Whine & Cheese

TftSP Part XIV: The Finale (Finally!)

Tales from the South Pacific
Thursday Night/Friday, May 26-27th - Bora Bora

Alas, we arrive at the last night of our vacation... really hard to believe.  Out of food options, we decided on ordering...room, err excuse me bungalow service.  We are really not room service people, but believe it or not, here it is an economically viable alternative.  We ventured out for happy hour, where we once again ran into this French couple that we shared the hotel boat with upon arriving in Bora Bora.  The husband is really quite cute, wearing tanks and muscle shirts... but we still had not been able to catch him on the beach to check him out... but I am sure we would not be disappointed. But anyhow, we returned to our bungalow and ordered up some food.

Earlier in the week, we picked up some Hinano beer at the local grocery store... Hinano is pretty much the Budweiser of Tahiti (we even picked up Hinano beer glasses and t-shirts as souvenirs)... so we had that to enjoy with dinner.  Then, after dinner we drank our last night "tradition" of downing a liter of Tahiti Drink - fortunately we were able to find that in the store as well!  The food was just fine (steak and fries) and the alchohol combo let us effortlessly ramble on about all the good memories we had made over the past week... we also enjoyed another great night of star gazing and watched the moon rise up over the ocean/lagoon.

But our vacation was not totally over... although we had to check out at 11am, our boat to the airport did not leave until 5 pm.  Fortunately, the hotel lets you hang on and offers small changing rooms that you can freshen up before your flight.

So we packed our things in the morning.  I did a last round of snorkeling just off our bungalow and then it came time to give up our room.  I tend to take the end of vacations pretty badly... and despite trying to prepare myself for this moment and try to remain stoic... it did not quite happen.  I got emotional on our bungalow deck... getting ready to leave the room... leaving the room... oy, I am such a wuss.  I stopped short of what Oprah calls the "ugly" cry but it was pretty darn close.

With a lot of time to kill, we walk back up to Snack Matira for lunch.  Despite being tempted to order something new... I go back to the very tasty "known" factor of the mahi-mahi sandwich.  We hit the beach for much of the afternoon.  The sun is out more than it has been since we arrived and the winds seemed to die down as well. We could be bitter that it wasn't like this for our entire stay here... but it is hard to not just want to relish these last hours. 

We clean ourselves up in the changing room and have time for one more happy hour... on cue, our French couple is at the bar as well.  We finally engage in some conversation... she starts off in French to which we respond with sad faces that we "no speak"... then, of course, she launches into English.  Arrrgh, silly "don't speak any other language" Americans!!  But as we head off, we wish them "bon voyage" and they seem genuinely appreciative at our little attempt at the French language.

We head on over to the dock and get ready to leave.  The staff gives us "goodbye" leis of seashells (bite lip, bite lip) and before we know it we are on the boat and waving goodbye to them.  With another couple on board our boat, I force myself NOT too look back as my emotions are still teetering on the breaking point.  But I do manage to hold myself together and manage to look back and snap this picture.

But it was just very sad to leave... we had been looking forward to going to for such a long time... the hype and expectations were very high... and somehow these islands somehow managed to exceed those expectations in almost every way.  Todd has tried to comfort me in my "moments"... but I tell him, despite what it seems on the surface, this is the best possible reaction that I could be having... sure these are not happy tears... but they are coming from deeply happy place. 

This vacation has simply been a dream... and there are not too many times in life that you feel like you are actually living them out.

TftSP Part XIII: So That's What Jimmy Buffet Was Singing About?!

Tales from the South Pacific
Thursday, May 26th - Bora Bora

Today was our designated "circle the island" day.  Though my bony butt had recovered from yesterday's bike ride... we still decided to opt for a motorized form of transportation (in retrospect, a VERY wise decision).  The "small" cars and buggies were already rented out for the day (and it was only 9 am)... so we had no choice to go for one of the largest vehicles available to rent -- a four-seater.  When we saw it, we had to laugh... as it was easily the smallest car that either of us had ever been in!

