DESTINATION HUNGA - PART I
by Captain Jared R. Passenger
Date: 7/21/2011

First let me say that I have no business or financial affiliation with 'Cocomo Village', its owner or the sales staff. Additionally I have not received any financial compensation for this report which, by the way, was my idea. I am simply a client/customer of the 'Cocomo Village' land project on Hunga Island located in the Vava�u group in the Kingdom of Tonga. I currently own the lease to 3 lots in Section 'A' and are currently Now, with that out of the way, I can explain why I have written this letter and what I found out in my recent trip to Hunga island in Tonga.

I wrote this as a service to those who have already (as I did) purchased (leased) one or more lots in the 'Cocomo Village' project (hereafter referenced as CV) and who have purchased these parcels sight unseen as I did. I have also given permission to allow this letter to be copied unaltered to those who are interested in the last remaining lots as I would have eagerly accepted such information had it existed before I made my decision to invest in CV.

I know in talking to John Geering (the Dir. of Sales for the CV project), that like me, many clients of this project are eager for news about the lots, the road and what they have purchased. Well, I put my boots to the ground and went to Hunga island to see for myself. I left on July 9th and came back on July 19th 2011. My concerns were many and like you, I wondered if this whole thing was legitimate or some kind of scam where I would not see my investment money again. It is true that some shady real estate deals have happened in Tonga in the recent past. However, as you will see in this letter, it is my firm belief that this CV project is legitimate. More about that later.

In order to describe this land you have invested in (or perhaps considering) I must first establish a couple of things.

First Tonga is unlike any place I have ever been. !The land, the people and the atmosphere is in many ways vary different than our Western culture. My visit and exposure to this place have made a lasting impression on me. It is important for everyone who has already invested in CV or those who are interested in doing so, to know that you are not just investing in a plot of dirt somewhere on earth. You are buying into much more, with all the rewards and challenges that this beautiful remote location will offer to those with the determination and vision to see it through. In this case, you are investing in a community, a village and a people with a rich tradition and history. It is vary important that we who intend to move to Hunga understand this as it will be central in our success and enjoyment while living on this paradise island, and yes, this island is about as close to a tropical paradise as you are probably able to imagine within the bounds of reality of course. Second, we who move to Hunga will always be guests and not owners of this land. As you may know, it is illegal for Tongans to sell their ancestral land and it�s my opinion that this is the way it should be, otherwise some giant multinational corporation could swoop down and buy up all the land and displace the people into homelessness in their own country such as has already happened in many parts of the earth. How we treat the land and the native Tongans will directly effect our quality of life while living in Hunga. It is my sincere hope that CV will be a community of respectful, courteous and helpful neighbors willing to work together with each other and the neighboring Hungan village.

You may find this report a bit lengthy but I felt it was necessary to include all the information enclosed. If this was just a plot of land in New Mexico or a dry dirt patch in West Texas, I would not have much to say. But this is not the USA. This is Tonga in the remote South Pacific about as close and as far as you are ever will want to be. It is special and deserves more consideration than your standard plot of land. It is a place for anyone willing to embark on an adventure of a lifetime. So, lets get started!

Meet NobleFulavai Lord of Hunga Island, the newly appointed Governor of the entire Vava�u island group.

While in Tonga, I had the fortune of running into some key people who really helped me and who know how to get things done. From taxi drivers to the governor of all Vava�u, I count myself fortunate. I will later list these people and their contact information so that when you go to Tonga, you will have the right people helping you along saving you time and money. The only exception being Lord Fulivai as I did not think to ask permission to forward his phone number or contact information. (sorry). However, he is not hard to find as he works in the Government building in Neiafu proper.

The above picture is one I took of Lord Fulivai in his office in Neiafu. He took the time out of his busy schedule to see me as he was informed that a CV customer was coming to town and he wanted to personally meet me to make sure I had a way to the CV property (only accessible by boat) and that my needs were being met.

