Island Hopping In Polynesia

Island hopping in Polynesia was a dream-come-true for us. We had been planning it since 2021, but the timing was never right for travelling two months on the high seas without Internet and phone. Now we were able to do it and it was sheer luxury!

Polynesian Islands are known for beaches and popular destinations for snorkeling and watching marine life. We covered some parts of Hawaii, Samoa, Fiji, Tonga and French Polynesia as well as Cook Islands, Niue and Kiribati.

America First: Hawaii

Entering the US was quick and painless thanks to Trump. Airports were not crowded and there were no queues in immigration. Our first destinations were the Hawaiian islands of Maui, Oahu and Hawaii. Being a part of the US, it was no wonder that they felt very, very American despite their image as tropical paradises. Downtowns in cities and small towns were modest while suburbs with malls sprawled out creating car-dependant communities. Huge, polluting SUVs filled the streets. One lady nearly hit us at crosswalk on a green (white) light. She opened the car window and welcomed us to Hawaii saying: “What idiots! Watch where you’re going.”

Honolulu was our favourite and the best place for walking and city sightseeing. On our first morning walk towards the famous Waikiki Beach along the gorgeous beach boulevard, we were caught by an enormous torrential rain. It was a rather unique experience after the permadrought in Cyprus. While sheltering under a big tree, a local guy told us that there had been no rain for the longest time ever and that’s why the downpour was so welcome. Everyone still remembered the devastating wildfires in 2023 that wreaked havoc on the island of Maui. For us, being drenched to the skin was exhilarating, too.

We skipped the most popular tourist site in Honolulu, Pearl Harbour. Instead, we filmed a local dance, drumming and music performance called Drums of Polynesia. Who cares about sunken warships when you can watch singing and dancing.

The Two Samoas: Same Same But Different

From Hawaii we continued to Samoas. Colonised American Samoa was so tiny and remote from the mainland that it felt like a tropical Moominland. Locals were very Polynesian: big and robust. Taro and sweet potatoes are obviously their main source of nutrition. Polynesian ancestors also made long and hard voyages that subjected them to famine so the large body mass provided adequate energy reserves.

When visiting the local post office for mailing postcards, we noticed American tourists picking up packages they had ordered online. There is no sales tax in American Samoa which makes shopping cheaper. Customs officers were negotiating bribes with them, and apparently US-made cigarettes had the highest value for speeding up the process.

The other Samoa has been independent since 1962 after being previously occupied by Germany, New Zealand and the United Nations. Many of the Polynesian islands we visited live in what we call the begging economy. Their own economies being undeveloped, they are dependent on external powers. This raises the question: which is preferable, being an honest colony or pretending to be a sovereign nation?

Fiji: An Ailing Tourist Trap

Fiji has the reputation of being an exotic getaway, but the country suffered immensely from the Covid hysteria just like their Caribbean counterparts. According to the Reserve Bank of Fiji, the halt in travel and tourism led to a massive 83.6 percent drop in visitor arrivals in 2020. As the country is largely dependent on tourism, the economy collapsed.

Although the number of international arrivals is now said to be growing, the atmosphere still felt depressing. As one fellow tourist summarised: the place was sketchy. Locals were eyeing tourists, perhaps seeing them as easy targets for petty crime. No wonder police cars were patrolling the most popular arrival points.

It is obvious that the local economy can’t support the growing population. People lack opportunities and the level of education is low. Although natural environment is one the assets in the country, it is neglected. When we celebrated our 21st wedding anniversary in Lautoka, the air was polluted by recycling: there was a giant plastic trash fire in a junkyard.

Suva, the capital of Fiji

Savusavu, Vanua Levu, Fiji

The Friendly Islands of Tonga

The Kingdom of Tonga was a completely different experience. It felt clean and laidback. Locals were celebrating a national day so everything was closed on our arrival at the capital Nuku'alofa. It didn’t matter to us. We loved to walk around the empty streets being welcomed by dogs in people’s yards – almost every house had dogs – but they were merely barking, not brave enough to come closer for petting.

Tongans are proud of their status as a Polynesian kingdom. Historically, the Polynesian islands had several kingdoms including Hawaii, Tahiti and Bora Bora, but now only Tonga remains. There were pictures of the king everywhere just like in Thailand. He reigns everything including the local telco.

Civilised French Polynesia

In French Polynesia we stopped in some of the Society Islands, two atolls in Tuamotu Archipelago and one Island in Marquesas Archipelago. In general all the Polynesian islands we hopped were quite similar: tiny, lush, far away from everything, and sparsely populated. The biggest differences were historical – who were their current and former colonisers.

French Polynesia, for example, was rather civilised. There were modern public toilets free of charge, baguettes and red wine in supermarkets, and less road rage. They were in much better condition than the French colonies in the Caribbean. In a post office in Bora Bora we met a French marine biologist who speculated about the difference saying that the French Polynesia is much less dependent on tourism than the Caribbean colonies, and France allowed natives to keep their culture in Polynesia.

We filmed another local dance, drumming and music performance called Mana, The Spirit of Tahiti in Papeete, the capital of Tahiti. Who cares about baguette and red wine when you can watch singing and dancing!

Not 21 But 42 Years On The Road

We spent our 21st travel anniversary crossing the international dateline on October 29. This meant that we celebrated the day twice while dashing by Niue. Instead of travelling for 21 years, we have now travelled for 42 years (2 * 21 years). By the same logic, someone born on a leap day will age four times slower than others. What a wonderful delusion time is!

We also visited Cook Islands to meet the cook and Kiribati to take a fancy groupie before the islands sink. The final pitstop on the way back was Norway, for the first time together. It was great to see snow outside and feel the depressing darkness knowing it would last less than a day.