BANG, BANG !!!!!

Tonga is a nation that outlaws GUNS.
As far as I know there are few private individuals that have guns. There is however in every town someone with a rifle that you can pay to shoot your pig and of course the Civil Defense Force has guns to ward off any invasions.
Any other guns are illegal !!!!!
I have to admit that there is a wonderfulness about the fact that getting shot at is something you don't have to worry about in the KINGDOM.
NOW comes Christmas ..... it seems that for the second year running (this is my second Christmas here) TOY GUNS are the number one gift to both boys and girls. Tomorrow the streets will be filled with gunfighters both walking the streets and riding in the back of trucks. This will go on in a state of frenzy until the Chinese toys break, which will not be long after the New Year.
I'm not a psychologist .... but there is something innate about "BANG BANG" that gives a strange joy. I have been in other "third world countries were the fascination is played out with real weapons and THAT REALITY kills for real. The plastic guns in Tonga will soon be part of the landfill but what happens to those "BANG BANG " moments for the next 11 months ???????????????

It's the THOUGHT that counts .... REALLY

Last friday i came home for lunch and the boys in the neighborhood came running up to me to tell me that the power company had been by my house to tell me "PAY YOUR BILL OR ELSE WE TURN OFF YOUR POWER". Well that was all news to me. Where i work they pay my electric bill, BUT this was friday and i certainly did NOT want to spend the weekend in the DARK. So i rode my bicycle as fast as i could and tried to pay the outstanding bill. Part of the charge listed was a reconnection fee. I told them i would pay the electric bill BUT not the reconnection fee because i was never DIS-CONNECTED !!!!!
well this IS the holiday season and i should have known better.
Today the power company stopped by yet again and said "PAY THE RE-CONNECT FEE OR OFF GOES YOUR POWER"
What DA .....
sooo my friends
"IT'S THE THOUGHT THAT COUNTS" .. REALLY
I'm on my way to pay to re-connect what never was dis-connected because of the power of suggestion !!!!

Tis the SEASON

Tis the season of eyes wide open .... some call it Christmas; but for me it's an opportunity to witness other peoples behavior and reflect upon my own.

Today, i hit the mother lode going to the office Christmas party.

I work at the Ministry of Transportation .... and due to the sinking of the ferry boat "Princess Ashika" there has NOT been a normal day at the office since the boat sank on the 5th of August, killing as many as 78 Tongan women and children trapped inside the sinking vessel.

Nothing has defined my experience in Tonga more than the open hearings that are transcribed word for word each day by "THE ROYAL COMMISSION OF INQUIRY" .... something unheard of ever before in Tonga ... a total transparent inquiry ... It could very easily be called "The Ship of Fools" ... but what i find even more amazing is that no one ... and i mean NO ONE that i have spoken to, reads these transcripts ...

I find it AmaZing that people continue to accept "SAI PE" (everything is KOOL) ... ≈still sailing on boats that are at best borderline seaworthy and if you read the transcripts you have got to wonder about the crew members from the Captain on down to the lowest of the ship hands trained in Tonga.... the transcripts are compelling!!!!!!

But this is Tonga; and there we all were at the Christmas party ... drinking ... eating ... laughing... it was a very tough year .... but who would have guessed ... it was a time to celebrate a birth ... maybe a new beginning.

be careful what you wish for

This is a follow up entry in reference to last week's issue with "DOGS" ...

Simply put the dog issue really came to a peak when my landlord got a new puppy. We already had two dogs that would bark at strangers, but always had a warm wiggly tail when i walked into the yard. i was happy with that.
Then a new dog arrived. Well right from day one this new puppy would growl and when i returned from America the puppy... now much bigger, started to bite at my feet.
I swear i have a long standing dislike when dog owners say "ohhh he is just playing" ... well i don't think a dog growling at me and then trying to bite into my foot with every step i take, is much FUN and as far as i'm concerned it's NOT how "I" want to play.
i tried several methods to get this DUMB-ASS dog to like me.
After failing at dog biscuit therapy and trying to be nice "I WISHED THE DOG WAS DEAD"

Then on thursday in front of my very eyes, as i bicycled into the yard the dog went running right by me and was whacked DEAD by a passing car ....
It didn't take long before the neighborhood boys came by, scrapped him up, and then brought the dog into an open field, started a fire and eat HOT DOG for their supper.
A hard reality .... but ... the "TONGAN WAY"

Seeing the dog in a bun wasn't the end i wanted for "ANGEL" .... yes the dogs name was "ANGEL" ... but it certainly fast pathed the dog to it's name sake and i hope now ANGEL has really become a "GOOD ANGEL" !!!!

