Not much to tell
about our trip here... and when it comes to flying, that's a good thing. The
only thing of note was the remarkable number of newlyweds on the trip. I've
never seen such a high concentration of honeymooners before. It was a smooth
trip to LA, a long wait at the airport, then a smooth, uneventful flight to
We were greeted
at the airport by tropical music played by a 3-piece band, and local women
bearing incredibly fragrant white flowers. Folks from Islands in the Sun (our vacation company) met us with
flower-wreaths, and directions to get to the other terminal. (Incidentally, the
airport was flooded with French police and military personnel. - apparently
President Chirac was visiting here yesterday, and his entourage was still
present.)
We then boarded a
small, 12-person twin-propeller plane to Moorea, about an 8-minute flight in
the dark. A little bit unnerving in the cramped cockpit (very similar plane to
the one we used for skydiving) but not so bad. It was sad traveling in the dark,
as we were very eager for a good look at the islands, yet it was too dark to
see much of anything.
We were taken
from the tiny airport (more like an airstrip) to our hotel - the Sofitel Ia Ora.
This vacation is very much unlike any other I've taken before. Whereas most
trips I take I like to wing it with a minimum of planning and guidance apart
from a tourbook, nearly everything about this trip is
going to be planned in advance by our tour company. It will probably be an
interesting change to be pampered on our trip.
The Sofitel Ia Ora
is one of the prime resorts apparently on Moorea. The setting is beautiful...
woven bungalows and low buildings amidst lush greenery and flowers, right
against a sandy beach with a beautifully situated bar and swimming pool. Our
room itself is right on the shoreline, a luxurious affair crafted with the
woven leaves in the traditional style of the islands... the woven-leaf roof is
particularly impressive. The furnishings are top-rate with a tropical flavor in
design - low chairs and tables, sprawling low bed, bamboo and woven furniture
and walls.
Sadly enough, it
was hard to tell what the water and scenery looked like in the dark. The
weather in this area apparently remains between 75-85 degrees farenheit year-round... and right now it seems we're at the
higher end of that scale.
Exhausted from
our flight, we took a short walk around the pool and bar, then
went back to our bungalow to sleep.
Moorea -
We were awakened
by the yellow morning sunshine streaming into our room. Looking out of our
balcony, I got my first glimpse of this place during the day. What a beautiful
sight... crystal clear water on a light blue lagoon. Tropical birds and insects
could be heard outside. The air was warm and slightly humid.
We had a nice
breakfast at the hotel. Good food, and delicious
pineapples.... I'm only sad because I ate the pineapple last and didn't have
room for more. Mental note to get more pineapple tomorrow morning.
It was an
interesting morning in this idyllic and beautiful setting. Dogs and chickens
roam free on the island. The locals don't mind them... and feed them when they
can. Despite being "wild" dogs, they seem to be in pretty good shape.
They chased some chickens around during breakfast, which was amusing to watch.
Some folks (assuming they were French) were smoking at breakfast... it seemed
singularly strange in this beautiful environment.
We bought some
shorts for me after breakfast (I left mine at home), then went to meet our
driver for our tour this morning. We met up again with Corey and Bessie, a
couple from
The tour then
took us around the island, into the fertile crater of a long-defunct volcano,
an ancient sacrificial temple (not much left of it anymore), and through some
very spectacular scenery where we were able to admire both the steep and
dramatic mountains of Moorea, and its beautiful lagoons and coral reef.
We've recently
returned from the tour, and after a brief rest, we're hoping to do some snorkeling/swimming.
The water outside is amazing, and right in front of our bungalow I can already
see brightly colored tropical fish darting about... and even some sort of long,
needle-shaped fish which I need to get a better look at. We also had a cat visit us, coming inside
and making himself at home. I wonder if he'll be coming
round again? Anyways... enough for
now... more to come later.
***
I've been dying
to get into the crystal-clear water here since we arrived. We finally had our
chance and stepped in to the warm lagoon with our snorkeling gear on. The water
feels about the same temperature as our fishtank at
home... maybe a bit warmer, like 80ish degrees. The world underneath the
surface is also like a fishtank... like a more
diverse and real-life version of what you'd see in the most elaborate of
saltwater tanks. It feels
like we’re swimming in a most elaborate store display. I've never been snorkeling before, and
I'm afraid the activity will be ruined forever for me... will there ever be
another place to snorkel like this?
The number and
variety and colors of the fish boggle the mind, and most appear rather
fearless, swimming inches away. Sometimes you're just snorkeling along, then stop to notice you're in the middle of a large school
of fish, just surrounded by them. Their shape and coloring are diverse beyond
belief, and one could just stay for hours watching them go about their placid
business.
And there's more
than just fish too. Amazing coral structures look like underwater forests. There are anemone,
odd tiny critters poking out of the coral and sand, and extremely long-spined
sea-urchins which gather in clusters.
