Alberts Place: Tahiti, Fiji, Kandavu, Wayasawa

The South Pacific is fantastic. Although Tahiti is a bit over touristed it is still far away from the grim reality of cold industrialized northern Europe, and certainly worth a visit. Fiji is a paradise, filled with friendly people and amazing sights both above and below the water. Your money goes a long way here and time is definitely a relative concept. Don't make plans without building in "Fiji Time" delay. We went to Alberts Place for a 10 days and ended up staying for three weeks.

Tahiti

We went straight to Moorea, mainly because the camping was cheap and there was no way we could afford to go to the outer islands which are very expensive to get to. Also Bora Bora etc are mainly populated by Japanese and US big business hotels which don't encourage riff-raff such as you and me to visit

Camping on Moorea was around $7US per night, but food was damned expensive with lots of it being shipped in from Europe. And it's not only Food that the French have exported to their colony, they seem to have taken with them that Gallic surliness towards visitors which is more normally seen in the cheaper hotels of Paris. Property is a big deal here and retired French civil servants jostle for beach space with tin hut dwelling Tahitians and now every man and his chicken has a Private Property notice on their garden. Speaking of Chickens, on Moorea there is a bizarre dawn chorus as the morning sun hits one side of the Island well before the other the cocks begin to crow at one spot and then it spreads in a Mexican Wave of sound around the entire Island which is nice the first morning, gets on your nerves the second and you've forgotten about it the 3rd because you are too annoyed at listening to French surfers playing the Clash on acoustic guitar and singing really badly. "Shurd ah stay ar shurd ah goo". it's worth taking a trip if you can find one and we went on a cheap shark feeding jaunt in an outrigger canoe. The captain was a grizzly Polynesian covered in traditional tattoos but his two helpers were Californian surfers. We sailed out over the inner reef baling chum into the water in a scary re-enactment of the first day's fishing in Jaws. Soon we stopped and 3 or 4 reef sharks and about 3000 multi-colored fish came sniffing around the pink water. Out came the masks and snorkels and in we dived. Absolutely awesome. After that we stopped on a little motu (islet) for lunch then went off to feed stingrays on a sand bank. All this for $10US the cheapest and best trip on Moorea. If you get there it's at the campsite three resorts down from the Club Med.( This gives you an idea of the level of tourism on Moorea)

Fiji

Fiji is a complete contrast to Tahiti. Friendly people, cheap prices and a bizarrely British failure to colonialise the place. The British arrived, liked the Fijians, didn't get eaten by them too often and so they drafted all sorts of land laws which indigenous peoples in other countries have been fighting for for decades. You'll probably arrive at Nandi since that is where the airport is and its a bit of a hole, although its the main tourist area for big league operators like Sheraton etc. Nearby beaches are rubbish, and the town's main good point is the market where you can wander round and be stared at by the friendly locals.Nandi market also has a great cafe where you can get lamb curry at good prices. Avoid the expensive restaurants in town which employ touts and charge Sheraton Customer prices. Also watch out for the Indian hoteliers who could rob a blind leper and walk away laughing. We stayed at the White House Hotel which was ok for the money and has a lot of information on other locations around Fiji. You can pay there for trips to outer Islands and they will arrange transport etc. Obviously they take a commission but if a place is crummy they will tell you so. See their visitors book for good info.

Suva is described by the South Pacific Handbook (an excellent book) as "the throbbing heart of the South Pacific"which might be taking things a little far but Fiji's capital is a lively town and fun to wander round. We stayed here in a flea pit sort of a place which was recommended as not being in the lonely planet by SPH. In fact lonely planet gives it a drubbing as a hang out for whores with noisy bar and partying all night. The reality was they had security gaurds and everyone was in bed by ten. The accommodation was basic but ok once you got the Mozzy coils burning and the staff were very friendly. We also tried one of LP's recommendations which was an overcrowded noisy hole. In Suva check the museum the swimming pool, and the Tholo i Suva Forest Park. Actually more of a forest than a park, the paths aren't exactly clear, but deep rainforest just a bus ride out of the city makes a nice day trip.(see pic).

Kandavu

We sailed to Kandavu rom Suva on the Whippy's Shipping company ferry. When we got to the dock and saw a fishing charter boat we assumed the ferry had not yet arrived. This was the ferry. (see pic) After ten hours five of which were spent pitching and rolling outside the reef on open sea we arrived at Alberts Place. A cove on the South east of Kandavu. We pitched our tent and repaired to the dining shack for the first of many delicious meals. This place is extraordinary. There is a village of sorts in the next bay and that's it as far as population goes. Time passes gently as you lounge on the beach, or snorkel in the pristine coral just off shore. We learned to dive here and although the equipment was a bit ropy the instruction was excellent and the diving fantastic. For our final dive we went out to a pass in the reef and descended to a coral garden which was just awesome, no need to swim you just let the current take you along. Getting to and from Albert's is not easy there are two ferry services both of which are unreliable. But it is certainly worth the wait, its a bit like being shipwrecked intentionally in the best possible circumstances.

