Vallée d’Opunohu

It’s another hot, humid day here in the South Pacific - we are back at the island of Moreea (More-AY-ah) which was our stop last Sunday. We didn’t get off the ship that day. Doug slept from 7:00 p.m. last night until about 6:00 a.m. this morning, yes, that was drug-induced sleep. We had been sailing the whole time - the more he sleeps during sailing, the better. Although he wasn’t in perfect shape, we got through breakfast fine - I found another place to have breakfast on this ship - less crowded and much quieter than the other two venues. We took the first tender of the day at 8:30 a.m. into Papetoai, a little village on the edge of Opunohu Bay. Doug found a place under a tree and read for the next 3 hours.

I went on another e-bike excursion, this one led by Sylvie. There were 4 of us in her care. After the bike orientation, we set out on the road that runs around the perimeter of the island. This one was well-paved and had lane markings, and to our delight, a dedicated bike lane. We pedalled on it for a while, and then, to my astonishment, we came to another paved road that heads inland. None of the other islands had a second road.

Our first stop was to see the valley that we were standing in. Moreea, like most of the islands in French Polynesia, were created by volcanoes, so we were standing in what was 1.5 million years ago, the centre of a volcano. The island has 8 mountains - Mt. Rotui rose up behind us. It separates Opunohu Bay (where our ship is anchored) from Cook’s Bay. The soil in the valley is very fertile - the government owns the land and leases it out to farmers.

Our next stop was at a pineapple plantation. Where Taha’a is the Vanilla Island, Moreea is the Pineapple Island. About 60% of the arable land is used for pineapples. A pineapple takes a year to develop and a plant will only produce for 3 cycles. All the pineapples produced are consumed on the island.

Our next stop was at the Agricultural School - it’s school break week, so the school is closed, but it was a good place to rest - we were climbing up the side of a mountain by this point. The school is state-run - it would be the equivalent of our Grades 11 & 12. The school has about 220 students, of which about half board there. Here the students get an agricultural education in crop and livestock farming, horticulture, the cultivation process, and landscape design. They produce fresh fruit juices and jams which they sell in a little boutique when school is on. Students can go on and do a further 2 years of study, specializing in one particular aspect of the curriculum - hopefully, this leads to steady employment in a country where seemingly only sustenance jobs are available.

Our next stop was at Marae Titiroa, an archeological and sacred site. Each clan would have had such a site - it would have been used for meetings, speeches, ceremonies, sacrifices (yes, some of them human) and rituals. While Sylvie guarded the bikes, we followed a path deep into the forest and eventually found another marae - this one with three levels on what would be the equivalent of an altar in a Catholic church.

We kept on climbing up the side of the mountain (had the bike in Turbo mode by this point) until we finally reached Belvedere Lookout. At 720 feet (219 metres), it is Moorea’s highest point accessible by car or bicycle. We were rewarded for our cycling efforts with breathtaking views of both Opunohu and Cook’s bays, Mt. Rotui, and the surround green mountains and valleys.

No need for electric assist on the way down. Whew!! Fast!! We stopped partway down to look at two stone archery platforms. Young men, just like in ancient Rome, showed off their prowess in various athletic events. The bow and arrow was a favourite event on this island.

One more stop - to look at two giant banion trees. Like the coconut trees, these trees were very useful - their vines made great ropes and the inner bark was pounded and shaped to create cloth for the chieftains to wear.

In total, we rode 11.5 miles/17.5 kms and learned about Moorea’s economy, history and geography, and maybe burned off a few calories. It was a good excursion.

I rendezvoused with Doug on the pier and we jumped on the next tender. The water was quite choppy, but Doug made it back to the ship intact. We had a nice lunch on this, his 67th birthday. Today's buffet theme was Italian.

it’s time to read. Doug is going to nap during the last sailing time - 5:00 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. - then we will be back in Papeete and tied up at the pier. Dinner runs until 9:30 p.m., so we’ll dine late tonight.

We got into port at 7:00 p.m. - good news, Doug was feeling fine. We are done with boats.

We went to dinner - Doug’s birthday dinner. We hit the trifecta with the menu: escargot (which were fabulous) for the entree, prime rib for the main course, and ice cream for dessert. Perfect.

The party people from the gay wedding were at dinner in full force - their theme for tonight was Disco Fever - lots of sequins, huge bejewelled glasses, tight jumpsuits and giant afro wigs. One night, they were all in white; another, all in sailor suits; another all in pirate get ups; another night in Kim Kardashian trashy glamour outfits. They must each have way more luggage than I do.

The on-board band was playing in one of the lounges starting a few minutes after we finished eating, so we checked them out. They were playing oldies music so we both could sing along. We were the only people in the audience. The group of 5 musicians is from the Philippines - their harmonies were really, really good. Most of the wait staff are from the Philippines also. Angelo, our waiter, said that he works 7 months and then he gets 2 months off. I can only assume that the wages are far better than what can be found in the Philippines.

Shortly after, there was a presentation of Polynesian music and dance by an award-winning group in the main lounge. It was an hour of high energy, colourful costumes, swinging hips and delightful music. What a nice end to a trying trip.Read more