June 4, 2015, Thursday, Papeete, French Polynesia - Tahiti

Our day in Papeete was a free day in town.  As we left the ship we passed weary guests on benches at the pier.  We found out later that they were the new guests who had arrived after an overnight flight from the mainland and were waiting to be told they could come on the ship.  The ones we met later took a couple days to get over the jet lag, but they all seemed excited to be on the ship.

David had a quest to buy a certain polynesian canoe paddle.  He uses one in Kona and likes it but can't buy in anymore there, so he wanted to buy it at the source.  It was supposed to be at the Va'a Connection store near the cathedral.  

We found the small shop and on the wall they had about 6 paddles, all the same make, but not the one he wanted.  He asked the clerk and she said no they didn't have any other paddles.  Another shop said there was a store further up the street.  We walked as far out of the center of town to a high school where we saw some young boys.  David finally understood enough that the store was across from the cathedral, so we went back and of course found the same store as before.  After the third false alarm, and walking all over town, always being pointed to the same store, we decided to walk along the waterfront.  

Three men up ahead had canoe paddles in their hands and were walking in our direction.  I suggested to David that we ask them where they buy their paddles, and he was already thinking that way and we tried to catch up.  One showed us his paddle, which was the kind David wanted to buy!  He took a picture of it because it had the phone number on it.  The man swore he bought it at the store across from the Cathedral.  We followed the paddlers to their launch site where there were  a couple dozen more guys all waiting to meet up to go out during lunch break at noon.  They were all bronze, very fit, and maybe in their thirties or so.  We stayed to watch them launch and paddle away.  They had advertisements on the canoes and their shirts which made me think they were probably racers, and good ones.

The canoes

One team launching a six man

The other boats

The canoes were different than our Hawaiian canoes.  The gunnel was not straight, but outlined each seat.  They switched on 9, and they were all in sinc like they paddle together all the time.  I don't know what they thought of us two old people intent on watching them and saying that we also paddled and wanted to buy a polynesian paddle, but we didn't care, we were excited to see paddlers again.

We walked back and found a French restaurant on the main waterfront street with a polynesian ukulele group playing on the street and had a fabulous lunch.  Expensive, but delicious.  They had a pistachio sauce for the seared ahi encrusted in something that was delicious.

Our restaurant

Then we went back to the Va'a Connection for the umteenth time and asked again about the paddle, this time showing the photo.  The girl once again said they didn't have it, and then explained that the company was now out of business!  In fact we finally noticed a big sign that said just that.  The new paddles were all that they had.  They didn't fit David, so we left finally satisfied that it wasn't to be, but happy to have had the experience seeing real polynesian paddlers.

The main market was in a huge warehouse building with two floors.  Around the perimeter were jewelry venders selling black pearls.  Everywhere else, in shops, the pearls were hundreds of dollars.  I was determined to get pearls for less than $100.  I knew I would have to sacrifice quality, but I know I cannot tell the difference from sitting next to someone if the pearl has a dimple or two, or is two steps lower on the scale of luminescence.  I found two ladies who had a table of stones in settings I liked and bought a pearl drop on a wire necklace.   Then I saw a full necklace of beads, but it was 20,000 and I only had 15,000 left.  She gave me the necklace and earrings and left the bracelet and ring combination behind.  They are not perfectly round, but they are shinier than most, they look matching, and I liked the colors.

The lady who sold me my Tahitian black pearls.

As we walked along the main road to find the market, we passed a man playing an ukulele.  I don't like the tinny sound of the polynesian four stringed instrument.  They have a different shape and bright pink  nylon strings.  On the sidewalk were two instruments for sale.  They wanted 10,000 or 100 US.  David gave me a 10,000 bill and MJ came by and asked if I was going to buy it, and anyway, I did.  I figured I would just get Hawaiian strings and it would sound like my ukulele.  It was obviously hand made.  Since I have made my own ukulele, I could see that the construction was good - maybe not the fanciest or best but certainly better than the one I made.  It is one solid block of several woods that have been laminated and then shaped.  Even the neck is part of the body.  The hole in the back is carved out somehow.  It is signed.

Well, I actually happened to walk by a music store and asked to buy new strings.  The owner had them, but then warned me that this instrument was meant to have the fishing line strings it had because the sound hole, which is in the back, is not big enough.  I decided to just keep it the way it is. Back in the room, I played it and didn't like the sound again, but then remembered that the music store owner said it was meant to be strummed very fast.  I found that strumming these thinner strings was really easy and could get it going pretty well.  It is easier overall to play.  I don't know how it will be received at kanikapila, because it really has a different sound, but it will be fun.

We ended up staying off the ship most of the day, enjoying Papeete.  As mentioned, the stores and markets closed early for us, like at 4:00pm.  Tom and Deanna Jones got back from their Bora Bora exotic hotel vacation and met friends for dinner and drinks late that evening.  Our ship was supposed to have the mandatory boat drill at 5:30pm, but some guests hadn't arrived, so they postponed it to 10:00pm.  You can imagine how the new guests who arrived at 5:00am and had to wait until 10:00 on benches felt about that announcement.  Anyway, we did have the drill at 10:00, and there were several room numbers called who did not show up, including Tom and Deanna and their friends.

Our ship sailed at midnight for Huahine, French Polynesia.