Wayasawa

After Kandavu we went back to suva and then Nandi and on to Wayasawa to stay at Dive Trek Nature Lodge which is a resort run by the islanders so everyone gets a bit of cash from the foreigners. There are lot of ibiza clones here on their way back from a year in Australia but its generally a good atmosphere. The snorkelling here is amazing thanks to a steep drop off about 20mtrs off the beach, there are all sorts of fish and coral to be seen and the easy swim to deep water makes it a lazy swimmers paradise. Food here is good though not as good as Alberts but you get 4 meals a day, high tea if you please with tea and scones, no dinner gong here though the call to table comes from a conch shell.from what other people were saying it was way better than some of the more popular and expensive party Islands. Water can be in short supply so don't expect much from the showers. The lovo is good fun and took me back to the Blue Peter Expedition to Tonga.(ok you have to be my age for that to mean anything)

Honeymoon In French Polynesia: Bora Bora, Tahiti

Day 10 - Bora Bora

We woke up around 8:00. I got ready for diving and left for the dock at 8:45. At 9:00, I was picked up in a 10' narrow motor boat and we were off. There were two divemasters, one French and one Japanese, and five divers, all American. We traveled outside the lagoon and half way around the island. A one point, we saw 5 dolphins in front of us, but they disappeared when we stopped the boat...very cool. After about 35-40 minutes, we stopped at what is called Tupitipiti Ocean. We were told that this was mostly a cave and coral dive. We dove for 35-40 minutes through caves very close to the reef. The current was extremely strong, as we were diving right on the barrier reef that separated the ocean from the lagoon. Although we didn't see alot of fish, (I saw a turtle which I hadn't see before) the dive was very cool, as I had not dove in caves and crevices before. We then traveled back to the hotel. While I as diving, Jill was reading and sunning on the beach.


At around noon we went to lunch in the same place we ate yesterday. I had a vegetarian sandwich (omlete, lettuce, tomato, cucumber and cheese) which was served with fries and fruit. Jill had fish and chips. Again we enjoyed the meal.

After lunch, we came back to the room and napped through about 1-1 1/2 hours of rain. At about 3:00 we walked around the hotel grounds and found the games hut, where we played ping-pong (there was also a pool table and alot of workout equipment.) We then reserved a rental car for the following day and made dinner reservations at the Bamboo House (on the mainland) through reception. The people at reception were always very helpful.

We then thought about taking the ferry/boat over to the mainland (a free service) but decided not to, as we would be spending half the day there tomorrow. We went back to the room to gather the camera equipment and then hiked to the top of the hill on our motu for the sunset. The hotel was still in the process of constructing stairs up the hill, so some of our hike was more treacherous than the rest. Overall, it was pretty easy. The view from the top was perfect for the sunset, however after a while the mosquitoes got to us and we went further down to a large cement platform that I assume will be a look-out platform when completed. The sunset was very nice, however we didn't want to hike down in the dark, so I took some final pictures back on our porch.

We then showered and got ready for the 7:30 boat ride to the mainland for dinner. The ferry ride took ~7 minutes and got us to the hotel's "base" on the mainland at around 7:40 where we waited to be picked up by a van from the Bamboo House. (This complimentary shuttle service is also provided by the renowned Bloody Mary's.) The ride was about 5-10 minutes. As expected, the restaurant was almost entirely constructed from bamboo and was very quaint. I had a goat-cheese salad and fetucine in basil alfredo sauce. Jill had a ceasar salad and shrimp fettucine in alfredo sauce. The food was very good and was slightly cheaper than hotel meals. Afterwards, we were shuttled back and caught the 9:15 ferry to the hotel. (They have a regular schedule which is available at reception.)

Once back in our hut, we relaxed and then went to sleep. Again, we slept pretty well, but were a little warm.

Day 11 - Bora Bora

We woke at about 7:30am and then caught an 8:45 ferry to the main island of Bora Bora, where our rental car was waiting for us. We were picked up right at our ferry drop-off by a Europcar representative and taken the short ride to their small office. We rented the car for 4 hours. By 9:05 we were on the road in our Fiat Panda with a canvas roof that opened to the sky.

We backed tracked about 1/4 mile in order to stop at Chin Lee (THE biggest and cheapest supermarket on the island.) Here, we bought some breakfast...yogurt, fruit, bread, juice and water. They have a nice selection of foods, toiletries, souvenirs, and film. Next, we pulled into a small shopping center parking lot and ate. After eating, we were off to tour the island.

Our first stop was to take a picture of the Bamboo House, where we had eaten the previous evening. We then ventured a short distance down the road to check out the infamous Bloody Mary?s. After seeing the place, we decided that we would eat dinner there that night. We proceeded to drive around the island, stopping at various scenic spots to enjoy and take pictures and video. When we had completed a trip around the island, we decided to go around again and make stops at the various shops and spots that we liked. (The entire circle around the island took less that 1 hour, including stops.) Let me say at this point, that the island is absolutely beautiful!

On the second go round, we checked out several bazaars (shops with various trinkets, pareos, black pearls, etc.) It started to rain lightly, but the rain blew over rather quickly. At about 12:00 we decided to stop at a little patisserie called "L'Patisserie" for lunch. I had a cheese, vegetable, and alfalfa sprout sandwich with chips and a coke. Jill had a piece of Sicilian style pizza and vanilla ice cream for dessert. The shop was cute and I liked my lunch, however Jill did not love hers.

After lunch, we returned the car and walked back to the ferry to catch a 1:30 boat. Upon returning to the hotel, we changed into swimsuits and relaxed by the pool for the rest of the day. We also signed up for the Jeep Safari on the mainland for the next day and had the hotel make reservations at Bloody Mary's for tonight. As usual, we took pictures of the sunset.

