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Much love! xo

Bamboo Huts, Bravery and the Kindness of Strangers - my first few days

Touch down. After transiting through both San Francisco and Auckland I was EXHAUSTED. 

On my flight departing London i discovered i had a row to myself.. This would've been incredible had I not been so inexplicably nervous. Everyone talks about the good parts of travelling.. And trust me there are many, but being brutally honest it is infact damn hard getting on that first plane on your own - especially with no return ticket. It takes a lot. You quickly learn to trust yourself and use initiative. 

One of the most important things that has helped me along the way is to always ask. Yes, I am saying speak to strangers. But be clever about it, choose who you ask and just be vigilant. Trust your little voice. But I have to say although there are weird and scary people out there.. There are a lot more nice kind ones who are willing to help.

That's one of the good parts of travelling, you see the world a little more for what it really is and each kind person you meet along the way creates a little positive impact on you and bit by bit restores your faith in humanity.

So, back to the plane... 

After swallowing the initial panic my mind wandered on to my next task - navigating San Francisco airport. 

I grabbed one of the plane staff as he was walking past - his name was Peter. 

Peter was the first of many of the kind strangers that have helped me out and reminded me why I started this. I told him I was worried about transiting and explained all of my plans and he sat next to me (on the free seats - ha ha)  and went through what I had to do to get my next flight.. Which involved getting my suitcase and putting it on something else.. Yeah.. I was totally lost. 

Peter then ran off and came back arms brimming with crisps, biscuits and chocolate. I was pretty shocked as he gave them all to me and then preceded to introduce me to a lovely old couple who were getting the same flight as me to New Zealand from San Francisico. 

I moved down the plane and sat with them. This couple literally helped me so much, at one point one member of staff at the airport in San Fran told us we needed to get a taxi (not true!) i would've ended up lost.. So lost. Ha ha.

As a thank you I brought them a drink and then we all eventually got on the plane New Zealand bound (after the lady gave me a packet of very handy sweets for the flight). Then after meeting them on the other side we said goodbye and i went alone to transit to Tonga.

Woah. Landing in Tonga is BEAUTFIUL. 

You glide over the island and you see Palm trees swaying, fields of crops and a picturesque coastline.

Walking out of departures I was faced with hundreds of tongan people waiting for their friends and family.. I walked through the crowds looking shorter than ever. 

Suddenly someone put their hands on my shoulders - I squealed - Oscar had appeared from nowhere! Thank goodness! And so my journey begins!

We jumped into his uncles van and picked up some other Tongans on the way into town, then oscar and I got dropped at the guesthouse i had booked for the night. The girl sitting out the front of this big house showed us to the room and I dumped my suitcase. 

This is when the shock set in. Here I was in this incredibly humid place, they speak another language, im pretty much alone and have limited funds, I didn't feel safe and I was ridiculously overtired and couldn't think straight to save my life.

I didn't know what to do with myself but before I had too much time to think we walked into town to meet Ashley - Ashley is married to Chris and they are whom i was to stay with in Puke, Tonga. 

After grabbing a simcard, meeting Oscars cousin and exploring around i ended up back at the Guest house and couldn't sleep, I woke up every hour - jet lag is a horrible thing. 

The next few days are a bit of a blur. I moved from the guesthouse to Chris' place in the bush. Chris' hut is incredible, I loved it, surrounded by Palm trees, blue sky's and friendly people it was a really cool place to be.

 However my worries were still on the surface. My main worry was just having somewhere to settle, because of a few issues Chris had only managed to get back to his home the day before I arrived and I felt as though I had come too soon as they hadn't had any time to settle in themselves. Although everyone made me feel so welcome and happy I couldn't shake my stupid feelings which were magnified by the jet lag that had engulfed me. More than anything I felt guilty. I knew I loved it there, I knew I loved the people I just couldn't get over the huge shock - going from working in a shop in the centre of a town back in England living at home and having everything there for me to having a tent and no transport in the middle of the bush and being surrounded by everything from fire ants to cockroaches, giant spiders and thousands of flies. Those of you who know me will know about my immense bug fear. I was struggling and I felt like an a**ehole for it because this was exactly what I wanted and it was amazing. Exhaustion is a weird thing.

