MARQUESAS ISLANDS, SOUTH PACIFIC DECEMBER 2010

Friday December 10, 2010 cruising towards Nuku Hiva in the Marguesas Islands, South Pacific.

What an amazing week this has been - we are all totally in love with the Marquesas islands and its' people.  We started one week ago on Dec 3 with a short flight (less than 3 hours) from Vancouver to Los Angeles - we managed to get an upgrade to First Class for only $50 each - which amounted to less than $30 each since in First Class you don't have to pay for checked baggage!  In addition we were served copious amounts of champagne and a fresh turkey croissant - life is good!  We stayed overnight at the Radisson Plaza at Los Angeles airport where the thin crust pizza made an excellent supper.  Saturday morning we were at the airport in lots of time to check in for our non stop flight from Los Angeles to Papeete Tahiti with Air Tahiti Nui - we made it just ahead of a large crowd checking in for the same flight.  There were over 100 folks on the same flight that we were booked on, also planning to  cruise aboard the Paul Gauguin - and there was a lady from Paul Gauguin Cruiseline checking who was arriving for the flight and cruise.  Since this is the last flight prior to the Paul Gauguin departing from Papeete at 11:45pm if anyone is late for the flight they will miss the cruise - not a good idea!

The flight is just under 9 hours - the seats seem small on Ar Tahiti Nui's plane, and other folks felt the same way!  This was a day time flight departing at 1pm and arriving around 7:45pm - the French Society Islands (Tahitiian Islands ) time zone is 2 hours behind the Pacific Cast of North America.  We arrived in Papeete and immediately felt the warm and humid air as soon as we stepped off the plane.  We were very graciously welcomed by two Tahitians playing the Ukelele and singing a welcome for us, along with 2 ladies in Tahitian pareos dancing and we were all presented with a small very aromatic white flower to put behind our ear ( a type of gardenia) - left ear if you are taken and right ear of you are available.  After proceeding through Customs and Immigration we withdrew French Polynesian Francs from the bank machine (approximately 84 to the US dollar) and left on large air conditioned buses for the pier where the Paul Gauguin was docked.  As we arrived at the dock the traditional Saturday night in Tahiti was in full swing - along the waterfront the locals gather in the evening to visit with each other, eat from all the food stalls and enjoy their local music.  We were welcomed aboard with an ice cold glass of champagne and checked into our cabins - on the pool deck we were introduced to all the main staff members and then we had a fabulous meal in L'Etoile - the main dining room and definitely 5 star service selection and preparation of food.  We sailed away from the Papeete at 11:45pm and amazingly enough we were all still wide awake and enjoyed the sail away from the top deck  - we were cruising towards Fakarava in the Tuamotus - north of the the Tahitian Islands and south of the Marquesas.  

Our first day Sunday Dec 5 would be at sea covering the 241 nautical  miles to Fakarava in the Tuamotos.  The seas had a good 2 metre swell and we rolled a little - this ship was built specifically for the Tahitian Islands and the shallow lagoons -so the keel is much shorter than on typical ships of this size - but it does have stabilisers and our Captain Rajko Zupan from Split, Croatia assure us that the stabilisers would be employed.  We slept well but did feel the continual gentle roll of the ship.  We were up before 5am and went upstairs for breakfast - it starts at 6am for continental in La Pallete at the back of the ship on deck 8, and a full breakfast starting at 7am in La Verandah which is where we had breakfast most mornings - on the deck outside and enjoying the scenery.  We went to the Marina at the back of the ship where you can use the kayaks and wind surfs boards, you can also water ski from here.  (This marine deck is much smaller than on the Wind Surf which surprised us, and on the Paul Gauguin you are not allowed to snorkel or swim from this marine deck which you are allowed to do on the Windsurf).  We picked up snorkel fins from the Mariana which we use for the entire cruise - all these activities are included at no extra cost.  The scuba diving is at extra cost - $95 USD per dive or $119 USD per night dive for certified divers.  A refresher course if $40 USD and all dives are classified as beginner or advanced.  Our first stop at Fakarava offers drift diving through the Garuae Pass for advanced divers only.  Fakarava is a flat sandy atoll in the Tuamotu Archipelago - the second largest after Rangiroa- and is UNESCO protected.  This is the isand we always envision when we think of French Polynesia - soft pink sands and incredible turquoise waters so blue and clear that it almost hurts your eyes to look at, and the boats seem to float in thin air above the water.  Fakarava is in a huge lagoon - so big that you can barely see the far side - as a result the water exchange in and out of the lagoon is massive at the tide change  which is wonderful for food for the marine life and also explains the very fast drift diving for advanced divers only.  Apparently sea life can be seen here in huge numbers through the pass; dolphins, sharks, turtles and thousands of groupers at a certain time each year when they migrate here to mate and give birth.  Fakarava used to be a huge whaling station with sea traffic from everywhere.

