Atuona, Hiva Oa, Marquesas!

April 23: LAND HO!  Atuona, Hiva Oa

              Anchor down in the notoriously rolly and crowded Taahuka Bay, Hiva Oa outside the boat-filled breakwater bay, though the swell didn’t bother us much due to our last month on the ocean and our giddiness at arrival.  After enjoying a celebratory glass of champagne, we dinked to the dock and laughed as we challenged ourselves to a straight-line walking contest.  

Cora said it felt as if we were levitating as we walked on land, the sensation of movement still present.  Took in the glorious island – sweetness, bright greens, growth everywhere, flowers, fruit-laden trees – stunning!  We walked 2 miles to the town of Atuona for dinner, happy to hand over the cooking to someone else, as we had beer, pamplemousse juice, and pizza.  Yes, pizza.  Pamplemousse is our new favorite fruit that we didn’t even know existed; it is a large, sweet citrus.  They sometimes attract ants and my favorite quote of the night was Calder sucking down his drink happily stating, “It has pulp, it has ants; it’s delicious.” 

We walked back in a land squall, getting soaked, then took the dink back to our boat, the swell making it challenging to offload.  Into bed we crashed.

French Polynesia includes the Marquesas, Tuamotus, Gambiers, Australs, and Society Islands.  Over the next three months, we will be visiting the Marquesas, Tuamotus, and Society Islands; spending about one month in each island group.  The Marquesas are the northern most group of the FP islands, with a humid, hot Equator climate, covering 1,418 square miles.  There are 10 islands (6 inhabited) and numerous rocks and islets.  These are stunning high, volcanically formed islands with steep cliffs indented by lush valleys.  The kind and giving Marquesan people speak French and Marquesan.  People smile, wave, and greet you with a Kaoha Nui!  You do not have to put out a thumb to hitchhike, but will be simply offered a ride to and from town.

At night at anchor, we look up to find the constellation Southern Cross, a friend who had been leading our way here, often off our port bow on night watch. 

April 24:  Check in and car rental/Tohua Upeke

              To check into French Polynesia, I had prepared forms online beforehand and now we were meeting with our agent’s representative.  There are various requirements for each country we enter and French Polynesia requires a bond be posted to cover an airplane ticket for each crew member to get home if needed, which is reimbursed upon leaving the country.  However, to avoid this hassle, as well as to obtain assistance in checking in and a duty-free fuel card, we hired Tahiti Crew as our Agency.  This was very worthwhile, as we met up with Sandra in Hiva Oa who picked us up at the dock in her legit Land Rover Defender and drove us barefoot to the Gendarmerie (local police) for the exceptionally easy check-in process. 

We picked up CFPs (Pacific Francs) at the ATM and rented a diesel van with manual transmission for the day to pick up the rest of Emil’s family at the airport and explore.  All the details of the vehicles are from a very impressed Calder and Chris, who are scheming how to get one to Petersburg. 

Wandering the town of Atuona, we wandered into a local artist co-op with Marquesan art, from rosewood tiki and carvings to jewelry made of brightly-colored seeds to tapa.  The small grocery store (magasin) had a good selection, but prices needed to be looked at closely as the prices reflect the difficulty in getting food items here.  Some items are subsidized and marked separately, which are the ones to look for.  I purchased some reasonably priced items such as baguettes (baked daily here and in huge bins every morning), rice ($1 US/bag), local carrots and splurged on apples (about $1.50/each).  I was happy I had stocked up in Mexico, passing up the $15 Mayo (a weakness of our family).    

              We picked up Emil’s family (Carin, Freya, and Arielle) at the airport then went on an afternoon road trip.  We had no luck finding the “smiling tiki,” but then drove to the village of Taeoa at the end of the road, playing in the beach waves while a torrent of rain came down. 

The church was made of beautiful stone and wood. 

We turned down the mud-stream road to the archeological site of Tohua Upeke, a vast tohua, paved rectangular platforms with several tiers of basalt rows on either side, used as meeting places for festivals, dance performances, and ceremonies.  We never found the tiki in the woods, as the rains pounded down.  The place pulsed with mana, mainly with the low clouds and rain giving it a very mystical feeling.  Waterfalls, chocolate brown, cascaded down sheer high volcanic cliffs.

Drove up to Hotel Hanakee Pearl Lodge for drinks, where I had my first maitai, then to Relais Moehau for dinner which included chevre (goat) with coconut milk sauce, before our wild dinghy ride back to the frolicking boat in the swell.