singer and composer Palisio Tuauli of the band Talamohe. The town lacks a tourist information center. A cargo shipping service connects to Mata’Utu on Wallis and Leava on Futuna with Nouméa. As of 1995, there were eight cargo vessels with a total capacity of 146128 DWT. The Hihifo Airport serves Mata’Utu and Wallis Island is northwest of the town. Culture The cultural identity of the Wallis's islanders is Wallisian, an offshoot of Polynesian culture. The language spoken in the town and on the island is 'Uvean, a derivative of Western Polynesian with close affinity to Tongan. In Wallis island, Wallisians use 'Uvean as their everyday language, while French is the language of the administration. Assumption Day is celebrated in Mata-Utu on August 15. Near Mata-Utu are two important archaeological sites, Talietumu and Tonga Toto. Uvea Museum Association, in the shopping centre, is a military history museum that records the Second World War history of the territory. References External links Map showing the location of Matâ'Utu Picture of the lagoon of Matâ'Utu (Archived 2009-11-01) Picture of Matâ'Utu Cathedral Populated places in Wallis and Futuna Capitals in Oceania Mata-Utu