During the day we had the wonderful pleasure of our first lecture wth Mark Eddowes originally from New Zealand, now lives in Huahina - and he is an anthropologist and archeologist - National Geographic Expert and heading up UNESCO research committee for archeology in Raiatea - truly a passionate and knowledgeable lecturer.  We found the information almost too much to absorb in one sitting - but presented well with humour and some cynicism.  Because of Mark we signed up for his shore excursions every day they were offered (from $59 to $149)  and we never regretted a single dollar.  We found out later that Mark is on every sailing fo the Paul Gaugion that goes to the Marquesas - usually 4 times each year). During the course of the cruise, thanks to Mark,  our knowledge deepened and our enjoyment of the sites that we visited were so much richer because of Mark and his easy going ways and very sincere passion and knowledge of these islands and people from centuries ago to the current day.  We arrived in the Fakarava lagoon just before sunset (it was very important for the Captain to be able to negotiate through the Garuae Pass into the lagoon during daylight hours, and we were anchored for a very calm night's sleep just off the town of Tetamanu where the oldest Catholic Church in Polynesia is located.  We had another wonderful meal in L'Etoile and after a hard day of doing nothing we fell into bed and passed out!

Monday Dec 6 Fakarava, Tuamotos - saw us all up and at breakfast in the sunshine on the deck at Le Grill - our waiters and chefs (from an almost 100% Phillipino crew) smiling and waiting to serve us whatever we wished for - the chef makes fabulous omelets here to order.  The fruit is always fresh and plentiful - but then there are those fresh French pastries and almond croissants - mmmm good!  We took the morning shore excursion.  We were off by 8:15 and on to Le Truck - the open air bus that took us the ancient temple site, very close to the Garua Pass.  Mark did a great job of explaining the way that the islanders used to live and the importance of their temples and placement of their temples and living quarters - for living their own daily lives, and for receiving guests.  Bobbi (the naturalist) was also along, talking about the flora and fauna - how important the breadfruit was and still is, and the coconuts found in huge numbers everywhere and used to produce copra from the white meat of the coconut inside the outer hard shell.  Bobbi also told us that inside each coconut is 1 1/2 litres of pure fresh water which is what the islanders drink - although they also have large black barrels where they gather rain water from the frequent showers in the Tuamotos.  When we arrived back at Tetamanu village (very sleepy village with only about 3 vehicles and 6 villagers to be seen) we waited for our ride to the Black Pearl farm.  We had arranged this with Cynthia who runs the boutique onboard Paul Gauguin (she worked for Marlo Brandon for 22 years - but that's another story!  She is Hawaiian and lives in Maui and is married to a Tahitian).  The Paul Gauguin boutique sells black Tahitian pearls by Tahia (which means Princess) - a local French European Tahitian designer who has 3 stores in Tahiti (Papeete, Moorea and Bora Bora) and the store on Paul Gauguin - she has won many awards and has fabulous black pearl designs - something that we all fell in love with in the boutique needless to say!  This was a fabulous experience - just tray after tray with beautiful black pearls of every colour - from the latest grey to the darkest black or irridescent green - yes - we all bought pearls and can get them set in whichever design we like in Moorea before we return home.  This is the only location where Tahia sells her loose pearls (that are not already set).  We saw the boat come in with the latest load of oysters.  We saw the girls gently taking a very narrow strip of the mantle from inside the oyster, cutting it into the tiniest pieces (about 1 millimetre or less) and then inserting the seed and a piece of mantle into the oyster (which has gently been prised open about 1 or or 2 cm) then closing the oyster shell.  These are then put into wire baskets and placed back into the incredible turquoise ocean to be left alone to grow.  We heard that maybe only one or two will produce a pearl that is good enough for use in the jewellery trade.  Amazing.