I figure i still have a few wishes to come true ... unfortunately i feel as if i wasted ONE of them on ANGEL .... but more likely it was just that dog's KARMA ... personally .... Well NOW i'm using all my wishes to win the LOTTERY
JUST BE CAREFUL WHAT "YOU" WISH FOR .... IT JUST MIGHT BECOME TRUE !!!

peace out from the flip side of the world

Royal Commission of Inquiry

I have been totally engrossed in the daily transcripts regarding the Princess Ashika Royal Commission Inquiry. I have to commend Tonga for the complete transparency of the inquiry. Word for word testimony is available each day of the preceding days hearings. It certainly takes time to read the entire days events, however it is fascinating to be a witness to all that went wrong from the beginning of the purchase search for a replacement ferry in Tonga until the tragic ending as the Princess Ashika came to rest at the bottom of the sea.

www.rcimvprincessashika.to

Accidents seldom happen as a sole single act, accidents more likely are the results of a series of events leading up to the misfortune.
Fingers are pointing everywhere !!!!
The cast of characters; many of whom i work with at the ministry of Transportation and the complacency of Tongan "SAI PAE" culture .... clearly defines my experience of life in Tonga.

The hearings will be going on for at least 2 more months and the conclusions with not be announced until March of next year.

Certainly there are lessons to be learned, but one doesn't need to wait until the final report to learn from this tragic event .... i suggest everyone at least take a daily look at what is actually being said "under oath"

IT"S A FASCINATING READ"

peace out from the flip side

the people you meet on the streets of Tonga

Riding back to work today after a rather hectic lunch hour of shopping and eating i came upon a bicyclist with a de-railed chain.
It's only since i have been back from America that my own bicycle has been plagued with a similar issue. I was overwhelmed with sympathy.

I stopped to help; after all it took my mind off "DOGS" ...

Barking, growling dogs, DOGS that show their teeth....
These freakin BEASTS have been on my mind for weeks .... i'm NOT a violent person but after being home in the USA for nearly a month; in the land of LIABILITIES and RESPONSIBILITIES i find it harder and harder to just accept roaming ANGRY dogs, who view ME on my bicycle as a project they could really sink their teeth into. Fooled into thinking i might just lie down and become their next meal.

Well anyhow DOGS are a BIG part of Tonga and they will be for quite some time. They will be there tonight when i ride home and again on the streets tomorrow and the day after that .....
it's best never to get on your bike without a plan of defense... think ROCK !!!!

I find it all to be exhausting, to be so guarded.
Just like terrorists; to be effective it only takes one dog to bite me and then "I" in order to avoid a surprise attack;
i have to view each and every DOG as a possible biting suspect .... it sucks !!!!

Sooo why can't dog owners care enough for their pets that they won't attack innocent bikers . aughhhhhhhhhhhh (yes, THAT IS A TONGAN WORD)

Now back to the distressed bicyclist ... while fixing her chain we carried on a simple conversation and she mentioned that she reads "MY BLOG" .... omg ... that is now "TWO" people that i know of ... i swear it was enough for me to sit down and write about !!!!!

peace out from the flip side of the world

LOVE

I work at the Department of Civil Aviation. There are a few new job openings, so i had the opportunity to read about the job qualifications.

and ...There "IT" was .....under the heading of necessary "VALUES";
right along with; self motivated,hard working,trustworthy,respectful,loyal,and courteous.... IS the need to have "LOVE"
Well i began to think, maybe in America if more jobs required the value of "LOVE" there would not be so much stress in the work place.
So now i have to figure out how do you quantify "love" as a value or is it just one of those things ... YA EITHER GOT IT OR YA DON"T
after all in the end "IT'S ALL ABOUT LOVE"

it's all-ways harder to hit a moving target

Long ago i discovered it's harder to hit a moving target .... that's been my policy of late; until i became sick and just stopped in my tracks and at that point i would have gladly taken a bullet to the head .
Actually i have been in America for the last 3 weeks. It was all part of an endless magical mystery tour. I traveled non-stop and i took endless HOT showers. i marveled at the SPEED of the internet. i drank black rich coffee and i ate toasted sesame seed bagels with cream cheese. Every store had choices... red wine came in bottles not boxes, the chocolate caused an endorphin overload of delight. Driving on the right hand side of the road took about a nano second to remember; yet i was filled with self doubt every time i turned a corner and lived in fear that at any time i might forget what side of the road i SHOULD be on.
Then there was the movie theaters with stadium seating and surround sound, can you believe that in all of Tonga there isn't a single movie theater ... omg !!!!
ohhhhhhh well there aren't a LOT of things in all of Tonga !!!!
It was GREAT to see my kids, family and friends. The autumn colors were brilliant, but the first light snowfall reminded me ... NEVER/EVER ... will i live in the NORTH during winter!!!!
I was sooooo caught up in travel (LA-DALLAS-PHIL-NYC-GREENSBORO NC.-ALBANY NY.,GREAT BARRINGTON MA.-BOSTON-MONTPELIER VT.-Keene NH.-MILFORD CT.-NYC-LA)... it wasn't until landing in LAX on my way back to Tonga that i looked out the window and thought "how does ANYONE make sense of all this madness!!!!"
I got bumped in Fiji trying to get to Vanuatu, the real cost of a standby ticket .. then when i got back to "sin city" Nukualofa i just collapsed ... for four days i couldn't be out of bed for more than a 1/2 hour at a time
I'm back, and now once again all is well in the KING-DUMB
i'll try to write more .... in my absence 24 NEW volunteers arrived, it will be great to join forces with them when they return from Ha'apai
until NEXT time peace out from the peace corps

rain rain go away

This was my first dry season in the Kingdom of Tonga and like most everything here.... things are not always what you thought they might be. It has rained on and off just about every other day.
Last week we had 60cm of rain ... 2 feet in 21/2 days time. That my friend is a LOT of water.
The Tongans don't often swim and when they do , they do it with all their clothes on. Personally i might ask why bother, but the Tongan's save their water sports for the rain. It is NOT unusual to see Tongan's happy and laughing walking down the streets in the pouring rain (again fully clothed). You can also catch them under the rain spouts washing their hair.... again fully clothed.
During the rain is a favorite time to get out onto the rugby field and try to kill each other as everyone slips and slides.
So rational thought would be "if it rains in the DRY season, then the wet season must be dry" .... WRONG !!!!! ... i have been here for a rainy season ... and it rains even harder... the rain just happens to come down sideways due to the strong winds.