Unfortunately we
didn't have that long to snorkel, as the sun had started going down already. We
regretfully turned back and got ready for dinner.
We grabbed some
fruity drinks at the bar and lounged for a while, but found that the drinks
here tend to be on the rather potent side.
The evening
consisted of a delicious buffet, followed by a dinner show with an amateurish
but entertaining dance and Polynesian music group. The performance was varied
but enthusiastic in nature, with traditional Polynesian dance performed by men,
women and even a few children. I didn't escape notice myself, and a dancer
pulled me up on stage where I got to look silly for a while, trying to perform
the Polynesian dance with her.
Fun
evening.
Moorea -
Today was a very
long and event-filled day. Perhaps a bit too much so at the end, but it was our
only real chance to sign up for a lagoon tour of Moorea.
We met up with
the funny and charming driver Ramone, of Albert
tours, who took us to a boat in Cook's Bay to begin our journey. Ramone was a cheery Frenchman from the
After admiring
the stunning view as we headed out towards the reef, we dropped anchor at the
far end of the lagoon, relatively close to the open sea. I should describe for
a moment how this place looks. Moorea, like many others that form the Society
Islands of French Polynesia, is ringed around by a very thin reef which separates
it from the open sea. The reef is only broken in a few places where fresh water
comes down from the island and kills the coral, forming an opening. The result
is a large lagoon around the island, warm, calm, and relatively shallow (and
various shades of vibrant blues) separated from the deeper blue sea and larger
waves outside the coral ring.
After dropping
anchor, a rope was let out behind the boat, and we were allowed to put on
snorkels and swim out to the rope. The crew then took large chunks of raw fish
and waved them around in the water, spreading out the chunks as bright fish of
every imaginable color came to feast. Before long, sharks ranging from 3 to 5
feet long appeared and came to eat as well. It was a surreal experience, and
remarkably enough not scary at all. Rather fascinating watching the sharks eat
just within touching distance sometimes. They seemed almost on the shy side,
usually preferring if the divers would drop the fish first rather than eating
it right out of their hands. Only the occasional brave shark would wrestle with
a fish chunk held by the divers.
It was a bit of a
surreal experience... not so much of any real fear of the sharks, but more
because you've been conditions for much of your life a la Jaws to be afraid,
but it feels oddly so non-threatening. The pace of our tour was quite relaxed,
and they gave us plenty of time to swim around and watch the sharks feeding. We
took lots of underwater pictures, and eventually headed back to our boat.
We then stopped
briefly ashore to pick up coolers and boxes full of food, then
headed off to our next destination... a shallow area where stingrays are
plentiful out in the lagoon.
Our guide Siki (a funny chap, darkly tanned, looked like a native
Polynesian) jumped into the water with some small bits of fish and coaxed some
stingrays over to him. Before long, there were dozens of the large rays around
him, some of them swimming right up and edging out of the water, nuzzling him
trying to get at the food. Our randy guide then demonstrated how you can pet,
kiss, or even lick the rays.... laughing as he did so.
Then it was our
turn to hop into the water. The stingrays were absolutely
without fear of humans... sometimes seeming as affectionate as any pet. Siki handed us bits of fish to hand out ourselves, and the
playful rays would eat them right out of our fingers. It was funny to watch
people's reactions as the rays often got too frisky and would even nudge
someone over (some were quite large, maybe a yard across)
The feel of the
skin was slightly bumpy on top, a bit squishy. Underneath, the rays were a
smooth white, and very soft, slick and cool-feeling.
It was a real experience being completely surrounded by these beasties, fun and
exciting. Some sharks even came by to join in the eating... though most kept
their distance.
After the
ray-feeding, we got on the boat again, which took us to a further-off motu (small island) where we dropped anchor amidst a large and
scenic lagoon. There were a lot of locals here at the motu, swimming in the
water and laying on the beach (many of them topless. Between the French
tourists and local Polynesian women, there's no shortage of topless sunbathing
going on.)
We carried the
food to a grill where the crew members began to barbeque and cook our food. The
tourists went snorkeling in the lagoon or just sunbathing on the beach. Before
lunch was served, we were shown how the locals made raw tuna, by mixing it with
salt water, then "cooking" it by squeezing fresh lime-juice onto the
meat – turning it a pale, almost white color. Siki (and his
assistant) then mixed this with tomatoes, cucumbers, onions, and fresh-squeezed
coconut milk to produce a tasty dish... like the Polynesian equivalent of
sushi. Now I’m no big fan of
raw fish, but I really liked this stuff!!!
They also made
grilled chicken, lamb, and some of the most delicious grilled mahi-mahi I've
ever had (just mustard, salt, soy sauce, and oil on the mahi-mahi). Of course
there was delicious fresh pineapple too, a very tasty and filling meal.
