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Published: January 27th 2006
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Captain Dag has suggested that we all be awake at 6am to view our departure from Raiatea. Alan and I sit on our balcony with the usual coffee and breakfast as our ship glides slowly down the lagoon between Raiatea and Tahaa. We can see the Tahaa side and the early morning light provides wonderful photo opportunities. We pass so quietly that we can hear roosters crowing and dogs barking on the shore. At the end of our passage, we come to a motu off Tahaa with over-the-water bungalows standing in aquamarine colored water. The mountains of Bora Bora rise in the background. Now this is where I really want to come…isolated, surrounded by a coral reef, looks like heaven to me.
We are late arriving in Bora Bora due to our sight seeing, but we aren’t complaining after the scenic morning ride. The Voyager is anchoring in the bay and yesterday, the Captain announced a surprise (another Capt. Dag moment). He has secured a private motu for an island barbecue. Now we have a dilemma. Do we keep our jeeping excursion or loose the money we’ve paid and go to the motu instead? After much debate, we decide to
stay with the excursion and hopefully tender over to the barbecue, if there is time.
We arrive at the dock to find that there will be two jeeps on this excursion. There are three of us in our jeep and the second jeep has five people. This trip will take us on a complete round-the-island tour plus travel a couple of off-road trails into the mountains for some views.
Our first off-road adventure begins when the jeep heads straight up a mountain and our guide says, “Welcome to Magic Mountain.” We see what she means when the jeep slips and slides on the rutted, muddy trail. At the top, we stop by a WWII cannon and bunker. We are surrounded by jungle and the mosquitoes are buzzing again. It’s a good thing we brought the insect repellant. Our guide gives us the history of the cannons which were placed there during WWII, although they were built in 1907 and were leftover from WWI. The cannons were never shot during WWII, only used for practice. The true impact for Bora Bora was the American GI’s and the babies they left behind. Like other islands in French Polynesia, all the
men were sent to defend the French leaving only women, children and the elderly on the islands.
After a steep descent, we are back on the road that circles the island. Now comes a curious part of our tour. While the other jeep continues, we stop at a convenience store where our driver does a little shopping leaving her three passengers standing around outside wondering what is going on. She gets back in the jeep with a loaf of bread and several boxes and we catch up with the rest of our tour.
Next, we turn up a private road which leads to a small enclave of homes with a grassy, garden area and a sea view. We stop here for a restroom break and to take photos of the distant lagoon. Then, it’s back on the circle road. Our guide points out a small maerae on the side of the road which the ocean has partially reclaimed. As the drive continues, we can see many motus with over-the-water bungalows. Bora Bora has the reputation for the most beautiful lagoon in the Pacific and we can see why. This drive gives us a good idea of the hotels
on the island which will be useful if we return some day.
The end of the tour takes us to a pearl farm where we learn how the Tahitian black pearl is created. After the farming area, we go into the design studio. The guide hands me a bowl full of lustrous, black pearls. “Take a handful,” she says. I am holding thousands of dollars in pearls. The cool, slippery pearls roll around in my hand clicking against each other. I reluctantly put them back in the bowl and the guide leads us to the showroom where she hopes we will make a purchase. The pearls are ultra expensive and most on our tour have already done their pearl shopping in Tahiti or Moorea. When we walk back to the parking area, our guide invites us to enjoy a fruit snack which is served at a picnic table by the lagoon with a good view of our ship.
By the time we tender back to the ship, lunch is over at the motu. Later we learn what we have missed…a floating caviar bar, dancing Polynesian girls, champagne, tropical fruit drinks and a tasty barbecue. When the ship pulls
up anchor, Alan and I decide to have our own “we missed the motu party” on the balcony. We toast our departure with a glass of wine and the Bora Bora peaks recede into the late afternoon.
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Nancy & Bruce
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Your trip!
Wow, wish we were there! Sounds like you two are having a wonderful time. Stay safe. "Live, Laugh, Love". Continue keeping us posted!