February 9, 2026

One of the main reasons we went on this getaway was to get our PADI open water certification. Shout out to our fantastic, super skilled and patient dive master Ellie Simons we succeeded!

(L to R) Dive master Quentin Duhaillier (25 year old Frenchie) and Dive Master Instructor Ellie Simons (fantastic 27 year old Brit -they are also a couple), Anna Fitler, Me and Bosco - celebrating the night after we completed our PADI Open water certification training. I so appreaciate Ellie, she really made the whole experience fabulous. Diving is scary, alot can go wrong quickly and the course work is intense and really focuses on all the horrors, so you need someone to bring calm and reassurance and Ellie is a delight! She gave me the tough love and lots of tricks to conquer my buoyancy issues. I wish I could do every dive with her! But she has given me confidence to keep at it and hopefully it will begin to feel less intimidating.

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HA'APAI, TONGA - SPECIAL MOMENTS

By Patricia Patrick • February 10, 2026
Who doesn't love a spectacular sunset?!? We were treated to many in this gorgeous retreat. Below is a sampling.

HA'APAI , TONGA - MATAFONUA RESORT

By Patricia Patrick • February 9, 2026
The view below shows the channel to the north of Ha'apai Island and King's Island in the background. The protected lagoon is to the right and the sea and Fiji are way to the left. Here's our happy group at the beginning of the week in the lounge pit before dinner.

NUKU' ALOFA, TONGA

By Patricia Patrick • February 8, 2026
NUKU' ALOFA, is the capital of The Kingdom of Tonga , one of the last remaining Polynesian monarchies in the world. It is on the main island of Tongatapu. The Kingdom of Tonga is compromised of 170 islands, in the South Pacific and many are uninhabited. Most of the islands are protected by lagoons and some like Tongatapu are surrounded by limestone cliffs. This second port for us in Tonga , was the starting point of my latest adventure, off the Ship.