Afterwards, we went for more snorkeling, and then we were treated to a quick
demonstration of how natives used to unshell coconuts
(with no tools aside from a sharp stick), and crack them open with a quick rap
of a piece of coral.
Our guide also
showed us how to find sea-cucumbers, which bury themselves under the sand, and
which look like spongy, phallic critters which ooze a white,
stringy goo when you take them out of the water. (Our guide was fond of randy
jokes, and he was good at telling them.)
We wound up the
tour and headed home afterwards, dropping several people off at their hotels on
the way back. The whole time a French cameraman (named Manu) was filming us,
both above and under water. Hopefully we'll be able to get some cash out of a
machine sometime so we can buy the video.
We were pretty
tired at this point, but still had a dinner and show at the
Apparently about
45 locals live at the village, where traditional Polynesian crafts and ways are
on display for the public. We were told a bit about how they live there, the
crafts of the locals, stone carvings, drums (which were used both for music and
communication), weaving (roofs have to be replaced every several years), and
tattooing (Moorea is famed for it's tattoo masters) -
all performed at the village.
We were shown the
traditional Tahitian firepit, where a pig, chickens,
taro, Tahitian spinach, various types of banana, and other local fare is baked
under banana leaves underneath large piles of volcanic rock. Dinner was pretty
good, and we finally got to sample some more authentic Polynesian food. (During
the dinner, a man, then a woman performed for us, showing the various ways a
large square of cloth can be worn as togas, skirts, wraps, dresses, and even
shirt and trousers.)
After
dinner was the fireshow itself. It started out with a brief demonstration of the
dances (where the audience was encouraged strongly to participate). After the
men and women were shown how to dance, the performers themselves began the
show... much like our previous night's dancing but more professional, and more
elaborate with some pretty exotic costumes.
The women’s
intricate movements were pretty to watch, but the men's dances were more
energetic and flashy. The show depicted a story, where a chief sent his people
to retrieve a sacred fire. It was hard to follow the plot, but the show was
spectacular anyway. Women and men danced with flaming torches, the most
dramatic part of the show involved the men whirling two-headed torches in
spectacular fiery rings, doing fire-eating tricks and leaving burning spots in
the sand.
All in all a very
amazing and entertaining show. (I was a bit put off at the end though, by the
white French dude who came out and kept telling us to come back and marketing
the show... it just seemed to break the illusion for me of the locals getting
together to showcase their culture.) The locals were all very friendly though,
and put on a spectacular performance.
After the show,
we took the longish ride back, completely exhausted from the day’s
activities.
Moorea -
After breakfast
this morning, we booked a scooter for later in the day, and then went to meet a
guide for our snorkeling excursion. Our guide was a nice fellow... didn't speak
much English, but always had a ready smile and a cheerful demeanor about him.
He took us in a boat out to a far reef to snorkel in the lagoon. Once again,
the view underwater was simply amazing, and we were able to see spiny sea
urchins, vibrantly colored giant clams (which would close when you came too close),
fantastic coral formations with colorful tendrils and creatures growing on
them, as well as the ever-present tropical fish.
We stayed a
while, enjoying the view and taking pictures, then headed back to the boat
where our guide told us he would take us to see some dolphins and maybe even
humpback whales which migrate nearby this time of year. Alas, it was not to be
though.
Our guide looked
puzzled and laughed apologetically as the engine of our boat coughed and
sputtered uncertainly. We chugged along at a slow rate, going slower and slower
until the motor just quit. He tried over and over to get the boat started
again, taking off the cover of the engine and examining it at length. But the
motor would do little but churn and sputter, and eventually our guide had to
call in with his cell phone to get help.
Our rescuer was a
darkly tanned Frenchman, who came speeding out in a jet
ski. He climbed aboard, took a look at the engine, and fiddled with it for a
few moments. He then gave it a spin and the engine whirred back to life, smooth
as ever, while our guide laughed with some embarrassment.
We headed back to
the dock, a bit bummed about not seeing the dolphins, but still laughing about
our little mishap. Now we're back at our bungalow, after a quick dip in the
seaside pool, where we'll laze about and wait until our scooter is available
for us. We'll probably fill out postcards until then, as thank-you notes for
this wonderful vacation.
***
It would seem
that mechanical problems are the order of the day. We rented a wee little
scooter that was in not-terribly-good shape, and got no further than several
yards down the driveway before the engine stalled and would not accelerate past
idle. We pushed the little beastie back, and the woman who rented it to us fired
it back up and gave it much gas (while on it's centerstand). I think this probably warmed it up enough so
that it would go.... whatever the case, it was now
able to move Nicci and I around at better speed.
After stopping by
an ATM to get cash out, then dropping some of it off for Manu (the video
photographer) - we drove over to Mahogany... reputedly a very good
French/Chinese restaurant here on Moorea. Unfortunately, it was closed.