Our reservation was at Bloody Mary's at 7:15, so we caught a 6:45 ferry. It was very windy at this point in the evening and the main ferry dock was being tossed around like paper, so the hotel shuttled us to their marina which was protected from the wind. The boat was waiting there for us and the trip across was not that bad, considering the weather.

When we arrived at the main island, we were picked up by Jay Boy from Bloody Mary's. He is a very nice American guy who spends some time every year down in the islands, and works for the restaurant when he is there. This was the first time I found out that Atlanta won the World Series, which ended almost a week ago. He told stories on the ride over to the restaurant, making the ride fun. The restaurant was great. We all (two other couples we met were there as well) had fun and thought the food was good. We left for the boat at 9:30 and arrived back at the hotel at about 9:45.

After a long day, we turned in around 10:15. Our night's sleep was the same as the previous two nights. A little warm, but OK otherwise

Day 12 - Bora Bora

Wow, our last full day. We awoke around 7:45 and got ready for the Jeep Safari which began at 8:45. We caught the 8:30 boat over to the Main Island and were picked up in a green Land Rover jeep right on time. The jeep was fulla and I sat in the front seat with the driverand the guide, who was straddling the stick shift. Jill sat in back with 6 other people with their backs facing out of the jeep.

As we drove along the main road around the island, the guide and the driver pointed out many interesting facts about the landscape and the people of the island. For example, we learned that the very long mailboxes we saw were used for daily bread delivery. They also pointed out that Tahitian families bury their dead in grave yards in the front yard of their homes. After about fifteen minutes of driving, we turned off the main road and ventured up what I must call the bumpiest and rockiest road I have ever been on. It was fun. At the top of the mountain/hill that we climbed, we stopped between two 7 inch guns that the U.S. used during WWII, when we thought the Japanese were going to try to take the Polynesian Islands. The guns, as you may or may not know, were never used as the Japanese never did move on Tahiti. After taking pictures of the guns and the beautiful views, we headed back down.

After traveling a little further on the main road, we made several other climbs up mountains/hill around the islands. We stopped at a house that rather large and interesting grounds. There we saw nice flowers and a grave. All side roads were similar to the first...very bumpy and rocky with deep grooves. All views at the top were absolutely magnificent. One view was of our hotel. The pictures should be awesome.

One stop which we loved, was at a pineapple plantation. Here we learned about pineapple plants, papaya, vanilla, coconut, banana, lime and many other fruits and plants. We were treated to the sweetest pineapple and papaya that we ever had. We learned a trick when eating papaya...squit some lime over the fruit after you cut it. It was delicious.

The rest of the trip was thoroughly enjoyable. We highly recommend taking the Jeep Safari tour while on Bora Bora. It is a perfect change from sunning and enjoying water activities.

We returned to the hotel's main base around noon and headed back over to the hotel. We had a quick lunch in the cafe restaurant. We both had sandwiches. We then spent the rest of the day relaxing on the balcony, beach and in the water. For our last half-day, we wanted nothing more than to relax and enjoy the weather and scenery.

Our last dinner was at the restaurant at the hotel. We had meals very similar to those at the hotel restaurant three nights earlier.

After dinner, we relaxed in our room and on the balcony. Although we knew we wouldn't want to wake up and face our trip away from this paradise, we slept rather soundly that night.

Day 13 - Bora Bora/Tahiti

Well, what more needs to be said? We awoke at around 5:45AM and headed out to the ferry dock. We were shuttled over to the airport by boat and arrived at 6:30. Our flight for Papeete left at 7:25.

We arrived at Papeete at 8:10 and received our last shell lei of our trip. I am not sure that we pointed out that each time we arrived on an island or at a hotel, we received a flower lei, and each time we left, we received a shell lei. This is a local custom.

Our flight back to L.A. left at 9:15. At that time, we boarded the plane that would lead us from the most incredible trip we have ever had. Although we were looking forward to getting home and starting our new life together, this was a trip that we will never forget.

As they say in Tahitian...Mauruuru! (Thank you) We had a fabulous time and hope to return.

Honeymoon In French Polynesia: Huahine, Bora Bora

Day 7 - Huahine

After another harmless (in terms of mosquitoes) night's sleep, we are really loving this place. We awoke at about 7:45, got ready and walked down to breakfast. On the way down, we saw some banana trees.

Continental breakfast consisted of fresh fruit, croissants (plain and chocolate), muffins, toast, yogurt, juices, coffee, and jams. The cost is about $20 each. For an additional $10 per person, you could have an American breakfast which added an omelet, fried or scrambled eggs, bacon, hash browns, and cooked tomatoes. I elected to have an omelet, while Jill stuck with the continental breakfast. Everything was great.


With our stomachs satiated, we took the truck back to the room and took a quick Jacuzzi before going down to the beach. After lotioning ourselves and walking down to the beach, we hopped into an outrigger canoe and paddled out to a floating sun pontoon and lied out for a bit. While swimming around the pontoon, I noticed a sunken boat about 30-40 ft. down. We paddled back to the shore to get masks, snorkels, and fins (all provided by the hotel) to check out the ship. Once we returned to the pontoon, I began snorkeling. The ship was called "Erika," a 100 year old Baltic schooner. I checked it and the fish around it out for about 40 minutes, and then got Jill to come in and see it. After Jill was in the water about 5 minutes, we had our second adventure of the trip... Trying to get her attention, I lost my wedding ring from my hand and watched it tumble to the bottom. Needless to say, Jill freaked, started crying and fled from the water onto the pontoon. I on the other hand, remained calm. As I looked down, praying the ring was visible, I saw it resting about 30-35 ft. down on one of two 2'x3' raised platforms on the right middle of the boat. I must say that an inch or two away and it would have fallen between the two platforms, and we don't need to discuss that any further. Although my ears were hurting earlier, I was determined to get the ring. With one deep breath, I began to descend. I cleared my ears on the way down, and...surprise, I got the ring! I think that Jill was much happier than I was, although her wrath would have made me very unhappy if I hadn't gotten it.

