Burger and baguettes

23 January 2008

Moorea

17°31’34.69″S    149°49’4.72″W

Papeete, Tahiti

Bora Bora

16°30’1.49″S    151°44’29.36″W

I’m on port manning today and can’t get off the ship…again.

Its Bora Bora another one of those exotic sounding ports out of all those South Seas adventures that I used to read as a kid. All white sand beaches and people lazing under swaying palm trees. Great mental images that seem to have so much truth to them that I’m beginning to wonder if those writers weren’t underestimating the attraction a little. Every island I’ve set foot on so far has contained so many of the perfect elements from my fantasy retirement it’s almost uncanny.

It probably culminated yesterday with an island called Moorea, a short distance from Tahiti. It is green and lush, the breeze keeps the temperature to a bearable level and there is the constant rumble of waves as they crash onto the reef around the lagoon. I sat and had a drink at a small café/restaurant/snack place that had been set up in someone’s backyard so that you could literally sit under a coconut tree and stare at that lagoon.

I had only walked for a couple of hours but there was something in the air that really stirred something inside of me. There are even a few up market resorts scattered around the island so there is probably a good way of accessing the internet, all that I would need to make life complete. A tropical drink, a comfortable spot under a coconut tree and my laptop. Beats the hell out of the rat race.

Papeete is another story. We spent a long day there, arriving about 8am and not leaving until 5.30am the next morning. The reason was that it was such a short trip from there to Moorea we had no reason to leave any earlier and it gave everyone one of those rare opportunities to experience a place after dark rather than arriving in the morning and leaving late afternoon. Luckily Papeete is a good sized city, being the capital of Tahiti, so there were things to do after dark or in my case things to eat after dark. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

I had a tour in Papeete. It was one of the official ships tours and I was an “escort”. I had to just check it out, make sure things ran smoothly and professionally and fill out a little report when we got back. Sort of an audit thing to make sure that the tours offered by the ship are of a standard. I didn’t have a choice as to the tour I was on, it was assigned by the tour desk, and it may not have been the most exciting tour I’ve ever been on, aimed as it is at the age group this ship attracts, but it was free and it covered a large part of the island. It was over four hours long but with the extended stay in port that still gave me time to see the city on my own both before and after.

The tour went all the way around the island, stopping at the site of an ancient marae, a botanical garden, a blowhole, a lookout and a cave. All geared to be easy to access and short walks from the bus. No hanging from parachutes or swimming with sharks for this group. The tour guide was good and kept up a constant commentary as we passed area after area of the island. It was all nice and sedate and I enjoyed it.

Before I did the tour I had gotten off the ship and explored a bit of downtown. Papeete itself is just another city. Not too much to give it any real character beyond the French signs and abundance of French cars. I found an ATM, withdrew some francs and then hit a local burger bar for breakfast. A hamburger, fries and coke may not be the healthiest or most local of breakfasts normally but I figured that with the crowd it was attracting it may well be considered a local staple and I’d not really noticed anywhere selling “local food” per se so the burger it was.

From there I just explored another city eventually finding myself back not far from the dock and in a market place. This was a bit more interesting with the arts and crafts section open and being perused by large numbers of passengers. The food section of the market was just coming to life and was starting to attract a few locals looking for fresh fruit, fish and vegetables. The arts and crafts were of the standard type and I got myself another fridge magnet before hitting the fast food section of the market.

It may be a tropical island by location but it is French by snacks. Baguettes are the fast food of choice and there were a number of places selling every filling you could imagine stuffed inside a baguette. I grabbed a turkey one and a coke and found a spare space on an empty step amidst a few locals and had my second breakfast, followed by a couple of éclairs bought from another stand. French pastries go down well no matter where you are. From there it was back to the ship, shower, shave and make myself a fit Holland America representative for the tour.

After the tour I headed back out into the growing darkness. We’d been told that after dark the car park in the port becomes a sort of international food festival with little food trucks arriving, setting up tables and chairs and selling a variety of foods amid a carnival type atmosphere. It all sounded great and I was keen to try it.

The trucks were there, they had the tables and chairs set up and there was island music being played. It was still warm and there was a nice breeze but the variety of food didn’t quite live up to expectations. The choices were really only burgers, Chinese or crepes. I had a nice cheese and mushroom crepe at one place, having been given the “special” menu when they found out that I could only speak English and not French. The atmosphere was good and I was quite happy sitting there listening to the music, looking at all the ships in the harbour with their lights glowing. Families were starting to come in and the smells of the burgers being cooked around the place on little portable barbeques made me wish for something a little more substantial than the crepe.

On the tour the guide had pointed out a couple of restaurants a bit further along the coast from the port and said they were good for fish. It hadn’t seemed that far in the bus so I decided to walk there. Luckily I don’t mind walking and the conditions were pleasant because it was a bit further than I realised but eventually I made it and found a little restaurant. I ordered the fish in coconut, sat at yet another outside table and chair and enjoyed the evening and the relaxation that comes after a good long walk. When the dish arrived it had plenty of big chunks of fish and the coconut and lime marinade was spectacular. It may have been a bit of a hike to get there but it was worth it.

It had been a long day in Papeete, I’d seen large amounts of the island, eaten lots and well and because we were still in port I didn’t have to work that night. A really nice day all round.