Blogs from Bora Bora, French Polynesia, Oceania

Bora Bora. It is a place that I had always wanted to go, purely for the fact that it sounds like a faraway remote exotic tropical paradise. I can say that all of those adjectives describe it very accurately, except for 'exotic'. At one point in time, maybe 20-30 years ago it would have been exotic, but not anymore, not in a place that boasts Four Seasons and St. Regis-type high-end resorts, a runway that can land G550's, and an anchorage that welcomes cruise ships........nothing ruins 'exotic' better than a cruise ship. As we were taking the tender into shore one of the nights we were there, we heard the sound of the beating of a drum. As one of the guys put it, 'if you heard that sound in Papua, you wouldn't continue going to ... read more

Tourism is the world's largest and fastest-growing industry, accounting for 10 percent of world economic activity and one in 15 jobs worldwide. Some 750 million people a year currently travel abroad compared to only 25 million in 1950, and each year over 100 million first-world tourists visit developing countries, transferring billions of dollars from North to South. Tourism is the only industry that allows a net flow of wealth from richer to poorer countries, and in the islands it's one of the few avenues open for economic development, providing much-needed foreign exchange required to pay for imports. Unlike every other export, purchasers of tourism products pay their own transportation costs to the market. Australia provides the largest percentage of the one million plus tourists who visit the South Pacific islands each year, followed by the United ... read more

Just finished my second day, first full day on the boat. Je suis tres tres tres rouge. What an amazing day though?! I woke up very early to watch the sunrise over Raiatea island. Some of the other passengers slowly started stirring as well. Hinano was the first, she came outside to take care of a few things with the ship and asked me if I meditate. “Non, je regard le lever du soleil.” Stephane was next to join me. The last two were the German couple who slept in well past the time the rest of us had eaten breakfast. We all kind of said that we slept okay, but it had grown too hot once the generator was shut off. But we all lived and we are in paradise. What do we really have ... read more

Five straight days at sea are wonderful. Plenty of time for lectures, paddle tennis, blogging,dancing, emailing and socializing. We had good weather all the way from Hawaii to Tahiti. The traditional equator crossing ceremony was great fun especially with Terry Waite in the role of King Neptune welcoming all the polliwogs into the ranks of seasoned shellbacks after their initiation. Mr Waite’s lectures are very popular and he is as highly regarded on the ship as he is throughout the world. He loves to dine outside, as do we, so we have been fortunate to share meals on the veranda with this gentle giant of a man. Mr Waite takes great joy in life and loves meeting and mixing with people. But after five years in confinement-- mostly solitary, it is no wonder that he craves ... read more

ADVENTURES IN PARADISE We arrived in Tahiti earlier than schedule which was fortunate because on Saturday everything shuts down around noon. The wharf is right in the heart of downtown which makes it very convenient for exploring this trading town. We always like to go to the Marché de Papeete—the community market—to pick up a bouquet of gorgeous tropical flowers or buy a new pareo—the colorful Tahitian version of a sarong. Along with Tahitian handicrafts, the market has fruits, vegetables, fish, eggs—it’s an all-in-one shopping stop. On the way we passed a group of Tahitian men assembled on a sidewalk, each with a musical instrument, having an islander style hootenanny. One inventive musician was using a plastic water bottle filled with small rocks, giving the music a distinctive beat. We went to their version of Macy’s, ... read more