It was fun to get out and see the entire island of Bora Bora... though generally a flat road hugging the coast, it did get hilly at times... so biking it would have been a bit of a challenge... especially hitting those hills 5-6 miles into the ride.  We had all of our tourbooks out to check out the main attractions around the islands (WWII guns, bungalows owned by Marlon Brando)... but no such luck... even on a little hike up a hill on Day 2 of our stay here we were unable to find any of the remnants of the American cannons left on the island.

Since the island road is only 18 miles long, we ended up driving around it twice.  The first time too about 1.5 hours, including some stops.  Since we had the car for 4 hours, it seemed a bit silly to turn it in so soon... and needless to say, the rental fee for 4 hours was probably the same amount of $$ that you would pay in the states for a full day (or even 2 days)!

We stopped for lunch at another local place that caught our eye in the guide books... Snack Matira.  It was just across the road from Ben's Place and was quite the mix.  The menu was completely in French, but the items definitely had an island flavor... though there were certainly the food staples of burgers and pizza.  I had a quite delicious mahi mahi - frommage - frites sandwich (that's mahi mahi with cheese and fries) and Todd opted for the cheeseburger.

Given that we were overlooking the gorgeous Bora Bora lagoon from this roadside eatery I had to take a picture... so I present...

A real-life Cheeseburger In Paradise:

Next Up: Time To Say Goodbye (The finale, finally, for real!)

TftSP Part XII: I Got Starlight

Tales from the South Pacific
Wednesday, May 25th - Bora Bora

After dinner at Ben's, we were treated to the most amazing night sky on the 10-minute walk back to our hotel.  We figured the the stars would be brilliant out here in the middle of nowhere... but thus far, we had yet to look up and see anything mind-blowing.  But mind-blowing is exactly what we got tonight.

If "infinity" could be seen... this was it, just an uncountable number of stars and what I am guessing (I was no astronony freak in school) was the Milky Way... a glimmering blanket of tiny lights crossing the sky.

We wondered where the moon was... we knew it was pretty much a full moon as we had seen on Moorea... but we had yet to see the moon here on Bora Bora.  After getting back to our bungalow, we went out on our deck and continued to enjoy this magnificent show in the sky... and then we finally caught glimpse of the moon just edging up on the horizon.   

We had yet to catch a true sunrise, but dare I say this "moon rise" was just as spectacular.  It rose at a pretty rapid rate... almost as if Mother Nature had her finger on the fast-forward button.  Teasing us, the moon disappeared behind some distant clouds... but it cleared those in a few minutes... and then it came out in full and shot a moonbeam across the ocean and lagoon. 

It was something I will not soon forget.

POSTSCRIPT: Alas, no pictures of this... so it will just have to be tucked away in some safe-deposit box in my mind.  But it was truly a wondrous night... enough to knock the cynic/snark out of you... to be amazed, almost in child-like way, by simply by the stars and moon.  The inspiration of the post title comes from the song I've Got Rhythm (of course!)... and I think it says it all:  I got starlight/I got sweet dreams/I got my man/Who could ask for anything more/Who could ask for anything more?

TftSP Part XI: Beachin', Bikin', Burnin' and Ben's

Tales from the South Pacific
Wednesday, May 25th - Bora Bora

Today was pretty relaxing... some snorkeling (right outside our bungalow... you can climb down to a deck and get right into the lagoon) and hanging out at the beach.  The sun has been sneaking in and out during our entire vacation thus far... which is probably a good thing... since when it is out full force it is pretty much set to "broil."

After the beach, we decided to rent some bikes and explore.  This was supposed to be a dry run to see whether we could endure biking the full 18-mile circuit around the island that we had penciled in for tomorrow.  We ended up biking about 2-3 miles to the main town on Bora Bora - Vaitape.  It was a pretty level road, so not too strenuous... though a bit hot under the afternoon sun... and I think we got more sun biking than we have had on any beach thus far.

