Eua is faka 'ofa'ofa

Eua is absolutely beautiful (faka 'ofa 'ofa). I have just got back from a long weekend there with six other palangi who are working here in Nuku 'Alofa and want to go back as soon as possible.

Eua is a tiny island - according to Wikipedia it's 87 square kms in area and has a population of approximately 5,000 - that is a gruelling eight minute flight from Nuku 'Alofa. It's covered in almost-virgin rainforest and is surrounded by coral fringed, crystal clear waters. Eua is exactly what I wanted the South Pacific and Tonga to be. To be honest I never expected it, but I wanted the South Pacific to be beautiful tropical rainforest, coral fringed beaches and a relaxed, friendly culture. Eua is exactly that.

While the others caught the three hour ferry over to Eua on Saturday morning, I left on Saturday afternoon and caught the eight minute flight after work. I don't consider myself to be a nervous flyer however the plane that makes the journey has got to be the smallest commercial plane I have ever seen. I sat in the front row, and if I was so inclined, could have easily reached over the seat and fiddle with buttons or even take control of the plane. In fact on the way back the plane (seating nine people at capacity) was so full that Tom actually sat in the 'cock pit' next to our pilot. I think the truck I am driving here for the TFA is actually bigger than the plane.

Inside the plane

I must admit when the plane's engines started up and all sort of lights on the plane's dashboard (for want of the proper technical name for the part of the plane which houses all the various buttons and control mechanisms) started beeping and flashing I was sweating bullets. It got worse as the little plane started to pelt down the runway and my stomach turned as the sound of the propellers, about one metre from my head, consumed the tiny plane. However, once we were up and away it was a beautiful flight giving great views of Tongatapu and little Eua just 40km away.

The plane

After successfully avoiding the potholes on the tarmac at Eua airport, I was picked up and taken to Taina's Guesthouse, our hostel for the weekend. The guesthouse is little more than a few spare shed sized rooms on Taina's property. Taina, lives there with her family ( I think she had about six kids, however there could have been more) and is also heavily involved with the Mormon church on the island. It explained why, on arrival, Tom and I were shown to our own cosy little two-bed shed while the five girls were squeezed into four beds in another shed that was set on the other side of the main house. It was clear that Taina wasn't too keen on any Palangi Shaganagans.

That night, after a quick swim at a beautifully isolated beach and a few pre gins, vodkas and tequilas we were driven with the rest of Taina's family, to the local Morman Church hall which hosts a disco each Saturday night. I had been promised that an elderly woman (who ended up being Taina's Mum) would patrol the dance floor and flash a torch at any unmarried couple who danced too close. Despite our best efforts the flash light never made an appearance (even after Helen, from NZ, flashed most of the dance floor after taking a tumble on the df - stock standard kiwi behaviour really) and it actually felt like I was back at a Primary school dance. There was the usual Tongan dance music and R&B selections but this was coupled with a few slow, waltz type songs for couples. When these songs came on it was like something out of a movie where all the single people sat down and anyone who was a couple would dance. Needless to say we always made sure there was someone to couple up with - Tongan or Palangi - and yet still no flashlight!

The Mormon Disco

The next day, with a hangover that got increasingly worse as the morning rolled on we set out to find the Soldier's Grave lookout which is perched at just about the highest point on Eua. We quickly made our way to one of the huge, beautiful Banyan trees on the island. This one was looked exactly like the mythical tree in Avatar, and was an intricate maze of vines and branches which clung to the side of a sink hole in the rainforest. We continued to make our way to where we thought the lookout could be but inevitably got lost after I thought it would be a good idea to march through dense undergrowth which was clearly not the route the basic map had set out for us. So after a few frustrating hours of going nowhere, and with everyone's legs cut up from the undergrowth we decided to turn around and try again the next day.

After, amazingly, an alcohol free night of reading books, snoozing and watching movies we were given a lift to the start of the track which led to the lookout. The track was clearly a 4WD track too and where tyres had previously worn away the ground, steady ground was replaced with slippery mud. We didn't get too far before mud was being flung in every direction and we eventually made it to the top covered head to toe in mud.

It was all worth it though as the view was stunning (photo of the view at the beginning of the post). There was a small break in the trees where you could stand on the edge of a 300m+ cliff face which overlooked more rainforest before eventually giving way to an isolated coral fringed reef. It was an amazing view. Next time I would like to trek over to the beach and camp there for a couple of nights, it was your perfect palm-lined, coral fringed tropical beach. We then hurtled down the mountain and got taken to a beach closer to town where Taina and her family were having a picnic.

The Palangi

It was a perfect way to finish the day as we mucked about with the kids in the shallow coral. Sand fights, turned to water fights and the kids would stand on my shoulders and then dive off into an area no bigger than about a metre wide and a metre deep surrounded by jagged coral. How they missed the coral I don't know and we must have spent over two hours in the water as the Tongan kids used us as jungle gym equipment until it was time for lunch.

One of my favourite pics, Helen and I with the two kids who didn't want to get off our shoulders

I have now been back a few days and have got straight back into work. My boys have started camp preparation for the World Cup Qualifiers next month and are living on-campus here at the TFA full-time. We are training two to three times a day and I can honestly say they are getting better and improving all the time. It can be quite frustrating with the language barrier but I am trying to communicate as much as I can in Tongan and use body language to get my point across.

It is a challenge (especially as I am now here at the office at 6am in the morning as it is my job to pick up the chef and then take her home at bout 830pm) but I am enjoying it and it is the reason I came here. I have actually just returned from my morning session of training and am now buzzing! The boys actually 'got it' this morning in relation to switching the play and looking for space or in Tongan 'fakacaucau'. So things are moving quite nicely, although there has been some issues at home but I will talk about that later if I still feel the need to vent.

* I'll also have some more photos from this weekend soon after I upload them from my camera so will post them when I can.

One of Taina's kids