Today's port of Bora Bora almost did not happen. It was on the itinerary for months, then it was cancelled, much to the disappointment of everyone. That changed after the cruise began in San Diego, when we found out it had been re-instated. We do not know why, but no one cared at that point.
There are five archipelagos of French Polynesia. One of them, the Society Islands, consists of the Windward and the Leeward Islands. Bora Bora is one of the Leeward Islands, and one of the most beautiful. There are 10,550 inhabitants that live on the 38 square kilometer island. The circumference of the island is 32 kilometers. The tallest mountain peak is Mount Otemanu at 2400 feet. Mount Pahia is close to that. What sets this island apart from the others has to be the lagoon and reefs that surround the entire island. It has been described as a tropical dream with shades of blue, turquoise and sapphire waters complete with coconut palms and sandy beaches. But that is when the sun is out. Today, not so much, because we had one heck of a rain storm before noon. The main village we tender to is Vaitape.
During our early breakfast, we noticed all of the Pinnacle Grill staff was very excited since many of them have never been here before. We were told a group of them had a private plan for heading to Bloody Mary's, Matira Beach, and a day pass at the Intercontinental Resort and Spa. We had similar plans, but not with that hotel.
The tours offered today were Le Truck – a 2 ¼ hour drive around the island, and a glass bottom boat ride for 1 ½ hour. A 4x4 ride inland was 3 ½ hours, but the shark and ray swim was 3 hrs. A motu beach break with snacks was 3 hours. The tours ranged from $70 to $170. We have done them all except the 4x4 ride. Some more than once.
At 9am, we were visiting with Denise and Howie from our veranda when a school, no a "university" of dolphins appeared right before our eyes. We could all hear some odd noises like a dog barking, then we realized it was coming from the dolphins. A few of the smaller tour boats were herding the various dolphin groups towards our way. Some began jumping as they swam right below us. What a treat to see this display, as well as get some great photos. Eventually, they began to leave, then we saw no more. We did not see them again, but consider ourselves lucky for the free show.
Having difficulty with the internet, we stayed onboard to hopefully complete sending the reports and photos from yesterday. We had hoped that with many folks on tours and on shore, we would have more bandwidth. Finally, we had success. But it was a good thing we stalled going ashore. By 10:20am, the sky opened up with torrential rain, the likes of which we have not seen since being in Luganville, Vanuatu back in 2014. The heavy showers hung on until noontime, then let up. Good time to go.
It was an easy short ride to the pier, which by the way, was being shared by the tender boats from the Paul Gauguin that was also anchored in the lagoon. It had started to sprinkle again, so we headed right for the shuttle bus that took the folks to Bloody Mary's or Matira Beach for $5 each. Well worth it. It filled up instantly. The bus stops at the parking lot at Matira Beach now, and does not drive down the street to the Intercontinental Resort anymore.
From here, we continued walking up the road to see if there were any changes from the last time we were here in 2019. The Sofitel Resort was completely closed down, and looked half destroyed. The Royal Bora Bora Resort was open for business. And the Maitai Resort was up and running. They have several bungalows either on shore or built over the lagoon. And this is where we went to lunch. We figured that Bloody Mary's would be over-crowded with two ships in port. And one of us was not up to sitting on the unstable coconut tree stumps they use for chairs.
The Maitai has an open-air patio for dining with clear panels that drop to keep the rain out. We ordered two large Hinano draft beers, ice cold, along with a margherita pizza. We even shared a plate of profiteroles for dessert. Sure was good. We did have company of a stray dog, who insisted on staring at us, begging for food. He went from table to table, and we are certain someone feeds him.
From here, we walked to Matira Beach, and discovered the old restrooms had been replaced with a modern facility with everything new inside. Most all of the sunbathers and swimmers were crew from our ship, and they were having a marvelous time. They deserve it. We took off our shoes, and walked the surf, mostly because the tide was up. The sands here are full of broken coral and we stopped about halfway to put the shoes back on. And that's when the rain began again, although it was a light drizzle.
We arrived to Bloody Mary's, the famous restaurant and bar from the 1970's. It was already 3pm, and they had closed the dining area at 2pm. The only part open was the bar and those seats were all taken. So we checked out their t-shirts, finding nothing new. Time to catch the shuttle back, we went outside and waited for 10 minutes. While waiting, we spotted two large rats running alongside the road in the grass. Now we wondered how do they keep these rats out of the restaurant when there are no doors? Wish we had not seen that, but these islands are probably loaded with rodents. They need more cats and fewer dogs.
The shuttle arrived and had room for 6 people, so we climbed onboard for the ride back. Of course as soon as we got back to the pier area, it began to rain once again. We gathered some brochures in the tourist office, then decided to walk the town a bit. There were too many people waiting for the tender boat, and we were not in a huge hurry.
We went to the church with the stained glass window. Took some photos, then headed towards the shops. Most of the parking lots were under water from the rain, but it did not stop the ladies from looking at the Tahitian pearl collections. They are gorgeous, but quite pricey. What we were looking for was not jewelry or souvenirs, but bananas. The little ones are the best eating, and we bought a bunch from a vendor in town. Now all we need is some ice cream and nuts, and we can make banana splits.
At the pier, the security folks used the facial recognition tablet once again. We did not have to show our cards until we got back on the ship. The tendering here was easy on and easy off. Being in a protected lagoon sure makes a difference. Back in the room, we got the rest of the sand out of our shoes on the veranda, and began working on the computer until dinnertime. Tonight it was in the Pinnace Grill, where we enjoyed every bite of our usual salads and filet mignon steaks. The ½ baked potato, a spoonful of sauteed mushrooms, and the accompanying tempura onion rings made the meal complete. Desserts of ice cream and one crème brulee topped it off nicely. We noticed that there was a group of what appeared to be a family dining in the side room of the restaurant. There were two kids, one a small baby, and a few ladies. They must have been family of Kainoa's since we spotted him at the head of the table. Obviously they were visiting. All aboard time was 10:30pm, and the ship left around 10:50 in the drizzling rain. We hope to be back here on the 23 world cruise. Maybe the sun will be out then.
Bill & Mary Ann
