Nui or Iti...it's all Tahiti

Sailing into Port

Tahiti, famed for its alluring beauty...ancient home of the Hawaiian ruling Alii and home of temptations that caused the crew of the Bounty to mutiny was a welcome sight after seven days at sea, just as it must have been to the sailors, whalers, and explorers of the past.

The biggest of the 188 islands of French Polynesia, it is made up of two connected parts...Tahiti Nui (big) and Tahiti iti. (small...love this name!) Tahiti iti is tiny and isolated with no roads.

Downtown Papeete Tahiti

Settled originally between 300-800 by migrating Polynesians, the islands were ruled by many different chiefdoms frequently fighting for control. Changes began after a visit from Captain Bligh's ship, the Bounty, whose crew mutinied with half staying on Tahiti. They threw their support behind the leader Tu, and with the help of their guns and metal knives, Tu became the sole ruler changing his name to Pomare I. Just like some of Hawaiian Royal Kamehamehas, Pomare royalty had problems with alcohol and early deaths, until Pomare IV, who led the country for 50 years.

The first European to "discover" Tahitit was Samuel Wallis in 1767. It was then visited by Spanish, French, and English over the next 20 years, with no permanent settlement. Captain Cook called this archipelago of French Polynesia the "Society Islands", named for the England Royal Society, the oldest scientific organization in Great Britain.

Yet, it was the missionaries during these times that shaped the island's future. The English Protestant missionaries encouraged Pomare II to ban dancing, chanting, and wearing flowers. Prostitution was also outlawed, yet by this time, European diseases had reduced the population by 80%. Pomare IV continued to ally with the English missionaries until war broke out between the English and French. With the French victory, she was exiled for two years before being allowed to return as leader of Tahiti in name only. Upon her death, her son took over and gave Tahiti and surrounding islands to France, with all the islanders becoming French citizens. Although French is the official language, Tahitian is often spoken at home.

Downtown from the Viking Sun 

Thanks to good seas we arrived an evening earlier than scheduled. The mountain peaks were partially clad in clouds, typical for November-April, the wet season.

Locals Dancing on the Bay Promenade

It was rush hour as we disembarked into this cultural and commercial capital city, with commuters returning home to the surrounding towns. We were told that it can take 90 minutes to go 12 miles during rush hour, but we heard no horns honking.

As we walked around town we were met with friendly smiles and "Bonjour", but if we said the Tahitian hello first, we were greeted with "la orana" and an even bigger smile.

We admired the beautiful street art and a sprawling waterfront park with shelters, statues, and playgrounds... locals out in full force playing, group exercising and enjoying an 82 degree evening. A bonus was seeing a group practicing traditional Hawaiian Hula in a pavilion overlooking the harbor.

Street art of Tahiti...by traffic Circle next to Bayside Park and around the City 

As we returned to the ship that evening, we walked through a large plaza filled with folding tables and chairs and food trucks (reminding us of those in Hana), with French-speaking Tahitians enjoying the beautiful evening.

Back onboard, a local dance group entertained us with otea, the traditional dance, and beautiful music...ukelele, drums, and song. The women's fast hip shaking differs from the slower graceful movements of hula, but the men's strong movements were very similar.

Reminders of Hawaii Everywhere...Taro at the City Market

City Marketplace

The next day we set off on our included walking tour of downtown Papeete. Ten minutes into it we ran into construction and had to backtrack a few blocks. Then someone needed a restroom and another asked if we could go to the marketplace to shop, which our easy-going guide agreed to, again veering 180 degrees from our planned route. (Entitled travelers at times change the tour for a whole group. The marketplace was supposed to be at the end of the trip which would have been better for us nonshoppers.)

Our guide, who looked like a big handsome Tongan and wore the traditional tupenu (male skirt) of Tonga, grew up on a neighboring island, met his Japanese wife at college in Hilo, and moved to Tahiti for a job in tourism. Tourism is finally coming back after suffering after 9/11 and the market collapses in 2001 and 2008. It is now Tahiti's main source of income. Important exports are its farmed black pearls and vanilla and also fruit and fish.

Gana showed us the secret spring and favorite bathing spot of Queen Pomare IV set behind the now modern Polynesian Parliament Building and a lovely city park called Bougainville Garden, named after the French explorer.

Queen's Bathing Gardens in downtown Papeete

Monument to Pomare IV

Modern Polynesian Parliament

Notre Dame Church

Notre Dame with its carved statue of the Virgin Mary with Polynesian features...paintings on the walls depicting Bible stories like in the "painted churches" in Hawaii...the way missionaries taught the natives about Christianity.

Bible Story

Virgin Mary with Polynesian Features

Presidential Palace

After our tour, we continued on our own, once more to the Presidential Palace which because of the Chinese New Year was decorated with a Chinese theme including a wooden statue of a pig for the year of the pig. Chinese first came to the island to work the cotton, coffee, and sugarcane plantations. When the plantation failed ten years later many stayed on.

Palace Decorated for the Chinese New Year

Walking on we discovered a beautiful Catholic Mission, the replica of the old palace now  Town Hall, and hillside neighborhoods and then once again we rambled down the beautiful harborside promenade. On its volcanic black sand beach, members of outrigger canoe clubs were preparing to take out their canoes.

Chapel on Mission Grounds

Gates into Mission Grounds

 Town Hall

Typical Hillside Neighborhood

Black Sand Beach in Town with Outrigger Clubs

Not only did Tahiti's history remind us of Hawaii's...royal family, whalers, merchants, disease, missionaries, takeover, but as we explored more of the island, the whole feel was similar, not to Honolulu of course, but to Hana and Hilo... in dance, language, music, beautiful Polynesian people, flowers and trees.

Waterfall at the Gardens

We visited the Vaipahi Gardens admiring the beautiful waterfall, bamboo forest, and tropical flowers. Then like the heiaus of Hawaii...we visited Arahrahu Marae, a sacred stone site of pre-Christian Polynesians where human sacrifice took place.

Sacred Marae

Lotus Flower at Vaipahi Gardens

Maraa Grotto

Water Taxi Available

Mountainside, along a coastal road, we wandered the paths of Maraa Grotto, an inspiration for French painter Paul Gauguin who lived for a while on the island. This tropical forest area had three caves surrounded by lush vegetation, dripping water from the mountainside forming two clear pools. One cave actually was 80 yards long. On the ride back we saw waterfalls high in the mountains and coconut groves.

We would have loved one more day here to venture into the uninhabited mountainous interior of this tropical island with its lush forests, fruit trees, and waterfalls that we saw only from a distance...but it was time to sail on.

Tahiti is now the main bustling port of French Polynesia, but as we quietly sailed away captivated by the gorgeous sunset over the island of Mo'orea, we were transported back to that charming old Polynesia Michener depicted in "South Pacific".