In the Land of Plenty
This is a good name for this Island, Nuku HIva, actually for the Marquesas. Here we have the riches of the land and sea. We spent a few days in Taiohae, the main town, where we had been five years ago. It is much cleaner and hospitable now. I didn't like it much then. The water is rich in phytoplankton and there is a lot of run off from the streams which clouds the water. There is no visibility. Here we enjoy the hikes and the villages. There are many valleys and secluded bays and we explored a few. At Taioa Bay, Anse Hakatea, there is a small village (pop. 20 except for the holidays) named Hakaui. There are no roads to get there but we have the boat and we like these pristine places. We went ashore to take a hike to a waterfall which we have been told it is the tallest in the world. I am not sure how tall it is, nor if it is the tallest (can't do a search in the "source of all knowledge" as we have no connection). As we walked thru the village we were greeted by Teiki and Kua, a young resident couple, who welcomed us, showed us the way to the fall and asked if we needed fruit. We placed an order of mangoes, oranges, star fruit, plampomousse, pineapples, papayas, breadfruit and avocados. They have all this and more around their house. Teiki is a hunter and has lot of pride in his heritage and traditions. He has beautiful tattoos in his face, arms, and torso. This was done by his uncle who used traditional tools made of bones, not the modern electrical tools. He was very funny using mimics to explain how painful it was and that he drunk rum to pass out during the procedure. The path to the waterfall was lined with fruit trees and often we could see the remains of the old settlement and near the waterfall there was a large marae or paepae. This is a place where their ceremonies were performed. Platforms were erected from huge boulders and so were the walls around it. Kua told us that the Marquesans were very strong people and that in the old times 100,000 people lived in this valley. Mostly of them died when the foreigners came and brought diseases. Isn't this a familiar story. On our return we stopped by and Kua came to me and shyly said that she had a proposal to make to me. She could make a meal for us for the price of which is the equivalent of $10/person. I immediately said yes, after she gave me the menu, which seemed to surprise her. The meal would be: goat in coconut milk (the goat that Teiki had hunted was hanging in their yard, fresh salad made with greens that she grows, bread fruit, bananas, shrimp from the river across their house, and poipoi which is a delicious puree made out of breadfruit with a hint of lime juice. We couldn't wait for next day to go back for our special meal. She baked fresh French bread for us and offered coconut water and a delicious lemonade made with coconut water. Everything we ate came from their land, except for the bread. I don't eat meat and the thought of eating goat would make my stomach go on strike, but I have to confess that I ate an enormous amount of the goat. It had a very mild flavor and it was very lean. The meal was one not to forget and added to that we had Teiki and Kua, so pleased to share their stories. Their son, 8 years old, goes to school by horse, in Taiohae. It takes him an hour each way. Teiki said that he didn't go to school but he wanted his son to study. They live a life completely independent from the outside, with plenty of food for their sustenance and enough to sell, which they do. They send fruit and coconuts to Taiohae every 2 weeks. The soil is very rich, there is plenty of fresh water all year around, an abundance of fish, goats, and pigs. I noticed that there were a few solar panels but other than that there is no power. I was jealous of their life but they seemed to be completely happy with what they have. I wandered if they ever get sick eating such a clean diet and being so active when I saw Kua light a cigarette. After the feast, we packaged our fruit and walked back (rather heavily) to the river where we had left our dinghy. We are going back for another meal in a few days when Russell arrives to sail with us.
From Hakaui we went to Taipivai, another small village, but one with a road to it. However, this didn't take away from their simplicity and welcoming. A group of the village children followed us everywhere. They were curious about us, these foreigners speaking English, which they all know a few words of, and were eager to speak them. 2 of the girls pointed out to us all the fruit trees and would say their names in French. Unfortunately they didn't seem to know the names in the Marquesas language.
We are now in Anaho Bay (the place in the photo), another isolated bay with just 20 people. I will write about these two another time. We are going to swim ashore and meet the people. My most endearing memories from the Marquesas are their people and the magnificent mountains, with its masterly carved peaks and fertile valleys. Kaoha to all and until next time.