Desperate for food, we made our way around the island until we found a French
restaurant called Isle de Caprice, where we were able to buy bread, cheese,
salad, and dessert. The cook was actually off-duty at the time, but the
proprietor must have thought we looked hungry, as she didn't turn us away and
made us some food herself.
After our meal,
we had our third bout of mechanical problems. This time, the scooter's engine
simply wouldn't start. The starter (and in fact, the whole dash panel) was
dead, so it had to be kick-started. We took turns giving it several kicks, but
had no luck. I went back inside the restaurant and asked to use their phone to
call the scooter rental company. I couldn't speak very clearly to the woman on
the phone, but I managed to communicate our location. Soon enough, she drove up
and began to work on the scooter.
She tried to kick-start
the scooter a few times and it protested with little response. A few more
forceful kicks, however, and the engine began to churn back to life. It was a
bit embarrassing, but she was good-natured about it. She said not to give it
any gas when starting, as the engine was probably flooded and needed time to
clear. We thanked her, and then continued around the island to pick up our
complimentary black pearl.
The early part of
our scooter-ride was pleasant enough, but the sun was quickly setting. We
picked up our black pearl, bought a silver necklace to go with it, then sped off again to finish our circuit of the island. By
this time it was getting a bit chilly (by Tahitian standards) and getting dark.
After what seemed like a very long and chilly ride (getting smacked by many
bugs, and perhaps eating a few on the way) - we finally made it back to our
side of the island.
We made a quick
stop at the island supermarket (the Moorean equivalent of a Costco... much
smaller but relatively well stocked with everything from food, to clothes, to
harpoons), then ended up back at our hotel.
After thankfully
dropping off the scooter, we didn't do much for the rest of the evening.
Checked email, had some fruity drinks at the
Moorea to Huahine -
Our last
breakfast and morning here in Moorea, and it's with a bit of sadness we leave
this wonderful place. Fortunately, we have many more vacation days to go... but
our days here seem to have gone by curiously fast to me. I am glad though that
we leave full of new experiences and memories, and look forward to more on the
other islands.
Next
stop, Huahine.
***
We boarded a
plane in Moorea which was bound for
The Huahine
airport was even smaller than the one in Moorea. We were packed into a somewhat
cramped van there, and driven a couple of miles to the Sofitel Huahine. It was
immediately evident that Huahine is more of a backwater place than Moorea. Much less developed,
less affluent, less touristy, and still quite beautiful.
The Sofitel
Huahine seems to have far fewer staff and guests, but has a very nice layout
and is beautifully situated in a large lagoon, right by a motu, coral garden
and a spectacular backdrop of the island itself. Our event coordinator's name
is Rachel... she seems to be our main point of contact here at this hotel, and
she told us a bit more about this place, our bungalow, and the various hours
where we could get food, drink, etc.
We didn't do much
on our first day here. We got settled in to our bungalow (a much more modest
affair than our last one, but better situated with a perfect view of the
lagoon, with white sand stretching a few feet down to the water itself.) We
lounged around and napped all day, reading lazily and finishing off the last of
the postcards to send to the
Lunch was
delicious... I had a Mahi-Mahi dish - and dinner was quite good too, with a
remarkably tasty steak. There is a strong breeze going here most of the time,
which is good considering our new bungalow doesn't have air-conditioning. But
cracking the sliding glass door open is enough to get a cool, steady air
current going through the room. Incidentally, the large, sliding glass door
forms the entire front of our bungalow facing the water, affording a beautiful
view of the lagoon.
There are
noticeably fewer honeymooners here. In fact, most of the people seem to be
older French couples or entire families. There are not too many folks from the
There's not much
more to tell for this day, we didn't do a lot but rest and relax and admire the
beautiful view.
Huahine -
This morning we
met up with a local guide, a dark fellow with a tattoo of a turtle on his
shoulder - his name meant "ocean" in Tahitian. We boarded a small
motorized outrigger boat with Bessie and Corey, and set off into the lagoon
towards the southern end of the island. We docked at a little pier where a
small settlement of locals obviously lived. There was a school, an Adventist
church (with people singing inside), and many small rickety-looking houses
which reminded me strongly of the homes and shacks in the
Looking down into
the stream, our guide pulled out his bucket of fish-heads, and poured the
bloody water into the stream. Before long, a loud splashing could be heard
underneath and long, slithering shapes could be seen squirming in the water
below us. Our guide then went around and clambered down to the stream itself,
beckoning us to follow.
Churning up the
water were large, blue-eyed eels. Some were fairly huge to me... maybe 5-6 feet
long, thick around as my leg, looking very muscular and sleek. They jockeyed
for position as our guide fed them fish-heads. Often a large eel would reach
out of the water and snap one out of his hands and then dive back into the
water, the others wrestling for a piece as well as the water erupted into loud
splashes.
