Moorea

July 4, 2014,  Moorea

This is it!  Alan has finally found his dream island.  We left Tahiti in the morning of July 4, along with about 25 other boats from the Pacific Puddle Jump fleet.  We were about an hour behind everyone else getting out of the harbor because there were so many things to finish, clean up and put away before we could leave, but eventually we cleared the airport and were out of the reef.  There was a brisk wind and one by one we hoisted all 3 sails.  This is our first chance to see the patch on the main sail and it looks great.  He did a really nice job.  It is only 14 miles from Papeete to Cook’s Bay on Moorea and we were entering the bay by 2:00 after a great sail.  As the last boat in, we got to make our grand entrance.  The committee boat from Latitude 38 came out to meet us and followed us for about 20 minutes with their cameras going.  They got some beautiful pictures. Once again we are greeted and acknowledged as the most beautiful boat in the fleet. 

Anchoring is in 50 feet of water and it is quite crowded with 25 boats packed into this narrow bay.  Hopefully everyone’s anchor is tight.  First order of business, once we are secure, is a swim, followed by a pitcher of rum punch.  It is incredibly beautiful here.  A deep, narrow bay runs back between steep green cliffs rising straight up from the gorgeously clear water.  There are a half dozen bungalows on stilts over the water at the Bali Hai Club and a few other buildings around the bay tucked into the vegetation. It is quiet after the bustle of Tahiti.  Just a few scooters and an occasional car go by.  Just beautiful.  It is hard to believe that we are here and that we sailed here in our own boat. 

There is a party ashore in the evening with dinner and a dance show.  A chance to make new friends and compare notes.  Next day the games begin.  A full day has been planned, starting with the delivery of a fresh, warm baguette to each boat.  Once we finish breakfast and make our way to shore we are treated to our own mini heave.  There are outrigger canoe races, coconut husking contests, tug of war, dance lessons and lessons in how to tie a parea.  There is a team of kids from several of the boats who manage to win most of the events.  Demonstrations of local crafts include traditional tattooing, palm hat weaving, parea dying and several others.  There is not time to see and do everything.  We are treated to a huge lunch including all of the traditional foods; poisson cru, roast chicken and pork, stewed spinach in coconut milk, sweet potatoes and taro.  The end of the day finds us happy and tired and unbelievably content as we sit on Rhapsody and watch the sunset over this beautiful bay.  


We had originally thought that this weekend would be the beginning of our exploration of the other Society Islands but there is still stuff to do in Papeete.  We spend Monday just being lazy and the head bcd the next day, determined to return as soon as possible to explore this beautiful island.