We then snorkeled and sunned some more before paddling back in at about 3:30. We hung out at the pool and then took the truck back up to our hut. There we jacuzzied, showered, and relaxed until about 5:45, when we walked down to the beach to take some photos of a very beautiful sunset. Then, as we did the night before, we sat at the bar and had a $5 Coke and water with free cheese, ham and tomato on toasted bread and played backgammon and scrabble until dinner. On this night, there was a single guitarist playing at the bar.

At 8:15, we went to the restaurant for dinner. This evening, Jill had a Caesar salad and shrimp and chicken in coconut sauce. I had a grilled red snapper and chopped vegetable salad and mahi-mahi in vanilla sauce. The presentation of the food, by the way, rivals that of the best French restaurants in NYC. Everything was excellent.

After finishing dinner, we took the truck back up and went to bed, which again was a comfortable, bug-free night.

Day 8 - Huahine

After another good night's sleep, we awoke around 7:30 to the sound of chicken's and rooster's clucking. We got ready and went down to breakfast. We both had the American breakfast with fried or sunny-side eggs along with the fruit, bread, yogurt, juices, and coffee.

We then walked over to the waterfront for a while, played a little Ping-Pong (outdoors), and then headed back up, via truck, to our hut to get ready for the beach. After a short Jacuzzi, we lotioned up and walked down to the beach. On the walk we saw other huts in the distance. Once again, we took an outrigger canoe to the sun pontoon and spent the afternoon on both the pontoon and the beach.

At around 3:30, having had enough sun for the day, we trucked back up to the hut where we jacuzzied, relaxed, read and showered for dinner.

At 5:30, like clockwork, we watched and photographed the sunset and then headed to the bar for a game of scrabble. On this night, they served ham and cheese on toast as the free appetizer. There were two musicians playing and three natives provided a pareo (this is the one-piece garment that Tahitians wear as a wrap) tieing demonstration. There are more ways to tie a pareo than you want to know. It was fun.

At 8:00, we sat down for dinner. Jill had the shrimp ravioli in mushroom sauce and the triple chocolate mousse for dessert. I had a Caesar salad and the shrimp ravioli. Once again, everything was delicious.

After a relaxing dinner, we trucked back up to our fare and went to sleep. Again, we no mosquitoe problems (I remind you we had lit three coils in the hut) or animal incidents made our last night at Hana-Iti a sheer pleasure.

Day 9 - Huahine/Bora Bora

We awoke around 7:30. We took a jacuzzi and then got dressed and packed up. At about 9:00, we walked to the cliff look-out at Hana Iti and took pictures, video and enjoyed the view. The cliff was just above the waterfall described earlier. We then went back to the room and called for the truck to take us to the mountain look-out and then reception.

The mountain look-out was higher and more spectacular than the cliff look-out. After climbing several stairs, we arrived in a small hut. I, then climbed up a ladder to a look-out tower that was about 4 feet in diameter. Again, I took pictures and video. We then walked halfway down the road which the truck carried us up. We passed another hut that seemed to be perched in a tree. I, slowly checked it out (making sure it was not occupied.) For the most part, it was similar to our hut, however, the main "living" room was in a tree and was much more open (to the air) than our room. There were more seating areas than we had and a hammock. It was very cool. The bedroom, bathroom, and shower were all on one floor of a separate building. Again, this room was more open than ours, and was probably alot more buggy and therefore unoccupied. It was nice to see another hut, but I was glad ours was "sealed". We had spoken to two French guys who transfered to a "sealed" hut after one night, because the open hut they were put in was VERY buggy.

We eventually made it to reception, by truck, and checked out and started to the airport in the Land Rover. On our trip over, we hit a solid 10-15 minute downpour which was completely over by the time we arrived at the airport.

Our flight to Bora Bora left at 12:05 and arrived at 12:25. The view of Bora Bora from the sky was magnificent, even though we were on the wrong side of the plane. It is easy to see why this is called the most beautiful island in the world. We landed on a small motu, off of the main island. The majority of people were transfered to a ferry, which took them to the mainland. We, however, boarded a smaller boat from our hotel (The Bora Bora Lagoon Resort) which was also on a motu. The boat ride took about 20-30 minutes.

We docked at our hotel at about 1:00 and checked in. We received fresh coconut milk in a coconut and were escorted through the grounds to our room. We were pleasantly surprised to have been upgraded to an overwater bungalow. (We had been told not to book all over-water bungalows because honeymooners are often upgraded.) Our hut was great! Jill immediately deemed it the best. I, however, still thought Hana Iti was the best, with this being a close second. It is basically one large room with a king bed, chaise lounge, chair and ottoman, desk, TV, and glass coffee table with a hole through the floor. This table was very cool, you could see fish, day and night, right through the floor. The top slid open, as well, so you could feed the fish. The bathroom was easily the most luxurious...two sinks, a tub, shower, and separate toilet. Above the bathroom was a large tapestry. Finally, there was a large balcony with two lounges and a ladder leading to a platform on the water.

