As I mentioned, we were off gallivanting around the South Pacific. Our plane left Anchorage at 10:00am Friday, in a snowstorm (yes we got up early and shoveled everything one last time) with temps about 6 degrees. Dashing through Seattle (I had to buy sunglasses here – never thought to grab them at home) and Los Angeles, we arrived 23 hours later in hot, humid, sunny Papeete, Tahiti. Unfortunately, between the time we stood up in the airplane and got on the bus to leave the airport, someone stole Robert’s international cell phone. (Luckily they didn’t get his wallet.) He never felt a thing. So - no phone and no watch. But all of our luggage arrived!
After a 45 minute ferry ride, we landed at our final destination for the next three days - the island of Mo’orea (where they filmed South Pacific) and our bungalow over the water.
Thank goodness it was air-conditioned and - bunus- there was a window in the floor to watch the fish. We had back door with a deck connected to a lower platform allowing us to grab the snorkel gear and immediately jump into the warm water. The fish and coral were amazing.
Over the next few days we relaxed on the island. Ok – after the first 24 hours of trying to make a collect phone call to cancel the cell phone (we finally direct dialed), we relaxed. I woke up promptly at 6am every day on vacation ready to go discover things - such as my French skills are rather rusty and Robert’s are non-existent.
The second thing we discovered (the first being the lack of language skills) was the cost of living in Anchorage isn’t bad compared to the islands. Prices were phenomenal – even in the smaller downtown stores away from the tourist areas. Of course, the exchange rate didn't help right now but it wasn’t unusual to spend between $40-$60 on breakfast and more on dinner. I was starting to understand why there weren’t families with children at our resort!
We also discovered buffalo wings in French Polynesia aren’t necessarily the same as America. (And you wonder at our surprise?) It consisted of fried (skinny) chicken wings with ketchup all over them. However, the tomatoes and mozzarella were fantastic!
After 2 days of snorkeling in our lagoon and staying mostly on the resort property, it was time rent a car. We wanted to drive around the island…should we rent for 4 hours or 8 hours. We opted for 4 hours and decided to risk additional fees – of course everyone runs on “island time” and I wasn’t too concerned about being late.
There is one (narrow) road around the island and one road inland to the highest point with wild chickens everywhere (as a centipede deterrent). Most people used bicycles for transportation (it is a flat road around the island) and from all appearances, each day you were supposed to ride your bike to the bakery and pick up a bagette. The best way to carry your un-wrapped bagette is under your arm. (I didn't look at a piece of bread the same the rest of the trip!) Most drivers had trouble staying on their side of the road and stop signs were only used if the gendarme were present. Of course, there may have been very specific traffic signs but they were all in French and most of the time, we had no idea what they said. Robert did fantastic under the pressure of driving on the island.
Three and ½ hours later, we had shopped in both shopping areas, circled the island, went to the top of the mountain to take photos, ate lunch and still had 40 minutes to kill before the car would be late. Four hours was the proper choice.
Of course we saw beautiful flowers and incredible sunsets. What a great way to start a vacation!
Tuesday it was time to hit the cruise ship and start the next leg of the journey….unpacking once with scenery changing daily!
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