Our guide assured
as that the eels wouldn't hurt us, and said we could touch them if we wished. The
bodies were soft, sleek, and slippery to the touch. I tried to catch a picture
of them as they stuck their heads out of the water, but kept missing the photo
ops. It was neat to watch though, and somewhat amazing too as the water was so
shallow (only a few inches to maybe a foot and a half deep at this point), yet
it held so many very large eels.
After the
feeding, the eels retreated back to a somewhat deeper hollow along the far
bank, amidst the roots of a large tree. They clustered together tightly around
it's base in the water, only their heads sticking out and showing those odd
blue eyes.
We then left this
area, went back to our boat, and headed out to the lagoon again to do some more
snorkeling. On the way to the boat, we picked up a couple of young boys -
nephews of our guide, who seemed to be visiting from
We snorkeled for
about an hour near a small sandbar, a bit removed from the rest of the island.
We then headed back towards our hotel, stopping off for a while at the Pearl
Farm which was on the way.
The Pearl Farm
was an interesting place to visit. It was a tiny shack, situated on stilts
right in the middle of a beautiful lagoon... shallow on one side and quite deep
(relatively speaking) on the other side. We were greeted there by a woman who
spoke quite fluent English with a British accent, and she told us all about the
process of pearl farming. She demonstrated with a live oyster, showing us how a
colored graft was taken from a sacrificial oyster, which gave the black pearls
their distinctive color. The graft was matched up with a piece of shell which
was taken, ironically, from the
The oyster is
then returned to a net suspended about 15 feet deep, where the pearl develops for
about a year and a half. The rejection/failure rate is high - a 50% yield is
considered very good. Even after that, many of the
pearls are quite flawed and only a rare few emerge as perfectly round,
beautifully colored pearls. We were shown a few examples... two impressively
round and very large pearls were on display, worth $3000 and $4000 each. I
bought a pair of flawed loose pearls myself, for around $60 each, hoping to
sell them later back in the
Before we left
the pearl farm, I went diving again right off the little shack, as it was built
on an impressive mass of coral teaming with brightly colored fish. Ironically
enough, this was some of the best snorkeling I've had yet on the trip. The fish
here were very, very numerous, and almost completely unafraid. It was an odd
feeling, being completely surrounded by a school of brightly-colored yellow
disk-like fish, which swam inches from me. Bright blue fish flitted around the
coral itself, and I saw a large, 3-foot needlefish swimming nearby as well.
The two nephews
were also having a grand old time, diving off the platform by the shack,
playing in the water and pointing out various fish. They spoke little English,
but chattered away at us happily in French, and Corey lent them his goggles for
a while so they could try to peek underwater.
After a while, we
returned back to the hotel, where our guide dropped us off. We did little for
the remainder of the day, lazing about again, reading more, and generally
having a good time of it. The only damper now is the fact that I don't know how
I can get a hold of a fresh coconut. With all the flashbacks I'm having of my
childhood in the
We'll see.
Huahine -
We had no
scheduled activities today, so we decided to do some kayaking iin the morning. Kayaks are free for our use at this hotel,
and we grabbed a couple and pushed off into the lagoon. I've never been
kayaking before, and it was a fun little jaunt near our hotel (though my arms
did get tired pretty quickly... need to get on that workout plan once we get
back home.) Of course, it's hard to imagine a more beautiful place to go
kayaking. As Nicci said, you felt like you were kayaking in a postcard, bobbing
along in the beautiful turquoise lagoon, with green hills in the background and
the water clearly visible down to the bottom.
After our
kayaking foray, we returned to our bungalow and put on our gear for some snorkeling
again. The coral gardens (right by our section of beach) make for some very
good snorkeling. The variety of fish here was greater than I've seen anywhere
else so far, bright blues and yellows, as well as reds, whites, black with
stripes, and all sorts in between. We saw bottom-feeders with whiskers churning
at the sand on the bottom, more long needlefish, tons of long-spined
sea-urchins, and fish which hovered about the intricately folded coral, all
moving in unison as you approached, darting back in to safety as if they were
all one unit or organism.
We also kept
finding pretty shells in the water, though nearly all were still occupied. One
piece Nicci picked up even had two bright but tiny eyes, peering out at you
when you tried to see what was in the twisting shell.
After our snorkeling
adventure, we swam and lounged at the pool some more then had lunch, followed
by a short walk. Huahine is such a different sort of place from the relatively
well-developed Moorea. The Sofitel hotel here is like an isolated bit of luxury
in the midst of a wilder and somewhat shabbier environment. Corrugated tin
shacks could be seen as we walked up the road from the hotel, once again
reminding me very strongly of the poor dwellings in the
We didn't walk
very far up the road... though the countryside itself was pretty to look at,
the road wasn't exactly scenic, and litter could be seen discarded here and
there - a pity really. We were also constantly distracted by quick scrambling
movements on the ground which you could spot everywhere... crabs of all sizes,
from tiny thumb-sized critters to ones as big as your foot, scurrying along the
sand and quickly disappearing into the holes which dot the ground in this area.
