December 14 - Bora Bora

Here we are anchored in the lagoon of the island of Bora Bora.  This island is part of the Society Islands, which are an archipelago in the South Pacific and include  Huahine, Mo’orea, Tahiti, and Raiatea .  We ‘re going to stop in the latter two in the next two days.  The island group is called an Overseas Collectivity of France.  Bora Bora has been inhabited by Polynesian people since at least the 3rd century AD.  The first European to see it was a Dutch explorer and Captain Cook, who sailed around and mapped so much of the Pacific, saw it in 1769.

The larger of the peaks.  It just looks like I imagine Bali Hai would.

Bora Bora lies about 125 miles northwest of Tahiti and is actually an island group.  The main island is formed by the remnants of an extinct volcano which rises to two peaks.  The rest of the group ring a lagoon and are small islands called motus in Polynesian.  The lagoon is formed by the circle of motus, the large island and coral reefs with only one opening into the lagoon.  This morning it took the Quest three tries before we were able to slip through the opening because the seas were very rough and the winds were high.  We anchored off the main settlement Vaitape on the west side of the major island.  

It was overcast and raining all day and that‘s kind of a shame because had the sun been shining I know the colors would have been spectacular. Nonetheless the views were still pretty good.  I had booked a tour that included a drive around the island.  There’s only one road so we just did a circle.  The taller of the two peaks was shrouded in clouds all day but the smaller did make an appearance and it was impressive.  We rode in what was essentially an old school bus with wooden bench seats and a driver and guide in front cab separated by glass.  Consequently we listened to the guide’s narrative through a speaker system which wasn’t always clear, but I still learned a lot.

During WWII the US military built a supply base on Bora Bora and at one time there were as many as 7000 soldiers stationed there.  At least eight large artillery pieces were situated around the island to protect it and the remains of the gun emplacements and some bunkers can still be seen.  Bora Bora saw no combat during the war and the base was closed in 1946.  The airstrip constructed on one of the motus is used today for small planes and private jets of the rich and famous to come to some of the fabulous over the water resorts built on some of the motus.

That brings me to one of the things that made the biggest impression on me as we rode around.  On Bora Bora’s main island the houses were very basic and looked a little dilapidated and sad.  There were wrecked cars around and some houses with tarps on roofs.  I suspect that most of the people who vacation at the beautiful resorts whose photos I’ve seen in countless travel magazines and in movies never make it across the lagoon to see where and how the people who cater to them live.  But that’s true in lots of places all over the world.  

Anyway, our drive took us through the three townships which lie at the feet of the extinct volcano.  Our guide pointed out a number of interesting things.  Because of the size of the island there isn’t room for cemeteries.  So, people get buried in the front yards of the family house in a cement mausoleum.  I don’t think any of our children would really like that very much.  Children begin school at age three and it’s compulsory until age 16.  There are no obstetricians on the island so at the sixth month of pregnancy women go to Tahiti or Raiatea to go through the last three months and to have their babies.  As a result most of the residents weren’t born on the island.  The population is about 10,500 which represents significant growth in the last few years.  That is putting a lot of pressure on the infrastructure.  Electrical power is provided by diesel generators and the fuel has to be brought in by ships.  Fresh water is provided by boreholes around the island and three desalinization plants.  Large population growth clearly can stress those basic utilities.

Under that red roof is what looks like a bunch of cement blocks.  That's someone's grandma's tomb.

We made a stop at a place run by Mama Edna.  We were able to sample some coconut and mango.  The mango was the most wonderful I have ever tasted.  This place also was a source of tie-dyed goods and I bought a very colorful large scarf which reminded me of the colors of a beautiful sunset.  Mama Edna was there with three of her grandchildren and I managed to take what I think was a pretty good photo of her with one little girl.

Mama Edna and granddaughter

As we drove around the guide pointed out the resorts across the lagoon.  There were many, all of them over the water individual bungalows.  We stopped at the biggest public beach where we could take photos of the lower of the two peaks.  I also saw a guy on a very narrow paddleboard moving along and I got some picture of him too.  Along the way we saw breadfruit plants, lots of coconut trees and plenty of flowers. The signature flower of the island is the tiare, a small white blossom with seven  petals and which grows on a bush.  We also stopped at a place where our guide tossed out a few flowers onto the sandy shoulder and land crabs came racing (at least racing for a crab) to pick them up to eat.  They moved surprisingly fast so whatever kind of flower it was (I didn’t hear the name) must be a particularly good treat.

This is what the over-the-water bungalows look like.  This one was on our side of the lagoon.

Even on this cloudy day when I looked across the water I could see the distinct change in color of the water closest to the motus and the reef. 

You can just make out Mr. Crab's white claw getting that pink flower

A tiare flower.  Apparently they are very fragrant

A plump breadfruit 

Mt. Pahia, the second of the volcanic peaks

A paddleboarder

The lovely public beach

We wound up back at the tender dock after a couple of hours and it was pouring rain so I didn’t go back to look at some of the shops I’d briefly visited before the tour.  I figured that tomorrow in Papeete, Tahiti I could find anything I was looking for.  It was a nice day despite the clouds and rain, but I think in the sunshine it would be spectacular.