Well, today was supposed to be a lazy day at sea before arriving to our stop at Fakarava. It was during breakfast time, that Captain Thomas made a surprise announcement that we were going to Fakarava this morning, a day early, and spending the night at anchor in the lagoon. How about that? We had wondered why the ship's speed had increased to 17 knots, and now we know why.
It was going to be another hot and sticky day with the temperature already 81 degrees and humidity 85%. The winds were 16mph, which helped cooling us off. The Zaandam arrived to the north Garuae Passe around 10am then dropped anchor near the village of Rotoava.
But first, here is some info in a nutshell. Fakarava is the second largest atoll in Polynesia and the ex-capital of the Tuamotus. Rangiroa, where we first stopped November 1st, is the capital these days. Along with 6 of the close by atolls, Fakarava has been named a Natural Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. The emerald waters of the lagoon has exceptional diving to see corals, density of fish, rays, and a strong concentration of gray sharks. In the month of July, groupers arrived in massive numbers to spawn in the lagoon, attracting many predators such as the various sharks. We can personally testify that there are nurse sharks up to six feet long that swim in the shallows of the lagoon and the sandy beaches.
The two passes into this massive lagoon are Garuae meaning north and Tetamanu meaning south. The north pass where we entered is the largest pass in all of Polynesia. The main village is Rotoava and Tetamanu in the south. This lagoon is also famous for the black pearl farms.
There were no shore excursions offered here from the ship. Some folks booked independent snorkel-related tours online well before the cruise began. Those private tours would take place tomorrow as planned.
There was a brunch in the dining room from 9:30am to 12:30pm, so we doubt it was well attended due to the change in plans. From our "window" table in the Pinnacle at breakfast, we began to see folks loaded down with backpacks and snorkel equipment as they made their way to get tender tickets either in the Wajang Theater or in the Ocean Bar. Dario announced the restriction of food, fruit, and beverages including coffee before the ship was cleared by 11am. You would be surprised how many of the paper cups of specialty coffees are left on a table before going down the stairs from deck one to A deck. Bottled water is OK.
We left the ship by 12 noon and had a pleasant but longer than normal tender ride to the pier in Rotoava. Once again we were handed tiare blossoms and greeted by a band of hefty islanders playing ukuleles, drums, and singing. There were no printed maps handed out today, since we were not scheduled for this morning. From past visits, we knew it was a long walk to the Havaiki Resort and lunch at a snack shack. It is an interesting hike where we passed a few eateries, houses, tiny shops, government buildings, a school and a string of narrow beach. This is where most sun lovers and beach-goers end up on the small bit of sand under the shade of coconut and casuarina trees.
By the time we got past two churches, we knew we were halfway. This Catholic Church is a peaceful place with a cemetery in the back. Since we will be here tomorrow, we thought we would save the walk about there until then. Along this stretch of shoreline, we kept an eye out for those nurse sharks. We saw a few large ones swimming very close to the guests in the water. They tend to glide over shallow rocks and coral that is the same color, so people don't see them. One 6-foot shark came close enough to the shallow edge, we got great photos of it. We were told they don't bite. Well don't believe that as these are wild creatures and they do survive by eating fish. Last year while on this same trip, three people got bitten, one severe enough to be treated at the emergency onshore.
Some passengers we knew had already walked this way and claimed nothing was opened down at the end of this road. They turned around and were going back towards the pier. We had checked out the snack shack and it said online that they were opened. We continued on taking the sandy road straight along the water like we always have. The coral main road took a turn to the left at this point.
A short way down this way, we spotted a gate spanning the width of the road with a sign saying private property.....no trespassing. Well that was a surprise. So we went back to the main road and followed it around a right turn and walked in the heat to the main entrance of the resort. We decided to turn right before the sign, and found we were walking alongside the private property fence. At this end of the pathway, we encountered a deliberately dropped 50-foot multi-limbed tree trunk across the entire sandy road. Not wishing to back track, we climbed over this tree trunk carefully and made our way to the entrance of the resort.....cursing all the way. There must be a reason why this homeowner blocked this access such as too many tourists passing by or they were having a turf war with the resort.
Maybe due to the road block, the snack shack, Le Requin Dormeur was not crowded like it normally is. We were able to get a table for two under their palapa and enjoy a shared burger with fries, and two Hinano bottles of beer. A very nice Canadian couple we have had the pleasure of meeting was also there, so we relaxed while visiting with them. We did not look forward to the hot and steamy walk back, but after an hour or so, it was time to leave. On good thing was that the ship was over- nighting and we did not have to worry about the all aboard time.
Going back, we took the long way around, not wanting to tackle the tree trunk. By now, we had sipped all of the water we brought and were in need of a lot more. There was a very small market along the road, but we did not have any francs and doubted they took US dollars. For sure, there would be ice water and lemonade back at the pier.
Well, we were out of luck, because the crew had run out of water completely. That was a big mistake because there were a lot more folks heading back like us having spent the day in the sun, expecting refreshments like always at the pier. We were loaded up quickly and back to the ship by 4:30pm where we drank plenty of ice-cold Coke Zeros and water.
Watching from our veranda, the sun went down behind a horizon of clouds...not really impressive. The tender service ended by 7:30pm and by then only the lights of the airport were bright and visible. Not much in the village would be opened that late.
Dinner was good with 2 Caesar salads, one crab and shrimp tater tot and beef short ribs with a Thai green curry on the side. It was a bit too spicy for one of us. Coconut rice and assorted veggies completed the main course. Desserts were one custard and one scoop of strawberry ice cream. Just enough to satisfy the sweet tooth.
Entertainment was a performance of the singers and dancers with Feel The Beat. We were literally "beat" and called it a night.
Tomorrow will be Fakarava....day two.
Bill & Mary Ann
