Tuesday, 12 Feb 2019 – At 8:30 AM, we opened
our draperies to see gorgeous scenery of mountains (or just big rocks) rising
up from the sea; our ship was pulling into Nuku Hiva. We enjoyed breakfast while sitting by a
window in the Terrace Café; then we took photos of the surrounding area from
the top deck. Moving quickly, we went
for a half-hour swim. The pool was cool,
but calm and empty, so we had a really nice swim.
At lunch we watched out windows as the
ship’s tenders transported passengers ashore before meeting in the Insignia
Lounge for our excursion at 1:30 PM. The
name of our tour was, “Visit to Taipivai Valley.” First, we boarded one of the ship’s tenders
for a five minute ride to the pier. The
tour was conducted caravan style with a group of 15 4WD vehicles, which held
four passengers each, plus the driver.
We were in vehicle number 2, along with Charlotte and Joan from Philadelphia. Cruising to Sydney, Charlotte has been widowed
for six years, and Joan is divorced.
French Polynesia is a collection of
118 islands and atolls scattered across an impressive nautical surface area the
size of Western Europe. An atoll,
sometimes called a coral atoll, is a ring-shaped coral reef including a coral
rim that encircles a lagoon. These tiny
islands and atolls, only 67 of which are inhabited, make up a total landmass of
only 1,600 square miles. (Rhode Island
is 1,545 square miles, total.) The
islands are situated just south of the equator and halfway between Los Angeles,
California, and Sydney, Australia. French
Polynesia is divided into five groups of islands: the Society
Islands archipelago (a sea or stretch of water containing many
islands), composed of the Windward Islands and the Leeward Islands; the Tuamotu
Archipelago; the Gambier Islands; the Marquesas
Islands; and the Austral
Islands.
Nuku Hiva is the largest of the
Marquesas Islands. The coastline of
Western Nuku Hiva is characterized by steep, but fairly regular coastline,
indented occasionally by small bays leading to deep valleys, which lead into
the interior. There are no villages on
this side. The coastline of the eastern
part of the island has few places to land by sea and takes the brunt of the
ocean swells. The north on the other
hand, is indented by deep bays, the largest of which are Anaho and
Hatiheu. The south has fewer bays.
Our driver was a very large woman who
did not appear to speak much English.
Joan sat in the front seat and we shared the back seat with
Charlotte. We drove to the Taipivai
Valley, one of the richest archeological sites in the Marquesas Islands. The Taipivai Valley was made famous by the
American writer and former sailor, Herman Melville (1819-1891), who deserted
his ship and hid in this valley.
Captured by the indigenous natives, he lived in the Taipivai Valley for
three weeks, a period during which he observed their way of life. This experience was the inspiration for his
novel, Typee. This landmark was most recently made famous
by being the base camp for the Survivor TV show, filmed there in 2001.
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| A Memorial Near Notre Dame Cathedral |
Our first stop was the open-air Notre
Dame Cathedral, which was adorned with great carvings, including an eagle on
the lectern, a large crucifix behind the altar, the Stations of the Cross, and
others. The church was built in about
1974. Our next stop was along the coast,
where historically, the ships would send their landing craft ashore. The original building is still on location,
except the roof has been replaced with plastic material that lasts about 25
years. The original thatched roof needed
replacing every year; this roof has the same outward appearance, but is much
more durable. Several stone structures
also line the shore, apparently designed to resemble those on Easter Island.
We made two other photo stops along
the way, where we could see the water and valley far below. Our next stop was the site of Te A’Aitua
where we enjoyed light refreshments that included breadfruit and various tropical
fruits. Handicraft items, such
necklaces, bracelets, and carvings, were set up for sale on tables. Our final stop was a black sand beach, where
the locals come on weekends for a little rest and relaxation.
Along the way, we saw many horses
and a few cows grazing on the edge of the narrow, winding road; some tethered,
some not. Most of the area was covered
with trees and heavy undergrowth, without much area for grazing. We also saw numerous wild roosters and
hens. We saw one small, dark pig running
way from our vehicles, which may or may not have been wild.
Finally, we were back at the pier
where the last ship’s tender was waiting for us. After resting a bit in our cabin, we went to
the Terrace Café for dinner. Jesse would
have liked to dance, but Sally was too exhausted. It had been hot and somewhat uncomfortable,
crammed into the windy (un-air conditioned) middle back seat of that
truck! So instead, we watched a cute
movie, “A Simple Favor.” Before
retiring, we sat our clocks back by one-half hour.
