9th May, 2010

ON OUR WAY TO PAPEETE IN TAHITI

 

I have three days to catch up with.  Having left the southern end of FAkARAVA we sailed through a buoyed channel up to the north east end about 25 miles.  A much more built up area with a large black pearl oyster farm off the small town marked by hundreds of buoys.  We sailed up along with four other BWR yachts and anchored just off the town quay.  The water was still very clear.  We walked around the town but it was mainly residentual with just two black-pearl shops, a small church decorated inside with shells of every sort, a small 'supermarket' not selling much other than tinned food.  There is a veg/fruit stall but it didn't have much as the flight was not due in until the next day, no fish market.  There was an upmarket hotel further down from the town but they sold out a year ago and now it looks very run down.  The recession has hit tourisim badly here. We all went out to dinner that night (9of us) and HAD a good time at a restaurant attached to a small hotel.

The following day we sailed down the inside of the lagoon for about two miles along the coast and anchored off a resort which was once the upmarket one now taken over and not so good, we were all going to go for dinner there which three of us did and it was not good.

On Saturday 8th we set sail early and dropped anchor near the stall where you can buy fruit and veg'.  Bakery not open on Saturdays and just a small amount of fruit arrived by plane but not much veg' so shopping was not so successful.

We said 'goodbye' to the others and set sail for TOAU and ANSE AMGOT bay just inside a reef, but not into the lagoon, which was reccomended as a must by a friend.  It was Paradise, blue/turquoise sea, crystal clear you could see the coral and sand under the yacht.  If you went and ate at the homestead of Valentine and Gascon  there was no charge for the mooring buoy.  There were two French yachts in the bay as well.  We went ashore to introduce ourselves and say we would love to eat at their house, but Valentine was so tired having entertained every night that week, but they did have live langouste, 'would we like some?' Yes, please! so they steamed them for us and we had cold langouste onboard.  Jonathan and Allan went fishing with Gascon and within half an hour they were back again having caught two yellow fin Tuna, on Gascon's rod! one weighed 20Kilos and the other 15 kilos, Jonathan plans to change his lures on his rod!  Sadly the next day we awoke to squalls and strong winds, it did clear up a little by lunch time so we went snorkelling and then back to the homestead with some printed out 'photos for Valentine's and Gascon's guest book.  They saw the finger print 'photos I had taken and asked if I could print out some large ones for them to hang on their walls  which I did.  I also gave her medicine (panadol, antiseptic cream etc.) and dressings which they needed.  We paid them for the lobsters but they wanted a bottle of rum and a bottle of wine in exchange for a very large peice of tuna and the beer we drank with them.  As with many of the people who live on these atolls they are very religious and Valentine has a little chuch on her island, a hut decorated inside with an altar where she goes to church and holds a service religiously every Sunday at 10 am. Sometimes it is just her and Gascon, sometimes visitors or her family if they are around.  She has only been off the atoll twice in the last four years!  The little coral lumps of islands on the atolls are called Motus and their Motu is fairly large.  She keeps pigs, chickens, grows fruit , plants a seasonal a vegetable garden; they have a small black pearl oyster farm and she grades the pearls and sorts them herself for the larger company that buys them from her. Gascon fishes for Tuna and catches lobsters so they are terribly self-sufficient, if not very hard working, in Paradise.  Photos will follow when we arrive in Tahiti.  Her sister has a small guest area with about five guest rattan houses on stilts on the beach, but it is out of season so she was away and nobody was staying.  The only way to get there is by boat, having flown into the nearest island with an airport from Papeete.  We said a very reluctant farewell 'but we will be back!' to them.  Their guest books, they are on the third, are full of various visiting yachties from all over the world.  The Motu was owned by her Father and she has taken it over, she showed us a Kava fruit tree which her Father planted 60 years ago, it is huge.

Now on our way to Papeete which will take a night and two days sailing.