Arrival to Tongatapu and the third gender of Tonga- meet the Fakaleitis

2014-02-14 Friday

 I arrived to Tongatapu, the main island of Tonga, with a rainbow greeting me welcome outside my airplane window. This was around 10am. I had arrived, but not my luggage. Who cares when in a warm, beautiful place, I thought, and took a cab to the capital, Nuku’Alofa, with approximately 25000 inhabitants. Temperature is a constant 25-30 C/ 80-90 F with a lot of humidity this time of the year adding up on the heat effect. 

 

First I went to meet my contacts Siesi Hala’api’api at the TongaHealth foundation, and Dr Ofa Tukia at the Public Health division of the Ministry of Health. Both were conveniently enough located at Vaiola Hospital. They provided me with the background information I needed about the structure of the government and the educational system, and before heading to town I got some cake from Siesi who celebrated her birthday.

Friends café was next stop with a smoothie and plenty of water. They have wifi and I started my computer to start looking for accommodation. My brother Joa has a friend living in Nuku’alofa and I called him through a bad Skype line to get information about the Valentine party I had heard plans of. Jack invited me to his house to stay over the weekend and that is where I have been since. Jack, his sister Joanna with husband Henry, and Chris have shown me an amazing amount of hospitality and their humor is out of this world!  

 

The Valentine party was a launching party for a new lounge/restaurant/bar and one of the most modern buildings in Nuku’Alofa with a great ocean breeze on the open air upper floor. The parties in Tonga have to close early, (I think around 1am on Fridays and Midnight on Saturdays), but that just mean you start earlier!

 

 

 

 

 

On the party was two Fakaleitis, they were the most sweet and fun I have met in a long time. 

 

The Fakaletitis (faka= in the manner of, leiti derived from English lady) are an old Polynesian tradition of men acting as women, similar to Samoan Fa’afafine and Hawaiian Mahu. It is said families used to choose a son to raise as a girl when no daughters were born, to make sure someone would continue the domestic chores. Today it is more commonly, but not necessarily, a choice for gay men. Homosexuality is illegal but Fakaleitis are accepted, even if they are on the lower part of the social hierarchy.

One of the Fakaleitis performed a killer choreography to Christina Aguilera. As a faithful watcher of Rupaul’s Drag Race I feel confident to say the Fakaleiti performance was world class- high heels, legs to die for, on point lip-synching and crazy splits!

 

 

 

Like a Lady- the Fakaleitis of Tonga

A 10 minute documentary trailer - 

 

Check it out!

 

 

Btw!

If you aren't familiar with the best reality show ever, make sure you Watch the trailer for the new season of Rupaul's Drag Race starting in a week!