a 3 banger day

YES ... 3 posts all in one day ... i think the reason is that my inter-net is so random at home, that when i'm in the mood to write... very often i don''t have access. That and my mind has become just as random... a thought once thought is just that ... and quickly forgotten .. it's a very common malady in all the Pacific islands.

NOW ... what was that i was going to write about ?????

ohhhhh yea ... how much everyone is looking forward to the NEW group of Peace Corps volunteers to arrive.

Significantly it means that we have been here for a year ... kinda of "over the HUMP". With their arrival it means our end is in sight; NOT that i want to get outta here ...I"M VERY HAPPY in Tonga... i just get overwhelmed with the idea of a commitment that far off in the distance .. i'm way to spontaneous a person and this 27 month gig has had a psychological affect on me. I can now start to breath easier.

On the bright side I'm also looking forward to a trip home in October to visit with my adult children and take as many HOT showers as i can. AHHH just one month from today, i can hardly wait.
Then there is December, Back here in Nukualofa the new Trainees will be sworn in ... it's my birth month .. i'll be a year older and I'll start to collect a social security check that is FIVE times my peace corps check ...
so @ Christmas time this year it will be PARTY HARDY in HOT Tonga while at home everyone else will be freZZZZZZing.
and that is JUST FINE with me !!!!!!!!

POST MOURNING

just an update ... there was a mass memorial over the spot were the ferry boat Princess Askia sank. The family members were brought out by chartered ship... they dropped wreaths into the sea and bands on board played funeral music. Later that day at the house of a Prince; a feast was held for those who had lost loved ones. There a talking chief asked for the mourning to come to an end and life be celebrated.

So that's it ... the Tongans will now move on from the greatest tragedy since 1918 when Swine flu; of all things, wiped out thousands of people.

as for my package ... NO ONE really knows where it is ... but i'll keep the faith

YEA... I'VE GOT MAIL !!! well kinda of !!!

Okay i have been in and out of 3rd world countries for years. I take lots of deep breaths and heavy sighs. My expectations are very very low and my eXcitement when things go right is sincerely one of gratitude.
BUT answer me this one BATMAN ...
how bad does it happen to be that a package mailed from Seattle on july 27th and arrives with a postmarked stamp in NUKUALOFA TONGA ... my home town and where the P.O. box is located ... it arrives here on the 17th of August and i don't get it until September 2nd.... what is sooo WRONG ... the post office floor plan is NOT so BIG that it takes more than 2 weeks to walk across the room and put my envelope in the PC mail box ...
i'll find out later today ... there is a new CEO at the P.O. and i'm going to ask him .. and while I'm there i'll be looking for my other package mailed 6 weeks ago from the USA .. the USPS swears it's in TONGA ... and yet there is NO SIGN OF IT HERE !!!!!

!!!OIAUE !!!

Princess Ashika underwater pictures

Hopefully the following link will open for you and you can see the absolutely eerie pictures of the Princess Ashika at rest 300 feet below the sea... also at rest are the 93 people who never escaped when the boat suddenly capsized and sank in the middle of the night. Tongans can now begin their mourning process ... any recovery is way beyond the financial ability of Tonga.

May those aboard rest in peace and hopefully all of Tonga will take safety to heart and develop attitudes that insure the public safety

the link:

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/image.cfm?c_id=1&gal_cid=1502757&gallery_id=107011

LOAD limits and car safety

Maybe you can remember "back in the day" ... when american made station wagons ... the precursor to the VAN.. they had a rear seat that KIDS LOVED... they were the only ones that could fit back there. The seat faced backwards.
However after numerous deaths and injuries ... it was deemed an unsafe feature.... soon all seats faced forward and seat belts became mandatory.

Step back in time ... omg .. you are in TONGA ...
here seat belts i think are used only in Peace Corps vehicles and for towing disabled cars. As for seating arrangements, well it's everybody get into the back of the truck ... there is NO load limit.. and the first ones in get to sit on the standard Tongan truck seat. It is a 4x6 piece of lumber laid out from side to side of the back of a truck bed. The rest of the people ... AND there are always plenty ... they happily stand and let the wind blow onto their faces.

My record sighting was a fork lift going down the street holding in front of it, a 4 foot by 4 foot pallet ... on that pallet were 12 Chinese workers.... ohhh were was my camera that day !!!!

