10 posts tagged “tonga”
So it is a sad time for me, I need to move to a new blog :P. *tear* *tear* /wrist
Well anyway. I do actually like vox a lot, but unfortunately it is not very fast on slow connections. Since my options in Tonga are slow and painfully slow...I really think I need to move to a faster platform. So blogger it is.
I am pretty sure that the reason I have not posted in two months (other than laziness) is the fact that I did not want to spend large amounts of time waiting (it took me about 10 minutes to be able to start typing this post). Plus the gallery in Vox sucks...can't access older pictures without about 20 pages and 10 minutes of effort. I digress.
I'll do my best to make a happy theme to offset the large amount of bitterness I post, but my laziness may prevail and you'll be stuck with the default.
The new address is.
*DRUMROLL*
http://squirrelintonga.blogspot.com/
Yeah I know..."Really...squirrel...thats what you chose?". Well fuck you too :P.
Hope this post finds you all well,
Enrique
So after trying for so long to hold onto the notion that my experience here has been relatively normal...I have come to the conclusion that it has not been.
I came to the realization after taking a shower next to a spider the size of my hand (the whole thing) and not in any way being bothered about it. I'm not a very fickle person even in the states, but I am pretty sure anytime i saw a spider the size of my hand in the states I would have started running.
So in honor of this momentous occasion I will list 10 things that I do differently now (no particular order...not even the top 10).
1. Shower regularly out of a camping shower.
2. Water garden with camping shower.
3. Ride bicycles with watermelons.
4. Aim for puddles
5. Justify flushing
6. Get drinking water from a water tank.
7. Eat Pee-matoes
8. Eat whole loaves of bread
9. Ask everyone where they are going...even if I don't know who they are...or care where they are going.
10. Say things in a British accent (only joking 90% of the time, damn you andrew)
I'll post pictures later.
calm down, you'll be fine.
That being said, here is the photos from Mexican night at the Fifitas. The beans came from New Zealand, the Chile Ancho from my aunt in America, and some of the seasoning from New Zealand/America. However the talent all came from Tonga :D.
Tongan labor! Cheaper then you'd think!
I was kicked out of the kitchen. Here is me giving up.
Fish, since it is the only meat I eat.
Kitchen sabotage. I think pepe does a good job of looking innocent...too good of a job if you ask me.
Oh the Tongan savage. I tried to tell him to look sadder, but this is all I could get.
Hope you enjoyed the food too :D.
So I know I have not been posting a lot, but I have an excuse! Not really a good one, but the one I am definitely going to stick with.
I lost my battery charger for my camera. No camera = no pictures...no pictures = no posts. I just find it hard to post a lot of text without some pretty pictures to distract people with.
Getting beyond that a bunch has happened since my last post. I took a trip to 'Eua and have some pictures in my gallery to prove it (I lost the charger in 'Eua...lol). Here is one of my favorites...Krystal giving me some sort of angry face?
I also have been a little more active with the church. They are taking a trip to Australia for World Youth Day and it looks like I will be joining them. Here is the obligatory picture of a cute kid from the church. In the background you can see the Prime Minister (white hair on the right), Priest (white hair on the left), and even the security for the Prime Minister (awkward looking guy in the back right [green]).
I've hosted some couchsurfers and here are two sets of them (they stayed at completely different times).
I've read a bunch of new books and started saving the ones I have read on a new site. The site itself is Goodreads, I suggest you sign up and add me as a friend. Although if you don't want to, here is a link to my books (two shelves...the currently-reading and read) http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/1006028.
In other news my aunt says she sent me a package, but after she told me how much it costs I kind of felt bad (over 100 dollars to ship!). It has a rolling pin though...which should help make my flour tortillas respectable.
My next door neighbor's husband passed away. Today is my fourth day wearing black. I will stop on Tuesday after the body is laid to rest. The whole idea of wearing black here is a little different then I am used to. Usually in the US you wear black on the day of the funeral (if you're a family member or friend) and then maybe a few days/weeks before or after if you are mourning. Here in Tonga I am wearing black more as a sign of respect towards the family. I have never personally met the father of the children next door, but since I am a neighbor and on good relations with the wife/children it is respectful to wear it. I'll post more info later on the actual funeral procedures (with differ greatly from the US)...should make for an interesting post.