After a few nights in my tent I ended up in another guesthouse. The other thing was that I couldn't contact anyone back home much, so the contact I did have was limited and difficult to actually explain or discuss anything I felt. I ended up having to decide wether to leave on the 4th December or the 8th January - either very soon or stay for the whole time. 

I didn't know which scared me more - this is my favourite place in the world and I felt like such a coward. Although there were a few other factors influencing my decision both ways I decided to opt for the earlier flight. 

Here.. I will let you into my thought process.. 

If I stayed i wasn't sure if I would be able to do it, I felt mentally unprepared and ridiculously over tired.

I thought at least I now know what to expect and can come back knowing what it will be like and without the jet lag. Also if I go to australia it lets me save more money as I can work sooner and I can see all of my family for Christmas. 

I felt so weak, I knew I could do it.. It suited me so much but I felt as though I had become too used to western society and that lifestyle and I hated myself for that - although it was inevitable. 

Having had the decision made it was taken out of my hands. Although I do regret it and wish I had taken longer to decide and look at my options but it all happened so fast, however looking back it is a lesson learnt. I decided to try make the most of the days I had left and the longer I stayed the more I didn't want to leave. I absoloutely loved Chris and his friends and family, plus I hung out with oscar quite a lot and we walked along the sea front most days. I tried to take in everything; the fresh breeze, the swaying palm trees, the people jumping off the wharf and swimming.

 I also visited Oscars family. They were so lovely and welcoming and said that I was welcome to stay with and visit them if I come back. 

That's one great thing about Tonga - people treat you like part of the family and though they may not have much, they will give you everything they have - and what they lack in material possessions or money they make up in kindness, good humour and wisdom. It's so refreshing and hits home what is really important in life.That is a major part of my appreciation for this beautiful place - it's beautiful people. I was invited to strangers parties, comedy nights with friends, private islands and even a taxi driver I made friends with invited me to meet his family and offered to teach me how to make and cook an umu (tongan underground oven) on a Sunday and show me the plantation with watermelon and root vegetables. Plus Chris and Ashley treated me like part of the family and made me feel at home. What they do is so inspiring.

I felt awful to have to leave. I was so thankful to chris and ashley for understanding. Plus at least I have all of that to look forward to now. However looking back and feeling how I feel now I know I belong there, I will be back. I will be stronger and more prepared and I will follow that dream. For now I move on to the next part of my adventure. And although I am beyond sad to see the island that has taken my heart dissapear into the distance - I am free and I will be back. 

Guess what?

I LEAVE ON THE 25th NOVEMBER!! 

that's exactly 5 weeks from today.

Nervous, excited and broke are a few words that resonate with me at the moment.. 

Nervous about leaving friends, family and my home comforts. Excited about well.. It's the South Pacific  and there are palm trees.. Come on. And very broke due to my ticket,visa and passport expenses... But hey I guess it makes you be a bit more creative right?

Speaking of creative and being broke, I've spent the last few days (and nights) creating a kickstarter page and a video to hopefully try to gain some interest in my trip and try to get people involved and try to make the last £600.

The thing I like best about this website is that I can give back to all you lovely people that help me out! Kickstarter allows me to offer rewards to any people who support me!

The video is literally made from what I could get off of my phone as my laptop has broken (yay). But I actually quite like it and I really hope you do to.

Get involved, take a look at it here... 

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1280301310/adventures-of-hayley-ellis

I T I N E R A R Y 2014/15

I have returned! 

To my blog that is.. Not the country.. I haven't left yet.

On the subject of leaving.. Would you like to know where I'm going?

Get ready to follow me on my adventures...

