Hiking Adventures

This past week I went on a life changing hike in 'Eua. I was sitting in a cave looking out into the ocean and I just realized how small I am and how big our world is. It made me realize that life has the means for so many experiences, but it is easy to get caught up in our small realm of the world and completely forget about the rest of the world; therefore missing out on so much greatness. This "aha" moment I had has given me the hunger to take advantage of life and see as much of this world as I can.

During PST a few of the other Peace Corps girl and I read a book called Wild. It is Cheryl Strays account of her journey hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. There is a line from the book that really stands out to me, especially because of this current chapter of life that I am in.

“I knew that if I allowed fear to overtake me, my journey was doomed. Fear, to a great extent, is born of a story we tell ourselves, and so I chose to tell myself a different story from the one women are told. I decided I was safe. I was strong. I was brave. Nothing could vanquish me.”

Anyways, on this hike I got to go to this incredible cave, 'Ana Kuma (Rat Cave). It provided the most spectacular view of 'Eua. The cave got its name because you have to crawl through a tunnel to get into the cave. At the end of the tunnel you then have to drop down into the cave, at first it feels like you are going to fall off the cliff, but it is really a short drop. Once you are in the cave you get a view of 'Eua's National Park and the endless ocean. As you look down into the national park you can see a whole bunch of birds flying around. It didn't feel real as I was looking down into the forest, felt like a scene from a movie.

I then went to another cave, Smoking Cave. The Smoking Cave is in Tonga's only rain forest and is proof of 'Eua's fresh water supply. There is a waterfall that falls into a cave and the steam it creates makes the cave appear to be smoking. It was absolutely breath taking and felt very surreal. A very peaceful place in 'Eua.

The last stop of the hiking adventure was going to see the, 'Ovava Tree (Strangling Fig Tree). This is one of the two 'Ovava trees on 'Eua and this tree is a minimum of 800 years old. It is the biggest tree in Tonga, as well as the rest of the South Pacific. These trees prove that 'Eua is the oldest island in Tonga. The 'Ovava tree has one main tree, but as the tree gets older is starts to grow tree sprouts that hang from the tree and eventually the new tree sprouts reach the ground and so then it is like another tree is growing, but yet it is still just one tree. After time what looks like to be a forest of trees is acutally just one tree. You can walk through the tree in between the different roots. These 'Ovava trees are always near ta fresh water supply, giving the tree constant water; which is why the tree is able to get so big. At the 'Ovava tree I went to there was a stream down the hill from the tree and the tree had roots that went all the way down the hill and into the stream. It was wild. You can also chop off a limb of the tree and drink water out of the tree. Pretty amazing piece of nature!

The hike left me with some blisters on my feet, but what a liberating ambition it provided me! I cannot wait to continue to discover more of this beautiful island I live on!

My fabulous tour guide, Paea (pie-uh)!

Last Week of School

On Saturday I left my house in the morning not really expecting much from the day and ended up not getting home until five that night. I got the worst sunburn I think I have ever had and it was the first sunburn I have gotten here. Lesson has been learned. No matter what I think I am doing sunscreen needs to be on my body when I leave my house. The next day some girls saw me and asked me what happened to my face. I explained to them that this is what happens when white people are in the sun for a long time. Their response/solution: be stronger like Tongans. Noted. I ended up going to watch rugby (a sport I may never understand) and then went on an amazing hike. Unfortunately, I do not have any pictures from the hike because of the spontaneity of it. But if you come to visit I will take you on the hike!

That night my teachers took me to a "dance club" aka a house that people come to dance in. The other Peace Corps on 'Eua and some of their teachers came also to celebrate the end of the school year. So this dance house is called Maxi's and there isn't really any guidelines for who is allowed in. We get there and I swear there were 14 year olds in there. Within the first ten minutes a middle aged woman comes storming in, walks up to one of these young people, grabs him by the ear, and continues to hit him with a stick, while she drags him out of Maxi's. Also, the door person is a frail old lady, presumably, Maxi herself! On top of all of this there is no alcohol served at Maxi's but you can get $2 ice cream cones.

The past two weeks have been full of singing, dancing, and feasting! The Tongan school year has officially come to an end and everyone is very excited for their summer holiday and Christmas! My students had their faiva this Tuesday, which is similar to a concert. The students did two traditional Tongan dances and sang Jingle Bell Rock. Along with my students participating in the faiva so did the rest of the primary schools in 'Eua! It was super fun and my school was the only school to perform a Christmas song :)

 It wouldn't let me upload the whole thing, but here is Jingle Bell Rock!

