Elisabeth and I swimming at Secret Cove beach. 

Friday night:

Drew stayed at home to work on an essay and I headed into town to meet the other volunteers at Olini’s, for a fundraising event for a camp for girls.

Olini’s has the BEST coffee in town (the large size comes in a bowl that is bigger than my head) and good food but is never open for dinner… so this was pretty exciting.

The fundraiser did involve watching the movie Hairspray, a terrible movie that no one should ever be subjected to. Luckily I spent most of the night chatting the father of Olini herself, whose name I can’t spell or pronounce properly but who is a pretty interesting guy.

Saturday:

I met Sarah, Vivian and Anthia at their house for an early morning yoga session led by Kate. Kate is amazing and puts my aerobic abilities to shame. Must resolve to do more yoga and my back is now hurting more than it should.

Shopping for groceries with the intent of finding ingredients for tacos.

Found taco shells in only one shop. Out of date by a year and a half.

Drew and I rode out to the flea market near the hospital and proceeded to buy some useful items (a kettle, work appropriate shirts) and some not so useful items (an ugly Hawaiian shirt and a dress that looks like a five year old would wear it to a birthday party).

Saturday night was spent at Jack and Helen’s house at a pot luck dinner with church friends. Helen made the most amazing banana cake. I’m still not over how great bananas are in Tonga.

Sunday:

We did something supremely naughty and broke the Sabbath with our new friends Elisabeth and Vill by going to Secret Cove beach. In Tonga, Sunday is a day of rest and its the law; no exercising, no work, no strenuous activity, no beach going.

But we were way more rested lying in the beautiful cool ocean, than we would have been at home. That’s the point of the Sabbath, yes? To rest and appreciate God’s goodness?

We picnicked and Vill bbq-ed corn over some coconuts he set on fire. Secret Cove is ringed by a reef and there are lots of little gaps in the rock face, so that blow holes are naturally made. If you are adventurous, you can swim out and sit in them. Vill is obviously adventurous, this is him hanging out in the blowholes!