While I was worried about my legs lasting the bike ride, it was more my butt and nether regions that felt it.  I started thinking that maybe biking the entire island was NOT a good idea... round-trip we probably did about 5-6 miles... so it would be quite the challenge to multiply that out 3 times more.  But it was fun to get out, get some exercise...and see the people and island without it whizzing by too fast.

Tonight we decided to try and escape the high hotel food prices and check out some local fare.  Ben's Place seemed appealing since it was operated by a Polynesian husband and his American wife.

We were greeted by Ben... who quickly informed us that only pizza was being served for dinner despite a full list of items on the menu board.  He did this in such a charming and honest manner that it was impossible not to respect this aspect of island life.  He had a long, full day of cooking and given his energy level... pizza was the only option.  We laughed at the thought that this would NEVER fly in the States!  Imagine going to a restaurant and being told you can only order one thing off the menu!

Later, an older French couple came in... on should I say "on" ... Ben's place is pretty much a restaurant literally on the couple's front porch.   Ben didn't give his initial warning about the limited menu... so the couple asked about other items, only to be told "only pizza tonight."  Then, the asked how much it would cost... and Ben told them "Tell me what type of pizza you want, I give you price."  Again something that would never fly in the States.  They left and we had the roadside "cafe" with gorgeous views of the water all too ourselves!

The view from Ben's Place:

If Ben was not a character enough, American wife (named Robin, according to the travel guide books) was a real hoot as well.  Definitely a "take no nonsense" lady!  When the French couple left she was all "good... we don't need that type of people."  I should say I do understand why that couple left... and I didn't think they were particularly rude about it... but then again, I don't speak French!

Both Ben and Robin were quite chatty with us.  Ben telling us how tourism has dropped in Bora Bora from a peak of 220,000 visitors to the current 79,000 visitors per year... and he also told us a long, drawn-out story about 2 guys who fell in love on some South Pacific Island... become these great artists and were the toast of the town (or island, I guess!).  I am guessing Ben pulls this story out when he has an all-male couple for dinner... but it was really nice to never have that be an "issue" during our entire trip.  Robin told us how they recently adopted a child who was leaving under abusive conditions (mother was physically abusive, father was an alcoholic).

So it was quite the entertaining evening... really felt like we were spending quality-time with some locals... although they seemed to be some version of a squabbling, but loving, sitcom couple.  Ben losing stuff, Robin telling him where to find it.  Robin complaining he was a messy cook, Ben just quietly grumbling.  And Robin had a tag line of her own... whenever we said stuff like "hope we are not putting you out" or "hope we are not keeping you"... Robin would chirp back with "No problem... we live here!"

Next Up: The Moon and Stars

TftSP Part X: Polynesian Barbe-Cute

Tales from the South Pacific
Tuesday Night, May 24th - Bora Bora

On our first night in Bora Bora we decided to attend the Polynesian BBQ dinner and show.  The resorts have special nights where they do big food spreads and locals come in and perform... we decided to skip the Seafood buffet on Moorea (though we checked it from afar since it was on the beach), but we knew we could make this one no problem.  No surprise, it was ridiculously expensive ... I think about 6500 CPF per person (again you do the math, 100 CPF = 85 cents US$)... and add a couple of 1500 cocktails (again per person) and you see how it all adds up.  But truthfully at this point, we had become pretty numb to the prices (which will probably end when the credit card bill comes in next months!).

The price actually did not end up being all that bad... the food was very high quality and it was all you could eat.  The restaurant was beautiful... kind of four arcs that created a lovely tropical courtyard (where the locals would perform).  We were given about an hour to enjoy the buffet before the show began.  Local men came out pretty much only wearing thongs and did some dancing as well as some "acts of strength."  Of course, we were looking for some eye candy -- and while there were a few guys that certainly did not fit the bill -- there was a guy that got our attention.  Later the ladies came out and shook their bon-bons quite amazingly as well.

