Bora Bora…Beautiful Beautiful

We arrived in the multi-colored lagoon of Bora Bora at 4pm on March 2 after three days at sea following our stop on Fanning Island.  During that time we had re-crossed the International Date Line gaining back the day we lost earlier and then crossed the Equator into the South Pacific.  The Cruise Director informed us that King Neptune had a previous engagement so the ceremony for crossing the Equator will be held when we cross it going north on our return to San Diego.  This will be our sixth crossing of the Equator on a ship so we are safe from King Neptune! 

During the afternoon, the Captain informed us that Bora Bora was on the horizon.  The weather was so beautiful that we could see the top of the island come into view with about 80 miles left to sail…unbelievably clear.  Sailing into Bora Bora and the lagoon is amazing – one of the top cruise arrivals I can remember.   Rio, Hong Kong, and Stockholm are my top favorites now joined by Bora Bora. 

We were on the first tender* about 5pm to go into the village of Viatape.  Even though it was a Sunday some things were open – mostly shops for the tourists but it was nice to get off, walk around, and see local life.  We also saw the French Drapeau for the first time in French Polynesia so I hummed the Marseillaise for Elisabeth!  (*One of the nice things about being a 4 Star Mariner with Holland America is not needing a tender ticket – we can just go whenever we are ready.)

Tenders ran all night so no rush this morning but we did get off fairly early for our car rental from Avis.  We saw the island with Leonardo…our Fiat Panda.  Since our daughter-in-law, Megan, named her new Fiat Giuseppe we decided our car needed a name too – Leonardo is certainly the poor cousin of Giuseppe.  Leo is only a stick and had the ride of a buckboard BUT he did have air-conditioning which was very nice on this warm day.  The island is 28 miles around so we drove it counter clock wise – and at the end – turned around a drove it clock-wise.  You do see things differently depending on the direction you drive. 

Leaving Viatape in the morning was slow since we kept seeing beautiful views of the lagoon and the mountains which REQUIRED pictures to be taken.  Our first real stop in the morning was Matira Beach – a public beach across from the Intercontinental Hotel.  It was not crowded, white sand, palm trees – with crystal clear water.  The various shades of blue in the water just melted into the blues of the sky – idyllic.  We both got in the warm water along with the small fish swimming around our feet – after we were out a sting ray glided along the beach in very shallow water. 

Lunch was at Bloody Mary’s – touristy but an experience!  At the entrance there are two large signs with the names of the famous people who have been here.  There is sand on the floor; you sit on stools made out of coconut palms; there are plants all around you; the roof is open beam with thatch; there are no doors or windows – just open to the elements; and the bathrooms have sinks that are waterfalls that start when you pull a wooden ring hanging from the ceiling.  Oh – and good cold Tahitian beer and great Mahi Mahi sandwiches! 

After lunch we continued our first circumnavigation of the island with stops in small villages and at the many spots with views of the lagoons, the off-shores islands (motus), and the many hotels built with thatch cottages on stilts in the water.  Travel is slow watching out for the dogs, slow motorbikes, and bicyclists.  On the reverse trip around the island, the most interesting detour was a group of 10-12 black piglets standing around something in the road.  We waited to go around them since they left very little room on the road, but the owner came out of a house quickly and shooed them back onto their property – what they were doing there we do not know! 

All in all – a great first day in French Polynesia!