Feb 28th, 2020 Day 55 of 128

 

I have a lot to share today so I hope this post doesn’t get too long. Today we awoke in Nuku’alofa, Tonga. After grabbing a quick breakfast and packing up our beach essentials and water for the day we were off on our excursion. We drove by way of rustic, non air-conditioned bus around the island to see the blowholes. Now I’ve seen blowholes before. Maybe a few at each location. Here the blowholes go all the way up along the coastline and around the curvature of the bay. It was breathtaking to see and fun to hear. Next we drove to the Oholei Beach Resort and Hina Caves. Resort has a different meaning in Tonga. We did know what we were getting into though before we got there.   There was a staircase of 60 steps that led down to a beautiful beach where there was a large open-air structure that accommodated our large group to be able to stay out of the sun and to sit and later to eat lunch. The girls and mom and I grabbed our towels and headed straight to the water. We got to spend about 40 minutes in the ocean relaxing and staying cool. It was a great way to spend the morning being “baptized” by Tonga. We hopped out of the water when it was time to open the pit where they had cooked lamb, chicken and breadfruit the traditional “Hawaiian” way. The pig was cooked on a spit with a stick shoved through it from one end to the other (wait till you see the photos). Megan did not care to look at it any longer then required. Then we all headed into the shade to enjoy lunch, some music, and some cold beverages. I got to try a Tongan beer. After lunch we were led to the Hina Caves where we were entertained by traditional Tongan dances, singing and chants. The highlight was at the end they brought in two fire dancers that were amazing to watch. It was a quite a family affair at this resort. Multi-generations working, performing, watching and supporting one another, from the littlest ones, to spouses, parents and grandparents. It is a different culture here where family is always put first and then God second. A man had some heat issues and after they got him up an employee of the resort came over and called out to heaven thanking God for protecting him and us. It was quite a spiritual moment. Later when I was in the cave watching the performance I was quite emotionally overcome with the beauty of where we were, the sounds of the music, the smells from the oils the performers put on their bodies, the sights of the smoke rising up through the opening in the caves as the sun was shining in. I thought about how blessed I am to be here today and how much my beloved would have enjoyed being there too. It was a spiritual day for me to say the least. So we climbed back up those 60 stairs and hopped back into our bus and headed back to the ship our floating home away from home.

We got showered for dinner and then “THE ANNOUNCEMENT” came. We knew it was coming, but it is official. They have altered our itinerary and due to the coronavirus we are no longer going to any of our four ports in Indonesia, Singapore, Maldives, and Mombassa in Kenya. They added a second port in Seychelles, and an extra day in Tanzania, and three days in Mumbai, India. We are of course disappointed we will not get to see the places we had planned to go to. Kenya was to be one of our overnight safaris as well. But we have a second one already booked out of Mozambique. We know this all happened happened for a reason, we are still together, we are still on vacation and we are still living each day to the fullest and most importantly we are being kept as safe as possible.  I told the girls they could be disappointed for the rest of the evening, but that tomorrow was a new day to start fresh and new. So we will have new excursions to pick in the near future for our new adventures we are to have. They’ll work on reimbursements I’m sure. On top of our little “inconveniences” the ship has to readjust where we pick up supplies, fuel, passengers and staff. It must be a logistical nightmare for all of them and I pray that things go smoothly for all the Holland America staff as they are having to scramble now to take care of all the things we take for granted that are just handled. So there is our news from across the seas. Bottom line is our safety and well-being and yours as well. Take care of yourselves and one another. These are concerning times in the world, but I believe it will in some ways, bring us all closer together. Love and hugs from us to you. Debra