Free Public Health Care

One day my counter part @ work complained of a toothache. She left at the lunch hour and came back later with a bit of a swollen jaw. I asked how her tooth ache was and she said simply it was "GONE" ... GONE as in "no more pain???"... NO "gone" as in yanked out and thrown away!!!!!

Tonga has free medical care.
HOWEVER, due to budget and staff restraints it is a very simple system.
For any thing that aches you get a PANADOL ... our TYLENOL ... and NO it is NOT extra strength .... and for all tooth aches ... well it's just simply pulled OUT.
It all gives new meaning to wide open spaces when Tongans smile!!!!

Oh and IF you have the $$MONEY$$.... another personal dental routine that is NOT free .... is GOLD etching of the teeth .... now this gives new meaning to a bright golden smile ... especially if the light hits it just right.

Sai pe

If you follow Steve's adventures from Tonga ... then maybe you saw his blog ... titled ... sai pe .... which means in Tongan "it's kool".
Sai pe IS a wonderful social tool. It allows for a day to day allowance of each other's SHORT comings.

Well as Steve said "it isn't sai pe in Tonga"!!!!
Not since the sinking of the Ferry boat. A boat that is the life line between islands. Steve lives on a smaller outer island and he has a more personal relationship with Tongan's than i do.
I work at the Department of Civil Aviation in the capital of Nukualofa.
What i do have is ..... a greater conflict to SAI PE then maybe Steve does.

As a pilot... Sai pe is "the kiss of death".... just as it was with the ferry boat!!!

"It's Kool" ..."SAI PE"
KILLS!!!!!

Whether at sea or in the air ....complacency is NOT to be tolerated.....
"No you can't do that" ...is based on a history of tragic events. Tongan's have a hard time saying "NO" to anyone ; much less for a relative... they might just want to BEND the rules.
"SAI PE"

Investigations take months ... i don't want to speculate .... but when a boat's manifest originally says 47 people were on board ... AND in fact there were close to 127 OR MORE... it isn't sai pe .... Tongans need to take personal responsibility.
It would be a dishonor to those that died; if Tongans simply blamed any one individual and then went back to SAI PE.

When it comes to safety and security ... it requires a pro activism where SAI PE is NOT to be tolerated.

Personally ... having been in Tonga 10 months already ...I feel someone will take the heat for the ferry boat disaster ... and after a period of time; that person will be forgiven ... it IS the beauty of TONGA and it is also their cross to bear...

Maybe just this one time people will awake from their deep sleep and take responsibility for "cause and affect" ...it's a big step... can the Tongans do it ... as they are fond to saying "GOK" ... GOD ONLY KNOWS!!

A sad DARK day for TONGA

On Wednesday in the dark of night, sometime around 11pm the NEW (to Tonga) ferry boat capsized while out at sea, between islands. To no one's surprise the actual number of people on board was not officially recorded .... sooo here it is 3 days later and the count of missing people continues to rise. As of this morning it had surpassed 70.
In a nation of less than 100,000 people ... where; in one way or another EVERYONE is related .... the impact has been numbing. It is as if the whole nation is holding it's breath, waiting to be told what will happen next.

Official news is spotty and most people rely on rumors. I work at the Ministry of Transportation which is the Ministry that will be ultimately responsible for the inquiry.

Although I'm at the department of Civil Aviation and somewhat removed, I can feel the tension growing as many Tongans will be turning their grief to anger. As i sit at my desk I'm painfully aware of just how close we always are to a tragic events !!!! I'm also ever so grateful that in spite of our many blunders as human beings we are most often blessed with a grace that keeps us from harms way.

In Tonga there are volunteers from several nations. We might not know each other personally, but we are held together in a common bond of service. I'm saddened to know that one of the Japanese volunteers is included among the missing. My heart goes out to his family and his follow Japanese volunteers who will need to cope with his tragic loss at sea.

one size fits all

The peace Corps in their infinite wisdom makes generic policies. For the most part it's a way to protect PC from liabilities and i suspect to keep PC volunteers from doing harm to themselves ... ie: you MUST wear a helmet when bicycling or a life preserver when boating and NO ONE gets to drive a car or ride on a motorcycle. It's a no ifs, no buts, and no coconuts deal!!!! Screw it up and you get sent back to America !!!!
And as for health, let's look @ "the flu" ...
Personally, i seldom have gotten "the Flu" and have never, ever had flu shots .... but flu season is coming up; @ least in America. Soooo everyone into the pool it's shot time (huhu which is the tongan word for shot... IT also means fork and breasts ... AND NO we were not given a choice at the nurses office) ... time for a shot of a flu that might exist ...NO IT"S NOT THE SWINE FLU .. which the world is holding their breath about... it's just a generic batch of maybe stuff ..... but the one guarantee is .. after the shot most people will feel like they have the FLU ....
Soooo i spent a few days in an achy way ... but bring it on ... i'm ready for the flu season ... which here in Tonga , just passed !!!! GO FIGURE !!!!!