T o n g a

A u s t r a l i a

B a l i

B o r n e o

M a l a y s i a

T h a i l a n d

L a o s

C a m b o d i a

V i e t n a m

B u r m a 

A u s t r a l i a 

T o n g a 

WHEN am I leaving? Well that is to be revealed ;)

Also I saw this quote today and it's rather wonderful.. 

"Believe

Live the moment 

as if today is all we truely have.

Let a little sunshine out as well as in 

to create your own rainbows.

Believe in your heart...

something wonderful is about to happen."

Peaceeeee ~

Who is this little adventurer you may ask? (Adventurer is definitely a word)

                     

Well hi there. I'm Hayley; A 5ft 2" British girl born in England and baptised in Australia. Yes it matters. 

I know I have introduced myself before on my blog, but I felt it was time to give you guys a bit more of a personal insight. 

Since I was little I have travelled quite a bit; my parents are divorced but both enjoy seeing more of the world. With my dad we used to go camping. a lot. Hense my boyish side (I used to climb trees and build forts)

A few years ago we travelled through France and Spain from England camping our way down in some awesome places. (Take a look at Granada!)

I grew up as quite a tom-boy; I used to make mud pies, I had slow worms (theyr'e neither worms or slow) and drive my brother round in our toy jeep (I was a pretty cool kid).

At the moment I've racked up quite a few adventures, however for me it is definitely about the experiences and people you meet rather than the stamp on your passport (although they are pretty awesome). What have I got in my bank of memoirs you ask? Well; I've co-hosted a radio show live to a whole country one evening, accompanied a young boy to a hospital after he sawed his finger off and a group of us piled into a car and played charades at the hospital (not the boy as he would be at a slight disadvantage), Elise and I hired mopeds in Tonga and were almost ravaged by wild dogs, I have jumped into a fresh water cave that I could not see the bottom of (not only was it really dark but I had also lost my glasses) and I've woken up in the middle of the night with a giant cockroach on my neck. Brilliant experience, I'm TERRAFIED of bugs. I can't even look at cockroaches without almost passing out in terror.

I am starting a new journey hopefully in November this year (2014) and i want to use my blog to keep people updated, as well as offer friendly and hopefully humorous advice (no promises) and just generally show people my photography and what I'm up to!

My blog is my views only and I hope to give realistic perspectives and honest stories.

Some of you may or may not know that last February I decided to retract my university place and grab the chance of travelling with both (tiny) hands. This could be brave/crazy/stupid. But hey, if you don't take chances you'll never know! I'm going to be doing some of my journey alone and some with my (also tiny) travel companion Elise - who joined me on some of my travels last year. 

To give you an idea, Elise and I went into STA a few days ago. They have been helping us plan our itinerary (totally recommend by the way, they are so helpful!) and the guy we were talking to said I have one of the craziest itinerarys he has ever seen. (I for some reason was proud of this) oh and he also mentioned that if I return he would offer me a job straight away based on my itinerary. (It was a good day, we also went ice skating)

I'm going to leave you in a bit of suspense and tell you my full itinerary in my next post (evil. I know.)

But until then, I'm off to drink some tea and walk my bulldog. I've planned to read about the royals later, have a beer and get seriously rained on then proceed to moan about the weather. Just kidding.. It's rather sunny today.

Hayley

My Travel Bucket List...

1) Visit elephant sanctuary
2) Climb a mountain (even a little bit!)
3) Travel the east coast of Australia
4) See monkeys in the wild in Borneo
5) Trek through a rainforest
6) See Uluru
7) See the stars at night in the outback
8) Visit Cooper pedy underground
9) Snorkel/ Scuba in the Great Barrier Reef
10) Visit Byron Bay
11) Go to Rio carnival
12) See the blue mountains
13) Hawaii
14) Travel in a converted van
15) See the Grand Canyon
16) Inca Trail
17) Surf
18) Alaska
19) Northern Lights
20) Eiffel Tower
21) Niagara Falls
22) Rome and make a wish in the Trevi fountain
23) The Amazon
24) Morocco (Done once with mother but want to go again!)
25) Help make my own hut
26) Travel the pacific islands
27) Go on the radio in another country (Done this once but really hoping i can do this again!)
28) Learn Tongan
29) Work in Adelaide
30) Travel Europe (Went straight to the other side of the world - madness)
31) Actually manage to swim with whales (tried last year.. too slow.. nearly drowned.)
32) See the sunset in Burma
33) See the Bali rice fields
34) Swim in an infinity pool
35) Cameron Highlands
36) Have Christmas on the beach

