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Tahiti

One of the biggest concerns about making landfall is the 'land' part. Being on the ocean is safe in a way that being near land is not. Other than the odd ship or possible submerged stray container that may have fallen off a container ship, there just aren't many obstructions on the ocean.
Coming into a new port always causes anxiety and coming into Papeete, Tahiti, was no exception. The first bay we poked our nose into wasn't to our liking. Artemo was waiting outside and when we radioed them to let them know what we'd found, our friends on s/v Mojo heard us. They were just coming out of the main harbour on their way to Moorea - a neighbouring island. We hadn't seen them since the Galapagos. We were all very excited, especially the kids, because they have two girls the same age as ours on board. Unfortunately, they had already checked out of Tahiti, so they couldn't stay. Fortunately, they had lots of good information to pass on to us about the anchorages. On their recommendation, we headed to the Taina anchorage.
On one side is the sheltering coral reef and on our other side are the lush, green hills of the town of Papeete. Papeete (pronounced 'pa-pay-EH-tay') is the capital of Tahiti, the main port and administrative centre. Around 128,000 people live here making it the largest city in the 12 island chain that makes up the Society Islands.
Where the Marquesas Islands were volcanic without fringing reefs and the Tuamotus Islands were all reef and with no volcanic island remaining , the Society Islands are the best of both worlds: high volcanic mountains surrounded by fertile plains with adjacent deep water protected by a barrier reef. Idyllic. Well almost. Papeete is very big and it has the hustle and bustle of a big-city. It doesn't' feel particularly Polynesian because it is so French. And so touristy!

Fresh. Fresh. Fresh!!!!

After we arrived last Saturday morning, we took it easy. I don't think we even splashed our dingy! We heard from Graham on Artemo that there was an early morning market in downtown Papeete every Sunday. Early is better said Graham. So, at about 5:30 am, we headed off to the town dock, about a 40 minute dingy ride. The market was only a couple minutes walk from there.
Since the Galapagos, we'd only seen some fruit at Fatu Hiva in the Marquesas. That means a long time without fresh food. Well, the market was unbelievable! Lettuce, English cucumbers, tomatoes, herbs, carrots, green beans, bok choy, eggplant, grapefruit, oranges, limes, papaya, mangoes, pineapples and, and, and! Apart from the fruits and vegetable we know from home and the tropical foods, there were lots of Chinese foods like vegetables, deep fried tofu and barbeque pork available. We filled our two back packs and two cloth bags. We intended to celebrate our arrival in Tahiti, and the finding of such lush, fresh foods, with a sumptuous brunch.
Our menu included: Tahitian grapefruits, authentic fresh French baguettes, butter, mango jam, petit pain au chocolat (chocolate croissants), camembert cheese, fried eggs with Chinese style BBQ pork and green onions, a lettuce, tomato, cucumber salad, tea and coffee. What a feast! Not having certainly makes one appreciate!
Some of the items at the market were priced quite reasonably, like lettuce: 3 heads for just over $2 and a big bunch of bok choy for $2, 3 medium English cucumbers for $2. Tahiti and French Polynesia in general, are known for high prices. Everything, other than what is grown here, must be shipped in. Many of the products in the grocery stores are from France. A Frenchman we'd met on shore, before we'd even been to a grocery store, told us that the prices are like in Europe plus 40%.
Some foods are subsidized. Bread is one of them. A traditional French baguette costs about 60 cents. Since arriving in French Polynesia, we have marveled at the accessibility of baguettes. No matter where you are, baguettes are available, even on the smallest islands! When we were still in the Marquesas at Tahuata Island, Michael, Graham and I went to a local village for propane and we were amazed to see the industrial bread making equipment and stacks and stacks of flour. Why we were amazed was that the island was not large and didn't have a huge population, yet they had industrial baking equipment. We wondered whether there is a whole government department somewhere in France that deals with the administration of 'THE BAGUETTE' in French Polynesia.

Laundry

Laundry was next on the agenda. We hadn't been able to wash our sheets since......well, it doesn't really matter exactly since how long, suffice it to say that it was time. The marina near the anchorage has washing machines and each load costs about $10.We probably could have done 6 or 7 loads, but we kept it to two. We strung lines around the boat to dry everything. I prefer air drying anyway, and always did so back home, but here, especially with the cost of the washing and drying, it made even more sense. Oh, to slip into a bed with freshly washed sheets.......how nice!!!
Not having a washing machine has really made everyone on board more appreciative. Especially because doing laundry takes so much more effort.

Gather and sort laundry. Stuff into bags. Get laundry
soap and change purse. Haul bags of laundry up the
companionway, through the cockpit to the side
deck.
Lower bags into dingy. Dingy to shore. Tie up dingy
and wrestle laundry bags up onto the dock. Carry bags
to the laundry room and hope that there
are some machines free. Deposit your $10. Set washer
in motion. Wait. Reverse the whole process, but when
you get back to the boat hoist the now wet laundry up
onto the deck of Gromit and begin hanging along lines
strung on the standing rigging. When dry, remove, bring
below, fold, sort and put away.
Have a cup of tea or a drink!


Sign In

On Monday morning, we went to town to sign in. Part one: sign the boat in with the Port Captain and part two: sign us in at Immigration. What we didn't realize was that the agent we'd hired while we were still in Panama, would do it all for us. Luckily, his office is very near where we are anchored. On Tuesday morning, I took in our passports and that afternoon, we got them returned to us and all our paperwork completed. That was easy!
We belong to a group called the 'Pacific Puddle Jump', who recommended hiring this agent. The benefit of belonging to this group is that you get a bond exemption. That means you don't have to pay a bond: a deposit the equivalent amount of an airplane ticket for each person aboard. Any non-European must pay the bond, because apparently in the past, sailors and travelers have come and never left, leaving the country to pay for their repatriation. So, to avoid that, the rules say that all non Europeans must pay a bond. The kids and I have EU passports, so it was only Michael who would have had to pay.
Good, we are all legal now. On to adventures!!!!