OUR SNORKLING BEACH AND OTHER TONGAN TIDBITS

The island and reefs are all coral

Grave sites.........Coral, beer bottles and plastic flowers

Fishing Pigs on the beach

The view across the street from the office

The Self-Reliance Office

"A  coconut windshield"  These are common in Tonga, and people just drive with them like this.
You learn not to park under coconut trees. 

Our little Toyota Yaris.
This is our laundry room in back of our duplex........outdoor washer and air dry where the rain won't bother it.
but better than washing in 3   five gallon buckets like the ladies below.

These are some of the unusual leis we were given

We finally went in this meat shop today.
They don't even sell meat.
It is common here for people to wear shirts or towels on their heads to protect them from the sun.

WE ARE REALLY IN TONGA

We arrived in Nuku'alofa, Tonga on Thursday, April 10 on a cool rainy day, greeted by a dozen or so people who showered us with wonderfully unusual leis and greetings.  It was a fun surprise after being told one couple would pick us up.  We were taken to lunch by the mission president (Tongan) and his wife who moved to Tonga in July after many years of living in Alaska.  We have had a lot of help from other missionary couples who are here for humanitarian projects and teaching and other types of work.  They've been running us around to get driver's licenses, a car, cash, food, ect.  It is very difficult finding where things are.  There are almost no addresses and most of the streets don't have names.  It's not easy finding things like meat.  One store we found that said  "Meat Store"  had mostly trikes and plastic flowers.  One store actually had Kirkland bags of walnuts they had brought from Costco in Hawaii and were charging $45 a bag. Although chickens are running around everywhere, eggs were $7.50 a dozen.  Coconuts, bananas, taro root and about 20 varieties of sweet potatoes are all common here.  Lots of white bread and white rice and fatty milk.  We might be returning home with a lot of extra pounds.

We have spent a lot of time training at the Self-Reliance Center Monday and Tuesday.  We are the only missionary couple working in the center.  There are a few volunteers here as well and a local Tongan girl who is a paid center manager.  Weekly workshops are offered to people who want to further their education and  receive scholarships and/or loans.  We are learning about those and we'll be helping to expand the program to help them either find jobs or become self-employed.  The center is desperate for help.  They have had as many as 30 there at a time waiting to be helped.

The Tongan people are incredibly loving, all dedicated to Christian religions, respectful and appreciative, and so fun to be around.  Their English is rough, but way better than our Tongan.  It's been difficult to understand the cell phone and internet plans in Tongan-English, but we finally got hooked up today, however, the internet doesn't work, so we're back at the Service Center for access.

Oh yes, they do drive on the wrong side of the road!  Dick just started driving yesterday, and I haven't tried it yet.  We yield to the right if we remember.  Turn signals and windshield wipers are opposite where they should be. We call it the missionary wave when the wipers turn on instead of the turn signal.   And I keep getting in on the wrong side of the car.  Round-abouts go clockwise and feel awkward, but we are still in one piece.

We're excited to be involved in such an exciting and inspired program.  We feel that our learning capacities have increased as we are dedicating our lives to such a worthwhile cause.

Moroni standing guard over our duplex

Dick and "The Boys"  at church

Entertainment outside the church window during General Conference

The local cattle ranch

Training in Aukland, New Zealand

View from our suite in Aukland, New Zealand

TRAINING IN NEW ZEALAND!

 Our training in Utah was excellent, motivational and, in part, done by some highly successful businessmen.

We arrived in New Zealand at 5:30 a.m. after skipping Sunday by crossing the international date line.  Welcome to the "melting pot".  Our cabbie from India delivered us to an elaborate hotel where we have been treated like royalty just prior to our living in poverty, complements of the church self-reliance department. (The church receives bargain rates here since they are such good customers.)  We have been trained by a Samoan, a Mauri, and a Kiwi,  and are learning a lot more detail about Tonga specific self reliance and the perpetual education fund.  The people here are wonderful and friendly.

We've had a chance to take a couple of walks on the beach while watching a swimming race in the ocean as well as watching several people in sea kayaks, and then we wandered through town and took a walk to a lake where we watched scuba divers, wind surfers and 8-10 black swans interacting with ducks.

 Last night the area self-reliance manager took us to his home where his wife, Pamela Reid, had prepared a wonderful dinner for us.  Pam is an author of over 20 books, most of which were published by Covenant, and she was a fun and fascinating person to talk with.  Tomorrow some senior missionaries are taking us into downtown Aukland for dinner and sightseeing after we finish our training.  Then we will leave in the wee hours of Thursday morning for TONGA!