The Polynesian men coerce the audience into participating in the "acts of strength" challenge... and a lovely lady with our nominee for Mr. Bora Bora (Whoops!  I think he caught me taking his picture!)

Yes, this show had audience participation as well.  I managed to avoid being dragged into the first part of the show, the "acts of strength" part... although I think I seriously pissed off the local guy as I waved him off.  The guys pulled from the audience had to doff their shirts (again, good thing not me!) and pick up this heavy rock (an even BETTER thing that it was not me!).   

I was not so fortunate in the second half... where each of the show participants picked a member of the opposite sex to do a little dancing... one of the ladies chose me and I had to mimic her moves.  So not that there was any doubts, but I am white AND a dork.  So it was quite embarrassing, but recoverable... and given option #1, this one was the lesser of the two evils.  Some of the audience members really got into dancing with their Polynesian partner... but despite what it may seem here, I am really quite shy and reserved... so I felt a little bad that my lady got a dud!

Ok, time for a W&C first! I have refrained from posting pictures of myself here... but I will give you a hint, one of the people in the picture below is me... can you figure it out?  Sorry, no prizes for correct guesses.

The show finished with the guys returning for some fire baton twirling and dancing... no worries they bunched up the extra fabric on their thongy bottoms so it wouldn't catch fire... but I guess their skin does not burn because they were doing some pretty amazing stuff with the flames (like seriously warming up their private areas)!

Managed to get one shot of the fire show (btw, these pix are from my regulary 35mm camera... my digital cam ran out of batteries at the start of the show... pretty much went thru 4 AA batteries a day!)... and since Linda was asking about the fire show, here it is!

TftSP Part IX: Blowing Into Bora Bora

Tales from the South Pacific
Tuesday, May 24th - Bora Bora

Well, I haven't been good about keeping up with my writing since we arrived on Bora Bora on Tuesday... I am writing this on Thursday, so it is really hard to believe that this time tomorrow we'll be getting ready to leave and our big vacation will be over... well after about 16 hours of travel time between 3 planes and 2 layovers).  But my Bora Bora memories are still fresh...so here we go!

Bora Bora has been amazing... but unfortunately the thing we'll probably remember the most about it is the WIND.  At times, I am guessing the wind has been blowing at a steady 30 mph and gusting much higher than that.  Our bungalow deck overlooking the lagoon and ocean is unbelievably spectacular.. .but after about 10 minutes it is hard to sit out there without feeling you have had a facelift!  The hotel employees keep telling us that it is "winter" here (which it technically is in the southern hemisphere)... but that doesn't quite explain why it was so pleasantly tranquil in Moorea just a few hundred miles away.  We were also told this may the occasional "trade winds" that blow into the area every so often.

Besides, the wind ... the other big difference from Moorea is that the lagoon is not tranquil... there is a pretty good current coming in, despite (as in Moorea) the ocean is breaking several hundred yards out from us.  Again, I don't know if the "winter season" (it is still in the 80s temperature-wise) or the full moon... but it is just quite different... and unexpected from our tropical experience earlier in the week.

The hotel here has been superb.  We thought the Moorea resort was pretty shmancy, but it definitely feels a bit more upscale here.  We were greeted at the dock by a lovely reception gal... taken to the bar where we were given a warm towel and a tropical drink.

Oh, yes we had to arrive to the hotel by boat.  The Bora Bora airport is on one of the motus surrounding the main island... so the hotel "shuttle" is a boat!  It was a breezy 20 minute boat ride all the way down to the southern tip of the island where we arrived at the hotel's private dock.  Yes, all very "Fantasy Island." 