 'Eua gang sign!

After the faiva there was a whole island choir concert in Ohonua at the church. I made my singing debut so that was successful! This choir concert started at seven and it did not end until close to midnight and it was really hot, but fun!

The next day we had a graduation for the all the students. The students all got to come up on stage and shake hands and get a little treat. After the graduation part they did their faiva performances again. So cute! And all of the class six students got high enough test scores to go to 'Eua High School next year, which is a big deal!

Then on Thursday we went to the graduation ceremony at 'Eua High School. Here in Tonga they call the valedictorian the Dux and the girl that was this years Dux was from my village, Tufuvai! It was so exciting to see so many people from my village there supporting her and how happy they were for her!

 Notice how there are food necklaces around her neck. A graduation tradition is Tonga that I think the US should adopt!

On Friday I went to Taanga (Sammy B's village) with my teachers to a feast celebrating the Taanga principal who is moving to Fiji for school! I ate some really delicious food and didn't eat the rest of the day! Tongans make this really delicious thing called fish pie and it is just so good!

That night I served kava at a kalapou in my village. A kalapou is a kava circle that is a fundraiser. My village hosted it so men from all over the island came and it was a contest between the different villages. The villages that had the most people and raised the most money won the kalapou and as their prize got a huge feast. My village will now use the money for different needs in the community. I would also just like to state that my kava circle won the contest. I am going to take partial credit for them winning since I am such a good tou'a. Also, during the kalapou I had to sit with my legs folded to my side for six hours. I could barely walk the next day my left hip hurt so bad. And the main conversation for those six hours was if I was married or had a boyfriend, discussed in both English and Tongan. I left that night with 13 different marriage proposals and love confessions from a lot of men (who claimed to love me, yet could not remember my name). I taught those boys some lessons during our time together. Lesson one: Be happy with what you get. The amount of Kava I put in your cup is what you get. There is no asking for more and no pouring some back into the bowl. A few got their hands hit with my spoon. Lesson two: Call me by my name or don't drink kava. When a man would say to me, "Palangi, inu" (white person I want a drink) I responded with. "Hingoa ko Bailey. Ikai hingoa ko palangi. 'Oku ke ilo hoku hingoa 'i fiemou kava." It really increased the amount of men who knew my name! It was quit the experience to stay the least!

The following day I went to Meleongo's house for a home showing. The first thing all the women asked me was, "Fefe kalapou" (how was the kalapou) and "Oku i ai eku moa?' (Do you have a boyfriend). The women in my village are desperate for me to date a Tongan. Anyways, a home showing is when women in the village bring all their home goods that they have for when someone gets married or if a family member ever needs something. The women brought their mats, kiakias, dishes, and more! Then all the women walk around the houses to make sure everyone is keeping their yards cleaned up. Afterwards, the town officers wife then inspects all the goods to check that all the women have what they need to. And then we obviously ended with a feast, which was delicious.

Some other random stories and experience from the past two weeks.

1. I got to help decorate tapa with Meleongo's family. They are making tapa for their niece's 21st birthday. Tapa is very important to Tongan culture so being asked to help decorate it is a pretty big deal. They paint the tapa with a paint them make from plants. It is hard to explain fully why, but it honestly was a life changing experience for me. It really made me feel fully of life and a part of Tonga.

2. I ate half of a pig's heart valve. Really wasn't too bad. I could eat it again.

3. An elderly man in my village this week was talking about Peace Corps Volunteers and said, "Oku Pisikoa poto aupito lea fakatonga ka oku kovi aupito kai lahi" "The Peace Corps is really smart at speaking Tongan, but really bad at eating a lot." Just a little more of the Tongan way!

4. Meleongo was talking to a man on the phone this week and he asked her why she never calls or text him back and she straight up said, "I am busier than Obama." Two countries coming together!

5. I have come to the realization that all my friends are high school girls and middle aged mothers. And I am perfectly okay with it!

6. Maka killed a cockroach. Miracle. And recently has started to enjoy sleeping on her back.

7. I got to celebrate Thanksgiving with the other Peace Corps girls on 'Eua and got to facetime my family. It was a beautiful blessing to get to see and talk to my family!

'Ofa atu!