The Road Less Traveled : King George Tupou VI

This past Saturday Vava’u held an agricultural fair. The agricultural fair is basically what we would call a country fair in the States, with every village showing off their produce at their own “booth,” and prizes being given out for the largest tomato, brightest pepper, etc etc. The Agricultural Show had one thing county fairs back home do not have, however. Fairs in the US don’t have kings.

But first let me backtrack. Several days prior to Saturday, a few volunteers and I were asked to help out at the Vava’u tourism association’s stall during the show. Having no real plans, we were happy to say yes. On Saturday, I got a ride with my neighbors to Vava’u High School, the setting for this affair. Since I arrived a little early, I decided to walk around and explore.

The scene was almost overwhelming. There were three lines of tents, each with perhaps 50 stalls, running parallel to each other. There was another section of 50 or so booths running perpendicular to these three. Every village, every business, every ministry had a stall. The Ministry of Health had a booth. So did VEPA, the environmental NGO. So did the Chinese commission. Thousands of people were in attendance. In seemed as if at least half the population of Vava’u, some 12,000 people in total, were at the fair.

Each village was represented and many had several stalls. In one of the booths the village would show off their produce – the root crops, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, lettuce, cabbage, carrots, and much more. In the other they would sell some goods they had made such as woven mats, stained glass, woodcarvings, or traditional formalwear for men and women. The island villages also boasted of their seafood, revealing clams, crabs, and many different kinds of fish to the masses. It was clearly evident that a lot of work had gone into every stall…and for good reason, as we will soon see why.

After touring, I headed over the tourism booth to start working. The idea was simply to provide the kids with a good time. We had crayons and coloring books set up for drawing, and the plan was for the volunteers, including myself, to face paint. So for the next hour and a half, I painted every kid’s face who came up to me. Not the most talented of artists, by my 100^th flower, star, heart, cat, or whale, I started to get the hang of it. Mothers would bring me their babies to paint a star on their faces. High school girls wanted flowers or hearts. Middle school boys wanted stars or whales. Elementary school kids wanted everything. It was particularly fun painting my students faces when they came up to my booth, and I have to admit I couldn’t resist the urge of writing my name on some of the kids’ cheeks.

Exhausted after the hour and a half of “working,” the real excitement started. King George Tupou VI had arrived! The King of Tonga was here! (Quick aside: Tonga is called the Kingdom of Tonga for a reason. There is a king. He does have near absolute power. Tonga is ruled by one of the few remaining monarchies in the world today)

Seeing the King approach, I scrambled near his seat for a good view. As he drove onto the grounds, accompanied by police and military personnel, the Catholic High School Band played the Tongan national anthem. Once he was seated, ministers, priests, and the Governor of Vava’u made speeches. The King himself gave a short, ridiculously so by Tongan standards, announcement.

Then the fun began. The King, trailed by all of the government ministers and a policeman carrying an umbrella to protect the King from the sun, walked through the grounds, stopping at every stall. During his route, the King walked within 3 feet of me and even acknowledged me with a faint bow of the head. My first time being acknowledged by a reigning sovereign! Not too shabby.

The King continued his stroll, and now that I had seen him so closely and had taken too many pictures, I began to really look at him. I was first struck by his easy going attitude and his smile. He seemed very relaxed and gregarious. He was dressed neatly in a white button shirt and a respectable, but by no means over the top, ta’ovala (woven mat worn around the waist). There was nothing on his person that told you that you were seeing the South Pacific’s only remaining ruling monarch. He was wearing no crown, no robe, and no sword – somewhat to my disappointment I must admit. At many of the stalls he condescended to make small talk with the “common” people, seeming very much at ease. Politics aside, it was an incredibly humanizing experience to see the king be so intimate with his “subjects,” and I could tell by the Tongans’ faces that this was a memory they would keep with them for the rest of their lives.

After making the rounds, he walked back to his ceremonial tent to provide the winners with certificates. I was proud to see my town officer, Havea, accept an award on behalf of my village and to also see one of the Peace Corps volunteers actually get a chance to shake the King’s hand when he accepted his village’s award.

As I may never see the King again during my time in Tonga, I took way to many pictures, some of which you can see below. It was a very special day, as I never imagined I would see the King, let alone stand only a few feet away from him and actually a make eye contact. I would have said hello, but I know there are some rules regarding addressing the king and I was way too nervous that I would mess something up. Still, it was absolutely a crazy experience.

Thank you for reading and please enjoy what I have to imagine is your first look at the King of Tonga.