TAHITI
feels like a milestone for me. After 8 months and almost 10,000 ocean miles, it feels like we have “arrived”. Tahiti is kind of the half-way point, and by now we feel a bit like seasoned cruisers. We have lived through Montezuma’s Revenge, the long crossings, the “low and dangerous” atolls, and the French.
We have explored very little of Tahiti, because we have been doing boat projects since we arrived. We are at an actual dock, which we haven’t experienced since Costa Rica. Our boat has had many fresh water showers since we got here, and has shed her salty skin. Our water maker now works, and Jim has invented a few more items that make Ruby Slippers more efficient and comfortable. I’ll let him tell about them in a later update.
The large northern part of Tahiti is called Tahiti Nui, and the small southern end is called Tahiti Iti. There are some beautiful cruising grounds along the coast and between the two parts of the island, we are told. We plan to explore them in the next couple of days, then go to Moorea, Huahine and Bora Bora. Our French Polynesian visa expires on June 30th, and we have not been invited to stay longer than that, which is okay. Although beautiful, it is very expensive here, and well, very French.
Molly and Jessie celebrated their 13th birthday today. They got lots of great handmade presents from their cruising friends, a big homemade breakfast, and dinner in downtown Papeete, and some nice e-mails from friends and family. Their big present is that their friend, Rosalie, is coming for a visit in one week. She will be escorted by my sister Jami, who is MY present! We are all a-twitter over seeing faces from home.
On a personal note, I no longer have dreadlocks. I felt like I had a dead, matted cat on my head, and it just wasn’t a good feeling. My straight, fine, blonde hair is simply not conducive to the Bob Marley/Lenny Kravitz look. So, now I have about ¼” hair on my head, and look like I am channeling Vanessa Redgrave in a concentration camp movie, or maybe Dame Judi Densch. No more dead cats for me.
We will write more about the Society Islands when we spend some time exploring. In the meantime, there are some new pictures in the media gallery, of our halcyon days in the Tuamotus. Enjoy!