37) Be in Tonga which is situated on the international date line and be in the first country to enter 2015

38) (Attempt to) do Yoga in Bali 

39) Meet Ketut in Bali

Tips for Tonga - Top five things to see and do

So, you arrive on the beautiful paradise island that is The Kingdom of Tonga; but where do you begin when it comes to making the most of your trip?

Well here's my top five things I totally recommend that you check out on and around the island of Tongatapu!

1) First stop? The Talamahu market in the center of town - Here you can pick up any bits you may need such as: fresh fruit and vegetables, shoes and clothes and even beautiful handmade local treasures. I recommend you invest in one of the pretty wrap around skirts upstairs in the market, they're amazingly low priced and keep you cool and protected from the sun throughout the day!

Talamahu Market is also the perfect place to get a first hand experience of the unique culture that is highly valued and mightily protected in Tonga. Also you will get a chance to engage with the people who are the kindest I have ever met - hence being called 'The Friendly Islands!'

The moped i rented from Friends
to explore the island

2) Friends café is also a must visit. Not only do they provide delicious meals and a friendly, relaxed atmosphere but you can also rent a scooter here and explore the whole island for an amazing price! I would suggest heading over towards Houma and taking a look at the amazing Mapu'a 'a Vaea blowholes - its a spectacular sight as the water hits the natural coral rocks and spouts up to 18 meters into the air!

Milkshake from Friends Cafe in
Nuku'alofa

Whilst in Tonga i would say take the opportunity to turn off your phone and keep off social network and enjoy your incredible surroundings. However, if like me you enjoy capturing the beauty in photographs and sending them for others to enjoy, then you can get wifi at friends; Plus you can enjoy a yummy milkshake while your at it! 

A Whale!

3) I love nature and wildlife so something you should definitely save some money for is a trip with Deep Blue Diving. They are based at Faua Wharf and it is really easy to get to here from the main town - Nuku'alofa. We took a quick taxi which was cheap and the driver was really chatty and helpful.

The guys are so nice and friendly at deep blue and the views are amazing! The perfect season for this is around August; you can take a swim in the middle of the ocean and try to keep up with the whales for an amazing sight! 

Big Mama's Yacht Club

Islands in the distance

4) If you really want to get a feel for a tiny island paradise head over to the wharf and catch a boat over to Pangaimotu. The boat ride takes approximately no more than 30 minutes and you can watch the wharf go into the distance as a new tiny Utopian setting appears. You arrive at 'Big Mama's Yacht Club' here you can get a delicious lunch (I had a burger and chips!) and then snorkel in the beautiful crystal clear waters. The fish and coral are like nothing I have ever seen before and we spent hours swimming around watching all the beautiful creatures in this other world. However, I would recommend some sort of sea shoes as the coral can be very sharp! Also if you feel up to it you can walk around the island in about 20-30 minutes, we saw some shipwrecks and some really interesting birds. 



5) Attend a church service. The singing is incredible and the service is beautiful. There are usually many beautiful exotic flowers intricately arranged specially for the Sunday mass and everyone wears their Sunday best. Even if you do not attend church regularly i really recommend you attend one of these services, it is a really amazing experience and the singing is unlike anything i have ever heard before. The songs are definitely one of the things i miss most about Tonga.


Some Advice! Be prepared for all sorts of noises in the night: dogs barking, church bells, cars, lorries, and cockerels. However don't worry! You do get used to it very quickly.
Above all else, just enjoy yourself, welcome the relaxed laid back culture and embrace the slower paced island lifestyle.