Anyway, we were starving so we ventured over to the cafe for lunch. I was pleased to find a vegetarian section on the menu. I had gazpacho soup and vegetable curry, while Jill had pasta in tomato and garlic sauce. Everything was very good.

After lunch, we came back to the room and swam in the lagoon. Then we checked out the hotel grounds, signed me up for scuba the next day, and relaxed until dinner. Surprise, we took some sunset shots and watched most of "Goodfellas" in the room. (There were 3 movie channels that are free.)

For dinner we decided to go to the more casual restaurant, since the fancier one didn't have any vegetarian choices. We both had a green salad and Napolitano pizza. Again the food was good. Jill had black forest cake with vanilla ice cream for dessert.

After dinner, as usual, we went back to our room and went to sleep. We slept pretty well, although there wasn't much of a breeze and we were a little warm, even with doors and windows open.

Honeymoon In French Polynesia: Moorea, Huahine

Day 4 - Moorea

We awoke to the cool breeze of tropical winds at about 7AM. Jill went for a morning run while I waited to line up a rental car.

We hopped into our Mega Ranch, (a two seater, with no doors, an open roof and a small truck bed in the rear) really quite a cute car, and by about 9AM and were off. We decided to circle the island counter-clockwise. We drove along stopping at one spot after another to take video and photographs. We saw animals. We stopped at Moorea's two bays: Cook's Bay and Opanahu Bay. We loved the view of Bali Hai from Opanahu Bay. Both bays are very beautiful. After about a 2 hour relaxing ride, we stopped at a small store to purchase (very reasonable priced) food for lunch, and tomorrow's breakfast and lunch. We then returned to the hotel and ate cheese, pineapple, bread, crackers, and potato chips for lunch after a quick swim off of our balcony. This is also a good time to point out the dolphins at our hotel. (For a steep price, you can swim with and hold them for 20 mintues.)

We were now ready to go back to the more adventerous and scenic spots on the island. We headed for Belvedere Lookout, a spot in the mountains between Cooks and Opanahu Bay that has a spectacular view. The drive up was twisty with many potholes, but it was very fun. We, of course, took pictures and video at the top. After driving back down the mountain, we were destined to find this waterfall or cascade that I read about. We were off to our most exciting adventure yet.

We searched for a while, trying to find the right road for the waterfall. Even after asking several people for directions, the language barrier precluded us from easily finding our destination. We finally headed down a small bumpy road, where at one point the road was blocked. A creepy looking man told us the waterfalls were ahead and that we needed to pay 200 cpf/person ($2.50) to go past. We decided to go back to try to find what we were told was another, free, waterfall. Well, after venturing about a mile down a road fit for a Jeep, we decided we weren?t going to find the "other" waterfall. With our tail between our legs, we went back to the creepy Tahitian and paid the fee. He wrote down our license plate, hotel and time of departure and then made me sign something (probably our lives away). We drove about a mile down a bumpy road and then got out and took a slightly treacherous (definitely don't wear flip-flops and Tevas as we did) 20 minute hike to the waterfall. Needless to say, Jill was not a happy camper. The waterfall was very nice, about 100-200 ft. I would say, and after we were safely back in our car so would Jill, that it was worthwhile.

We next headed for the pineapple distillery where they make juices and liquors, but it was closed for the day. (I think it closes at 4PM).

We then headed home, signed me up for scuba the next morning, and got ready for dinner. Before leaving, we took in the sunset.

Since we had the car, we decided to go out to "Les Tipaniers", an Italian restaurant about 1 mile away. (We could have walked but it was dark. The walk is about 18-20 minutes, we knew people that did it). We arrived at about 7PM and were told we needed reservations, however we were also told to come back at around 8-8:15 for a table. At that time we did get a table and the food was very good. We had salads with Roquefort cheese and walnuts. Jill had tagiatelle in tomato cream sauce with shrimp, and I had a pizza with several different vegetables on it. For dessert we shared profiterolles. The food was reasonably priced, about $50 for two. This goes to show the price differnce between hotel restaurants and local establishments. The service was not extraordinary, for some reason they were a little rude.

After dinner we returned and went to sleep. Once again we slept very well.

Day 5 - Moorea

We awoke at about 7:00. Jill went running and I prepared for my 8:00 dive. The dive shop on the hotel grounds is called Bathy's. It is near the pool and the main beach. About 12 of us, plus 3 dive-masters went out on a 30" boat for a 10-15 minute ride. We stopped at a spot called Opanahu Ocean. I dove with three Americans and a dive master. After getting to about 15?, one of the divers in my group had to go back up due to a bad ear pressure problem. The rest of us continued towards the other groups of divers, where a feeding was occuring. We settled down on the bottom at 80? and watched as a dive master held out a 4? fish which was serving as lunch to about 20 black tip sharks and many smaller fish. The sharks circled within a few feet of our heads, it was incredible. The rest of the dive, which lasted 50 minutes, was nice, but nothing special. I was back at the room by about 10:30.

We lied in the sun and relaxed in the water until lunch, which was the same as yesterday except for the substitution of taco flavored Doritos for potato chips.

