Tahaa and Bora Bora

Next stop Tahaa, where we tied up to a buoy. Unlike the other islands we have visited both here and Bora Bora have very deep anchorages The island goes straight down to about 70-120feet near the shore and then shallows up near the reef which is a long way from the land. Several restaurants in both islands have put in mooring buoys to attract cruisers and as long as you eat or drink at their island they do not charge. We were quite thankful as the wind and rain came up for three days and being on a buoy is a secure feeling. The weather did not allow us to snorkel Tahaa and we had to be satisfied with walk on this pretty island. It did not appear to have the affluence of Huahine but as we needed to get to Bora Bora to sort out Ken’s departure and Diana’s arrival we did not see a lot.
The crossing to the mystical island of Bora Bora was short and it was exciting to near the stunning profile of the island. We anchored on a lovely sand bar with crystal clear turquoise seas and coral snorkeling areas nearby. The snorkeling was lovely and we found both Nemo and a huge Javanese moray eel that cooperated with us swimming slowly along underneath us. Rays were swimming under the boat so it is another tropical paradise.
Marcie and Don managed to find a pension for $120 a night which is cheap on this island—the fancy ones are up to $1000. They will stay there until Diana leaves.
It was lovely to see Diana’s smiling face as her ferry bought her in from the airport, she will stay for two weeks. It was her birthday so we celebrated at Bloody Marys, the restaurant we are buoyed in front of and had a lovely dinner.
The next day Ken flew to Ontario for Ashley and Aaron’s wedding and I was a little sad to be missing out on seeing everyone as only Dave and Becca will not attend—even Becca’s mom will be there as it turns out by some weird coincidence that she is a friend of Ashley’s parents.
Diana and I went to yet another dance show which featured more drums and more “wriggly butts” it was a must do for her visit to these islands.
We decided to cycle the island the next day assuming that as it was Sunday that the stores would be closed. We discovered a lot of them were open and as we shopped our way around the island found that we were only half way around and it was getting late. We did manage to rush the last part making it back before dark. The next day we cycled the side of the island with the most shops and both managed to spend money—I am enjoying spending Diana’s as she is not on a retirement income yet and she bought some lovely jewelry which incorporated lovely black pearls. I found two great sundresses which had been my quest.
The wind was forecasted to increase so rather than give up our buoy we decided to stay at Blood Marys and we do our snorkeling from the dingy and we will travel on the boat to other areas after the wind decreases again. We have learned that these fish appreciate left over bread so you take some with you and are surrounded by a frenzy of hungry fish—some will actually take nips at you in their anxiety to eat.
We did a hike up the hill and had awesome views of the surrounding reef and island—the colours are stunning and almost surreal.
We had lunch at few of the local restaurants and the obligatory drink every few evenings to pay for our mooring buoy at Bloody Marys. We produced some gourmet meals on the boat as well. We also joined several of our cruising friends with whom we have been traveling with for dinner and so our life has continued to be social.
Diana and I are still waiting for some time to relax as it seems that each day we are returning to our boat at sunset and are struggling to stay awake past cruiser’s midnight –9pm.
Diana now has a new career path and may yet be a hairdresser—she bought down highlight colours and did my hair and even cut it, doing a great job at both. Marcie had paid $85 for a haircut in Tahiti and I was reluctant to spend that—I could buy another sundress for that!!!
We are having a great time and I am enjoying the “girl time”.
Ken will get back on Wednesday and then we will have a couple of days to do further exploration before Diana leaves.