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Okay, we didn't actually spend four days in Tahiti. We spent three nights on the island of Moorea, it's very close and much smaller sister. But everyone recognizes Tahiti, and it sounds much nicer, even though it isn't. Both islands are a small part of French Polynesia.
From LAX, we flew into Papeete (pronounced pa-peh-eh-tay) on the island of Tahiti, arriving at 5 am. From there we took a 30 minute ferry ride to Moorea. Three days later, we would return to spend our last night in Papeete before flying to New Zealand.
Moorea and Tahiti
Also, we did NOT stay in an over-water bungalow. June quickly learned, among other things, that the infamous 'over-water bungalow' comes at a very hefty price: roughly $700/night. We were going to be traveling for 28 days. We didn't want to blow our wad (of cash) at our first destination.
Here is a 3D view of the heart-shaped island of Moorea, with two bays on the north (far) side. Cook's bay on the right (East) is named after the British explorer Captain James Cook, who loomed large everywhere we visited in the Southern hemisphere. We visited much of the same destinations as he in his first voyage to the Southern hemisphere in 1769. He was searching for the great southern landmass which doesn't exist.
The entire island is surrounded by a coral, barrier reef (light blue area) with 12 natural passes, or breaks, through the reef. The reef is not present in these areas because this is where fresh rain water (rivers) flow off the island into the ocean, and the coral reef doesn't grow in fresh water. The lagoon is fairly shallow, being only about 10 ft. at the deepest. And because of so many natural passes, the water is continually refreshed, making for fantastic snorkeling.
We stayed at the Bella Vista Hotel, on a hill in the upper-right (North Eastern) corner of this image. The ferry from Tahiti landed, just south of where we stayed, in the small town of Vai'are. While still at home, June and I both wrote the hotel to confirm their strange requirement about payment in cash when we get there. In very broken English, a woman wrote back with a vague, unintelligible response about the cash. But she clearly stated that the day that we got in, Sunday, was a national holiday and that ALL of the restaurants would be closed. So would we like for her to prepare breakfast for us? She needs to know in advance so that she can shop. The cost would be only 29,000 French Pacific Francs (XPF) or 75,000 for dinner also?
First, we don't arrive on Sunday.
Second, what is a XPF worth in USD? We learned that 1,000 XPF is $1 USD.
So, just in case we did have to pay with cash, June got a pile of XPF notes to cover our three nights, then replied that we would pass on the 29,000 XPF (per person) breakfast. Thanks anyhow!
We arrived at Papaeete on Tuesday, November 1 at 5:00am. We eventually learned that EVERYONE speaks primarily French, second most popular language is English, then Tahitian. We managed to catch a taxi to the ferry building a few miles away, handed the driver a pile of XPFs, then caught the 30 minute ferry to Moorea. Then the fun began, so we grabbed our cameras.
Let's continue the story through pictures.
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