After filling out our registration information, the same lovely lady escorted us to our room.  We pretty much had the furthest bungalow out... she just kept on walking and walking and walking... just when you thought you were at the end of the pier/walkway, you would go around another corner and head out further.  I am guessing our bungalow was at least a quarter of a mile out into the lagoon!

Picture of our overwater bungalow and a hill-top shot of the resort (taken on a different day)... hard to see since I shrunk it down, but I put a few red asteriks over our bungalow in the wide shot... it is pretty much in the center of the photo.

The room was beautiful... as in Moorea, very Polynesian... your own private hut, but with all the creature comforts you could imagine.  The special feature was what our reception gal called the "magic table" ... a glass box that served as a living room table, but you could slide the top back and it was open right down to the water.  So you can grab some day-old bread (available in baskets along the bungalow walkways) and feed the fish right from your room.  Tropical flowers were arranged on the bed, tables, and sink area... and vanilla vines hung down from a trellis over the bathroom area!  Wow wee!

The "magic table" and the vanilla vines over the bathroom area (they look a big gangly here, but they were quite a nice touch!)

Again perhaps another reason why it was so windy for us because we were so far out (could you tell I was a bit TOO obsessed with the wind?!)... and also we didn't have too much of chance to feed the fish... since the wind would pretty much take our bread crumbs and blow them away by the time they hit the water!

But it is a very memorable thing to look out your room window and see the tide coming in...and under (!) the place where you are staying!

Our bungalow deck and view during our stay in Bora Bora... definitely worth getting whipped by the wind for a while!!

[POSTSCRIPT:  Before the hate mail starts rolling in... let me just say, that we both feel INCREDIBLY fortunate/lucky that we were able to (and have/had the means to) experience all these things.  While it cost a small fortune (Yes, even for us!  We are financially comfortable, but I wouldn't say even approaching "wealthy"), we certainly had no regrets over this very special "treat" to ourselves.]

TftSP Part VIII: Somewhere Over The Rainbow

Tales from the South Pacific
Monday, May 23rd - Moorea

Our next jeep tour stops were considerably less worrisome, but no less amazing.  We stopped to see coffee bean plants, vanilla bean vines, and pineapple plantations - all on our way to one of Moorea's most popular vistas - Belvedere Point.  In my continued linguistic inadequacy, I thought Belvedere might be a famous person/explorer... but then I noticed in our travel books that nearly every island had a Belvedere... which... duh, is the French word for "a panoramic viewpoint, photo spot."  This "belvedere" was much easier to get to thanks to a narrow, but paved, curvy road... we had gorgeous views of Cook's and Opunoho Bays.

Cook's Bay and Mt. Rotui from Belvedere Point:

From Belvedere Point... the peak that was the inspiration for the fictional Bali Hi (from South Pacific):

Pineapple plantation... again pretty stupid of me, but I thought pineapple grew on trees?!

One of the more interesting stops were to see some of the island's archeological remains... we saw two maraes (though there were many more we passed by).  I didn't quite grasp what exactly these areas were from our jeep driver... but my guide book tells me they were "places of worship, built in the open air for the purpose of celebrating the religious and social life of the clan.  The gods were honored and invoked, chiefs formally installed, rituals performed and offerings made" including, yes even "human sacrifices."  While not scary (well, okay maybe a tad creepy), I definitely felt a presence in these spots.

The final stop on the jeep tour was "happy hour" at a pineapple distillery, where we had the opportunity to sample all different types of liqueurs.  It was hard to really enjoy them all since our guide was pouring them as fast as we could drink them.  I would guess we downed about 9 shots in about 3 minutes time!  From what I can remember, we had pineapple liqueur, coconut liqueur, vanilla liqueur, coconut cream liqueur, vanilla cream liqueur, and coffee liqueur.

