Herman Melville's Monument
29 April 2012 | Taiohae, Nuka Hiva, French Polynesia
I think I mentioned before...Herman Melville (author of Moby Dick) was here in the 1840's. He sailed in on a whaling ship called the Acushnet. He and fellow seaman Toby Green were tired of the poor conditions on the ship so they grabbed a small amount of food and when they saw their chance they ran away into the jungle. There plan was to climb up to the ridge line and follow it along to the east and drop down in to one of the next valleys and hide out there until the Acushnet sailed away. Problem is, when they ran out of food and made their way down to an inhabited valley, the natives turned out to be the dreaded Typee tribe, known to be the worst of the cannibal tribes in the Marquesas. They were held captive there - by a very happy people living a life with no worries in a paradise with plenty to eat and beauty all around, who only occasionally warred with their neighbors and then ate them. Toby escaped first, followed by Melville many months later. When his account of these events was published nobody believed it was true - until Toby appeared and collaborated the story. (I know collaborated is not the right word...what is it readers?) A good read.