Mazu Adventures: Mexico to New Zealand : Tahiti June

OUR VIEW AT OPUNOHO BAY, MOOREA, NOW I KNOW FOR SURE WE ARE IN PARADISE

June 18-23: Moorea

Moorea is located just ten miles west of Tahiti and is also a steep mountain volcanic island. Lush and green, and it is the pineapple growing capital of French Polynesia.

We arrive at Opunohu Bay and are rewarded to a spectacular view. As the guide book describe; "...is without a doubt, the prettiest and most natural (even to this day)" and I agree. It is just what the doctor has ordered for our rest and relaxation after the busy boat chore filled time we spent in Papeete. After the dinghy is in the water Mel and I relax in the cockpit and watch the sunset with a couple of cold beers, if I thought I was in paradise before, now I am sure!

The water here is crystal clear. We are anchored in 12 ft. in a nice sandy bottom. No need to dive on the anchor to check if it is set, we can see it from the bow of the boat. There are about 10 boats here with room for more, so we do not feel crowded at all. We know several of the boats or at least have heard them on the VHF radio. Our friend Jimmy (from Ireland on the boat Vision) stops by to let us know that a group of cruisers are going to go to the "Polynesian night" at the Hilton just up the road. For a drink at the bar they will let you enjoy the show with the rest of the guests. We say we will go. Also our friends on "Wings of the Dawn" that we met in Manihi stop by to say hello.

The next day I go for a snorkel near the shore. Not as good as Rangriora but still lots of pretty fish to be seen. Mel and I also take a dingy tour of the bay and go to the little village of Papetoai. Here there is an octagonal church that is the oldest standing European building in the South Pacific. As was often the case, the missionaries deliberately built this church atop of an old marae (religious platforms built by the Polynesians). The Polynesian night at the Hilton is pretty good, but we look forward to the real dance competitions in Bora Bora

On Friday we have reserved a car for the day, our friends Michael and Anita from Cherokee Rose are going with us as we explore the island. We see:

• Belvedere Look-out with a spectacular view of Cook's Bay and Opunohu Bay

• Opunohu Valley archaeological site. This valley was continuously inhabited for six centuries and the oldest surviving marae date to the 13th century.

• The Distillerie et Usine de Jus de Frits de Moorea. This juice-processing factory and distillery produces various juices and alcoholic beverages including the famous Tahitian drink, an alcoholic punch. We found dark Rhum (yes they spell it that way here) at the cheapest price anywhere, it is good too.

• Toatea lookout; overlooks a beautiful lagoon dotted with coral, the barrier reef and Tahiti in the background.

• Have lunch at the cool old resort, Club Bali Hai (also will be the home for the Pacific Puddle Jump party.

• Stopped at a roadside fruit stand to buy fresh pineapple and found the largest avocado's you have ever seen!

I was a fun day exploring and sharing time with friends...

Now for the work:

It is not always fun in the sun on a boat. Many hours are spent on boat maintenance and/or repairs, as you will hear more of when I blog about our time in Papeete. Today I suggested to Mel that we try our hookah machine, nooooo it is not what you think. Our hookah is a compressor used for breathing underwater. We bought it before we left the states to use for cleaning the bottom of the boat, or in case we need to repair something under the boat or God forbid we need to release a fouled anchor.

We had not used it at all. Being we were in very shallow calm water I thought it would be a good time to try it. Well, after re-reading the instructions we got it all set up and with me weighted down with a scuba weight belt I was ready to inspect our boat bottom. I have to admit I was a bit scared to be under the boat but soon I was comfortable and relaxed and after 3 hours, I cleaned the entire bottom, the prop and rudder and even changed a zinc. Now a new "pink" job has been added to the list of chores on the boat.

In a couple of days we will head back to Papeete to meet with fellow cruisers as we celebrate our accomplishment with the Latitude 38 Pacific Puddle Jump Rendezvous, a three day fun-filled event that we have been looking forward to. More on that in the next blog.

Fun and Games at the Tahiti-Moorea Sailing Rendezvous

Every year Latitude 38 (the sailing magazine) partners with Tahiti tourism to put on the "Tahiti to Moorea Sailing Rendezvous". This fun event celebrates the accomplishment of our voyage across the Pacific Ocean and also gives us a taste of Polynesia hospitality.

The weekend starts with a reception at the Tourism office on the famous Quay downtown Papeete. We receive tee shirts, information on sailing in the area and have a chance to talk with representatives of various boat services in New Zealand. Following the captain's meeting outlining the rout for the sailing rally we are officially greeted with flower leis, a dance performance and a Captains blessing ceremony. We all had fun learning to dance Polynesian style (some better than others.