I was wondering before what dug all the holes, since I've seen no rats and
apparently there are no snakes on the islands. Instead there are countless
numbers of crabs, on the beach, in the holes, even the little hermit crabs
scurrying along the ground around our bungalow. It was interesting watching
them, and kindof fun trying to spot them before they
vanished into the ground.
Near the hotel
again, we walked amidst some coconut trees, where the ground was littered with
fallen coconuts. Nearly all of them had holes drilled in where some critter
(probably a rat) had tunneled in and eaten all the insides, but we did find one
that was in good shape, probably freshly fallen, with no hole and full of
liquid inside.
We carried it
back to the hotel where we tried to open it as we had seen in all the coconut
demonstrations during our stay here. Unfortunately, we didn't have that one,
crucial instrument that was used for such work - a sharp, hard stick used for
impaling the coconut and removing the husk. We tried everything we could find
in our room as a substitute, from a bottle-opener in the wall, to the edge of
our porch, to a pair of tweezers, but with only limited luck. Finally, we used
the prongs on the back of a lawn-chair to some effect, but only enough to dig deep
holes in the husk.
I was tired by
this point, and it seemed more trouble than it was worth. Nicci, however, was
tugging at the somewhat mauled husk by now... and managed to remove a thin
strip of the outer husk. This proved to make all the difference, as the
remainder came off much more easily once the first strip was started.
We took turns
ripping at the outside husk, jabbing it more with our lawn-chair when necessary,
until the outer husk was completely removed. Removing the fibrous inner husk
afterwards, Nicci found a nice heavy rock, and I gave the nut a few sharp
cracks as we've seen in previous demonstrations. Liquid squirted out from the
inner shell and soon enough, we had split the coconut cleanly in half...
success!
We tasted the
juice inside and ate some of the fresh coconut meat, which was pretty
delicious. We laughed about it all later, as the whole process had been
something of an ordeal, but it was very cool that we finally managed to get our
own coconut and crack it open, as we had been discussing it for so long.
By this time it
was already getting fairly dark, time for our dinner buffet and show. The food
here at the restaurant has been very good for the most part, and this evening’s
dinner was no exception. Much of it was Chinese in flavor - a different sort of
Chinese food, but quite tasty indeed. The show was performed by some young
locals... much more amateurish and youthful than the previous shows we've seen,
yet still very entertaining, and remarkably good for their age. The wee little
girls were particularly impressive as they concentrated on their dance moves.
It was a good way
to end our last evening here on Huahine. Tomorrow we leave this quiet and
peaceful place for the famed
Huahine to
The trip to
The effect is
probably easier seen in a picture, or best seen in real-life. As Nicci commented,
it's as if you should be able to scoop up jars of water here and there and come
up with a dozen different colors of brightly tinted water.
Immediately upon
arrival at the airport, it was clear
We boarded a huge
catamaran with other passengers bound for the hotels on the inner island, and all of our luggage was transferred for us. The boat ride was
only about 15 minutes, and then we were dropped off at Vaitape, the main
village of this area. We were then transported by bus to our hotel - the
Sofitel Marara, which was built by Dino De Laurentis in the late 70s to provide
luxury accommodations for him and his crew while they filmed here (there were
no hotels of this size yet at that time.)
Our latest room
is billed as an over-water bungalow, though in reality a part of the rear rests
upon a piece of land, with the front and balcony hanging over the water. Though
apparently less luxurious than the most modern over-waters available on this
island, our room is still very nice, everything crafted in local Polynesian
style, and the ever-present woven leaf roof. There are steps and a ladder
leading down to the water from our balcony, enabling you to enter the water and
get out again without ever setting foot on sand. Unfortunately, the snorkeling
in our part of the bay is less spectacular than it has been elsewhere (one gets
spoiled easily when staying a few meters from the coral gardens at Huahine.)
I can't complain
about the luxury of having our own balcony for sunning and laying around
though, overlooking the water. The hotel is somewhat smaller than the others
we've been at, and the pool just pales in comparison with the amazing seaside
pool of Moorea, or the beautifully set pool in Huahine. The service is somewhat
less friendly as well - the locals tend are as cheery and helpful as the other
islands, but a few of the French workers at the activities desk were a bit on
the snooty side.
Add in the rather
large rat we saw scurrying in the greenery near the reception area, and overall
We did very
little else our first day here, except check out the activities book which was
filled with fun and, for the most part, extremely expensive activities which
could be had around the island - horseback riding, 4x4 Safari, deep sea
fishing, scuba diving, underwater submarine, parasailing, jet-skiing, etc. We
signed up for a trip to the Lagoonarium - a large aquatic park in the lagoon
here where they keep sea turtles, as well as the ever-present sharks and rays,
as it seemed to be the easiest way for Nicci to see some turtles (they aren't
that numerous and are usually found outside the barrier reefs.)
