Tahiti and beyond

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I've fallen off the blog trail and I'm hoping to make this a routine again. We've taken so many fun trips already, but I'm diving back in with Tahiti.

The flight from Seattle (via LAX) was too easy. We got upgraded to the lie flat seats, so that always makes for a nice start to the trip! The 9 hour flight from LAX was punctuated by long naps, 2 meals, and some movies. From the second we stepped off the plane, in the dark, at 7:30pm, the heat and humidity hit us like a wave, and haven't let up since. It feels like 95% humidity at all times, and probably around 80+ degrees even at night. (Though 5 days later we've started to acclimate to it)

Customs was sooooo fast and easy, it might have set a record. The airport (and the islands, really) are very reminiscent of Hawaii. With the exception that everything is in French. The people are actually culturally from the same descendants - Polynesians. Originally from Taiwan about 2000 years ago, they set off exploring in double hulled canoes (like a modern day catamaran). The English then ultimately the French came in the 1800s. It remains a French territory today, and all the locals are French citizens living under French laws. Which comes with universal health care, we learned. The way they do it is that everyone pays 10% from their income into healthcare (if they are not self-employed, the employer pays half of that). Then if they need anything, they can go anywhere to get it. Anywhere in the world! The system will pay up to the amount it would have cost at a French hospital. A neat idea!

The native Polynesians do have their own language, but they also speak an accented version of French ("oui" sounds like "way"). But I can't get Spanish out of my head. Every time I open my mouth, Spanish comes out. I think because it feels like I'm in some hot South American country, that my brain is stuck. 4 years of AP French in high school, and I can barely ask for water.

We had been given great advice when coming here not to stay on Tahiti. Tahiti is more like a pass-through destination, but maybe not the main focus of the trip, and in retrospect, I have to agree. While I'm sure you can have a great time on Tahiti, even off the beaten path, it wasn't the highlight of the trip for us. We were advised to pick Moorea or Bora Bora for the bulk of our time. We chose Moorea, mostly because of its proximity and ease of getting there. And from what I've learned here and heard, maybe the less touristy feeling of the 2?

Public transportation isn't great, so we had reserved a rental car. Surprisingly cheap! About $180 for the week, though I forgot there are still places that don't have unlimited miles. This is one of them, and this came back on us in the end, despite the islands being so small. And just like most European countries, it's a manual. I'm very grateful that I had a stick for a time, because I think it may be becoming a lost art with younger generations in the US. I'm putting that on my list of things my kids would need to learn. And nothing challenges your stick shift driving skills like the steep windy hills in Tahiti. But at least they drive on the right side of the road.

We chose a "hotel" (technically a guest house, somewhere between an air bnb and an actual hotel) that sits way up in the mountain, at the top of a very long windy STEEP road. I have never before been in a car that I didn't think actually had enough power to make it up a road. Like on the verge of stalling out and rolling backwards. Granted it's a TINY car, but there were a few times I thought Jamison might have to get out and walk. (He also can drive stick, but I don't think he's a fan of driving in crazy situations, plus my name was on the rental, so I took one for the team the first couple days)

The Ninamu Pearl Guest House has an awesome view and a great little pool and warm tub. It's pretty isolated at the top of the mountain, but the rest of Tahiti isn't exactly jumping. We made it up there by around 9pm, and after some harrowing turns, including a K turn on the side of a mountain, on a hill, driving stick, in the pitch black, we made it to our room. Aside from it being 100 degrees in the room, and the AC being broken, it was a nice room! We overlooked the pool, which was great because we instantly went for a swim, which was impressively cold for how warm everything else is. We would've liked to soak in the warm tub (no actual heater, just the sun, which makes it pretty warm) but we got kicked out because they closed it at 6pm. Seriously?! Boo. Not a fan of places that close the pool and tubs so early. That's just when you want to relax! If the problem is noise, they should just enforce that rule instead.

It was a warm night without AC, but the fan was very nice and made it comfortable. The little Asian gecko that lives in the rafters, however, has a very loud mating call, and apparently was very lonely. We never saw him, but maybe that's why we didn't have mosquitos in our room. Thanks little buddy. The island is loaded with mosquitos, and guess who forgot to bring bug spray. Sitting at home with our European power converters. Oops.

All in all it was an easy trip down and a fun first day!

