A very short distance from the island of Tahiti, is the sister island of Moorea, home to 16,000 people. Sometimes it is referred to as the Magical Island. Moorea is a real paradise. Laid back with several high-end hotels, this heart-shaped island created by an extinct volcano has much to offer. We have lost track of the number of times we had the pleasure of visiting here, but we do know that we have done most all of the tours offered. The viewpoints from Belvedere and Magic Mountain are stunning on a good day. A trip to Tiki Village reveals what this area looked like in Captain Cook’s days. Artisans and craftsmen make wooden handicrafts, dye sarongs, and demonstrate the art of tattooing the old fashioned way. Decades ago, we met “Mr. Tahiti” who was tattooed from head to toe…..his claim to fame. All we could think was how much that must have hurt.
Too bad we are NOT going there today. Captain Mercer made the announcement during breakfast this morning, much to the disappointment of the guests and crew also. No surprise to us, as the seas were angry, as were the 55 knot apparent winds howling across the decks. It would be too dangerous to navigate through the narrow opening to access Opunohu Bay, let alone attempt tendering the guests ashore. And with the recent problems with canceling the tendering process in Easter Island, the Captain made a wise decision we think.
Come to think of it, the Moorea tour vendors were not so pushy trying to sell their pre-paid excursions in Papeete yesterday. One lagoon tour they offered was to swim with the sharks and sting rays, then enjoy fruit and drinks at picnic tables on a sandy beach. All this for $50 per person, and you could stay from 8:30am to 3pm if you wished. So the locals probably knew our stop was going to be cancelled.
There was a bigger problem, since we heard that about 45 people had gone over to Moorea on the ferry yesterday for either an HAL tour or an independent tour. The plan was to spend the night at one of the resorts, then join the ship when we got there. Surprise….now they would have to return by the ferry today, and hope to book a flight to one of the next ports. And this would depend on available flight space on small planes. Sure hope we see these folks sometime soon. Surely we will hear some stories through the “grape vine” when they do return.
At least the EXC tours will be refunded. They included site-seeing, scuba diving, a dolphin encounter, photography expedition, snorkeling, and a 4 x 4 safari ride. Prices ran from $100 to $240. And we expect the port charges will be refunded to all of us.
So, we were on our way to the next port of Bora Bora, and since the distance was not all that far, we should arrive around 4 or 5pm. The seas remained choppy with some pretty good swells as the ship headed into the driving storm. Rain fell heavily off and on most of the day. There was a brief clearing, when we went to the pool to catch some rays. The pool was over-flowing and picking up enough speed to send light showers our way. This gave us the idea it might be a good time for lunch in the dining room.
Barb was surprised to find us at our table, but glad to be able to catch up on news. We had a dinner planned in the Pinnacle Grill, so we would not see her the rest of the day. The theme for the casual meal this evening was tropical paradise dinner. That meant decorations of shiny green palm trees with golden streamers hanging to the tabletops. Philip had seen to it that every trunk of streamers were cut in half, mostly because the ends hung in the food and drink of the guests. We kept lunch light, then shared a small sandwich at 3pm.
New daily newsletters had to be printed with today’s revised itinerary. Now we were scheduled to arrive to Bora Bora and be anchored at 7pm, spending the night in the lagoon.
Around 4pm, we went to deck six forward to watch some of the other islands we never get to see during the day. The first one was Huahine, followed by Raitea and Ta haa. Rain showers completely covered the islands at times, but the wind is what we will remember. No way could we go to the front of deck six and be exposed to that strong of a gale. Now we were thinking it will be a miracle if we make it to Bora Bora also. Sure would hate to miss that one.
Within the hour, we began to see the tall peaks of Bora Bora as the clouds parted. There were a few sea birds, possibly brown boobys, then some small flying fish, but the best was seeing three dolphins jumping near the ship. They appeared so quickly, then dove down just as fast. If you blinked, you would have missed them. It was then, that the pilot turned the ship to very carefully enter into the lagoon. The coral reef here is well marked, but if we veered off track, there could be damage for sure.
By 6pm, they dropped the anchors in the lagoon, and announced that the tenders would be operating until 1am. There was a problem with that, since today was a Sunday, and we know that most everything is closed, especially at night. Going over to shore tomorrow will be good enough for us.
Dinner was good, as always, in the Pinnacle Grill. The food was cooked perfectly, and the service was seamless. Walking around the outside deck, we discovered the rain was coming down in buckets. We doubt too many people will go over to shore tonight. But at least we made it here.
Wishing for a nice dry day tomorrow…..but it is like wishing for a miracle.
Bill & Mary Ann
