3RD Stop: Fatu Hiva

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Fatu Hiva
Feb 15th 2009
Small island known for wet weather, wood carvings and engravings and tapa.
We stopped at Omoa and at Hanavave between 9 am and 4 pm; I like 2 stops as between visits to different parts of the island, we get back on board and I use the pool to uncook myself. Yesterday somebody said it was 34 degrees Celsius and to that add humidity, even my legs are sweating.
Today we saw tapa being made from the bark of banyan tree and flower bouquet made with ylang-ylang, mint, basil, tiare, etc and tied with a string of pineapple segments sprinkled with sandal wood dust; it ends up to be the size of a pound of butter, ladies twirl their long hair around it and it smells wonderful. At the next stop, we saw a coconut oil being hand extracted and mixed with flowers to produce Monoï, a very oily oil for sunburn and used as an insect repellent, then an explanation on aeu pipi…..
There were handicraft centers in both places so we took a lot of pictures.
It is 4 pm and we are free till 6, what luxury, they sure keep us busy, we intend to organize trivia and there is no time.
6 is talk about tomorrow, 7 is dinner and 9 is how to tye pareo for the Polynesian night also tomorrow, I bought a lovely black and white 2.5 m with a few huge flowers in different colours and Terry will wear my orange bathing suit wrap, maybe. Joel the dining room stewart loves to dress up Polynesian style. He wears a crown of flowers in matching colours to his outfit. For breakfast, orange was the rigueur; he wore a hat with bright orange flower, an orange shirt with black flowers and an orange pareo, he is usually barefoot as everybody else around the islands are but around his neck he wore a braided ribbon holding 3 black pearls. I asked him when did he intend to wear his best outfit, because I wanted a picture with him, and faux pas or what, he said: “… every day I wear my best outfit!...”
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