Moorea, 75% Polynesia, 25% French

While Tahiti was nice, Moorea was far better. As the title would suggest, the island was more quintessentially Polynesian, with thatched roofs, raised structures and more natural, undisturbed vegetation. The locals were nicer too and there was more english available. We joined our friends, Lanny and Sandy, again for a tour of the island in a rental car. The rental car place was half way around the island which means a $45-$60 cab ride there and the same on the way back. If you choose to rent a car, figure that into the equation. There were 3-4 hr tours available at the port for $40-$50 per person. So it really depends on whether you want the freedom and flexibility of your own vehicle or want to be part of a group. We enjoy both so we were happy either way.

Our first stop was the tiki village which looked interesting but they didn't open till 11 so we opted to move on. Pics I later saw on the cruise's facebook page looked fun and educational so I would recommend working it into your plans given the right timing. We continued on to a local park where the water was the most beautiful aqua blue green I think I've ever seen. The thrill there was being in the water with a stingray who appeared to be quite friendly and was letting people pet it. This wasn't a tourist attraction, this was nature in action. We opted for lunch across the street at a wonderful little cafe with great service and an open-air type vibe which was incredibly pleasant. If you opt for a tour under 4 hrs, they generally don't include a meal, so if you like to experience the local cuisine, then you'll need to select the personal transportation method....which can include 4 wheelers, BTW. We saw some of those and they looked fun.

After lunch, we continued on our clockwise loop around the island and ended up at Belvedere Lookout. It was awe-inspiring. The natural beauty of this island is really unsurpassed. Created via volcanic activity, adjusted by earthquakes (millions of years ago), the topography is unlike anything I've seen. Moorea is the oldest of islands in French Polynesia, and you can tell the extra 50 million years made a difference ;-).

I didn't mention the water taxis. There's no "port" per se at Moorea, so the ship anchors about 1/4 mile offshore and we are brought in by water taxi. These water taxis are the same boats we would use in an emergency evacuation were the ship to be disabled or sinking, so it was nice to see how that would work. On the water taxi ride back to the ship, we met a couple who skipped Tahiti yesterday and came right over to Moorea and spent the night in a classic hut on the water. They rejoined the ship today. What an interesting option I never considered but definitely seems worth-while. As we become more experienced cruisers, I could envision us doing something like that for a night. I know there are quite a few passengers who will do that in Ravenna, Italy as we are there 2 days and they want to go to Venice. Venice has been recently closed to cruise ships (our original itinerary was for 2 days in Venice) so if you want to see Venice by cruise ship, this is the route you'll need to take.

Once back on the ship about 2pm, we lounged around the pool the rest of the afternoon. I realized I hadn't been in the pool, just the hot tub, so I spent some time in there. It was very refreshing and relaxing. The temperature in Moorea was the most pleasant 70+ degrees with light ocean breezes. I saw no window screens anywhere which tells me they don't have bug issues.....that's a nice benefit of a south pacific island. Dinner was surf and turf for both me and my wife. I included the menu since that seems to be a "fan favorite". I'll definitely need to spend some time in the fitness center today after taking 2 days off.

I woke up early, well before we arrived in Moorea, so I could participate in a conf call for work, so I was pretty wiped out by 8pm and so I decided to call it an early night. I woke up at 11pm with the laptop on my lap and hence, why this post is again late. Port days are rough (1st world problem). Hasta manana.