Tahiti & Moorea

Paradise! French Polynesia here I come!! To get to Easter Island, a place sitting top of my list of destinations, I had to fly via Tahiti..I could think of worse places ;-)
My original stay was only for 4 nights, in the end it was a 10 day stay. After crossing the International Date Line, living the same day twice and easing myself into a tropical island lifestyle, I missed my outbound flight by a day! Yes, I found myself stranded on a South Pacific Island screaming "WILSON"! Luckily enough my open jaw ticket was flexible enough to catch the next flight out, 5 days later. So my first 5 days were at Taaroa Lodge in Punaauia, the owner, the friendly and way too modest longboard surfering champ, Ralph Sanford. It was here I met some cool Swedes touring the world, Hannes from Brugge obsessed with the Polynesian Tattoo method of tapping, and Sandra a funny German gal who turned into a good traveling companion for the rest of my stay. We were all in awe each eve as we watched the sunset over the neighbouring island of Moorea. Each beautiful and colourful moment was enjoyed with a tasty Tahitian beer called Hinano. On Tahiti I rented a car and drove with Sandra around the island taking countless amounts of pictures and visiting the world renowned surf location of Teahupoo. We also caught a Polynesian Dance show at the Intercontinental Hotel (I got out of the backpacker gear and scrubbed up a little) and enjoyed a fantastic all you can eat buffet meal (The clothes were off but I ate like a scabby backpacker). On another day I caught a ferry across to the island of Moorea where I took on dirt roads through pineapple plantations in a Bugster, mega fun but I always had to remember not to park on a hill as the handbrake didn't work.

So, finding myself stranded for another 4 days, having seen the sights of Papeete (Chaotic town for an island, traffic jams were a common phenomenon!) and of the island I decided to join Sandra on Moorea and try my hand at some water activities. We joined an excursion given by a local lady, cruised along the lagoons, swam & snorkeled with Stingrays and Reef Sharks (The theme tune to Jaws was in my head the whole time I was in the water) and fed Moray eels. We were invited to their stunning Tahitian home to enjoy some fresh fruit and snorkel in their lagoon. The following day I braved the water once more and dove with Moorea Fun Dive. As a beginner and not the most confident in the water, I need not have stressed as my calm and collective instructor Cedric made it my most enjoyable marine experience ever. At the depth of over 6 metres, the different types and colours of fish were amazing and the sight of spotted rays gliding by us made we totally forget my anxiety. On my last day on Moorea, Sandra, Hannes and I rented scooters and took on the island once more. My first time on a scooter and I was told I was a natural (Others could say a Speed Junky!). After tearing up the roads for the day I made sure I was on a ferry back in time for my flight out of Tahiti that eve. It was farewell to Sandra, Hannes and the tranquilty of Moorea and it was on to yet another continent, South America. The thought did cross my mind once or twice that day to miss/extend again and enjoy the serenity of Moorea but with time working against me, Easter Island was a calling.

Pix @ Picturesque French Polynesia Album