bright lights ... city lights

Downtown Nukualofa ( Abode of Love) was alive last night with energy and people. The main street was closed off from traffic for a BLOCK PARTY ... there were bands ... vendors, FOOD of course and performances by different groups. The Fijian dancers were AmaZing as were the Japanese dancers ... kids galore getting up on the main stage to dance to the loud DJ music ... these kids may all be devout Christians but they really know how to let their hips fly uninhibitedly. The streets were packed until midnight, friday night is the only chance to go soooo late ... Saturday from the stroke of midnight on it's all about GOD and NOT being out having fun.
I think what made last night interesting was the total lack of alcohol ... in America selling beer and wine at these events is a huge part of it.... but the Tongans are happy (fiafia) just being with there families and the younger Tongan's cruising the streets looking for friends and doing the ancient ritual of a mating walk. Which for a large part of the night was getting up on stage and dancing WILDLY

how much time do we really have

For TIME 2/b meaningful everyone has to come to a consensus about what time really means!
The Tongans long ago decided TIME was meaningless or meaning less and less. They like to have a GOOD time, they all-ways know when it's TIME to eat but as for BEING on time ...
NO such thing exists. SO over the years ....APPOINTED TIME ... like; when does an event start or even what day does an event take place ... has become a cultural interpolation. It's E/Z to be frustrated until after you have done it a few times. In the same way that anything is hard @ first , until you have done it a few times.
Well it soon becomes self evident that NO ONE; except maybe plangis (white people) really care about TIME @ all.
It's OK if you show up late or never come @ all.... because Tongans understand that you never did know what TIME it was to begin with. So try future planing or as we are all fond of ... getting closure ... it's not gonna happen and if it does ... well it's about TIME or NOT time !!!!!

NOT FOR PET LOVERS

Speaking of food ... and YES it's true Tongan's will EAT your dog, but not any dog. Pets have utilitarian value ... like a good watch dog, not something to be petted or loved. Sure the kids play with the dog when it is a puppy but after that the dogs are basically ignored. They live not on gourmet dog foods like in the states but rather stale bread and scraps ( try to image a scrap here in Tonga). The deal is that the dogs become extremely territorial and go KraZy when a stranger gets near the yard. That's the contract.. if the dog fails to live up to this... well then, chances are good he/she maybe eaten, or if your dog actually bites someone randomly ... HOT DOG they will be!
What made me think of this was i saw a car hit a dog ... a HUGE dog .. it yelped twice and then dropped dead .... for me i was overwhelmed with sadness to have witnessed this happen, but as merely an observer to the culture i was in AmaZement when a car loaded with a family of kids pulled over and everyone jumped out, not to offer any help... BUT THEY ALL LOOKED AS IF THEY HAD WON THE LOTTERY ... a fresh killed BIG DOG was now to be their supper ...into the car trunk it went.... TIT ..(This Is Tonga)

oooopies

Hey in regards to the last blog ... it was the Crown Prince's birthday on July 13th, but not to worry the King's birthday is next week Aug 1st and if it were not a saturday then it also would be a public holiday.... there are parties all week, and YES another parade!!!!
Of course the one party that is REALLY big, is the King's party at his "white house" by the sea in Nukualofa. ONLY royal guests will be attending. Maybe 250 or so.
The KING will need to feed his guests a meal fit for royalty, but "who" pays for this ...well it has been tasked to each ministry in government to provide enough tables of food fit for a KING ... lobster, oysters, clams, beef, chicken, and of course roasted PIG with all the standard Tongan root crops. My ministry is small we only have to provide for just one table of 15 people.... but that is enough .. Tongan's don't really make much money and they certainly seldom eat like a KING. So when at a staff meeting people were asked to cook or buy the food; we all opted to buy it. It's an expense few can or want to afford. Through out the meeting the room was basically silent and yet the funny thing was once it was settled about everyone paying a share the room was full of laughter and jokes ... that's what Tongans do and any stress is gone !!!
SOOOOO "let the parties begin"

Canceled parade

It must be my lack of sleep ... i'm on a roll 2 entries in 1 day .
Well today is a national holiday ... the king's birthday ... but what i'm told "not really"; his birthday happens to be some other day, maybe even some other month but, Tongans don't care ... it's a holiday.
In celebration there was suppose to be a parade ... Tongans love marching bands, they love parades ... BUT we had soooo much rain last night ... think flooded streets ... the parade was canceled.
Well that has not stopped some people, those who made floats from driving around town , horns blowing loudly and kids jumping in and out of HUGE mud puddles. Everyone seems unabashedly HAPPY ... the rain does something to the Tongans .. for instance .. when it rains Tongans go swimming...
GO FIGURE

Mosquito Madness

It's NOT good to HATE anything ... but I HATE mosquitoes!!!!
I sleep with a mosquito net that completely surrounds my bed and is held tight to the sides. During the very worse part of the rainy season i can actually hear them buzzing outside the net, but i sleep safely inside beyond their nasty biting reach. Well for the last two nights i have gotten very little sleep. Somehow one, possibly two mosquitoes have managed to get into the inside of my net. They are driving me KraZy !!!!!
Through natural selection the Tongan mosquito is very fast and cunning!!! The result is that i lie awake @ night waiting until they are close to my ear or face and i swat randomly at their sound. My aim must be terrible because i still hear the little bast--ds flying around . How can such a small thing make such a LOUD noise!!
From all the missed hits i have bruises all over my face and bites on my body.
One quick fix is to light a mosquito coil ... god only knows what that's made from, but a headache is the only real guarantee ....
sooo what to do ???
Today i'm going to shake the net out and GREY TAPE the sides... light a coil when i'm OUT of the house .... and get a good night's sleep !