After lunch, we lied out and swam a little more. At about 4:00 we decided to take a walk to "Le Petit Village", a small shopping center down the road from the hotel. We saw many beautiful flowers in yellow, red, and white as we walked, We passed "Le Tipaniers" (the restaurant at which we had eaten last night) after about 18-20 minutes. "Le Petit Village" is about a 30 minute walk and is across from the Club Med. There are some black pearl shops, bazaars, a newstand, and a good ice cream/sorbet shop. We got banana and lemon sorbets for the walk back. They were delicious.

We returned to our room at 5:30. Again, I took sunset shots and we then showered for dinner. We ate in the hotel restaurant which overlooked the pool and was romantic. Jill had a green salad, shrimp in a pineapple, and chocolate mousse cake. I had a goat cheese salad and mahi-mahi, rice and vegetables. The price was around $80 and the food was good.

After dinner we strolled back to our hut and went to sleep. Once again, we slept very well.

Day 6 - Moorea/Huahine

Once again, we awoke fairly early at about 7:30. Jill went for a run and I slept until she returned at about 9:00. We ate a small breakfast in the room-yogurt, bread and water.

With our airport pickup scheduled for noon, we packed and then relaxed on our balcony until about 11:30. Right at noon, as scheduled, we were picked up for the airport. Our flight to Papeete left at 1:15 and we arrived at 1:25. As soon as we took off, the steward told us to "please place seats and trays...for our approach to Tahiti." Definitely the shortest flight of our lives. Once on the ground, we had about 30 minutes until our flight to Huahine. We tried to mail some postcards and exchange some money, but learned that at the Papeete airport, both offices along with the souvenir stand are only open 1 hour before and after international flights. So, we still have not mailed any postcards.

As we had not eaten since early in the morning, we got cheese, lettuce, and tomato on a baguette, onion chips, and two sodas and had a small lunch.

At 2:20, we boarded our next plane for Huahine and arrived at 3:00. At the airport, we were greeted by an Asian/Tahitian looking man in a Land Rover. This, we had expected, as we were told only 4-wheel drive vehicles venture to our hotel - Hana Iti. After about a 20-25 minute ride, we turned onto a narrow, bumpy and windy dirt road that we were told other cars could navigate, but I don't think they would fare very well. After 5-10 minutes on this road, we arrived at reception. We were basically in a clearing with nothing around, except for a some cars and a path through the woods leading to reception. We did notice several small Fiats here, so renting a car truly was possible, what do you know.

Upon checking in, we received leis, fresh coconut milk (in the coconut), and were told we were upgraded from a deluxe bungalow to a special bungalow. We were taken onto a balcony overlooking the entire complex (although we mostly saw woods) and given the lay of the land and a brief overview of Hana Iti.

We, then, climbed into a truck which transports people around the mountainous and expansive hotel, and were taken to our bungalow. WOW! We walked up a hand made tree trunk staircase, along a short dirt path, and up a few more steps to the first building of our complex. Straight ahead, and through sliding glass doors was the bedroom (really a building in itself.) The bed is a four post bed with a mosquito net over it (more on the bugs later.) There is a small trunk on the right side of the bed with mosquito coils, insect repellant and some shells on top. Half of the room, (the bed portion) had a woven rug, and the other half is some kind of beautiful wood floor. A chaise lounge and wooden full length mirror completed the bedroom. The bathroom is off of the right corner of the bedroom separated by a sliding, Japanese-like, screen door. The sink was ceramic with shells as both faucet and knobs. Even the toilet seat was made of some exotic wood. There was a coffee maker in the bathroom as well.

To the left of where we entered the bedroom is another sliding glass door which leads to a wrap-around deck and to our second building which houses the "living room." This room is about double the size of the bedroom and has sliding glass doors along three sides of the room. There is a glass dining table with a tree trunk base and three bamboo chairs with pillows of some type of fabric from Bali. There is a small bar area with a fridge, which had a fruit basket and champagne in it (compliments of the hotel.) On the bar was another mosquito coil, shells, a flashlight, and glasses. Next to the bar is a bamboo and shell lamp and two plants. The other half of the room contains a bamboo couch, with pillows and cushions in the same fabric as the dining chairs, and two matching chairs. A tree trunk coffee table completed the furnishings. Finally, there is a ceiling fan with a mobile made of shells hanging from it. The panoramic view from this room is incredible. You look out on a beautiful bay, surrounded by mountains, flowing into the lagoon to the east. Exiting through any of the four enormous sliding glass doors takes you out onto a wrap-around deck, where you realize that the hut is built into a cliff.

Back through the bedroom, directly across from where we originally entered the hut, is a door leading to two places. If you go to the right, up about 8 steps, you come to a platform/balcony in the cliff with a jacuzzi overlooking the same expanse as the living room. This is a romantic spot. If you go to the left, from the bedroom door, and down about 10-12 steps, you enter the room below the "living" room. This room which is separated into three areas has a large walk-in closet with a sliding glass door leading to the lowest and smallest balcony of the bungalow. There is also a large dressing area with another shell sink with shell knobs, a few mirrors, and Japanese-like screen windows that pulled from the top down, which opened to the bay described above. The last portion of this room is an open shower, not only open to get in, but open with a view of the bay. There is a shower massage, snake-like head which fit into an interestingly shaped branch set into the floor. Again, the knobs were shells, and a bench was made of a tree trunk. A nice effect occurred when draining the jacuzzi, the water flowed down rocks to the base of the shower like a small waterfall.

