November 20, 2012
We were very excited to be arriving in Nuku’alofa as it is an actual city, our first in a long time, and both of us were starting to crave a city. (In truth, Nuku’alofa might be closer to being a large town than a city, but we’d take what we could get.) While we looked forward to a supermarket, cars, people, decent internet access, and a range of eateries, the thing we were most excited about was the famous coffeehouse called Friends Cafe. We’d found acceptable coffee in Tonga, but we were missing Starbucks and were looking for greatness.
When you bring your boat to Nuku’alofa, you have some choices on where to go. The first option is a wharf right within walking distance of town, the second is an anchorage outside of this wharf, and the third is an little island, Pangaimotu, a couple of miles out from Nuku’alofa.
The wharf is the most convenient to town, but you have to Med moor to a jetty which can be a challenge, plus we’d heard that your lines can provide a convenient drawbridge for unwelcome visitors such as rats and cockroaches. No thanks. The anchorage outside could be a consideration if we had a big, fast dinghy as it’s a long ride to the marina, but we don’t. That left Pangaimotu, which has a good, secure anchorage and Big Mama’s, a restaurant/bar/small resort that provides ferry service to town and services for cruisers such as laundry and getting fuel jugs filled. Sold! We’d heard a lot about Big Mama’s and were excited to finally be able to see it.
It is a long trip down a winding channel once you enter this area of reefs and islands, about 15 miles, but it was nice to get out of the feisty, windy ocean and into more protected waters. These islands, like the Ha’apai, are very flat, and we could clearly see the skyline of Nuku’alofa on Tongatapu Island. Big city, here we come! (OK, very large town, here we come!) -Cyndi