He explained to me how it was his fathers vision to create the Cocomo Village project long ago. It was a long hard fight to convince the government to allow such a project to exist since it had never been done before. Fulivai Jr. (above) meanwhile lived in New Zealand for the most part and until his father died, had little interest in Tonga or the island of Hunga. But as this newly appointed Governor explained to me, when he came back to take his fathers place as Lord of Hunga Island, he wept when he saw what his father was trying to accomplish, the beauty of the island and the care for his people living there in the small village.

You see, this is not just about leasing property to outsiders for a buck. This is about drawing people to Hunga to benefit his people. It was argued that by letting people who are not Tongans live on Hunga, that they would bring their expertise with them. Doctors, engineers, mechanics etc. who are willing to teach others, or even do business in Tonga. As I explained before, by moving to Hunga, you are entering more than just a land deal, you are joining a community. It is unavoidable. People successfully live here by working together as a community. I will go into more detail about this later. But for now, just know that Lord Fulivai is continuing his fathers dream to help his people.

So, what is of great importance to CV investors is that the owner of the lots, land and island is the King of Tonga the honorable King George Tupou V. Below him is the Lords of the ancestral lands, the founding families of long ago who received the land via inheritance as has been passed down to Fulivai after his fathers passing.

Next the people who live on the land: At one time long ago, the people were little more than slaves to the King and Lords. However, slavery was abolished hundreds of years ago and the people now live under a democratic constitution that currently could be the envy of the United States of America in its current political condition. (Just my opinion). How it was explained to me was that the people live on the lands tax-free without payment. The only stipulation is that when the King or Lord asks someone to do something whether it pertains to a social function (a funeral or wedding for instance) or a job that needs to be done, the people are asked and obligated to comply.

In talking with Lord Fulivai, I found him to be bright, intelligent honorable and a God fearing man. The overall impression is that he is honest and caring and I instantly felt that I liked him. If Cocomo Village was owned by anyone else other than the Governor of Vava�u, I would be skeptical about investing any of my hard-earned money in this project. However, not only is the owner of the land directly involved with this project, he was also recently appointed Governor of the entire Vava'u Island Group. So knowing this first-hand, I am more confident than ever in my decision to have acquired these lease properties !

One of the things that happened to me while riding on one of the privately owned ferries, is that my bag containing all my clothes, camping gear, food, diving gear, kayak, etc. came up missing somewhere in transit between the Capital and Neiafu while riding the ferry. I would not have mentioned this incident but for the fact that between Lord Fulivai and another key person I met, Mr. Salesi Paea, I recovered my bag without so much as one item missing. Both Fulivai and Salesi were vary upset such a thing had happened and much effort was put into finding my bag and to assure all it�s items were in tact. Vava�u relies much on tourism and the last thing they want is for a visitor to have anything stolen to sully their reputation. I greatly appreciated the effort put into recovering my bag. (More about this later)

So, I found out that the land and the owner are legitimate. That was a big relief !

Here I need to back up a little since unless you intend to sail across the Pacific ocean in your own sail boat, you will probably be flying to Tonga as I did and I have some advice and information to pass on to you that I think will be useful to you.

I currently live and work in Galveston Texas. Most flights to Tonga from the US fly out of LAX in California. So, I had to purchase a round trip ticket from Houston to LAX. Then I flew with Air Pacific airlines on a 747 jet in the late evening. In my opinion, this is the best time to fly as the majority of the flight took place in the night time where you not only eat up 8 hours of the travel time sleeping but you are spared much of the radiation exposure you get flying at high altitudes during the day under the suns rays. The flight took about 11 hours which landed at the NadI international airport in Fiji. (picture below)

Nadi international airport Fiji

Next, I had to take a small commuter plane to another Fiji airport in Suva to wait for yet another plane to fly me to the capital of Tonga, Nuku�alofa on Tongatapu island. This flight was included in my ticket purchase to Togatapu.

Little Suva airport in Fiji

First thing you notice is that you are not in Kansas anymore when you arrive in Fiji as right away the traditional dress and uniform are different and reflect the style and culture you are now entering.

