French Polynesia Week 2

Another wonderful day in paradise. This morning we snorkeled around and under the dinghy dock at Taravana Yacht Club. We saw lots of fish both small and medium size. We even found several anemones with clownfish swimming around in the tentacles (remember Nemo?). It was the largest number and variety of fish we have seen so far. Back at the boat we had an early lunch then motored back to the Moorings Base for additional provisioning. There we met who else but Ron and Cindy who had just returned their boat and were flying back to LA. Mid afternoon we left the Moorings marina and traveled around the north coast of Raiatea to a deep secluded bay on the east side. From here we will take the dinghy up river tomorrow to explore ala African Queen.

Overnight rain soaked everything “drying” on the lifelines but the hot morning sun dried it out, at least for a while. After breakfast, we took the dinghy up the only navigable river in Polynesia. After gently bumping over a few stumps and downed branches at6 the river mouth, we motored slowly for one and a half miles. We saw less wildlife than we had hoped but lots of mango, breadfruit and banana growing along the river bank. At one point where the trees arched across the river, we ducked under an eighteen inch diameter spider web. The blazing sun made the shady spots especially cool as we drifted back downstream and back to Faaroa Bay. After lunch we headed for Motu Noa Noa at the south end of the Raiatea lagoon. As soon as we exited Faaroa Bay, the wind died so we motored the 14 miles through intermittent warm rain squalls. As we entered what we thought was the anchorage, we bumped a coral head` and realized we were about 50 yards west of where we needed to be. With apologies to the 200 year old coral we had just killed, we moved and anchored in 25 feet of water over a nice sandy bottom. Cocktails, dinner and cribbage filled our evening until more rain drove us down into the cabin.

We awoke to large gray clouds scudding in from the east promising more rain but for now it is dry with much blue sky. After breakfast we dinghied to the beach at the west end of the motu and snorkeled on the nearby reef. Great snorkeling revealed a variety of multicolored tropical fish. After snorkeling we walked along the beach watching the huge surf on the nearby barrier reef and hermit crabs scuttling along the sand. We met a honeymooning Swiss couple from the only other boat anchored nearby. Back on board, we were finishing lunch when another charter boat motored up. They smiled, waved and proceeded to anchor within 20 feet of us; very dangerous and inexplicable since the available anchorage was empty and huge. Carl suggested they move but the man said it was OK and they were only staying for an hour! Within minutes a slight wind shift caused the two boats to swing together. Six fenders prevented damage to the boats while our new “neighbor” tried to raise his anchor to move but his windlass jammed. Carl let out another 30 feet of chain to get away from him. Finally they moved about 50 yards away and calm returned to the anchorage. As for the one hour stop, they were still there next morning! In the afternoon we went back to the snorkel spot a short dinghy ride away to see more magnificent fish. A great supper cooked aboard and a couple of rounds of whist brought an end to one of our favorite days afloat (in spite of the anchoring fiasco).

After breakfast we motored five miles along the lagoon then through Passe Punearoa. Once clear of the pass, we hoisted sail and had a great sail northeast along the western shore of Raiatea. The winds were mostly 10-12 knots which moved us along nicely at 5-5 ½ knots. There was an occasional gust to about 20 knots which heeled us over and sped us p to 6.5 – 7.5 knots. Along the way we saw numerous Red Footed Boobies coursing low across the water. Everyone loved the sailing and by noon we had to drop the sails to motor though Passe Rautoanui. Once safely through the pass we discussed options and decided, luckily as it turned out, to go directly back to the Moorings Base for our last evening. As we got close to the marina, Carl called on the radio to make sure a mooring was available.. Soon after that call, we heard our boat, “Pitai” being called o the radio. They asked if we had received the message from yesterday. When we said we had not they read us the message from Sandy’s brother, Alan. Sandy’s mom suffered a mild heart attack on Monday but she was in stable condition. As soon as we moored the boat, we went ashore to the Moorings office where the manager, Patricia Hubbard, took us to her office and left us alone to use her phone. We called Alan and learned the details. We planned a conference call with Alan and the doctors for Thursday morning after additional tests we completed. The options are angioplasty with stents or bypass surgery. Whatever will be done will happen no sooner than Monday, giving Sandy & Carl time to get home. With nothing else to do about the situation back home, we walked about an hour to the town of Utoroa where we shopped for pearls, drinking water, ice cream, rum and a baguette. We bought some of everything except the pearls. Along the way we passed a local dance school where young children were learning Polynesian dancing. The windows were open so we stopped to watch. It was fun and they were really cute. A quiet evening aboard while we snacked our way through uneaten food and postponed packing brought an end to our sailing adventure.

We spent the early morning packing and cleaning so by nine AM we were motoring back to the Moorings marina to return the boat. We called Sandy’s brother but there is no more news. No additional test results and a suggestion that any surgery would be later next week. For now we will wait and see what develops. We didn’t realize that our charter included use of a day room at a local hotel prior to our late afternoon flight from Moorea. We were taxied to a lovely oceanfront hotel where we swam, showered and had a nice lunch before our taxi to the airport. The 40 minute flight back to Tahiti followed by the ten minute flight to Moorea were uneventful. We were picked up at the Moorea airport and driven to our rental house. Elliot booked it as the only two bedroom, two bath house on Moorea, owned, not surprisingly, by Americans. The house is a gem, Balinese teak furniture, thatched roof, very well equipped. It will be a nice week here.