what the "FAKA"

In the beginning as a westerner it was almost impossible to feel comfortable with hearing everyone in Tonga going around shouting faka this and faka that... FAKA actually means "like" ... so lea fakatonga ... means speak like a tongan. NOW, last night was the Ms Galaxy beauty contest. All the contestants were fakaleitis (e is pronounced a and i is e ... go figure) but what it means is "like a lady" or transvestites. Now to some degree we have all some how gotten used to trans gender people, but in most cases in Tonga a fakaleiti was not born that way but created.... it is the custom here that the youngest girl of the family will remain home and do all the woman's (household) work for the aging parents. In the case of no girls ... well then ... the youngest boy is raised as a lady .. hence .. fakalaiti. Now make no mistake Tongans are a warrior class of people ... they are genetically HUGE and just because you do ladies work it doesn't mean you will look good in ankle socks and most Tongan fakaleitis don't look good in ankle socks. YET surprisingly enough last night the contestants were all blessed with strong feminine genes and they put on a wonder show ... go faka figure !!!!

Hair today gone tomorrow

Lots of culture in Tonga ... and don't ever quote me as a resource ... seems like i usually only get half the story ... like the several women today at work that only have half the hair they had yesterday. Seems strange, but NO... It's a part of the funeral ceremony... women/girls are required when someone important like a father, uncle or auntie dies,... out of respect they cut off most of their hair ... it gets woven into a belt (kava) that is used to tie around the waist to hold up the tavolava (woven waist mats) ... (way tooo much to explain) ... but this Kafa is only worn on very special occasions. The young girls who all seem to have pigtails down to their waist ... think of your south pacific fantasy ... for them it really is a significant gift letting go of their beautiful locks (LOTS) of hair.

Yoga or Yogurt

i teach Yoga tonight ..every wednesday PM and saturday AM... it's an interesting mix of people and without the use of proper mats we use the fake (think Chinese) straw mats to cover the swept but dirty floor. People keep coming back sooo at least a few like what we are doing. What becomes the challenge is to keep the class interesting for everyone ... some people have NEVER done yoga B/4 or some have never, ever; even touched their toes.... others are like Gumbi and can be a pretzel on demand.
It's mostly a volunteer group but, Amazingly enough a few Tongans have come ... it's hard to get them to be repeaters ... however, if i have learned anything about Tonga; it's just to "wait" ... things happen at a pace unfamiliar to the western mind.
What with eating being a national sport here ... if i offered yogurt after yoga ( ya gotta get them to stay to the end) i have a feeling the class size would double !!!!

the first day of winter

yesterday was the solstice ....what i used to call the SUMMER solstice which is now my WINTER and winter in june is still as hard to take as the toilet water going counter clockwise in this southern hemisphere.
I started the day off doing Tai Chi on a rock jetty that extends out into the ocean waters, right in the heart of Nukualofa. Because it was Sunday i had to share my spot with a Tongan woman saying endless prayers .... she was there when i got there and still there when i left. I didn't mind sharing the space but i think she may have had other thoughts .... Tai Chi on a technicality of being an exercise is UNLAWFUL on a Sunday; however because i use it as a meditation ... i'm certain i would win in a court of Tongan law.
Well the cold south winds brought in the winter with a blast of air from the Antarctica. I'am wearing long pants 2 shirts a sweater and a jacket.... but NO it's not minus degree weather .... it's only 67 degrees ... but that's enough to freeZZZZZZe, not only me; but everyone else that is hobbling along today.
My only hope to warm up because it's raining and the sun just isn't going to come out today, is to go home and boil some water for a hot bucket bath .... there is NO hot water @ my house ... it takes some effort; but my only regret is my bucket isn't big enough to create the sense of well being that one gets after stepping out of a 15-20 minute HOT shower. I have also discovered in cases of being cold here, it's best to put my feet in the bucket or by the time the water gets down to my feet from the top of my head ... the water is going to be COLD !!!!
It's diffidently a HOT soup day for sure .... and that's the dinner plan. Ramen noodles with hot red Cayenne powder sold at the Chinese store for $.40 USD ... it certainly won't bust my budget, and if i have two ... i might just be overwhelmed with the sense of abundance !!!!!

the gravity of the situation

GRAVITY .... it's what makes things fall to the ground ... like if you drink to much kava or Ikale (the tongan beer) it will be gravity that will bring you down to earth. However, the real issue with gravity in Tonga is that it brings coconuts down to the earth... often times from VERY high up in the air. Now if you happen to be in just the right/wrong spot .... that falling coconut can make a difference in your day ... or LIFE.
If you are hungry ... you just won the Tongan LOTO .. you can have a drink and eat the delicious insides.
But falling coconuts don't always fall where you want them ; something along the lines that it doesn't just snow @ the ski slopes back home , but also in your driveway. This random act of falling coconuts creates a problem.
One such problem is that it is a VERY common sight to see cars that have smashed ... and i mean smashed....WINDSHIELDS; smashed to the point that i have NO idea how the driver can see out; Then, because of a "sense of safety" ... the windows are often covered in opaque tape even further limiting what visibility there was that was left ....and yes these cars are on the road driving like that !!!!
God only knows what a new windshield would cost... these car owners have my sympathy, BUT they can NOT have my LIFE ... so i all-ways keep an eye open for any cars that have that pushed IN LOOK and a squinting driver weaving down the road ... blindly !!!!
It could easily make a difference in my day/life !!!!!

