Position: 21deg 07 min South, 175deg 09min West � anchored in 20m off Pangaimotu Island.
I see I made an error in the previous date � proof that island time is different.
Well the morning was spent getting water � we take all this for granted but where people don�t have enough this is a real issue. We were charged $23.00 but we are very glad to have our tanks full again. It appears that our port side tank which I thought was full was only a third full � so some water must have leaked into the starboard tank or is was not a full as we thought when we left home � a mystery that I am yet to solve. We filled our fuel containers (diesel about 2 dollars a liter and petrol a little more, gas cost us $15 for 3.5kg and gas bottle, and did some provisioning. � Food is double the price in NZ and is no where near the quality. Fish is surprisingly expensive. I tried very hard to find an internet caf� near the wharf and eventually found one that would accept my usb stick and the speed made dial up look fast � took 30mins to upload a few photos that were only about 30k � we cleared Nuku�alofa as well as we intend to visit some of the outer islands and then move onto the Hapai group. I can see the value of been part of the ICA cruising fleet as all this officialdom is kind of taken care for you. � clearing out involved lots of walking between various offices and buildings and much stamping and signing and of cause paying. This involved the whole day. We left late in the afternoon to moor just off Pangaimotu. Had a much needed swim and wash and am looking forward to bed. I am starting to get a handle on the pace of life of the Tongan people, I just have to learn to slow down. I am amaised by the number of cars that are here and the amount of driving everyone does around the island. One would imagine that bicycles would suffice for a lot of what people do. The housing is interesting too. Most people live in very humble abodes but every now and then you come across a house that would cost at least $ 500 k to a million � these are nationals that are overseas and have build homes back home either for their own families to live in or in most cases for themselves. There are little stalls everywhere where people sell a few sweet potatoes or a few hands of bananas. The fish market is also interesting lots of people selling bags of fish � priced at about $20 - $50.00 � or groups of octopuses or sea eggs or other shell fish for similar price � no refrigeration and all a bit smelly � still haven�t lost my western desire to see food refrigerated especially fish. I am alarmed at the price of food and especially fish. All the good fish like Tuna and crayfish is exported. Not too sure what you do to survive if you are poor in Tonga � you can subsistence farm and grow your own chickens and pigs but everything else is very expensive.
Skipper.
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