After the performance everyone went to the famous Roulottes of Papeete, literally "caravans" in French these are mobile food vans that set up each night near the water front. The area becomes its own bustling little city with dozens of vans set up. You can find nearly any kind of food there, chow Mein, burgers, poisson cru, pizza, fish, beef, you name it. Each van has folding tables and plastic stools to sit on, order from one van, and go and eat with your friends at another. You are entertained by a local musical group that plays Polynesian songs, all of which sound very lively and happy.

We eat with Michael from the boat Patanjali, who we were moored next to in Mexico; I think I wrote about his fantastic bon-voyage party, and John and Ralph on the boat Nepenthe. John sailed his boat from LA to here. We had met them at cruisers pot luck the night before. I had instantly recognized him as the actor who played "Q" in Star Trek The Next Generation (ok now you all know I am a "trekie"); he also has done lots of other stuff. We struck up a conversation that night and again the next day when we went by his boat, he needed to borrow a hose to fill up with water. He was very nice and gave me a signed picture.
After dinner we all shared a taxi back to the marina, and had a final drink at the Pink Coconut. John, Ralph and Michael agreed to be on my team for the Outrigger canoe race on Sunday.

Saturday all the boats meet at the outside of the pass to start the rally. It is really windy out with quite a bit of wave action but soon we have our sails up and have a great sail to Moorea. There are about 30-40 boats participating in the rally. We arrive in the early afternoon. We find a nice place to anchor in front of the famous Bali Hai resort, which is the host to the rest of the events.

Saturday night we head to shore and the Bali Hai for dinner. The Rendezvous coincides with the International Ukulele Festival, at the Bali Hai, which was fantastic. Groups competed for the chance to go to the International Festival to be held in San Diego. We were treated to performances by some of the top trios in the islands. Along with dinner and the festival we all had a chance to catch up with cruisers we have met along the way, some we had not seen since the Marquesas' or some we have never met but have heard them on the radio. Also my canoe team needed to come up with a name for the races tomorrow. After much thought (and lots of beer) we decided on "Make it So". Those of you who are Star Trek fans will recognize where we this came from.

Sunday we meet bright and early on the beach for the beginning of the last day of the Rendezvous. The canoe races are first and team Make it So are in the first group for heat one. The outriggers are 6 man so with our team we are matched with a boat that has two "professionals". The canoes and paddlers are from the local Outrigger Canoe club. We draw from a jar to decide which boat we will get. Our boat is white number 3.

After we all get in the professionals give us a quick lesson and we make a practice round. Then we set up at the starting line with the other 4 boats in the heat. The race is a sprint, and you must listen carefully for the change signal. One of the professionals make a loud grunting sound, you then take one stroke and then switch your paddle to the other side, all while you try to synchronize your paddle strokes. Well lo and behold, we win our heat! And we win our second heat! Team Make it So is in the final race!!!

But as we watch the race that will determine the other boat for the final race our hopes of winning are dashed. Team "We aren't wearing any underwear" are 4 very young and very buff guys... We don't win the final race but we have had a great time. We are awarded with second place (out of about 25 teams) with a nice wooden bowl that the guys let me keep. The rest of the day is filled with fun activities, and a dance performance. I have posted lots of pictures on our gallery.

The day is soon over and we must say goodbye to several friends who we may not see again as their course is in a different direction. We raise anchor as the sun is setting and sail off to our next stop, Raiatea.

WIN NUMBER 2 FOR TEAM "MAKE IT SO"

Bora Bora, Raiatea and Tahaa

July 1-23

We arrive at Raiatea early in the afternoon. We sailed by Huahine Island with the intention on visiting this pretty island but decided to pass it by and head for Raiatea. The reason for this detour was the weather forecast called for some squally weather and we did not have the time if we ended up being caught in Huahine. We must be in Bora Bora by the 11th to check out of the country as our visa will be up.

We enter Raiatea through the Iriru pass and anchor Opoa bay and have a nice quiet night. We are always extra tired after an overnight passage so we have a quiet evening. We are the only boat anchored here and we are enjoying the solitude.

The next morning we dingy to shore to visit Marae Tautapuatea. This Marae is the largest one we have seen. It is reported to be the "center" of the Polynesian early religions. Marae's have many purposes in both family status and for religious ceremonies. This one was well restored and with very good interruptive signs explaining the uses' and meanings of the ruins.

