Bora Bora, French Polynesia

Such loveliness. The color of the water here is unlike anything we’ve ever seen. It is another steamy, tropical day in French Polynesia. We took a circle ride around the island today in a local, open-air bus.
There is a distinct line of lifestyle here. There are the islanders, which live a very simple life in spare surroundings decorated with bright-colored fabrics and tropical plants. These homes are mainly on the coast of Bora Bora as the inland areas are quite rugged and mountainous.
The main island is surrounded by a lagoon, surrounded by a coral reef. On the outside/coral reef side of the lagoon are motu’s, which are tiny islets. These islets are where the other type of lifestyle reigns. Lovely, overwater huts with thatched roofs and private swimming pools are offered by the Four Seasons, the Intercontinental and the St. Regis. To the tune of about $2000 per night. It’s always difficult to reconcile such a vast difference in lifestyle.
One surprising thing we learned today was that Bora Bora’s population is 10% Chinese. Outside of the big hotels, the best restaurant on the island is a Chinese restaurant.
As shown in one of the photos below, temperature checks before boarding tenders back to the ships are the new normal, as is stringent hand-washing and gallons of hand sanitizer.
At a ship-wide meeting last evening, our captain informed us that 2 of our upcoming ports are closed to cruise ships, so one will be replaced with a different island and one will be cancelled and we will take an additional day in Sydney.
The captain said he is taking it a day at a time since the Coronavirus is such a dynamic situation.Read more