But the discovery "shot" was a concoction called Tahiti Drink.  It comes in a cardboard container similiar to a milk or OJ carton... but with a kick!  It was orange juice, pineapple juice, passion fruit juice with 10% alcohol (what kind I do not know!?).  But given the ingredients you can imagine it was quite tasty -- and a true French Polynesia bargain with a liter costing only 900 CPF ... we have been paying 1200 CPF for ONE cocktail at the hotel bar!  We joined the other couples in purchasing some as a much more reasonably priced way to drink away the evening.

On the way back to the hotel, we experienced our first tropical rain of our vacation.  It was a bit more than a mist but enough to create a rainbow... which almost magically seemed to end right at the foot of our hotel.

If this vacation didn't already seem like a dream...

Had a really wonderful last night in Moorea... we brought our portable speakers for our iPod so we sat on the deck of our bungalow... listened to some great music and enjoyed our Tahiti Drink... which we managed to finish with little worry.

Tuesday Morning, May 24th

This morning we woke up to a steadier rain, but it already seems to be clearing as I write this.  We catch our ride to the Moorea Airport at 1045am and hop our flight to Bora Bora just after 12 noon. 

We certainly do not have any regrets about our first stop here in Moorea.  Before we started researching this trip, I have to admit I had never heard of it (Tahiti and Bora Bora seem to have the big name recognition).  But the island was staggeringly beautiful... I can see why it provided (and provides!) inspiration to artists.  The activities were once-in-a-lifetime... but give our age (and desire!)... I guess we have something to say about that!

But just a great start... while I am certainly sad to leave Moorea, those feelings are tempered in knowing that great things still lie ahead as we head to Bora Bora.

TftSP Part VII: Magic Mountain Thrill Ride

Tales from the South Pacific
Monday, May 23rd - Moorea

Today was the 4x4 jeep tour... but not until the afternoon, so what else to do?  Well, spend the morning on the beach!  We have a feeling we could get used to life in the islands!  The sun was coming in and out of the clouds, so it was a good opportunity to get some color on my front side to offset the bright pink of the back.  The strategy worked, by the end of the day I finally have some noticeable tan lines... and no burn!

The jeep tour got off to a little rocky start after we had a little disagreement with the hotel concierge with whom we booked the excursion.  Ultimately, it ended up being a bit of a language barrier issue -- that our little credit card receipt was the "voucher" we need to present to the jeep tour guide.  But if you believe the stereotype that French people are rude, snooty, and superior-acting... this woman would have done nothing to dispel that... and we thought that even when we were booking the tour with her, let alone when we had this minor fracas.

We joined three other couples on the jeep, which made for a bit of a tight fit.  We lost one of the couples who ended up being Italian... the rest of us were Americans and the jeep tour guide wasn't fluent in Italian (or Spanish, which the couple could also get by on)... so fortunately for them there was another jeep behind us that could deal with their language needs.  It is amazing the number of people we ran into... tour guides, hotel staff, even "regular people" who were multi-lingual... but one thing all these people had in common... there were NOT Americans.  Really makes you feel a bit inadequate to only know one language!

The 2 American couples we ended up on the jeep with were quite friendly... so it was nice to have some conversation (with no language issues!) with some other folks for an afternoon.  The two pairings were pretty much the typical American couples here in French Polynesia... middle-aged financially successful (she a lawyer, he a business owner)... and a pair of young-ish honeymooners.  In a case of "It's a Small World," the honeymooners both were fairly recent MBA graduates from ASU (where I rec'd my grad degree) and were married in Sedona (though they live in Redondo Beach, CA).

The first part of the jeep tour was the most harrowing... a trip up "Magic Mountain." This was true 4x4 action with all of us being tossed and rocked from side-to-side as we ascended a dirt, rock-filled, not very wide, and very steep "road."  The turns were also very tight... which required the driver to back up (do kind of a K-turn) and re-position the jeep to get around the bend.  It was amazing how high up we got so quickly... and I wasn't convinced this little 'ole wire fence would keep the jeep on the mountain.