The color black is often the dress up color and is also the color used for church and funeral proceedings. The lower picture is of two teenage girls crossing the road in Neiafu town. Notice the umbrella. No it was not raining. Tongans seem to avoid the sun if all possible. They use umbrellas or anything handy to provide shade. A broad leaf, a piece of cardboard�really whatever is handy to shade themselves from the sun. Again, I never saw even so much as one inappropriately dressed young person. No wild hair styles, no short shorts or revealing skirts or shirts. The boys all wore shirts and conservative shorts or pants. These people are about as God-fearing and modest a group as you will ever find anywhere.

The atmosphere is one of a great big family of brothers and sisters, uncles and fathers, mothers and aunts. There was a tussle at one of the local rugby matches in Neiafu recently between fans of two local teams. But when it was over, they all hugged and forgave each other as, after all, they are all related to each other and are really one big family.

From Suva Fiji you end up in the Capital airport in Tongatapu. (next page) A small but adequate facility.

Fua�amotu International airport, Tongatapu

From here you will want to hire a cab. Before this though, you will need to exchange some money into the local Tongan currency (TOP) There is a booth at the airport that will provide this service. However, you need to get to the booth quickly as they tend to go home early if they think there will not be any business. In that case, you will need to find a bank. If you somehow arrive on a Sunday (which I don�t think is even possible) you will be out of luck as almost everything is shut down including the radio station and TV stations! They take the day of rest seriously here.

The taxi driver I found was very helpful and knew the cheapest bed and breakfast in the best location in town. He knew a business owner who would do him a favor and exchange some of my US Dollars into Tongan currency for me. The average price from the airport to the capital is $40 Tongan dollars [TOP]. As of this writing, one US Dollar would exchange for about $1.50 Tongan. So where you would think your Dollar would go farther, be prepared to find higher prices for just about everything especially in any tourist part of town. All fresh food and farm goods are inexpensive. However a meal in a restaurant may run you $12 to $18 TOP and up. A mug of beer runs about $6.00, a fancy meal can run as high as $40 TOP a plate. You can find less expensive places like the Chinese food place on the water front where I got a full meal 3 dish dinner for about $20 TOP that was very good.

For reasonable accommodations I recommend the 'Pacific Bed and Breakfast' at Maufanga in Tongatapu. Phone: 676-871-8676 (e-mail: info@pacificbedandbreakfast.com . Website: [ www.Pacificbedandbreakfast.com ] Ask for Colin Hardwick, a nice Australian man who will serve you �Brakie� (breakfast) in the morning. For $60 TOP a night you cant beat it. It comes with a common kitchen for cooking your own meals if you wish. This saves money for a family on a budget as you can buy your food in the open market just down the road or along the waterfront road and then take it back and eat fresh organic food for a change. The bathroom and shower is shared between the rooms but there is one upstairs and one down stairs so I never found it to be a problem. This B&B is not to far from the Billfish bar and grill which had pretty good food, reasonable beer and a nice atmosphere. It was near the ferry terminal and city docks so if you are taking the ferry to Vava�u, you are not far away. Farther down the road along the water front is the open air fish market where I saw fresh squid, octopus, tropical fish, clams crab and muscles. All along the road are small vendors selling tapioca roots, coconuts, bananas, tomato, cabbage and other assorted veggies. They will stay out from 10 in the morning till 10 at night waiting for someone to buy their home grown produce.

In town, they have a large open air market that you don�t want to miss. About a 30 min. walk from the B&B. There, you will find all sorts of interesting local stuff (food arts and crafts). In the stores in town are mostly imported items are from Asia, China to be sure and most of it is inexpensive plastic and clothing items. You find quite a bit of imported Chinese noodles and packaged food items. For instance, it is a treat here to open a package of top ramen noodles and pour the seasoning packet over the dry noodles and eat it right out of the bag. Since this is the case, every store or market has various types of packaged ramen noodles.