So, this is to be our home for 3 days and 3 nights. Now, about the stories we had heard. We were told that the mosquitoes here were worse than anywhere else, due to the huts being in the woods. We also heard of crabs, lizards, and rats in the rooms, and finally that the huts leaked. After staying in bungalow #24, I can say the following:

1. The mosquitoes were not a problem if you follow the instructions of the hotel manager. (Light coils when in and out of the room, put on the citronella scented bug lotion they give you when you go out at night, and sleep under the mosquito net.) The coils didn't smell overly smoky, the lotion was not very oily after it dried, and sleeping under the net was actually fun. Our verdict...No mosquito bites during dinner or while sleeping.
   
2. The only animals we saw in our room were small lizards, which we saw at every hotel we stayed at.
   
3. Although it only rained for a brief time, on our first night, our hut did not leak.
   

You should know, that some huts were open to the wild, and I could see having problems. Request a closed in hut.
Jill, who was both scared and worried, really began to love this place after our first night without trauma.

After showering and getting settled, we decided to be adventurous and walk down to the lagoon where the beach, activities, restaurant and bar are. The walk was 10-15 minutes downhill and was not too bad, we rarely called for the truck to take us down to the lagoon. The restaurant is beautiful. It is a long, narrow, half-moon shaped building looking out over a large lily pond to a show stage with a waterfall and the lagoon in the distance. To the left of the restaurant was the bar, another cool building with a high sloping roof. The bar contained many tables with both hanging and floor standing chairs, a pool table, and many games to play. The beach was the nicest that we have seen, probably because they imported sand and constructed it to their specifications. To the right of the restaurant was the waterfall described above which actually fed into a swimming pool. It was beautiful.

After checking out the grounds, we took the truck back to our room to get a tripod for what turned out to be an awesome sunset. We then walked back down, took some pictures and then sat at the bar playing backgammon and scrabble until dinner. There was a three piece ensemble, playing the same Tahitian songs that we heard everywhere, that was very good. The hotel served free crab with lettuce on toasted french bread as appetizers.

At about 8:00, we walked over to the restaurant and ate dinner while watching a Polynesian show on the stage described above. I had a caesar salad, prepared table-side on a rolling cart, tuna with rice, fried zucchini, some kind of squash, what I think were scallops, and some sort of terrine with fresh fruit for dessert. Jill had lobster and tomato soup, shrimp ravioli in mushroom sauce, vegetables, and triple chocolate mousse for dessert. Everything was excellent, albeit pricey...about $140-no drinks. The show was fair, but entertaining. There were 5 girls, 3 guys, and a 5-6 piece drum ensemble. They mostly danced and sang. I am guessing that this is very similar to what you would see in Hawaii at a luau.

At about 9:30, we boarded the truck and went back to our room. Our towels were refreshed, the mosquito net was placed down and our bed was turned down. This was a nice touch. We turned on the fan that was inside the top of the bed canopy, got into bed, noticed a hand-painted mural above us on the underside of the canopy, and slept rather comfortably.

Honeymoon In French Polynesia: Tahiti, Rangiroa, Moorea

Day 1 - Tahiti/Rangiroa

We arrived in Papeete, Tahiti at 5AM. The airport was a zoo. All international flights seem to arrive very early. We zipped through customs and were greeted by representatives from Sunmakers (the Tahitian company that our travel agent dealt with) we both received beautiful flower leis and were told where to go to catch our flight to Rangiroa. Beleive it or not, the airport bathrooms were quite clean.

We checked in for our 1 hour flight to Rangiroa, had our bags checked, and were then told to take them across the aisle to be declared sanitarily inspected. (This was strange, as all the gentleman did was put stickers on our bags.) We then brought them back to the ticket counter where they were taken to the plane. The twin-prop plane ride to Rangiroa took about 50 minutes and wasn't too bad, we slept most of the way.

Upon landing at the Rangiroa airport, we were greeted by a representative of the Kia Ora Village, who adorned us both with our second flower lei of the day. After gathering our baggage, we took a quick (5 minute) van ride to the hotel. The staff at the reception desk were quite nice and had us checked into our fare (room) quickly. After getting situated we grabbed a quick buffet breakfast, consisting of bread, pastries, fruits, yogurts, etc.

With our stomachs satiated, we decided to take a nap, after all, we were slightly tired. Afterwards, we walked the few steps down to the beach and got some sun and relaxed.

We then went to lunch which consisted of salad and a cheese plate for me, and fried coconut shrimps with a spicy cognac sauce for Jill. Both were excellent.

After lunch it was back to the beach where we lied out and snorkeled all afternoon. We then proceeded to take another nap before dinner. From about 5:30-6:45, I stood outside with the camera taking pictures of the beautiful sunset.

Before going to dinner, we sat out at the overwater bar and relaxed and drank some water (non-bottled) which was fresh, not salty and actually very good.The bar had several areas that had glass floors allowing you to see directly through to the many fish swimming below.

I then signed up at reception for the 8:00AM scuba dive the next morning. Dinner (along with breakfast) was in the one restaurant at the hotel and was prix-fixe. One appetizer, one entree, and a dessert buffet. We both had cream of tomato soup. Jill had lemon sturgeon and I had jack fish with basil in tomato sauce. Each meal was accompanied by broccoli, rice, and ratatouille. The meals were good, not great. Dessert consisted of pastries, cakes, and chocolate mousse all of which were good.

