Tahiti, French Polynesia

Papeete

It was very exciting the day we docked in exotic Tahiti, especially since it was an overnight stay. The dock was right in the heart of Papeete, the largest city on the island. It was mid-afternoon when we ventured off the ship so we headed to the market which was due to close soon. On the way, Steve found a pin for his hat.

Post-market Steve & I decided to walk the quay. Aj & Jenna went ahead in search of a beach. The walk was pleasant with a breeze but we still were happy when we discovered a place to sit and have a drink. Later we met up with AJ & Jenna for dinner. Originally we thought about doing the Food Trucks, however, the menus didn’t look that great so we decided to go elsewhere. Main Street had a lot of restaurants from which to choose. We chose a pub that looked very busy — always a good sign that the food is good. Jenna was slightly surprised when her dinner came and the fish was raw. Like a trooper, she ate it. The rest of us played it safe and ordered hamburgers or flatbread pizza. Turns out Jenna had a typical Tahitian meal. Then we saw a huge vat of beer being brought out to a table with only 2 women sitting there. More power to them.

Touring Tahiti

During the tour, we learned that tourism is the main industry. They have trade schools specializing in hospitality and restaurant management. The government subsidizes the gas and economy cars. The hospital uses the resources of the ocean to cool the hospital saving upwards of $ 1 million dollars a year.

Point Venus

Point Venus turned out to be an interesting park. It is where Captain James Cook established an observatory to watch the trajectory of Venus in June 1769. Another famous encounter was the HMS Bounty which anchored there in 1788. The first picture is the structure designed by and later dedicated to Robert Louis Stevenson.

Museum of Tahiti and the Islands

This was a fascinating museum showing the history of the Polynesian people. Founded in 1974 to preserve both Polynesian artifacts and culture, it is well worth a trip to see it when you are on the Island. During our visit, there were school kids collaborating on completing their assignments. We smiled as one kid turned to her friend pointing to a question on her paper and her friend responded “I have no idea”.

The Cool Cave and WaterFall

After lunch at a great restaurant, we traveled to a waterfall and the Maraa Grotto. The grotto was so nice and cool, it was a refreshing change from the hot and humid surroundings. At the Grotto, there is a “No Swimming” sign. School kids used to come and swim blocking the tourists from being able to enjoy the grotto. The government then put up signs and enforced the no swimming ban. School kids still swim but now they wait until after the tours have finished.

Moorea

The next stop, Moorea, was only 10 nautical miles from Papeete. It was another tender port. Jenna was not feeling well so Steve, AJ and I headed out on our own. We grabbed a cab to a small village area. After walking around we stopped for lunch. My lunch was garlic shrimp -yum! After lunch, we walked to the beach.

The cab driver on the way back to the dock was very informative. She talked about the recent decision from the government of Bora Bora to close their port to cruise ships over the size of 1500 passengers due to the vulnerability of the reef and lagoon as well as shore tour capacity.  This did affect our itinerary as we were originally scheduled to dock in Bora Bora. She told us they were used to getting about 3 cruise ships per month. Now they are getting a cruise ship almost every day. I can’t image how they are meeting the demand they now face.

The following pictures are of the dock at Moorea and the palm tree cell towers that are so popular in French Polynesia. Steve shopping at the small shopping center. Actually, we all shopped there. Then AJ wading into the water. It was a bit cooler than he expected. The last picture is a hotel that was next to the beach.