The Zuiderdam arrived to Tahiti, French Polynesia very early this morning under mostly blue skies and calm seas. Although we have been here many times, it is always a thrill to return.
In a nutshell, French Polynesia consists of 5 archipelagos that span an area of 5.5 million square kilometers. The combined population of all of the islands and atolls is 292,151 natives with the capital being Papeete, our port of call for today. The language is French, Polynesian, and some English.
The Society Islands is the largest archipelago with two groups. They are the Windward Islands of Tahiti, Moorea, Maiao, Tetiaroa, and Mahetia. The Leeward Islands are Huahine, Raiatea, Tahaa, Maupiti, and Bora Bora considered the Pearl of the Pacific. Too bad we are not stopping there this time.
The Tuamotu and Gambier archipelagos include low islands and many atolls, rings of coral most with lagoons. We have visited Rangiroa and Fakarava in the Tuamotus finding them very remote, interesting and serene.
The Australes have five inhabited islands and are located far south of the other groups of islands. And lastly, the Marquesas have 12 high volcanic islands with no lagoons. Only six of those islands are inhabited. The one we often stop at is Nuku Hiva, about as remote as they get.
Polynesia has been described as about as dreamy as reality gets. We agree 100%. We have never seen waters so blue and aqua-green especially in the lagoons of Bora Bora and Moorea. The best experience is sharing these waters with fish, dolphins, rays, turtles, coral gardens, and even sharks. All types of sharks. What a thrill.
So what do the locals eat here? In a word…..FISH. It is served grilled, fried, poached, and marinated influenced by the French, Chinese, and Polynesian cuisine. Add starchy taro and breadfruit with a variety of tropical fruit, and you have a well-rounded meal. And there is fast food as well like McDonalds and Burger King….the most crowded places we saw today.
And so our day began with breakfast as usual, but we had to laugh when we saw that the back entrance had been blocked by chairs. Very funny, Tina. We all had no problem getting to our tables that we like. And to make it sweeter, they served us Tahiti (Panama) rolls, which we had spotted being served at 6:30am on the bow. Our nice waiters went and got a trayful for all of us.
We went out on deck three to watch the tour groups and guests getting off to receive beautiful leis from mostly the officers and crew. This has to be something they pay extra for, because we did not get the fancy leis on the Legendary Tales of the South Pacific last fall. We were handed a single fragrant flower instead. Whatever, it was a nice and proper greeting and made for good photos.
We left the ship around 9:30am, walking around the many dropped blossoms all the way to the gate. The skies were mostly blue, but there was a black cloud coming over the top of the mountains from the east, dropping some light rain. This is very common and with the temps in the 80's, it actually felt fine. By the time we crossed the main street to the Marketplace, the shower had stopped.
We took our usual walk which took us past the nice fabric shops. As much as I like to look, I knew better than to stop. It was hard, but I did it. Once I look, I find something I cannot resist. Anyway, we entered the busy market and saw that it was decorated for the Lunar New Year, which just happens to be tomorrow. We understand it is the year of the Snake. Now there was one item that intrigued us and that was Monoi oil, which is made here. It is a concoction that is made from coconut oil mixed with tiare or gardenia flowers, sandalwood, vanilla, or coconut and jasmine. It is used as a hair oil, ointment, sunscreen, and even mosquito repellant. So we finally bought a small bottle of the tiare one and we will see if it is the miracle it is reported to be.
Then we headed upstairs to check out the island clothing and the many boutiques selling pearl jewelry. Gosh, it is expensive as is everything in Polynesia. There are outside tables where the lesser quality of pearls are sold, but they are mostly costume jewelry. One of our missions was to purchase some fresh flowers, but we would do that on our way back. Passing by the produce and fish tables, we noticed that for the first time, that all of the fish for sale were covered with clear plastic wrap. It sure looked much better without the flies that want to land on it.
We headed out the back and towards the Catholic church, which was still closed. We have always been able to tour it, but not for the last couple of years. One of the nicest stores is the Hinano Shop where three new t-shirts were purchased. From there we headed into the gardens of the Assembly, betting permission from the guard at the gate. It is such a lovely spot with the pond and river running through it. And not crowded. Usually there is a display of crafts from the Australes, but only on weekends. Today it was empty.
Crossing over the street, we entered Bougainville Park taking photos of the giant banyan trees and cannons on display there. With one last stop at the marketplace for flowers, we went back to the ship to stash our treasures. We spent an hour cooling off and downloading pictures before heading out again at 2pm. Since we only have one full day here, we had to make it to lunch at our favorite pizza place. It was a good thing we thought to bring umbrellas, because while waiting at the stop light, we saw lightning, and heard thunder, and it began to really rain. It always starts lightly, then suddenly, it was a downpour. It did cool the air off nicely.
By the time we reached the restaurant, the rain had slowed down a bit. We were seated quickly, because there were few diners in there at this time of day. Of course we ordered two draft beers in super large glasses, then split a Hawaiian pizza, what they call normale -size. So good. We added a dessert of profiteroles which came in a soup bowl. Upon seeing the huge dessert, we must have said wow, and attracted some attention from nearby diners. The young lady came over and had to ask exactly what that dessert was. After describing it, she said they will have to try that the next time they came in here.
We walked through the Paofai Park, passing the Paofai Church on the way. This one was also locked up. We did notice that there were a few homeless-looking people laying in the side entrance ways, which you might see in any big city around the world. That is probably one reason these doors are locked. The park was not full of locals today due to the rain we suppose and the fact it was not the weekend. We were back onboard with a very steep climb up the gangway by 4pm. The remainder of the afternoon was spent processing pictures and working on reports…our favorite things to do.
Before we knew it, dinnertime had arrived. There was a Tahiti Roulette Fest in the Lido Poolside, which was a food truck-style feast where they served French Polynesian, Turkish, Mexican and Indian foods. We checked the Vaite Plaza for the real local food trucks, but only saw a few set up. It was the dining room for us with the usual starters of shrimp cocktail and Caesar salads. Mains were one chicken-fried steak (the comfort food entrée) and one English beef and Yorkshire pudding meal. Both were very good, served hot without a long wait. Head waiter Asep came over for a visit, and we caught up on where some of our favorite head waiters are working these days. He said that after Covid, many of the top head waiters eventually found work in America in the hotel and restaurant industry and never returned to the ships. Some retired.
There was a special presentation in the World Stage of a local Tahitian folkloric show called Mana – The Spirit of Tahiti. We saw this same song and dance performance last November, and can say it has not changed one bit. Very well done and well-attended as well.
Tomorrow we will be in Moorea with a sail in time of 5am or so. Doubt we will see it.
Bill & Mary Ann