smoke and mirrors

Quite simply the "smoke" is everyday ... very often it's just the burning of leaves and yes; there are plenty of leaves as most people are prone to "sweep" their lawns ... malo tafi ...thank you for sweeping. This can be used as a greeting and a heartfelt thank you to someone who is sweeping, but first you have to see that person through the smoke.
AAAAAhhhh the nostalgic smell of fall,..... you get over it very quickly when the smoke is everywhere. The smoke might start as leaves but very often an old tire or two is thrown in and why not add to the pile plastic!!!! A toxic cocktail coming your way whether you like it or NOT !!!! Natsy stuff ... you betcha ... and from what i understand there gets to be less and less of the burning plastic and tires... you just don't believe it when you ride through an inescapable cloud.
On a bicycle the smoke can be blinding not to mention all that you miss when your holding your breath ever sooooo tight (like you might NOT see a car coming right at you).....
and THEN there is the "umu"!!! On Sunday; EVERY good tongan cooks in an outdoor earthen pit. They use coconut shells that burn slowly and smoke like KRAZY. these fires smolder and keep going the entire time that the families are at church. Very often for hours.
I was so happy to leave the allergy prone north east for the clear blue south pacific air. The good news is I never did get my guaranteed spring time hay fever but the smoke has certainly made my eyes water and itch more than once !!!!

sooo that's the smoke .....and the mirrors .... well that is what you see is pretty much a reflection of what you want to see. Is tonga purrrr-fect ....NO ; but then no place ever is. That is until you leave it and then the amaZing thing is that you only remember the good times.... so let the good times roll !!!!

going up... up ...up

Currently there is one 5 story building in the capital city of Nukualofa (the abode of love). It is the Tongan National Reserve bank. There might be three or four, three story buildings and all the rest are two or single story. The BIG news is that reconstruction after the 2006 riots ( i think officially it's called "the incident") has begun. The town is swarming with an ever increasing population of Chinese workers. They were brought in along with all building materials from China; as part of the conditions of a $200 plus million dollar loan to the Kingdom from the good people of China ....payable with interest; of course. Included in these new buildings are several 4 and 5 story office/apartment buildings... the likes of which no one has ever seen in Tonga before. So in a way it's exciting to see the big empty spaces left by the burnt out buildings being filled to look less like a toothless grin and more like a warm fresh smile. The big question is who is going to occupy all this new business space ???? The new Peace Corps business educators can't get here soon enough. Planing ahead is NOT one of the strengths in Tonga.

Burrrrrrrr!!!!!!! where the hell is that sweater i packed

you certainly know it's cold outside when your "COLD ONLY" shower has you standing on your tippy toes as you scream going into the FLOW.... i have been here almost 8 months and I'm still reaching for the HOT water knob. It's never going to be there !!!!!
By peace corps standards i live a very plush life with access to just about everything.....everything but, HOT running water ... it's the great equalizer. Most of the other volunteers have long ago started taking hot/warm bucket baths ..you boil water and mix with the cold tap water in a pail/bucket..... ME, i'm saving them for when it REALLY gets cold here .. like maybe 70 degrees.
I would have NEVER believed it from October to May when it was soooo hot and humid; that i would ever say the COLD word (after all i come from the cold northeast of america). But here it is June 4th , a nationl holiday .... emancipation day ... the streets are empty, the skies are grey and there are the occassional rain showers...according to the offical Tongan weather website out at the airport....It's 73 degrees outside and I"M COLD !!!!
Soooo it's hot soup, hot coffee and warm toast through out the day . The trip to the beach has long ago been canceled. Most shops are closed and i'm about to watch my 4th movie of the day on my laptop.

life is a BEACH until you have sand in your shorts

we are expecting a fast moving cold front to pass through here tonight dropping temperatures into the LOW seventies ... out will come the ski parkas and wool hats.
There was absolutely NO one at the beach yesterday ... it was sunny & 78 degrees... way tooo COLD for Tongans ... so i had the sand and the surf all to myself. Then after a few beers, which i had brought with me in a small cooler bag ... I started to reflect on the SEA of faces that i saw in the parade earlier this week. There were literally thousands of kids .... proud and happy to be marching in a parade ...each marching step bringing them closer, into the future ... a future that offers little in the hope of finding any meaningful jobs. My guess looking around the CAPITAL city is that at best a couple of 100 new jobs OR less open up each year. Sooooo what happens to all those 1,000's of children marching toward graduation... what happens to them ?????

The potential is here; god knows it wouldn't hurt to have a few more helpful services available, but after 8 months in Tonga it's clear to me there is a meaningful disconnect. Necessity might be the tool of invention ... but not here .. there are lots of needs and Tongans want badly to have certain "things" but the sand in their shorts isn't enough to follow through and change out of their shorts ( let me correct that, Tongan's out of a sense of false modesty ...swim with all their clothes on.... not shorts) and that may very well be the problem !!!