Back on board we heard wonderful music and lovely dancing by the Gauguines - these are 10 beautiful Tahitian girls who sing incredibly gentle and romantic Tahitian songs and also perform the Tahitian dances - they also spend time telling you about Tahiti, showing you how to dance, and how to make Tahitian leis and jewellery throughout the cruise.  They are a large part of this wonderful cruise  and to listen to them under the starry skies is heaven.  Before sunset we left the lagoon through the Garua pass (very fast moving and turbulent seas) and were on the high seas again heading for Fatu Hiva - the first of the Marquesan Islands that we were to visit.

Tuesday Dec 7 at sea en route to Fatu Hiva, Marquesas Islands - of course we had a wonderful day.  One day on land to explore and learn, then one day at sea to relax (and eat and drink) - wonderful!  Somehow the day flew by! I attended a lecture by Carolyne Boyle Turner (Art history Professor) about Paul Gauguin - who he was, how he came to live (and die) in the Marquesas and his paintings - many of which include designs and architecture from around the world.  I had to leave that to listen to Anna from the Marquesas who explained about life in general in the Marquesas when she was growing up (she lives in Tahiti now).  This was followed by learning a Marquesan bird dance taught by one of the Gauguines - not so easy to do especially when the ship is gently rolling from side to side!  Anna spoke in French which was translated by one of the Gauguines - so I was hard at work trying to practice my French skills in listening to Anna as she spoke.

The movies they play on the TV during the days complement our itinerary - tonight was Mutiny on the Bounty on the big screen in the Grand Salon  - but since this didn't start until 9pm you will not be surprised when I tell you that we didn't make it to the movie!  We went to the French Restaurant Le Verandah and had a very interesting menu for dinner - not my favourite on the cruise .

Wednesday Dec 8 Fatu Hiva Marquesas - KAOHA NU - Welcome to the Marquesas!  "MAVE MAI"

We were anchored by 7am in the village of Omoa, Fatu Hiva - the most southerly of the Marquesas Islands, so exciting and stupendous to be sailing into Fatu Hiva - the mountains are huge and so lush and green, incredibly tropical.  There were lots of clouds on the top of all the peaks and ridges -it looked for sure like it was going to rain hard on us.  We had many instructions about the mosquitos in the hills and the "no no's" with a very fierce bite at the shore.  We were warned to wear long pants and long sleeves ashore - we took this advice to heart and also took along the mosquito repellant we were advised to take.  The first question in our mind was when we joined Mark Geddowes for our tour to see the Omoa Perogyphs in the luscious native forest and he was wearing only shorts, teeshirt and beach thongs!  Well anyway, in spite of our long pants and long sleeved shirts and being truly covered in sun screen and mosquito repellant- it was a fabulous tour.  We were greeted by Marquesans at the dock - they sang and danced and welcomed us to their island.  Then as we each alighted from the Paul Gauguin tender, they placed a flower lei of welcome over our heads - it was an exceptionally beautiful and warm welcome.  We walked through the tiny village listening to Mark explain what we were walking through and the way the village was in historical times.  Then we went through the museum and the fabulous (and priceless) artifacts sitting on the floor for us to admire before we walked up the muddy and very lush and tropical hill to the petroglyphs.  There was also a horse tied up here with no food and water - he really appreciated the water in a coconut shell given to him by Linda and many of the other passengers.  We heard about the meaning of the artifacts and also the difficulty in preserving them for posterity from Mark.  It was not a difficult walk, but it was definitely taxing some of the passengers we had along, in fact we thought one chap was going to have a heart attack on the spot - fortunately that did not happen.

