Bora Bora, French Polynesia

Bora Bora really was everything I'd read about. It somehow managed to live up to the hype. It's blue waters really were incredible and these pictures do not do them justice. Our little adventure was like going to Fantasy Island. We were greeted at the airport (really just a landing strip!) by a boat to take us to the private island.

The Sofitel is an amazing property.  There's 2 in Bora Bora, with boat shuttle service back and forth.  We stayed on the Private Island with just 30 units on the property.  Here is our room.

Yup, there was a porthole in the floor.  You could see the ocean lagoon right underneath your room.  At night, we would turn on the light underneath the bungalow to watch the long pencil-shaped fish swim around. 

Our first morning, this is what we woke up to.  It was warm, nice breezes, and terrific sun (albeit mixed with a few clouds)

That's our bungalow again, right between the palms.  The vantage point the picture is taken from is the main dining room of the hotel.

Another shot of our bungalow (aka temporary oasis!)

Henri loved the lookout point on the island.  You can see the mainland Bora Bora in the distance. 

At the lookout point on the island, there's romantic seating areas like this one.

Flowers nearly everywhere.

Some of the cool coral right under our bungalow.

Long walk off a short pier?  If I had to, I'd make it this one.  Ha!  This vantage point is from the mainland looking towards the private island.

Since this was French Polynesia after all, the little French desserts at each meal were incredible.

Bloody Mary's is a bar restaurant on Bora Bora.  We didn't eat there, but had a pineapple juice after a long walk.  Lots of famous folks names on the wall out front.

One morning a ray swam underneath our bungalow.  We spotted him through the porthole in the floor and ran out to the deck to watch him glide away.

I'll miss this view each morning with my coffee, but I'll never forget it!

My 2 favorite waters, the still Royale, and bubbly Badoit.  I preferred the Badoit and just saying the name was fun!

As our water taxi pulled away, we were played off the island.  It was surreal and I'll never forget.

Huahine, French Polynesia

Huahine was another unknown to me before we flew there. Turns out, it's unknown to most Americans. We spent 2 nights there at the Maitai Hotel and most of the other guests were French. I thought that was pretty cool. The Maitai Lapita Village is designed to look like a traditional Tahitian village. There were even some archeological sites on the property. Incredible! The first picture is our room.

Just after the first rain on our visit, the flowers were even more spectacular!

The view from the hotel's infinity pool: amazing!

On a tour around the island, we stopped at an artist's home. She paints the traditional Tahitian pareo. This was on display and she explained the different symbolisms. In the lower left there is a depiction of mountain range on the island. They say it's a mythican pregnant woman. Can you see it?

Henri enjoying the wonderful views on our tour!

This is how locals keep their boats to avoid barnacles attaching to the boats.

A nifty church on the island.

Henri enjoying himself in the vanilla fields.

One last view of our wonderful hotel!

Moorea, French Polynesia

Just a quick island-hopper plane ride over to Moorea. I think all of 10 minutes in the air. Ha!

I loved this island. Of the 3 we visited, it felt like the "action" or activity island. Lots and lots of stuff to do. Here Henri discovered the infinity pool.

We took in a Polynesian show.  We felt the show felt more authentic then a fancy, kicked-up Hollywood production type show of Hawaii.  It seemed like a village group that came to perform.  Sure there was twirling fire at one point, but you can see in the pics, the old grannies were out in force singing and even showing how to make traditional crafts.

We took a boat cruise out to a motu, one of their many big sandbars (like a tiny island).  That rock in the center is actually on the Tahitian currency. 

Yup, we got to swim with the rays and the sharks.  Not sure you can make it out but those are sharks, baby!  I was freaked out at first, but got over it quickly.  Super fun!

This guy, Seeki, was our guide on the cruise.  He did a demo how to make the national Tahitian dish, poisson cru, which essentially was a raw tuna ceviche.  It was made with fresh coconut milk.  Incredible!  He was a character too.

Henri loved the cruise and the afternoon on the motu.  The snorkeling was terrific!  Oh and Henri learned how to open coconuts.  Ooof!

Sparkling water and a guava margarita - because THAT'S how we roll, baby!

Our hotel, the Intercontinental, on Moorea had amazing lagoons with all kinds of choral and fish.  We spent the day snorkeling there.

Right in the middle of this pic - can you see it?  - it's a rainbow.  :)

A lovely sunset on our last night in Moorea!

Pape'ete, French Polynesia

We were only in Pape'ete about 12 hours but man, the Intercontinental was an incredible introduction to the islands. Henri got his lei...well, he actually got two!

We had breakfast at the hotel and this was our view from the open seating are.  Incredible!

This fruit fascinated me.  Really interesting flavor, quite tasty, even if the texture was kind of snotty.  I was surprise to NOT see it served again on any of the other islands. 

The Intercontinental has an amazing view, of course.  That's Moorea in the distance, where we were headed next!
 

A final picture from reception at the hotel.  Yup, we only stayed a short time, but when we arrived at 11:00 pm, we took an evening swim.  It was glorious! 

Ian and Patrick

I love these 2 guys. Seeing their obvious joy in each other makes me smile.

Brian Kennedy

Brian Kennedy is my morning ritual. I stumble into the kitchen, turn on the dimmest light, and switch on his music. My favorite is his 1996 record, “A Better Man.” Something about the balance of sad, sweet, intimate songs mixed with mid-tempo, rousing pieces of joy that I adore so much.

I discovered Brian years ago watching a compilation DVD I purchased on a whim. It was a concert of various Irish artists from Mary Black to Sinead O’Connor. I thought Brian’s performance was terrific; the glittery blouse he wore was over-the-top and great fun. Later when I was in Dublin, I picked up a copy of a free newspaper with Brian on the cover. I learned how he got his big break by singing back-up to Van Morrison and he talked about what he looks for in a man. It was a VERY telling article.

But back to his music, I’ve gushed over this man’s voice for years now. He can sing with such intimacy that I feel like I’m peering through a window at someone telling a story; I’m eavesdropping and stealing something that isn’t mine. I guess it’s that intimacy that I enjoy when I play his music in the mornings. He sings me little stories, reminds me that the world is complicated, and that people do persevere. If that sounds too much like a rose-colored glasses outlook, well, that’s just what I need in the mornings.

The album “A Better Man” has what I think is a good mix of heartbreaking songs like, “Won’t You Take Me Home,” “And So I Will Wait for You,” and “Wish Me Well”, mixed with haunting, atmospheric songs like, “No Other Words,” “The Oldest Dream in the World,” “By the Mountain Road,” and “Ghost Music.” But it’s not all tears and moody imagery. The album has some up-tempo songs like “Life, Love and Happiness” plus the World Party cover, “Put the Message in the Box.” The titular song “A Better Man” is a catchy opener too. I’ll leave this post with the song, ”For One Kiss”, back when Brian had long hair. I just can’t get enough of this record!