Well I hope somebody is actually reading this :P, Later
So I have kept my blog fairly friendly for the first few months because I did not want to vent about this country and give the impression that it is some sort of wasteland. Actually the country is quite lovely, but there are a LOT of areas where I find myself wanting to clothesline some people just to laugh at them on the ground, haha.
The first thing to fear on this road to our right is the packs of dogs that wander/rule it. Unfortunately these dogs (which most of the time have 'owners') have been beaten so much that they are super aggressive. With all the abuse they luckily are easy to keep at bay by pretending to throw something at them.
Assuming you've made it past the dogs there are still the drunk Tongans to worry about. Most of the time they are pretty harmless, but every once in a while you'll get the 'white people are the devil' variety who unfortunately don't have the same boundaries about grabbing people as drunks in the US do. These are actually pretty easy to deal with compared to the final type of drunk. This drunk is the deportee drunk. Normally this drunk will talk to you in perfect English since he spent most of his life in the US. He reminisces about his wife and children in the States and will make it his goal to hold you as long as possible without saying a single thing that you feel at all interested in.
Assuming you make it home safely you'll get to a house that has absolutely nothing inside of it and fall asleep. You'll be woken up at 3am by the rat that obviously lives in your ceiling and then again at 7am by the next door neighbor who needs at that particularly moment to inform you that your banana tree is ripe. Yay!
You'll then be the first person to arrive at work...three hours late! Only to play secretary and get calls for the other two guys who weren't there the first ten times they called. Then of course you'll leave work to go somewhere where there is something to do, but only to find that you're needed at the office! It may seem like this is all a one bad day rant, but this is pretty daily. I am considering asking for a secretary....or at least an answering machine!
So then after work I am ready once again for the walk home which begins this vicious cycle all over again!
There are occasional breaks in which something awesome happens to me. Like this morning when I am walking to work and an elderly women stops what she is doing, stands up, and sincerely thanks me for working (Malo e ngaue - a Tongan phrase). These moments make me realize that Tonga is really one of the most awesome places I have ever stayed...regardless of the drunk guy who pee'd at me the other day (PEED AT ME...not on me!)
So I haven't actually written much about what has been happening these last few weeks (months?) so I figured I would put some text along with pictures this time :D.
1) I've lost a lot of weight
2) I'm tanned/burned
Well I guess that is a good summary of what I have been doing so far in Tonga. It really is an interesting mix and I am super excited for what is going to happen when I start school.
I've got a bunch of new pictures up. Here are some highlights, as usual there are more in the photo gallery.
I did not want to talk about Kava until I had a decent enough picture to show alongside the explation. I think this image (to the right :P) is good enough.
Kava is a drink that is found across most of the South Pacific and is similar to alcohol in some respects. Euphoric behavior, mildly talkative, and restful sleep are just some of the effects.
Unfortunately it tastes like dish water and is generally enjoyed in 3+ hour sittings. That being said the kava culture is interesting and it is a true social occasion whenever you drink it.
I generally do not drink it with too many youth as it degenerates into exactly what would happen in the states if you got a bunch of male youth together to drink. When I do drink kava, it is generally before church with the ministers of the church. These weekly ceremonies are generally more interesting in that there is a sitting structure dictated by rank and even a formal order to shake hands upon entering. After the entrance there is a short prayer and then a passing of the kava.
The picture to the right was taken during the Christmas party at my work. The man drinking is an accountant I believe :).
More to come later! Here are some highlights...check the gallery for more.
Well it has been a rough first couple of weeks. I have now lost both a laptop and an Ipod. Not really too concerned about them, but it still stings a little.
I finished up the first part of training on the main island of Tongatapu. I stayed in a village called Fua'amotu which was about 30 minutes outside of Noku'alofa...the capital of the country. My host family was amazing there. They taught me how to make fun of people...which is obviously the most important part of any language. So if you find yourself in Tonga and want to (jokingly) make fun of someone...throw out a mata 'i ngeli (monkey face).
Another thing that came to me today was how small this island country really is. My second host family knows my first host family...and we are completely different islands...about an 18-24 hour boat ride away. That is one of the amazing and kind of crappy things about the island. It means that wherever you are someone will probably know you, but also that someone will know your business.
Religion is a touchy subject here and I have avoided stating my personal beliefs at all. Of course this means I have to attend prayer meetings and such without the actual conviction they have. This being said, church here is awesome. Everyone sings wonderfully and there really is a living church.
Well that is it for now. I have to get off the computer...it costs too much money to use :P.
