Feb 20 - Bora Bora - Day 2

We caught the first tender at 8:30 a.m. on another very warm and humid day. We went to Avis and picked up the electric car that we reserved yesterday - we rented it for 4 hours.. The car is a cross between a motorcycle (I sat in the back with my legs straddling Doug - so very ladylike) and a golf cart (4-wheel electric with two options - Go and Reverse). We climbed in (don’t rent one of these if you’ve had a hip replacement and you plan to sit in the back) and headed out on the one road on the island. We went southward so the water would be on our right. We passed Matira Beach where we had been yesterday - it is the ONLY public beach on Bora Bora. It was almost deserted - a far cry from yesterday when it was mobbed - all those people must have been from the huge Italian cruise ship that was sharing the lagoon with us. It sailed away last night.

Our overall impression of Bora Bora is that it is rather rundown, tattered, untidy and tired-looking. The houses/huts are falling apart and there seems to be a rusting car carcass in every yard. Unless you are an ardent snorkeler or scuba diver, I wouldn’t recommend coming here.

There is a ring of little islands that surround Bora Bora - they create the lagoon - rather like a moat around a castle. The big money around here is on those little islands or motus. There are very expensive hotels there - the huge wedding party group that has been on board are all over there at the wedding today - found out it’s two gay guys getting married after being together for 13 years. There are also 70 Mormons from Utah on board - they seem to all work for the same company. Polar opposites - party animals and NOT party animals.

It took us about 1.25 hours to cruise around the island - the scenery is all the same - beach/shore to the right, small strip of cleared land to the left and then vegetation-covered steep cliffs. We saw huge machinery chipping away at the cliff in one spot, working to create more flat land. We also saw lots of tired-looking dogs who seem to have all been bred from the same pair. They all look alike.

We stopped at the grocery store where we went yesterday - it was packed. I wonder if Thursday is the standard shopping day or if that’s the day the monthly social assistance cheques come through. We got ice cream bars and cookies. (This behaviour ends on Tuesday). Then we went through Viatape and back to Matira Beach. It was easy to find shade today. We paddled around in the water and then I read while Doug dozed - the medication that the doctor gave him makes him a little bit dopey. We eventually packed up and returned to town to hand in the keys. Our timing was great - the 12:45 p.m. tender was just coming in for pick up.

We grabbed lunch on Deck 8 - each day at lunch, there is a different theme. We’ve had French, Greek, Polynesian and today was American. Mac and cheese and chicken fajitas and pecan pie were on the menu - we sampled them all. (This behviour too will end on Tuesday.) We are now hunkered down for the afternoon. There might be naps for both of us today.

We set sail about 5:30 p.m. tonight. We’ll be ordering room service again so Doug can eat dinner while lounging around like Nero or Caesar. Sitting bolt upright while sailing makes him woozy. We arrive in Moreea about 8:00 a.m. tomorrow; we leave there about 5:00 p.m. and will dock back in Papeete around 7:30 p.m. That docking can’t come early enough for either of us. We would have both been happy to fly home right after we met back up again in Auckland. This trip has been a chore and this week in particular has been a huge trial for both of us.Read more