If you are planning on flying to Vava�u from the capital, you had better book ahead of time as the planes are usually booked solid. The local island hopper airline is called Chathams Pacific. You can book on-line where you will automatically be billed in Tongan dollars when you use your credit card. (automatic exchange rate service) The web site is: www.Chathamspacific.com You would be well advised to book your tickets when you buy your other flights unless you intend to take the local ferry that eats up a good 20 hours of your vacation each way. If you wait to purchase your tickets when you get here, you may find every flight booked solid!

The ferry cost is $88 TOP per person. The office to buy your passage is in town in a hidden upper room that you will never find unless you have help from someone who knows where it is. Any taxi driver will take you there. Here is the web site with the schedules for the ferries: [ www.tongaholiday.com/?page_id=284 ] scroll down to the second listing of fares and times to Vava�u.

Try to get on the newest ferry. Be prepared to sleep on the hard deck or floor. Unfortunately, when I arrived in Tonga it turned out to be the King�s birthday so the ferry I was counting on taking did not leave as advertised. So I ended up taking one of the old privately run ferries called the 'Pulupaki' I was told by a local that it is similar to the one that sank drowning over 50 people not long ago. This older boat also does not have any security for the luggage (which I found out) and has a history of 'lost' baggage. The new ferry has a locked and secure hold and is no doubt far more seaworthy. The Pulupaki is an old Japanese transport ship that in my opinion as a US Coast Guard licensed captain has surpassed its safe working life long ago. If inspected by the Coastguard this boat would be shut down in an instant. But, we are a long way away from the US and the boat still floats and hasn't sunk yet so it is still in use. Again, not fancy just functional. We departed at 9:00pm where over 200 people showed up at the docks. Only about 120 actually boarded the ferry, the rest were there seeing the others off as you would a family member who is taking off on a cruise ship vacation. Getting on the ship is a squeeze since it�s first come first serve for the prime spots to flop down. I ended up sleeping on the upper deck in between the folds of my poncho. It is a sight to see people lying around anywhere they could squeeze. Most took grass mats with them for this purpose. In the inner room, it was wall to wall people like some giant sleepover in your uncles den. Tongans think nothing of lying beside (or on) a perfect stranger. Again, they act like one big related family.

The ferry passage was a long affair, stopping twice in the night where launch boats on-loaded people set for smaller islands. Then we stopped at Ha�apai island and offloaded some containers after a long wait as the rear cargo door would not open and had to be pried open with metal bars and feet. This is where it was thought my bag may have ended up. No one knows for sure. We left the Capital at 9:00pm and did not get to Neiafu in Vava�u until 5:00pm the following day. On arrival in Neiafu, I was greeted by a local businessman by the name of Salesi Paea (phone number: 676-874-0000. E-mail address: vavautours@yahoo.com) If you have a problem, if you need to go somewhere, if you need lodging, if you need logistic help with a shipping container, imports, building requirements and whatever else you think you may need including transportation while in Vava�u, this is your man.

He is president of the tourist association in Neiafu where he takes his responsibility vary seriously. When he found out my bag was missing, he went above and beyond the call of duty to make sure I got it back. He contacted the shipping company, he filed a complaint, he contacted the police, he lodged a formal charge against the shipping owner, threatening to go to the newspapers exposing the companies lax security. He had me list all the contents of my bag and then took the time to type out that list and forwarded it to the ferry company owners. He made sure everything was done to get my bag back. As I said earlier, even Lord Fulivai made some calls on my behalf. In the end, I got my bag back somehow. Thanks to Salesi and Lord Fulivai!

Salesi's Backpacker style accommodations. He had 2 more of these buildings.

Anyway, I ended up staying at Salesi Paea�s apartment house (above) at the top of the hill in Neiafu. Nice view form the balcony. Not far to town. Full kitchen, TV and clean bed. The only thing that was an inconvenience was the hot water situation. Salesi did not have the propane hooked up so I took cold showers which was not bad really. The price was right ($50.00 TOP per night) Salesi�s service more than made up for the brisk showers I can tell you!

