We have visiting Samoa and Tonga since I last wrote. The first word I would use to describe both would be humid. Carter’s camera lens fogs up every time he takes it outside, as do our glasses. Samoa is a volcanic island, so very hilly, and Tonga is flat as a pancake. Both are lush with vegetation and populated by very friendly people.
When we were on Samoa, the ship brought in a local youth group to do a performance. They had mainly teen-agers, but they also had some really young children who were learning the dances and songs. These young ones were adorable. You could see that the entire experience was very supportive for the 5-8 year olds. Sometimes they went the wrong way, but that was ok. Part of the show was the cava ceremony, which is something they do for honored guests. They take the powder of a cava root (from the pepper family), grind it up, then reconstitute it in water and serve it as a drink. The drink is on the alcoholic/hallucinogenic side. Carter and I had this ceremony performed for us when we were in Fiji, so it brought back tons of memories. You are handed a coconut cup of this liquid and are expected to down the whole thing at once. It tastes like drinking mud, so I sipped only a little, but was then told I had to drink the entire cupful. I had to will my gag reflex away, but managed. In the true ceremony, they keep filling the cups and passing them around until the entire bowl of liquid is gone. Luckily, we were with Peace Corps workers and they told me how to politely refuse. Carter, however, just kept drinking and before the end of the evening, he was giving lectures on his camera. It was an experience!
In Tonga, we did not take a tour because we had limited time. Some of the passengers were very frustrated because their tours were less than acceptable. One group, on a Holland America sponsored tour had their non-air conditioned bus get stuck in the mud, then stuck in traffic, because whoever was organizing the tours told all of the buses to go on the same route at the same time. The 3 hour tour ended up 6 hours. This was a problem for those with diabetes and those unable to deal with the heat. I was glad I wasn’t on that tour.
Then we spoke with another couple who decided to go on a non-Holland America sponsored tour. They said their tour guide spoke excellent English, put about 8 of them in a mini-bus and drove for a short while giving a great commentary. Then he pulled over on the side of the road next to another car. The bus driver and the car driver then exchanged places and the new driver drove them for the rest of the tour. Unfortunately, the new driver spoke NO English. Once they got back close to town, the original driver came back on to finished the tour. Some of the passengers were irate, but the young couple we were speaking with said that it was ok. They didn’t pay that much for the tour to begin with and did get some commentary as they went along.
We exchanged a little money in Tonga and had a snack at a local restaurant. Carter drank something like a smoothie made with Tongan ice!!!! I had a Coke that they served warm with a chilled glass. That was interesting. I did NOT use ice.
Labels: 2008, January 30
posted by Hills @ 5:06 PM
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