Breakfast the next morning wasn't included, but for 20,000 XPF (about $20) it was a nice little start to the day (though not nice enough to get it the second day). Their water is safe to drink, but everyone has bottled water everywhere, so that's what we drink. Too bad it tastes like pool water. So I've been drinking mostly diet coke, beer, and pineapple juice. There's a brand of juice here called Rotui, and their pineapple juice is really awesome. Imagine what you've had in the states, and take away all the added sugar. It tastes like if you just juiced a medium to slightly under-ripe pineapple (as opposed to the sickly sweet stuff we have in the US. I wish the sugar lobby would dissolve itself. Ick).

We flew in on a Sat night and had decided to stay on Tahiti until Mon morning, so we had all day Sun to explore Tahiti. Which was about 15 hours too long. Firstly, the whole island is Mormon, so everything is closed on Sundays. It also means alcohol sales are very restricted. You can only buy it while you are supposed to be at church apparently. Sales are from 7a-noon. And you can't buy refrigerated alcohol anytime. But it didn't really matter that things were closed, because there isn't much to go to anyways.

The island is composed of giant, heavily forested mountains, that are essentially impenetrable, except by MAYBE 4x4s, ATVs, or maybe horses. There's one main road that goes around the perimeter of the island, with some very very steep and windy roads that go just a teeny bit into the mountains. I think if we had known in advance, we would've looked for and booked a 4x4 tour, or maybe just planned to come to Moorea sooner.

We set off Sunday morning hoping to see the market, but since it was closed, we just started our drive, and hit a couple places we found on Google maps. We started with Fa'aruma'i Waterfalls. A very short and easy walk from the small parking lot, about 90 degrees in the sun, and so humid it feels like 120. But in the shade it was nice. The Polynesian legend of the waterfalls is that there was a Chief whose daughter was so beautiful that he kept her guarded at all times, and killed anyone who talked to her. She was in the woods gathering plants for her sick mother and came upon a young man doing the same. She asked for his help to get away from the oppressive guards, and he revealed that he was a wizard, and turned them both into waterfalls. The guards heard him talking and came running, and he turned them into the third waterfall. The legend is that you can still see florescent forms of people at night there sometimes.

After a little walk, which felt like a marathon because of the heat, we hopped back in the car and continued our drive. We went down to Tahiti Iti, which translates into "little Tahiti". Most of it is not accessible by regular car, so we went as far as we could, then headed back to the main road and continued on.

Our next stop was 'Ārahurahu Marae. It's traditional Polynesian temples, preserved and restored. Much of the island has churches (mostly Mormon) that were built on top of Polynesian alters, quite literally trying to stamp out native beliefs and culture.

And then we were back in the car, off to find lunch/dinner. We found an incredible poke truck. Most of Tahiti and Moorea is food stands/trucks. Very few actual restaurants. And seriously the best fish you'll ever have in your life. If you are vegan, you should make an exception for fish when here. The poke truck was incredible! Just called Poke bar II on Google maps. Perfect little stop for a great dinner! I've never been a huge fan of Poke, but this was really good!! I will say, though, everything here is sooooooo expensive. Like $30-40 just for 2 meals from a food truck, no drinks. We've had such amazing meals, but don't try to do this on a budget... Even the grocery stores are insanely expensive.

After poke, we made a stop at the grocery store before heading back up to our mountain retreat. The local beer here, Hinano, is perfect on a hot day. I think it's like their Coors, but it's priced like a fancy microbrew in the US. I've heard they have some local hooch that'll knock your socks off, but we haven't tried it. We just got a few basic supplies (cheese, crackers, soda, beer, terrible wine, and my requisite foreign snacks) then made the trek up the mountain. We had a nice quiet evening (with functioning AC!) and enjoyed the sunset, relaxing by the pool. We had one awesome tropical island downpour that afternoon, but otherwise the weather was great! We did close out the night with a pizza from the little guest house kitchen. It was just ok, but without any other options, it was perfect!

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Photos

The twin sisters
Not us, the waterfalls!

Great view!
Taken from inside our hotel room! Great location, despite the long drive up the mountain to get there. Made it a great little escape!

The view
Jamison got a better pic. But he's not in it!

View from the hotel
That's Moorea across the water!

The Ninamu Pearl
The little eating area of the "hotel"

Tiny car
This was our tiny car. Barely made it up the hill to the hotel

'Ārahurahu Marae
The statues, though reproductions, of Polynesian history

'Ārahurahu Marae
This is where they used to make human sacrifices, according to the English-speaking guide someone else hired, who we eavesdropped on