Fatu Hiva is famous for its' Tapa cloth - and we even heard rocks pounding to make the tapa cloth as we walked through the village.  After our tour we stopped at the Artisan Centre and between the 6 of us we purchased Tapa cloth with traditional Marquesan designs drawn on, bone carvings (fabulous hooks and oar necklaces) - wonderful things and so hard to choose from.  Then a short walk back to the pier.  We were going to return to the Paul Gauguin - but the 4 of us (Wally, Ellen, Terry and I) decided to hire a taxi driver Noel (brand new 4 wheel drive Chevrolet) and tour the other side of the island and the village of Hanavave .  Noel is originally from Papeete Tahiti but met and married a Marquesan lady (now the School Principal) and loves Fatu Hiva - Noel finds Papeete much too busy and expensive.  The drive which lasted almost 4 hours (around $180 USD) was fabulous - the scenery amazing so lush and tropical, and the mountainous ridges so sheer and high!  Spectacular views and great conversations with Noel (my French was stretched) as we learned about Fatu Hiva and life in the Marquesas.  There are lots of wild goats and pigs and that is what they catch for food, and on many islands there are wild horses.  In fact the locals we saw in the water sitting in their boats looking at the cliffs were not fishing at all - they were watching for goats - which they shoot and then take out of the water for dinner!  It was truly an amazing 4 hours and well worth every cent!  At the dock - we saw small (tiny) tinnies (aluminum boat with motor) coming in to drop off sacks of copra, and to pick up artisans with their unsold wares to take them home to the village of Hanavave on the other side of the island. There are only about 10 vehicles on this island and a small population of 584 Marquesans.

That evening we were pretty tired after a fabulous day on Fatu Hiva and in the hot sun - we headed to the pool bar on the Paul Gauguin where our favourite waiters made us wonderful cocktails before dinner and we sadly waved Goodbye to Fatu Hiva - memories that were very special and will remain with us forever.

Thursday Dec 9, Hiva Oa,  Marquesas Islands- we arrived around 7am - this is the final resting place of Paul Gauguin (the Frenchman originally a stock broker, later in life a painter, womanizer and opium smoking person escaping civilised life ) and Jacques Brel - the Belgian song writer singer and made famous in France.  Again - a  beautiful sunny arrival, and to a backdrop of lush green high ridges and tropical foliage - these islands are amazing!  This is the second largest island in the Marquesas and the cliffs are over 3300 feet tall.  They are both buried at the Calvary Cemetery overlooking the village of Atuona - we visited this cemetery and what a wonderful outlook it has, a beautiful resting place.  This morning we took the excursion to Taaoa to visit the Upeke Ceremonial Centre.  Mark was so upset yesterday when he received an email saying that just yesterday a local Marquesan islander (high on drugs or something ) had gone to the Upeke Ceremonial Centre and defaced the Tiki there by taking off one of the ears.  As a result Mark had arranged for a couple of the local gendarmes to be there when we visited in case of any troubles (which there were none)  This is a very large site and wonderful to see - I was really taken with this massive tree in the middle of the site - so majestic.  We could really imagine how life used to be on a daily basis here - the site was reconstructed so well - and even the breadfruit pit - where all the breadfruit ( a very big product in these islands) used to be thrown into the pit  to ferment and provide a never ending source of food for the Marquesans.  The  partially carved Tiki at the site is large (maybe 4 feet high) and is still in its' original upright position - so to walk on this platform is TAPU (forbidden) as so many things in Marquesan historical life, and today's life, still are.