We all spent a pretty quiet night though the beds rolled a bit during the night as our ears got accustomed to being off of the boat. Sandy spoke to both her brother and mother. It looks like surgery will take place on Wednesday so Sandy & Carl will leave Monday to be there. After lunch we rented a car and drove along the north coast of Moorea. We stopped at a few boutiques then headed up the road to the Belvedere overlook, providing a wonderful vista of both Cook’s and Oponuano Bays. We also stopped at the agricultural school where we enjoyed mango, passion fruit, coconut and vanilla ice creams. In the evening we went to the Tiki Village where we enjoyed over four hours of food and entertainment including a rum punch while watching a magnificent sunset (see Elliot's Photo below) and a coconut demonstration. We learned about the traditional Polynesian underground cooking techniques and watched them open the pit to remove some of what would be our dinner. We were taken on a tour of a recreated Polynesian village and learned about the uses of different buildings. We were told that since the entire family sleeps in one big room, babies were made, “on the beach”. The dinner was excellent with a wide variety of Tahitian and other island specialties. We shared or dinner table with a honeymooning couple from San Francisco and another couple where the man was from Moorea and the woman from China. After dinner we were treated to over an hour of high energy Polynesian dancing with some of the fastest hips in the universe and lots of flaming torches. It was hard to tell which parts were traditional and which were just for tourists but it was wonderfully entertaining.

This morning we drove back along the coast and hiked the trail through the agricultural school where we saw fields of pineapple, forests of papaya, pamplemouse and mangos as well as many types of flowers. There were several types of ginger, heliconia, bird of paradise and other beautiful, though unidentified flowers. Next we drove to the Golden Nugget, a jewelry shop Sandy had read about. They had a wide array of hand made gold and black pearl jewelry. Sandy fell in love with a fabulous pendant after trying on a half dozen different ones and a few rings as well. We then checked out the public beach but decided to move on. We had a late lunch at a local restaurant then we went back to the house to review a weeks worth of photos and spend a quiet evening at home.

We thought we were booked on a 40 person whale & dolphin watch but when we arrived on the dock we were alone. We finally found the boat captain who said we were his only passengers. Off we went in a 25 foot inboard usually used for parasailing. The scenery off the Moorea coast was magnificent. We saw several Humpback Whales at a distance including one that spy-hopped then breached. The real highlight of the trip was the Spinner Dolphins. We encountered two pods of 10-20 animals each. They swam alongside and in front of the boat. It was exciting to see them so close. We then went to the resort’s private motu where we saw stingrays up close, as in swimming over our feet. We could reach down and pet them which we all did though it did evoke sad memories of Steve Irwin. It was past lunch time so we went in search of the Chinese restaurant we were unable to find yesterday. The good news is that we found it; the bad news is that it is closed on Sunday. We drove back to a small oceanfront hotel we had seen from the boat and had a delightful lunch overlooking the beach and the reef. Back at our house we spent a very quiet afternoon reading and looking at more pictures. As the afternoon blended into evening, Sandy and Carl began to pack. They will head home tomorrow to be with Sandy’s Mom.

It was a long, tiring and occasionally stressful day and when it was over we were no closer to home than when we started, though all the pieces were in place. We were up before 6 to catch an 8:15 AM flight from Moorea to Papeete. For reasons we will never understand, Air Tahiti Nui could not change our tickets on the phone. We were told to come to Papeete this morning to rebook our flight. The trip from Moorea was pleasant and quick (a ten minute flight ). At the Tahiti airport we learned that the airline had no office at the airport, only downtown. We checked our luggage and took the $25 cab ride downtown. Once there we were quickly reticketed for a flight at 11:30 tonight. Next we needed to rebook the LA to Boston leg and Carl ran out of cell phone time while fighting with the United Airlines voicemail computer. Then we needed to find a Post Office to get a cell phone recharge card, followed by the call to United and then to our limo driver. We accomplished all of this before 11 AM. We were greatly relieved but now we had over 12 hours to kill. People had told us that Papeete was an unattractive city in spite of its tropical location. They were right. We shopped, checked email at an internet café, went to the city market, shopped some more, ate lunch, walked along the waterfront, stopped for a drink, shopped some more and it was only 4 PM. We taxied back to the airport (only $18 !), reclaimed our luggage and settled in for the four hour wait until we could check in for the flight. When we checked in, we learned that departure was delayed one hour until 12:30 AM. Plenty of time for a sumptuous meal of airport food and some more waiting. Sandy is getting really good at doing Sudoku puzzles.

As Monday became Tuesday we were still sitting in the Air Tahiti Nui departure lounge. Actually, Carl was sitting, Sandy was napping on the wide leather bench. The flight began boarding at 12:05 and we were airborne by 12;30. After a drink and so-so dinner, we napped fitfully for almost five hours, waking in time for a so-so breakfast and a landing in LA. Getting through immigration and customs was a snap and we walked about ten minutes to the United Terminal. It felt good to be moving under our own power. At the United departure gate we learned that the flight to Boston was delayed due to air traffic control problems on the east coast. It finally departed at 3:30 and arrived in Boston at 11:50. We met the limo and were back in our condo at 1:30 AM, roughly 36 hours after we left the house in Moorea. Sandy’s Mom’s surgery is scheduled for 7 AM Wednesday and we will be there.