If you are looking for something more expensive, Salesi�s brother owns the fanciest hotel in town where the beds go for up to $200.00 per night and up. The resorts charge this much and more. The only other affordable place I was able to find in town was the Adventure Backpackers Lodge at 1 Main Road. You can see many reviews on the Internet by a Google search where most people rate them as a good value. They offer dorm-style rooms for $30 TOP per night, private room, $89.00 TOP and up. Phone: (676) 70955. E-Mail: avbakpak@yahoo.com

Salesi can help you get with one of the locals who lives in Hunga for a ride to and from the Island of Hunga. This will be about a 1-3/4 hour ride in a narrow wooden launch powered by a small outboard motor. Be mindful that you will not see one life jacket anywhere. So, you may want to bring your own. The going rate is anywhere from $10 to $20 TOP for a ride to the Island. I was told $5.00 but I think that is what the locals pay to chip in for gas. I would give them a min. of $10 as fuel is vary expensive here and these are poor people. You catch the ride in front of the market.

You can also rent boats by the day if you wish, the least expensive being $150.00 TOP per day and up. As I wanted to spend the night on Hunga, I decided to ride along with the local villagers on a launch that is owned by a Hungan willing to take extra passengers to and from the island.
 
 
 
DESTINATION HUNGA - PART II
by Captain Jared R. Passenger
Date:7/29/2011

As Onani and I made our way back to the village, we passed by one of the plantation areas where he climbed up and got us some fresh coconuts for drinking as you can seeOnani and I made our way back to the village where I met the village leader. Tongan society is structured in many layers. It seems that there is always someone in charge or someone of a higher social rank that the locals recognize but where outsiders will not identify except of course for the military and the police that wear obvious uniforms. Quite honestly, the villagers do not know what to expect from those who will be moving into the Cocomo Village lots. I can understand their concern. They have a private exclusive island all to themselves and now a bunch of outsiders are planning on moving in. They do not seem resentful, only concerned. I honestly hope we are good neighbors!

The pictures above are of the local bread fruit that is pictured still green. When the fruit turns a light green, it is ready or eating. The other picture is of a house on Hunga that had wooden siding, a rare sight as most are of a cinder block construction. Notice the water tank and collection system off of the roof. Many of the tanks are a ferro-cement style construction that is made from a local contractor. You can buy poly plastic tanks in town for about $4,000. TOP. I was told the plastic tanks are less expensive than having the cement tanks installed. I was told it only takes two good showers to fill these tanks. Onani then took me to his house for dinner which was about 20 x 40 ft. in size. It was here that he was raising 6 children and where he also took care of his elderly father who I found sleeping on a grass mat on the floor. We took our shoes off at the door and entered the house illuminated by a 12 volt light powered by a car battery that was topped off every day by a solar panel. Onani told me to take a seat which was a grass mat on the floor. There were no table or chairs. Soon he appeared with a plastic bowel of chicken soup, a plate of small fried minnows and a platter of cooked breadfruit. We sat and ate together on the floor from the same dishes. I thought the breadfruit would taste exactly like potatoes if it had some butter, salt and pepper. (pretty darn close). Onani said that we needed to eat something before Kava since you can get sick on an empty stomach if you drink too much.

Never having tried Kava, I was wondering what this drink was. Was it an alcoholic beverage of some kind? I had visions of woman spitting into tropical juices and fermenting some kind of witches brew that would turn against the most hardened stomach. Thankfully, it turned out to be a nonalcoholic drink from dried roots mixed thinly with water. After dinner we made our way to the small rectangular building the local men used for the nightly Kava ceremony.

