The Freewheelin' Ryan & Abby: Welcome to the Big Show

Well folks, the big Wesleyan conference and King's Birthday celebration has come and gone. Ryan and I have not been this worn out in two years!

First up was the Wesleyan conference. Preparations for this event have been months in the making. We have talked about little else with our friends and family in the village. For the first time, Ry and I were invited behind the scenes of feast preparation. We helped Tuki and Lolohea prepare their ten tables. We were astounded when we first arrived at their house the morning of the feast they were serving at. Every room in the house was a different food station. Ry and I joined some of the other ladies at the salad station. I put food in a container, and Ryan had to rubber band and pack them into boxes. Our station was incredibly ineffective as every 5 minutes Ryan and I were brought something to eat and told "Tangutu 'o kai." (Sit and eat.) Needless to say, at the end, everyone had to come finish our boxes for us, but we did get the best ota ika (raw fish in coconut milk...so good!) of our lives out of it!

We then went to town and sat at the Wesleyan compound waiting for the lunch feast to finish so we could set up for the dinner feast. Once we got the call, it was crazy! All teams moved into position and tables were set up in record time. It was such a neat experience. Our village had to prepare 50 tables. To make this happen, everyone in our village chipped in. Mormon families, Church of Tonga and Catholic families made tables to help share the load. Pretty cool.

Ry and I also went to watch our choir perform but were then made to try to sing. They told us just to try to mimic the sound of the person next to us to try to make the choir sound stronger. That was terrifying and awesome all at the same time! 7 hours later, we were sitting with the choir eating outside from the food baskets sent back with us at 1:00 a.m. It was funny watching my husband just tear chicken apart and eat his body weight in root crop at such an early hour. We finally collapsed into bed at 2:00 a.m. after fending off women continuing to bring us food.

Sunday we attended the big church service in town. The Queen Mother, the Crown Prince, and the Princess were all in attendance. We dressed up in our Tongan finest and enjoyed this service. A tech guy even came by with headphones that translated the sermon from Tongan to English. Never had that option before! After church, we again feasted with our families.

Here are some pics from the conference:

Well done cheese balls and Pepsi products. Well done.

Fine and I at the Tu'anuku feast.

Tuki and Lolohea's tables at the feast.

Ryan and Viliami. Looking good boys!

Tuki was happy with how their tables turned out.

Lolohea takes a moment.

Mele, Ane and I messing around after finishing prepping tables.

All the tables our village prepared.

Siua, Heamasi, and Lolohea with kava that will be presented to the King.

The King actually requested kutu mats from the women in our village. Kutu is a special plant that only grows near the lake. Thus, it is the signature mat of our village. Here, the women are preparing to present their gifts.

It was so fun to meet Tuki and Lolohea's extended family. This is Lolohea's niece from Tongatapu. We had a great time sitting together. Here we are with all our post feast booty!