took a long walk to the Mt Talau National park with the hoped to see the Flying foxes (bats). They of course take off only at night. Saw some hanging on the tres but the forest was so dense I couldn’t get any picture. The walk was refreshing and peaceful. I was the only one on the tracks. I chased the Tongan Whistler which I heard all the time. They are elusive and blend in the leaves. Impossible to take pictures unless you have a tripod and stay there a LONG time. But their songs were so pleasant. So much more to see but so little time. A great time for a morning meditation, on “terre ferme” and beautiful fresh smells.
The view of the bay, walking down the hill was such a pleasure and I stopped or a minute to admire the bell in front of the church before returning to the ship
Around the world again 