We Made It!!!
5/24/2012

We arrived outside the anchorage of Hiva Oa at 11 PM. Total time to get here – 19 days, 9 hours. Not bad, but boy were we tired. We made friends with a trimaran just pulling in from Mexico, several hours earlier when they hailed us on the VHF radio. We had noticed a strobe light off in the distant dark, immediately thinking (dreading) that it was a long line fishing vessel. Hearing a friendly voice that went with the light instead gave us a reassuring feeling for our last night on the open sea. We’re not so alone now we thought. Both of us heaved to, which is a way to park your boat in the middle of the ocean, where you are almost stationary – hopefully bow into the swell – and you just slowly drift, passing time until it is time to continue. The Lisa Kay however does not like to heave to (or we just don’t know what we’re doing!) and somehow we always seem to end up beam to, meaning as the swell hits us on our side we roll violently back and forth, back and forth, back and forth…but anything was better than hand steering for a third night in a row and we definitely didn’t have enough fuel to drive in a circle all night. At first light, Larry started up the engine and we steamed into the anchorage. Ahhh….It is GORGEOUS! STUNNING! BREATHTAKING! And yes, you can smell it! It smells…well, it smells green… like vegetation…in all forms. Like grass and old lawn clippings and flowery, and like trees in a forest, and wet wood. Steep, majestic, razor sharp spires reach up into the clouds that blanket the mountain tops. This is the greenest place on earth I have ever seen. Our first tropical paradise!

The Marquesan people are some of the most beautiful people I have ever seen. No wonder the famous French painter Paul Gauguin became so enchanted here and never left. They are equally warm and generous, whether they’re giving us a lift when we hitchhike to and from town, or inviting us into their yard and picking us sweet fruit from their personal stash.

Being a holiday weekend – we’re not sure what as the language barrier has been a little tough – we were treated last night to some traditional dance performances by the men in the town park. The men are large – especially by Central American standards – and quite muscular, with these amazing tattoos. Followed up by some sort of women’s competition, playing various games such as tug-o-war, a sack race, arm wrestling (unbelievably I won my round!), a run with the cup of water to fill the bottle race, followed up by a Polynesian dance contest. Guess who got thrown in the pot to participate out of all the other boaters? You guessed correctly – moi (I’m so glad I get to provide the laughs for my family and friends)! Not speaking the Marquesan language or French, the ladies did the best they could and treated me like one of their sisters. Smoking pot seems to be the thing here as alcohol is outrageously expensive and hey – I guess when you can grow it organically and easily in your own back yard. Needless to say, I was the only sober participant.

Up early today, we wanted to go into to town and experience church Marquesas style, and they did not disappoint. The Polynesian Christian music nourished our souls, followed up by fresh baguettes nourishing our stomachs. Ahhh…you gotta love this place.