I know this sounds like exaggeration, but there were many times when all the couples locked concerned looking eyes.  We all knew that this tour runs every day (and multiple times per day)... so it must be "safe."  But we did get into a discussion of how it was odd that we didn't have to sign any waivers.  But we continued on... at times the brakes squealing and the smell of burning rubber as the jeep got temporarily "stuck" in a hole.  We asked the driver if we should get out, until he was able to work it out... as if the jeep suddenly escaped the hole and his foot was full force on the accelerator we would have definitely been going over the edge!

We made it to the top and we were rewarded with the, as promised, magnificent views.  The guide said they call it "Magic Mountain" because of the view, but I am thinking they may have borrowed the name since the trip up (and down!) the mountain was pretty much akin to a amusement park thrill ride... kind of a like a real "Indiana Jones" ride... except that it was all real.

A view of Opunohu Bay and Mt. Rotui atop "Magic Mountain"

One of the "passes" were the ocean breaks through the coral reefs and into the lagoon (actually I think it is vice versa... the lagoon breaking into the ocean).  Around the pass, you can see where the waves break well off the coast line.

Next post: The jeep tour continues...

TftSP Part VI: Many Rays, One Gael

Tales from the South Pacific
Sunday, May 22nd - Moorea

After the shark feeding it was very nice 10-15 minute boat ride along the coast of Moorea to the sting ray feeding area -- a very shallow (3 feet deep) portion of the lagoon.  As with the sharks, and although we were out in their "natural" environment, it appeared that the rays were "trained" to start swirling around once a boat comes in and switches off its motor.

People could not get out of the boat fast enough and start wading through the shallow water to walk, swim, and snorkle amongst the rays.  Again, our guide Siki brought some food out for the rays... but that involved getting under the ray and being careful that it got the food and not your hand (I think that is where the "sting" part comes in)... I think some "normal" folks were helping with the feeding here... but I was more than satisfied just to watch.

The rays were amazing... just effortlessly flapping their "wings" as they glide through the water... they are really quite long from "head" to the tip of their very long tails.  I didn't touch and pick up the rays as others were doing... in fact, it seemed like I was a ray repellent... but I got close enough to enjoy them.  Eventually a dozen or so black-tipped sharks came around as well... so got a double treat with a close encounter with both of these underwater creatures.

Tour guide Siki cuddles with some rays... and a boat-side view of a ray swimming by:

Finally, it was off to the private motu for the picnic.  By that time, we had kind of guessed it was the "other" motu where we had been dropped off at the day before for some snorkeling on our own.

The picnic was very good.... lots of fresh fruit, rice, bbq fish... and one of the island specialties - poisson cru.  This is a raw fish meal consisting of fresh vegetables and marinated briefly in lime juice & coconut milk.  I am not the biggest fan of eating fish in the world - particularly the raw - but I have to admit this was really quite good... and the bbq fish was yummy as well.   And beer and rum punch, too!

The final money making scheme of this adventure was purchasing your own VHS or DVD copy of the day's activities.  This guy caught our eye very early on... and he turned out to be the videographer.  He was all over the place, getting into scuba gear to capture the shark feeding... then otherwise collecting video of the boat trip, picnic preparations, etc.  There were no problems with people signing up for their own copy of the 8000 CPF ($95 US) VHS/DVD that would be delivered to your hotel that same night.  But we know ourselves pretty well... sure we would look at it once, maybe again with some company... but otherwise it would be sitting on some shelf in some closet collecting dust for many years to come.

Now, if the DVD included coverage of the guy TAKING the video we may have reconsidered.  This guy was quite the stud ... think surfer dude with a French accent, just an extremly solid body and pretty darn ruggedly handsome to boot! 

I did manage to secretly snap a few shots of him... so I present... Gael !

My apologies for not getting a shot of the front... I tried, but TRUST me the front is just as good as the back.  Pretty difficult trying to play the  "oh I am REALLY just looking at my digital photos through my viewfinder and NOT taking a picture of you" game.  Though I guessed I shouldn't care... probably won't ever see the guy ever again!?!