I did not take any pictures of this event as the men in Tonga take the nightly Kava ceremony rather solemnly. We outsiders are known in the Tongan language as 'Palangis' (Pah-long-ges) which literally mean 'people from the sky'. When Captain Cook sailed into Tonga, the locals thought the tall masts of the ship went into the sky so they called the people papalongi. And since only white people came off the boats, papalongi evolved to mean 'white people'. Anyway, we palangis are guests that are allowed to attend the Kava gathering by invitation where the men get together and talk about the day, discuss business and what needs to be done, plan and organize. They will play cards, tell jokes, and often you see the young men punch each other in the arm or lightly hit each other in the head in playful banter. We all sat on a grass mat on the floor. I was offered a plastic seat with no legs as a guest. Most sat Indian style. What surprised me was the sudden singing that would break out. These men know how to sing! Amazing harmonious tones where it seemed the singers knew just where to enter and exit from the song so that the whole thing flowed together. As the night progressed, we came into Friday morning (12:00am) where one of the ministers who was in attendance said a prayer followed by a beautiful 3 part harmony song that literally reverberated the walls in a harmonic tone effect that is hard to describe. This Kava gathering is not a place for outsiders to hold a toast, or make a statement. You sit quietly or ask questions of your host as to what is being said or what is going on. Some songs are about love, others about hunting, fishing or times long gone.

As the night progressed, I noticed that my Kava bowl was receiving less and less Kava. They were concerned that I may drink too much being a novice and all. Actually, it really didn't do much for me. I was later told that the Kava has a accumulative effect as the more you drink over time, the more of an effect it has on you. Since these men drank Kava every night including Sundays (only they drink it at mid day instead of the evening) I don not know how these guys do it! I did however sleep well that night. I asked Onani what the woman do while the men are at the Kava gathering. He said that they are at home with the kids and if the men are out too late, the woman were always asleep when they returned. He said if you drink too much Kava, you would get 'funny' and would be 'slow' with the woman. I joked that the woman probably encouraged you to go and drink Kava till all hours! They all laughed and thought that was funny. Kava has a musky root taste with a little bit of a grittiness at the bottom. Most would drink until they would hit the grounds at the bottom of the cup where they would then pour it out before the next round. When someone wanted more, everyone then had to drink. I was glad Kava was not alcoholic as I would have been in trouble for sure!

I went to bed at about 1:00am when the other men were just getting warmed up. At 0600am, every bell in town started ringing for church services. I wondered how these men were able to make church services staying up all night drinking a mildly narcotic drug. Anyway, church is one thing Tongans do not miss. So, all the men of the village were at one of the 6 churches in the little Hungan village. I got up and walked to the nearest church that was being conducted by the minister who I met at the Kava gathering a few hours earlier. It was dark except for the full moon which was low on the horizon. I went in and sat down. I apparently entered at the time just before the services were coming to a close as they were doing some sort of concluding prayer where the minister would face the North side of the church wall and recite a ritual style prayer while the attendees would kneel facing backward to the pew in deep reverence. Every once in a while, the flock would drone 'Malo' in a low resonating In the plantation there were many different types of plants some with broad leaves which I could not identify, others I was able to recognize such as the bananas and the papaya trees as seen on the next page. I know they grow many different types of crops at different times of the year. This is true also for the ocean as they harvest different species at different times. Onani told me they plant the food from new moon to new moon. Then they do a clean up and do not plant. The 'new moon' he was talking about was the position of the moon and not the light it emits as we would consider a 'new moon' here in the West.

It was interesting although I felt out of place and possibly out of bounds. I was definitely not dressed for the occasion in my shorts and wild patterned tropical tourist shirt. The normal attire is a dark shirt and tie, a black lava lava fabric wrap covered by a woven grass mat and belt finished off with dark dress sandals. The woman were just as neatly dressed topped off with a hat. The little kids were restless just like any child you would find in the West during church. I guess some things are the same no matter where you go. After the service, I passed another church were the minister was outside greeting those leaving the service. I said hello where he then asked me some questions about who I was, where I was from and what I was doing in Hunga. I told him I was a CV leasehwner and that I came to see the property I had acquired. I told him I leased the property sight unseen, sort of like buying a car without lifting the hood to see if it had a motor. He laughed.