After dinner, both of us exhausted, we decided to call it a night around 9:30PM. We slept well, without many mosquitoes (Jill got a bite of two and I got none). The temperature and humidity were comfortable as well.

Day 2 - Rangiroa

We awoke at about 7:00AM to the sound of pouring rain against the thatched roof of our hut. I ran outside to gather the towels and clothes that we thought were drying on our porch. It was not very pretty outside. However, I proceeded to get ready for scuba and a quick breakfast with Jill. While, the weather ruined Jill?s morning jog, I knew my dive would happen rain or shine.

We both went over to the restaurant to have breakfast, where we had basically the same thing as the previous day. Shortly after finishing, we met a couple who had already visited the other 3 islands we would be going to. It also turned out that the guy was going to dive at the same time as me. We went and got our vouchers from reception and headed down the dock. (He had already dove at Rangiroa). At this point, the sun had come out and it looked liked a beautiful day lie ahead.

We jumped into a small rubber zodiac boat and we were off. I was a little nervous diving with more experienced divers, buy hey, I just went with the flow. By the time my gear was set up, we had entered the ocean (Kia Ora Village, as is the case with most hotels on Rangiroa was on the lagoon side) and were ready to go. Wow, within seconds of flipping off the boat, I was swimming inches from two gray reef sharks. It was awesome. The dive proceeded toward the reef where we saw schools of jack fish, barracuda, etc. Towards the end of the dive we saw a Manta Ray with a span of about 5-6 feet. Wow! After 40 minutes and eighty feet, the dive was over. I have to say in my short diving career, it was the best I had seen.

We zipped back to the resort where Jill and I spent the rest of the day sunning, snorkeling, and napping. There were a few intermittent showers throughout the day, but it didn?t ruin the day. Lunch was essentially the same as yesterday, however instead of a green vegetable salad. I got a tomato and mozzarella salad. We sat at the bar in the early afternoon before lunch and had some soft drinks. Before dinner, in what would become a nightly ritual, I took pictures of the sunset.

At around 7:00PM we got ready for dinner, which on this night was a barbecue buffet. There were many salads, pasta, rice, cabbage, potato, all with some sort of seafood in them. There was, also, hot zucchini and rice. The barbecue contained baked potato, Tahitian banana, fish, chicken, steak and sausage. Everything was basically good and wholesome, but nothing stood out. Dessert was a buffet similar to the previous evening.

After dinner, we again turned in early at about 9:00PM, since our flight out to Moorea via Papeete left at 9:40AM.

Wow, what a difference a day makes. Our night?s sleep was not too great. Mosquitoes ate us alive and the humidity was uncomfortable, yet not unbearable. The mosquitoes however...were horrifying. After waking up in the middle of the night to apply Skintastic by Off, I was okay for the rest of the night. Word to the wise, put on some kind of repellent before going to sleep, and keep it by your bedside.

Day 3 - Rangiroa/Moorea

After the night we had, we were glad to wake up. We were told to be at reception by 8AM to check out and drive to the airport. We received shell leis as good-byes and were off to the airport. Our flight left about 40 minutes later than we expected, but it wasn?t a big deal. We had a 10 minute flight to Tikehau and then left on a 50 minute flight to Papeete.

In Papeete we needed to get to Terminal 2, or the Air Moorea terminal, for our flight to Moorea. This was a decent ways. Be sure to get baggage carts. After eating one croissant each for breakfast at the snack bar, we proceeded to climb into a 8 seater prop-plane for our flight. We sat right behind the pilot for an exciting 10 minute ride.

We were picked up in Moorea by a travel service which was arranged by our agent. A very kind Hawaiian transplant trucked us the 20 minutes to our hotel (which he said was the nicest on the island, to our sheer joy). We checked into our overwater bungalow and were pleasantly surprised. Our room was far from the front desk and more private than some others. It consisted of a bedroom, a living area with a desk and a couch and chairs, a large bathroom with tub and separate shower, and a good size balcony over the water with a ladder leading into the lagoon. Each balcony had a patio table surrounded by four chairs. We loved it. Our room also had a fridge and safe.

After getting settled, we had lunch in the hotel restaurant. Jill and I both had a green salad with bleu cheese and walnuts and shared French fries. The food was good and priced about where we had learned to expect hotel food.

With lunch completed, we took a walk around the grounds and then headed back to the fare (hut) to get into bathing suits and lie out on our own little beach with steps into the lagoon. We were pleasantly surprised by a fresh tropical fruit basket sent by our travel agent. We ate the succulent fruits on our balcony and then went back outside. We spent the rest of the day relaxing until we were treated to a beautiful sunset.

After showering we headed over to dinner in the hotel restaurant which on this night was a Polynesian barbecue with entertainment. The food was similar to the previous evening, in Rangiroa, although much better and with a much wider assortment. Again there were salads of all kinds with seafood and barbecued steak, lamb, chicken kebobs, mahi-mahi, and tuna. Desserts were a plenty, with pies, cakes, fruit and flan. Everything was very good, but not worth $68 per person. The entertainment was a 7 piece band which was lively and fun.

With dinner complete, we were ready to get some sleep to tour Moorea the following day in a rental car. We slept like babies, a cool breeze, no bugs and a comfortable bed granted us our best night?s sleep since we have been here. Amen.