Let's have a PARADE

WOW ... what a week; i actually met someone who had read my blog .... Kate Asleson's MOM ... for me blogging is anonymous, and as far as i know NOT even my kids read my writings, but there she was in the flesh telling me she had read "what was the JETMAN thinking" ... I was floored, and I might add, she actually encouraged me to continue writing .... sooo here it goes:

I LOVE marching bands and today to celebrate the opening of Parliament there was a 2hr parade followed by a drive through of the KING, then another 2 hr parade by the same marching people from the first 2 hrs !!!! I swear i couldn't get enough. These bands don't just play music , they dance when they march. It was soooo kool to see this Christan nation swing their hips. The first half is all about waiting for the KING!!!!! The second half is all about BLOWING IT ALL OUT!!!!
The King seems so other worldly ... but when you actually see him drive by in an open car .. all decked out in medals and a crown ... you realize ...holy crap-o-la this Kingdom is for real.
Ohhhh and the crowds ... the streets were lined with thousands of people and every school age child in Nukualofa (the abode of LOVE) was in the parade.
Now the streets are quiet ... until the church bells ring in the morning @ 05:30 to wake me up.

unlock your bike and free your mind

I have decided to give the church bells that ring loudly outside my window 100 times @ 0530 and on special occasions 0430 ... like this morning ... NEW MEANING ... at least new meaning to ME. I'm not going to get up out of my bed and join the church choir, which i can hear through my rain soaked closed windows...instead I'm going to be filled with an early morning inspiration! Just for beginners, how do they ever get that many people to show up on a rainy, dark and very wet morning is beyond me, but the church rocks with their voices singing LOUDLY.

Soooo what i have decided to do once i hear the bells begin to ring, is to wake up and write in my blog or deepen my yoga/meditation practice by adding an extra hour to either one each day. Today since the bells rang @ 0430 i have been able to do both and since i sat in meditation first i'm now full of reflection.

What comes first to my mind is .. my stolen bicycle. I foolishly felt safe enough to occasionally leave it unlocked inside my gated yard which is chained shut @ night. However some poor soul maybe not realizing or more likely NOT CARING that a bicycle with lights and a basket cost a P/C/V close to a month's salary ... stole it! As an event; it has affected me more than anything else that has happened in Tonga. I now look @ people with a suspicion, "are you the ONE that stole my bike that meant so much to me ????? " And for that reason I regret that i had forgotten to lock it that night. Whoever stole it will most likely will continue to steal and that is NOT my problem, I instead,have to let it go so that i can continue to free myself of attachment and be more focused in the NOW rather than be upset with the past. So in this over the top christian nation i forgive the B-st-rd.... obviously whoever stole it sleeps through the early morning church bells and lacks the moral christian values that this island nation so strongly embraces.

2 posts in 5 days .... this won't last 4 long

Sundays in Tonga are days of eat/sleep/pray ... in any random order that god chooses to ordain.
Well i prayed for a nice day and it was purrrr-fect. After eating a big breakfast Shawn stopped by and we went out taking promotion photos for the BIG full moon bonfire party at a Beach/Cave/Resort. What a great place, it is his hope that this will be the first of many events held out there as he promotes a new GREEN eco-resort... something that will be self sustaining (a buzz phrase that the P/C approves of).... well Tom his counterpart came loaded with food, ... we ate in the car on the way to the resort and when we got there they FED us again .... having prayed earlier and now having eaten enough for 4 people i slept in the car on the way back home ..... IT WAS JUST ANOTHER CULTURALLY CORRECT SUNDAY IN THE KINGDOM OF TONGA !!!!!

WOW... seven months down the road and I'm about to write my first blog entry since arriving in Tonga. Well the good news is that i have lasted this long. I think it's more a Peace Corps roller coaster than a Tongan issue to get over the first 3 months after that it's all about Tonga. I'm blessed to be living in a wonderful house with a job that keeps me as busy as I want to be ... I'm project manager @ the department of civil aviation. I think the secret is to commit yourself to a "no suffering" policy .... and that means getting out and about town ... not being afraid to spend your hard earned cash .... you can buy a lot of beer/ice cream with $300 usd a month ... there are plenty of food choices.. lots of cheap resturants .. it's all fakatongan , but that's the reason u/r here .... to swim with the Tongans in the sea of life.

As for riding a bicycle it actually keeps the island small enough that you shouldn't get bored. Well anyhow that's how i have found things .... everyone has good days and bad , but who isn't plagued by that human condition. There is the inital period of getting used to 1000 or more roosters randomly crowing throughout the night and the church bells that seem to be under your pillow when they ring as early as 0500. Thank god in the Capital the number of PIGS are limited and the roads are paved ... more so than i can say for India, Tibet and Nepal. Sometimes it's the barking dogs that will have you lying wide awake wondering ... just what the hell are they trying to communicate to each other ????
It's impossible to come here without any preconcieved notions ... the secret is to let them all go as quickly as you can and experience Tonga as it IS.... not what you thought it would be.