Later that morning after a breakfast of wild oranges that were growing down by the dock, those of us who were going to town met at the launch boat at 0900 am. We loaded our gear, some loaded pieces of rotted wood that I later found out was fire wood, dried grass bundles, woven grass mats and a few empty ice chests. As usual, many of us piled on top of the cabin. As we left the lagoon we entered a swift current going out of the lagoon entrance that propelled our boat to about 10 to 12 knots or more. We literally squirted out the opening and into the gentle swells as we headed back to Neiafu. I noted the ice chests and thought to myself how a 12 volt freezer and a good set of canning equipNeiafu craft market near the harbor.

When I got off the boat, I was met by Salesi who took my bags back to the hotel. I told him I wanted to roam around town and see if I could find a pair of jeans since my legs were getting sunburned. At least once a week the locals have an open air market on one of the side streets, sort of like a large garage sale so I was hopeful that I would find a pair of used jeans in my size.

Before I could get there, I was met by a man on a bicycle who offered to sell me a black lava-lava to cover my legs. I agreed and in 5 min. he was back and helping me put it on. Looking at the picture above, don't I just scream 'Palangi' !

One of my goals besides viewing the CV properties was to open up a bank account. As I said before, I was fortunate in that I had met some key people on my trip. It turns out that Salesi Paea�s wife is the manager of the local ANZ bank. Her name is Yvette Paea and can be reached by phone at the following number: (676) 771-6148 e-mail: Yvette.Paea@anz.com

With two forms of identification, (for instance a passport and drivers license) you can open up a bank account. I chose an account that automatically converts my US dollars into TOP. My reasoning on this is if the US dollar fails, or is greatly devaluated, I may be able to hold value in Tongan dollars. I opened up a 'Super Fast Saver' account. The bank offers internet banking with their own web site and you can transfer your money from your home bank to ANZ for a nominal fee of $10.00 TOP per wire transaction with no limit.

One thing I forgot to mention. You will need to visit the local cell phone provider and purchase a pre-paid sim-card chip to put into your phone. The major local provider here is Digicel and can be found in the capital and in Neiafu. It is inexpensive and works just about everywhere, even on Hunga island. I have a AT&T phone that did not have any problems. I am not sure about other types of phones.

I was told it was not that long ago that this area did not have cell phones or television. Now, the cell phone is the big thing here. It is interesting to see people living in what would be considered in the West as impoverished conditions, (no refrigeration, no pressurized or hot water, no AC electricity etc.) going to town looking just as neat and clean as if they stepped out of any mall in America, cell phone in hand. Often the cell phone is used as a walkman. I did not see anyone using any other type of mobile music device.

Salesi, my host also has a construction company where he often brings in supplies and equipment from overseas. I asked him for the name of the best delivery service from the States to Tonga. He told me that the company 'VAVAN Shipping Co. was the one he used with success. You can bring in a 40� container with a load limit of 20 tons into Neiafu harbor. The number he gave me was (709) 874-4480 He said to use an agency to handle the customs and shipping. He suggested S.F. Enterprises. Phone: (415) 720-0457 located at 838 W. 12th Street Long beach, California 90813

Once you have your container in Neiafu, you can hire the local barge transport boat at 'Island Express Speed Boats' for $250.00 TOP one way to Hunga island.

According to Salesi, the best and cheapest way to bring goods into Tonga is via New Zealand. He said that we could contact him on how to do this. Also, you will want to have your immigration visas in hand FIRST to avoid the expensive import duty. With a residency visa (for instance the 'Assured Income Visa') you are allowed one shipment without duty. You only have to pay the local 'city tax' of 15% of the declared value of your itemized goods. You determine the value. Again, if you have any questions you can contact Salesi at vavautours@yahoo.com Tell him Jared sent you.

Later, I took a trip around the main island. The following pages show some of the views of the city, the hospital and other surrounding areas. I was told that Tonga has free health care. It seems that gold caps and fillings are rather popular as many people seem to have them here. I wondered if that was standard practice or optional. The town has one (1) doctor. I know, I was surprised too. What also surprised me was the addition to the main hospital building, a gift from the Peoples Republic of China, an entire new wing that sat unused. I guess with one doctor, you don't need all that room.