On our way to the Marae we notice that there is an amputheater set up and many snack shacks set up along the road. We find out that they are set up every July for Hiva competitions and other regional sporting events. We go that evening and enjoy a dinner and watch beach soccer. I would say we are the only non-local folks there.

The next day we pull anchor early to move to Faaroa bay, a more protected bay as this is the day the heavy wind and rain are predicted. Unfortunately we do not leave early enough and are caught in the wind and rain and end up setting our anchor in 25 knot winds in very rainy conditions. But we get a good set and we are safe and sound. The weather lasts for most of the day but subsided for a restful evening and night.

Our next little adventure is to take our dingy to the head of the bay as there is a fresh water river that feeds into here. It is a nice little ride through various small plantations. We meet one farmer who takes us to his place to purchase fruit and veggies. We buy bananas, papayas, cucumbers and lemons. He also spends several minutes showing us various pictures on his cell phone of his daughters, and of several wild boars he has hunted. He was very nice and generous.

We pull anchor and head towards the town of Uturoa, the main (only) town. We find space at the city dock (free yea!) right next to our friends on Cherokee Rose. Here we are very close to the store and near the Hiva (more on the Hiva later in the blog) performance tent. We are lucky, as there is a performance the next night.

The weather is as predicted, very windy and wet. We are glad to be at the dock and take this opportunity to rent a car and tour around the island. There is little to do on Raiatea, little tourism comes here so there are not many restaurants etc. and it is Sunday so little is going on. So we have a nice drive through the county.

Bora Bora

After a few more wet and windy days in Raiatea and Tahaa we have a glorious short sail to Brora Bora. Here we are greeted with the iconic mountain view as seen in all the travel pictures. The pass is an easy entrance into this beautiful lagoon.

We take up a mooring ball in front of the infamous Bloody Mary's and go in for a drink. Bloody Mary's is a fun restaurant and bar. With a thatched roof and sand floor the atmosphere is out of a 50's Polynesian movie set. While we are there we find out that this is the last night for the island Heiva completion. We head to town in a truck taxi and get our tickets. We eat at one of the shack restaurants that are set up for the month of July for the Heiva and school vacation. The performance is fantastic.

Soon we move anchorage to the other side of the island near one of the "bungalows over the water" resorts. This area is called the Lagooararium. The water is gin clear and the scenery is spectacular. Unfortunately the high winds have kept us on the boat for all but a short dingy exploration trip. After a few days we return to the main town and anchor by the Mai Kai marina. Here you get free wifi and 2 for 1 beer at happy hour. It is a great place.

We have found that sometimes playing the tourist is the best way to see an island, so we take a land and snorkel tour. The first half of the day we are in a 4x4 truck with seats in the back to tour the island. We are taken around the island and up on some very steep and rocky roads to beautiful vistas. We also see the remains of a WWII cannon left here by the US. The people here are appreciative of the improvements made to the island during the war years. Bora Bora had the first airstrip in the islands. Also the army built the road around the island and brought electricity here.

After lunch we are picked up at the dock for our snorkel tour. It is a perfect day to be out on the water, warm and calm. We snorkel in the coral garden and see many lovely fish and coral. Next they take us to wade with the stingrays. They have fish to feed them and the rays will come right up to you, in fact even up on you! They feel very smooth and soft. Next we head just outside the reef to an area to see the sharks. Here we see more fish and 2 large lemon sharks. I got some great pictures that are in the photo gallery.

While we are here in Bora Bora we get to see some wonderful Heiva performances. The dancing is so impressive and the groups are so large, even for some of the smaller islands, and the drumming, incredible. What is really nice is that they are doing it for themselves, not for the tourists, we are just lucky to have been here. Along with the dance competitions there are also various other traditional sporting craft contest, canoe races, weaving etc. held throughout the days of the Heiva. If you are ever planning a trip to Bora Bora I highly recommend it and if possible come in early July and enjoy the Heiva performances.

The rest of our time in Bora Bora is spent enjoying the town, spending time at the Mai Kai for happy hour and the good music there, and just waiting for a good weather window to leave for Suwarrow.

As this is the end of our time in French Polynesia we also reflect on the experiences we have had here. From making landfall in the lush Marquesas, the bleak yet beautiful atolls of the Tuamotu and the grand beauty of the Society Island group. All of it has been remarkable. I am so glad that we are cruising our way through; it gives you a genuine experience of the people and culture that you cannot get in a vacation visit of a week or so. So it is with a sad heart that we say good-bye. Now on to our next adventure.....

MORE PICTURES TO ENJOY:

Our crossing and landfall in Papeete: