Jerri:
We are off! It’s a short 3 night passage to Fiji.
Our last several days in Tonga were very nice. We didn’t manage to get out to the outer islands, but spent time in two great anchorages in Vavau. We got a nice walk in, a short, but entertaining hike, good snorkeling in a couple of caves, and a wonderful multi-course paella dinner with our friends John and Deb from Moonshadow. We beached the dinghy, walked up a hill to a rustic restaurant, and the four of us (the only diners) were treated to an amazing dinner. There was a young goat resting under a table who accompanied us back to the beach when we departed and bleated goodbye as we took off in the dinghy.
The following night we were in a different anchorage with a few other boats, threw caution to the wind, and had our first group cocktail party aboard Agility. We had a great time and hope everyone else did too. Nice thing is, people keep it simple. Everyone brings some food, their own beverages (not necessary, but sure is easy and then people have what they want), ice, and sometimes even glasses. It’s a nice way of doing things on a boat. Plus it took us about 5 minutes to clean up and get to bed.
Other than that, I’m not feeling overly inspired about our time in Tonga. Other sailors love it there and I have the feeling that we may have too, but circumstances (saying goodbye to Elizabeth and Alex, the weather) dictated otherwise.