Posted a few more pics in the Flickr vacation gallery... also adding a handy link to the gallery under the "About Me" section in the upper right hand sidebar.

TftSP Part V: Boating & Shark Feeding

Tales from the South Pacific
Sunday, May 22nd - Moorea

Our big activity today was a catamaran tour of the Moorea lagoon and also included shark and sting ray feeding and a picnic on a private motu.  The shuttle picked us up at the hotel at 9am and we were off boat waiting for us on Cook's Bay.

We learned about this tour from one of the guys at the Moorea airport.  He struck me as a bit slimy... don't get me wrong quite friendly... but clearly very (over) eager to get people to take his company's particular tour.  When the shuttle dropped us off near the dock, the first order of business was to pay for the day's activities.  The brochure at the airport quoted the cost as 6000 CFP (again 100 CFP = 85 cents US$) - but the people ahead of us were paying 7000 CFP.  We quickly got into a conversation with an American couple that was ahead of us in line ... comparing notes about the 1000 difference.  The spunky gal was having none of the "price increase" they were alleging and paid the lower price... as did we.  Now I would have not argued too much, but the cashier gave in to the lower price without much fuss... so even on a friendly island, buyer beware!

We got to the boat.. and it wasn't exactly a catamaran... well what I picture when I think catamaran... pretty much flat bottom covered "party" boat... but that was perfectly fine.  We cruised around Cook's Bay and the water and surrounding mountains were just gorgeous - still found it hard to believe we were here and experiencing such incredible works of nature.

Our main tour guide named Siki, was quite the character... kind of struck me as more Jamaican than Polynesian... and as the tour progressed a little bit too much of a smartass for my taste... but truly I did not mind, and others were definitely enjoying his personality... doing this tour 4+ times a week would make me a little punchy too!

Anyhow, he named each of the mountains around Cook's Bay... and told us about the formations... trying to convince us that is was some kind of Polynesian Rorschach Test... I saw "face of woman looking up to the sky" in one of the mountains... but thankfully I was not the only one who could not see... I kid you not... "King Kong playing the piano"

Here is a view of Cook's Bay and the surrounding mountains:

Next stop was shark feeding.  We dropped anchor at a deeper spot in the lagoon (guessing 10-15 feet deep) where there was a buoyed line we could hold onto while snorkeling.  We were told to stay on the LEFT side of the line... since the right hand side of the line was a "shark restaurant."  Not exactly the most comforting thing to hear, but with all the tour groups coming by I am sure the sharks are not even very hungry!

It was kind of crazy as everyone was jumping into the water and getting there spot on the line.  By the time I got in, I got a mouthful of semi-salty water (the lagoon is a bit salty... but not as salty as the ocean) and then had to get myself way over to the end of the line.  By the time I did I was a bit tired... and the current was a bit more strong than compared to my earlier snorkeling experience.  My first attempts were not very successful.  Since the water was deeper here I think I was going down too far, thus cutting off my air supply.  Yesterday we had snorkeled in about 4 feet of water, so it is pretty hard to get to deep there. 

But when I did there were dozens of sharks swimming around... black-tipped sharks that we were told were 3-4 feet long.  They were also a ton of other fish and lots of beautiful coral as well.  Don't worry we weren't feeding the sharks... just watching the pros give them some food as we hung onto our buoyed line and watched.  It was really quite an experience.  And while we knew what line NOT to cross, there are not those rules in shark-land!  Just as I was ready to get out of the water... a shark swam about a foot or two right underneath me... talk about an adreniline rush!

Here's a picture of the sharks...thanks to a handy Kodak underwater disposable camera!

Another shark pic can be found on my Flickr vacation gallery.

The tour continues in the next post... with sting ray feeding and the motu picnic.  Stay tuned!