After the tour we stopped in the village where the local band were playing fabulous music (alas no CD available), and the communal ground surrounded by tables with carvings (which this island is very famous for), pareos (sarongs), and some wood carvings.  I took photos of 4 beautiful drums at the side of the field - little did I know that this evening the locals would be using these drums on board to entertain the passengers on board the Gauguin.  There was also lots of food to purchase - and this is obviously a big day for all the islanders - they were all there having a picnic and visiting with each other.  We even saw Anna (our 4 wheel driver of the morning with a great sense of humour) visiting with her friends and eating lunch.  We made some purchases and tried to get local currency from the bank but it was closed (French you know - they all close for at least 2 hours over noon even if there are lots of tourists on the island with money to spend!).  It was very hot and when we made it back to the Paul Gauguin - we were very pleased to see our waiters at the pool bar with cold drinks in hand for us!

At 5pm we headed down to the Grand Salon and spent the next hour with open mouths enjoying the sheer power and spectacle of the Marquesan dancers and singers.  The Marquesans are not like the Tahitians - the Tahitians' music and dance is soft and gentle and flowing - the Marquesans' is strong chants and hard powerful movements - it was simply amazing and wonderful - you could feel the power and the hair standing on end on your body - we loved every moment and the time flew by!  The men are tall, beautiful and powerful, mostly with long dark hair - they all have incredible tattoos and they are exotic and very detailed.  All too soon they headed back to Hiva Oa - we all waved from the top deck and they waved back and gave us a good war cry as they left!  The ship was so quiet after they went - I am so glad that I got some great movie footage on the camera!

Friday Dec 10 Ua Huka Marquesas Islands - well, that's where we were supposed to be!  However mother ocean had other ideas.  This is one of the trickiest places to dock the ship and apparently the Gauguin only manages to dock here about 50% of the time when it comes..  We already were aware that the tender trip to shore would be bumpy and take around half an hour.  Well, the seas were up with 3 meter roll and there was no safe way to get us passengers on to the tender and shore so this island stop was cancelled.  needless to say we were very disappointed - this is the island where most of the Marquesan wood carving comes from.  But truly - we felt sorry for the islanders, all 548 of them.. We knew that they had been preparing for the last several days or weeks - there would be flower leis to greet us with, passengers for all the jeeps on the island, and opportunities to sell us their beautiful wooden carvings and other products - we are sure they were terribly disappointed to see us all sail away on the Paul Gauguin after being within a hundred yards of their tiny harbour.  The harbour is too small for the Paul Gauguin (smaller ships can enter and turn on their axis to be tied up to the hills on both sides of the harbour) but the Gauguin is too big and has to be anchored off shore. 

We did a slow sightseeing cruise away from Ua Huka and over to Nuku Hiva - these Marquesas Islands are currently very dry - they have had no rain for 8 months and they look very grey and dry - so different from Fatu Hiva and Hiva Oa which were so incredibly green and lush.  We set the anchor around 11am in the beautiful Baie de Taiohae and after a fast lunch at 12pm we were on the first tender to the shore at 1pm.  It was very hot and sunny but also very quiet on shore.  We wandered through the 2 small (as in tiny) stores and purchased the most amazing water colour of a Marquesan male with fabulous tattoos - this was painted by a French lady who lives on a sailboat here in the bay.  Then we wandered through the artisans centre where they have wood and stone carvings, and lots of jewellery made mostly from a wide variety of local seeds, and some from the oyster shells and black pearls.  Afterwards we took a long walk from one end of the bay to the other - the waterfront park has a large selection of stone tikis and a lovely greeting spot for anyone arriving to this island.  Around the bay we found one tiny boutique and the owner told us this was the only place to buy clothes in the town apart from the Black Pearl Lodge who sell items with their logo on.  As we wandered we were fortunate to see along the beach a lady in her truck with the doors open playing local music - but she had 5 very small boys with her and she was teaching them a Marquesan dance to the music - the boys may have been 5 or 6 years old and it was lovely to see the Marquesan traditions being taught to the young boys.  There was a museum and store (again very small at the opposite end of the Bay) and believe it or not - there was one of the outrigger canoes used on Survivor Marquesas TV series!  Needless to say we took a photo of that.  This museum is run by Rose Carson who used to work at the resort and I suspect that is where the crew and cast of survivor stayed when they were filming Survivor Marquesas which is how she got the canoe.