There was one
surprise waiting for us though back at our bungalow in the evening - after
dark, a bright spotlight just underneath our balcony shines into the water, and
schools of fish crowd around the light, providing a pretty interesting display
as they splash and swim around in the water.
After breakfast
this morning (again, not quite as good as the ones we had in Huahine), we got
ready for our lagoon excursion which was included in our vacation package. It
would be much like the shark-feeding tour we had in Moorea, but in a much
smaller boat, one of the motorized outrigger canoes which hold only about 8
people.
Our guide, though
his grasp on English wasn't complete, was a cheery and smiling sort, deeply
bronzed like most locals, and handy at the controls of our boat. Our tour took
us all the way around the island where he pointed out the various hotels and
major points of interest along the way, giving us a good idea of
Aside from being
more developed and tourist-oriented,
We stopped during
our tour to feed sharks near the outer reef. The shark-feeding went much like
our last time, except perhaps these sharks came even closer to us as they
munched on the fish parts that our guide threw into the water. The snorkeling
was much better out here as well, with large schools of needlefish evident and
making a great backdrop for photos.
We also stopped
at a beautiful stretch of white sandy-bottomed lagoon, only about a foot deep
and seeming like a large, clear, wading pool which plunged very suddenly in the
distance to a deeper part of the lagoon (where the water turned a deep blue
color at the border.) It was a relaxing and lovely place to stop,
you could just sit on the sand at the bottom and bask in the warm water while
our guide hacked open coconuts for refreshments.
To my great joy,
he used his machete to hack open some large green coconuts, just like the ones
from my childhood in the
The stingrays
here were much more friendly (or aggressive, whichever you prefer) than the
ones in Moorea. They were also a good bit larger in mass. The cheeky fellows
swarmed all around us, smelling the chopped fish that our guide carried, and
nuzzling us trying to get at some of the food. It was a fun activity, kissing
and petting the large, soft creatures.... rubbing them on the "nose"
with fish drove them nuts, and they would seemingly
try to fly out of the water, flapping their large bodies as they tried to
launch at the food.
It was
interesting to note that all the Italian women in the boat were hesitant to
take part in the shark feeding, and never even entered the water for the
ray-feeding. Their loss I say, though the men were a funny bunch, who
enthusiastically participated, and chatted with our guide during our whole
trip.
After we came
back from the excursion, we did little else but sleep and lounge about some
more. Now, we're headed off to dinner at the Bamboo House restaurant, reputed
to be a good place to eat here.
***
Well the Bamboo
House restaurant was a good move. Our first real dinner outside of a hotel
during this vacation, and it was delicious. All the nicer restaurants will pick
you up from your hotel and drop you off after dinner. The Bamboo House itself
is, as it's name implies, made out of local bamboo,
and furnished and decorated with bamboo materials and furniture. The service
was very good, and the food exquisite. I had a pasta dish with smoked Marlin, Nicci had a very tasty shrimp dish with mini-scoops
of vegetables in a light cream sauce. We also ordered a salad and crème brule for dessert afterwards - all of it very good (and it
all cost about as much as the buffet dinner here at the hotel would have - food
prices in
It was fairly
late by the time we returned from dinner. I should mention the night sky out
here is wonderful to look at too... most nights I find myself staring up at the
sky and the bright stars shining up above. The stargazing has been pretty
constantly good, as the weather has been perfect for the most part during our
trip.
Breakfast was a
bit disappointing today, as there were no fresh pineapples available, for the
first time this trip. Not much else to note. Early this afternoon, we'll be
heading to the Lagoonarium to go see some sea-turtles. More
to come later.
***
Well, the Lagoonarium
was - shall we say - interesting? We were picked up at our hotel lobby by a
fairly crazy Frenchman named Xavier. We were very tightly packed into a Range
Rover with 6 Italian tourists, and Xavier promptly set off northbound on the
windy, narrow street - speeding along at what seemed like a rather excessive
speed. It was easily the scariest part of this entire vacation so far... the
few minutes it took us to get to the pier. A couple of the Italian women were exclaiming
out loud in fear as we hooked the corners and sped down the road. Xavier
chuckled and at first exclaimed that he wasn't going fast... it was only the
very brisk wind that made it seem like we were flying. Later on, as the Range
Rover protested around tight corners, leaning precariously as any SUV would, he
complained of British-made vehicles which couldn't handle an easy turn. It was
funny how the wind, and the SUV were to blame....
anything but the fact that he was just going a bit on the fast side.
At the pier, we
boarded another motorized outrigger and set off for the Lagoonarium itself... a
short 5 minute ride across the lagoon to a motu on the far side. It wasn't much
to look at really. Just wire netting forming walls or fences
in the water, separating off a chunk of lagoon from the rest of the water.
