 | Tonga Local Customs 
 
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 | Tonga Local Customs | Tips 1 - 10 of 11 |  | ||
Popular Local Customs | Miscellaneous Local Customs Tips | All Tips (11)
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 | Traditional Dress |    |  |
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 |  on April 8, 2007 |
Many of the people in Tonga still where the heavy waist mats which are there traditional dress. The mat is called a ta‘ovala and men wear them around their waist and tie it with a kafa, a Tongan traditional string made from coconut fibre. They wear a shirt with a collar. To a funeral they wear old mats and black clothes. Women wear a dress and tunpenu with a ta‘ovala around their waist that goes down to their knees. Tongan women wear these kind of clothes to church and other occasions like parties or weddings. We noticed the school children also had a uniform fashioned from these mats. |
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| Tablecloths | | |
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| on April 8, 2007 |
Tablecloths are pounded out of bark until a silky smooth cloth is produced . These can be bought for hundreds of dollars but they are traditionaly given as a sort of dowery by the brides family to the husbands family. They take hours of hard and hot work to make. |
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| Living Dead | | |
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| on April 8, 2007 |
The gravesites in Tonga are a tribute to the deceased person's life . Its almost like they are still here on earth . We saw huge quilts strung over the graves inscribed with MOTHER. Sometimes personal articles are left at the gravesites for the deceased loved one.They are truly gone but not forgotten |
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| Gathering shellfish | | |
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| on April 10, 2007 |
The waters around Tonga are quite shallow . The locals wade out with pails and pick shellfish off the bottom. |
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| Purple cloths | | |
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| on April 8, 2007 |
We noticed purple drapped all over town when we first arrived in Tongatapu . We learned it was because the country was in mourning for their King who had died several months before. |
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| Please, please... don't... | | |
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 |  on August 26, 2002 |
Please, please... don't complain about the way it is in Tonga. You're not going to 'Hawaii', nor to a 5-star hotel. Mosquitos, no A/C (in some cases) & humid muggy weather, no 'favorite' cafe' places, etc... So just enjoy the atmospere. Smile alot & appreciate Tonga and you'll do great. |
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| Tipping is not expected in... | | |
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 |  on August 26, 2002 |
Tipping is not expected in Tonga, nor encouraged. If you want to express your gratitude for a special service then you can leave some money for the Christmas fund kept by the owner of the place and it will be equally divided to the members of the local staff on the Christmas Day. Nevertheless, when participating in a floorshow you can stick small bills on the arms (specially oiled with coconut oil)of the performers. |
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| A Kava party is a local... | | |
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 |  on August 25, 2002 |
A Kava party is a local tradition. You sit around in a group with a bunch of locals and drink this concoction from coconut shells. It can be pretty potent, and I discovered a different kind of hangover! |
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| KAVA | | |
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| on February 22, 2004 |
If you have the priviledge to attend a Kava ceremony... do it with grace. Kave tastes about how like it looks, but its the Tongan way of sharing & be-friending, especially forigners. Kava is not "ill-legal". It is will definately be a memorable experience. |
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| Sundays a day to rest... | | |
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 |  on July 9, 2007 |
Tonga is a very Christian place and every Sunday most commercial businesses are closed (shops, banks, some restaurants)...so it might be a good idea to plan on making Sundays a leisurely day and do necessary shopping and banking before then.. |
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More Tonga Tips
| Overview | General Tips Tips: 9 - Photos: 7 |
| Restaurants Tips: 16 - Photos: 10 | Hotels and Accommodations Tips: 27 - Photos: 14 |
| Things To Do Tips: 38 - Photos: 32 | Nightlife Tips: 8 - Photos: 7 |
| Off the Beaten Path Tips: 4 - Photos: 3 | Tourist Traps Tips: 6 - Photos: 3 |
| Warnings or Dangers Tips: 8 - Photos: 6 | Transportation Tips: 6 - Photos: 5 |
| Local Customs Tips: 11 - Photos: 9 | Packing Lists Tips: 7 - Photos: 3 |
| Shopping Tips: 1 - Photos: 1 | Sports Travel » Add a tip now |
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