By now we were very hot and thirsty - so a slow walk back around the bay - along the way we caught 3 of the drop outs from our walk trying to hide behind their hats at a local bar drinking ice cold Tahitian Hinano beer as we walked along - but we saw them and also joined them and downed a cold brew before finishing the walk back to the pier where Ellen purchased a black pearl necklace and beautiful pareo that she had seen when we first arrived on the island!  We took the 4pm tender back to the ship.  We just had time to down a quick cold drink before heading down to pick up a life jacket and head out for an hour tour around the bay on one of the very nice and powerful zodiacs that the Paul Gauguin uses for scuba, snorkelling and other water activities.  It was a beautiful ride - just 8 of us in the zodiac with Robert from Montreal who spent many years a snow board instructor in Whistler Village.  We saw turtles, and even goats hanging on to the 75 degree steep slopes into the water which goes down 4 metres to the ocean floor!  This is apparently the Marquesas islands are the islands with the furthest distance from any continent.

A fabulous dinner at Le Grill on deck 7 in the open air - we have such wonderful Philippino staff and they look after us so well.  The menu changes tomorrow but at the moment we are enjoying a sampler platter (chicken satay, pork and sauces) pumpkin soup, filet mignon and shrimp or fresh catch of the day and of course, fabulous wines and liquers to wash it down with.  We finished watching the stars on the aft deck listening to good music at La Palette before heading down just one deck to collapse into our very comfortable beds.

Saturday Dec 10 Nuku Hiva

This is the capital of the Marquesas - the capital used to be on the island of Fatu Hiva.  We woke up to beautiful sunny skies and calm seas.  At breakfast at Le Grill ( breakfast starts at 7am) we watched sharks swimming just off the ship and 4 manta rays feeding on the plankton - they were quite large and as they rolled in the ocean to open their wide mouths and feed on the plankton their white underbellies were above the surface.  

We headed out with Mark Eddowes examining past and present life in Marquesas. We learned about Fort Madison and when the USA (Lieutenant David Porter) tried to buy USA ownership of the Marquesas and the Marquesan Tei'i tribe tried to use the USA guns and manpower to subdue the fierce Taipi tribe across one of the ridges.  There are over 100 historical sites here (Mark has been mapping them since the earl 1990's) and you really start to appreciate who the Marquesans are as a nation and how proud they are of their heritage.  We loved listening to the stories of the Catholic cathedral in Taioha'e  (while we were sitting in the cathedral) and how so many of the pieces in the Cathedral are from Marquesan history - like the font which used to be a grinding stone bowl, and the huge stone altar which used to be a sacrificial platform!!!!  We said adieu to our driver Louise (all our tours here have been in 4 wheel drive vehicles, most of which are driven by Marquesan ladies).  We were back on the ship around 1:30pm where we had a wonderful lunch (imagine fresh caesar salad, calamari, pecan pie to name a few washed down with sauvignon blanc) and enjoyed the cool breezes off the water after the 36 degree celcius temperatures on the island.  We leave tonight at 6pm - our next two days will be at sea heading back to the Society Islands - so some sea and sand coming up in Bora Bora, Moorea, Taha'a, Huahina and Papeete.   will now race to get this emailed before we head out to sea where email is impossible.  I hope you enjoy reading it and sahring life aboard the Paul Gauguin visiting the Marquesas, Tuamotous, and Tahitian Island sin the South Pacific.