Perhaps 50 feet by 150 feet at it's largest, it wasn't exactly the "vast
aquatic park" we had expected.
Xavier quickly
stripped down to a flimsy pareo which barely covered his privates, then showed
us around the Lagoonarium, starting with a small section which held the two
small sea-turtles on display. It was a bit sad, this section being relatively
restricted and small, though the turtles themselves were cute enough, wrestling
each other for the bits of fish that he threw into the water. Next was a fish
exhibit which featured, aside from a wide range of lagoon fish and puffers,
some very large beasties known as jacks. These big,
flat-faced, and streamlined fish were quite massive (up to 70 lbs) - and moved
like lightning to get at the fish thrown at them. You could skip the food along
the water and the big jacks would cross the 20-30 feet or so of open water in a
heartbeat to pounce upon the bits of fish. Pretty impressive
sight.
Finally, we were
taken to the third and largest portion of the Lagoonarium, where all sorts of marine
life could be found, stingrays, white-tipped reef sharks, the larger
lemon-sharks, eagle rays, large puffers, and various other fish. It probably
would have been impressive enough, had we not already seen so many fish,
sharks, and rays in our other adventures here. Still, it was cool to see lemon
sharks and eagle rays for the first time... I particularly liked watching the
eagle rays swim in formation, like a fleet of underwater gliders in unison.
It was amusing as
well to watch Xavier have to reassure the Italian women over and over again
that they would be perfectly safe in the water. It's interesting how pretty
much all of the Italian women on this trip have been very, very reluctant to
participate in any shark-feeding or ray feeding, or anything which might
involve being near scary-looking critters. Xavier didn't seem to mind much,
being the schmoozer extraordinaire, he took his time
coaxing each woman into participating, looking like he really enjoyed this part
of his job.
Afterwards, we
had some coconuts and bananas, and passed the time on the private island until
it was time to leave. Crazy as he was, Xavier was still quite personable, and
at least highly amusing if nothing else. We rode back to the pier afterwards
and were driven back to our hotel (thankfully by a different driver this time)
where we lounged about until dinnertime.
Tonight was our
"romantic dinner" included in the vacation package.
Apparently this was just a regular dinner which included a bottle of champaign at the hotel restaurant. The food was good
enough, though one of the waitresses was new and had a hard time getting our
orders right (it also took hours for them to get all our food to us). It was
okay though, as we were in no rush and were able to
feed the fish swimming right beside our table, including one particularly large
pufferfish which we named "Puffy".
Our last full day
here at
Upon returning to
the hotel, we checked out a two-seater kayak and set off into the lagoon.
Kayaking with two people was remarkably easy.... we crossed our section of
lagoon quickly, and even set off to the Sofitel Motu, the child-branch of the
Sofitel Marara where we are staying. Sofitel Motu is built, as it's name applies, on a nearby motu, it's own little private
island - visible from our bungalow. We crossed the distance relatively quickly,
but didn't land. Our return trip was fairly quick as well... the waves got a
bit choppy in the deepest parts of the lagoon but it was pretty fun overall.
Later that
evening, we returned to the Bamboo House for our last dinner on
Not much else of
note on our last day on this island. Tomorrow we set off for
Our last
breakfast here on
While I'll be
glad to be home, with all the familiar creature comforts and food that isn't
astronomical in price, I'm beginning to get those familiar pangs of sadness.
Not real sadness, but maybe the precursor to nostalgia - a wistfulness that
this wonderful vacation is coming to a close. It reminds me a bit of our trip
to Uruguay, where we stopped at that sleepy little town near Buenos Aires -
where life seemed to slow down so much it's almost at a standstill to Western
eyes.
Time
now to savor a bit more of that relaxed atmosphere before our flight out of
here.
***
The flight to
We checked in to
our day-hotel there, another grand Sofitel (but this one more like regular
hotels – a huge structure with long hallways lined with rooms, just like
you’d see in the US.) After a
short rest, we took the rickety bus into town where we visited
Once again, being
about mid-afternoon, almost all restaurants were closed, but we did find what
passed for a Tahitian fast-food joint, and enjoyed some remarkably decent
burgers. Afterwards, we shopped a
bit more, bought a few souvenirs, then boarded a bus
back to the hotel where we waited for our departure time.
***
Not much more to
tell about the flight home. The
lines were long, the layovers were also lengthy, but overall the flight went
quickly enough (I was lucky enough to spot an extra seat so we had lots of room
during the long trip back). What a
vacation. It’ll take weeks
and weeks to get back into the swing of life outside of paradise I
imagine. No more warm tropical
waters. No more white sand
beaches. No more beautiful lagoons
and picture-perfect snorkeling and fascinating coral structures. Ah, I suppose we’ll have to make
do somehow. And
of course, just another place to add to my long list of must-go-back-and-visit
again travel-spots.