Tahitian Dancers - Women & Couples

6476 The more traditional hula style dance.

6486 The more French influenced, slit skirt dance.  They wear this type of dress in Viet Nam which was also French.

6519 This was the first time I’ve ever seen a Tahitian, or for that matter any Polynesian, group do couples swing dancing.  It was very nice to see and showed their dancing ability is not one-dimensional. 

6526 This is the ‘hip specialist’ doing her long solo.  I began to question whether she actually had a lower spine.  Her chest and hips did not seem necessarily connected.

6528 At this point she paused for a few seconds so I took a picture just to be sure I’d get one more or less in focus.

6557 Both of our favorite dancers wound up side by side at the end of the show pose for pictures.

Tahiti Ora Dancers - Men

6476 Not even the 1/1000 of a second strobe could stop his flying feet.

6480 This knee-knocking step is popular all over the Pacific.

6496 Who says men can’t wear feathers? 

6511 D’s favorite dancer on the left.

Tahiti - More Pictures

6374 D sitting on an ancient wall at the valley ritual site.

6381 D and Alex at the ritual site.

6382 The unusual hibiscus Alex picked at the ritual site.

6392 Lakeside waterfall, Papenoo Valley, Tahiti

6429 Your intrepid travelers in the Papenoo Valley caldera.  The mountains in the distance are the other side.  The hills on the right are a structure inside the huge caldera, those on the left are the western wall of the caldera.

6456 The Coke Christmas billboard in Papeete.

6457 Santa has a very good tan this year!

Papeete, Tahiti, Leeward Islands, Society Islands, French Polynesia

Nov 23 – Papeete, Tahiti, Leeward Islands, Society Islands, French Polynesia.  We’re taking a trip into the island’s interior today on a tour they call Off the Beaten Track, Tahiti by 4-wheel Drive.  Says that it’s not for people with bad necks or backs or pregnant women.  I don’t think that last item is going to be an issue with the current passengers.  I just realized that I got so distracted by the water activities in Bora Bora that I forgot to introduce the Society Islands in French Polynesia.  French Polynesia is actually an overseas department of France.  It consists of a number of separate groups of Polynesian islands.  Tahiti is in the Leeward Group of the Society Islands.  It has the most people and like Hawaii, the island, in Hawaii, the state (I love saying that), Tahiti is the newest and largest of the Society Islands.  Also like Hawaii, the island chain is slowly moving over a hotspot that creates islands as the bottom moves across it.  Papeete is the capital of the territory.  It’s also the most ‘French’ of all the islands, especially around the capital.

 

We’ll be riding in the back of mini-pickup trucks that have a cover with rain flaps over the bed with two padded back and seat benches running along the sides.  The tailgate has been replaced with one that has a small, hinged door in the center to allow us to get in and out.  The bumper has a stair in the middle.  There are only 6 of us so we have plenty of room to turn and look at the side behind us as well as the view out the opposite side of the truck.  We are traveling with a younger Russian couple, Alexi and Elizabeth, from Saint Petersburg and another couple from Oregon.  The Russians are fun because he speaks English after a fashion and she doesn’t.  Because we were in Russia earlier this year for a month, I still remember some Russian and his eyes lit up when I used it with him.  After that, I was his buddy for the whole trip.

 

At first, we drove along the coastline, toward the east coast.  It’s much rockier and there’s not much of an offshore reef here.  The few reefs are not far from the shoreline so there’s not much of a lagoon; in fact, there are no named lagoons at all.  We drove past Matavai Bay and Point Venus.  Point Venus is so named because it was on that spot that Captain Cook recorded the path of Venus’ orbit in 1769.  This was an important astronomical event at the time.  An important part of that voyage was to set up an observatory in the South Pacific to witness the passage of Venus across the face of the sun.  Captain Bligh and Wallis, of Bounty mutiny fame, also landed in the bay next to the point.

 

We are going into the island’s mountainous interior.  There are 265 waterfalls on the island and, since waterfalls need a mountain to tumble down, there are 8 separate mountain ranges and 12 full-time rivers.  We will be heading up the largest one, the Papenoo.  We will be following the appropriately named Papenoo Valley.  After initially passing through a gap in the mountains, probably carved by the river, the valley widens.  It’s defined on all four sides by mountains that are actually the remains of a huge caldera.  This is the remnant of the volcano that formed most of the island.

 

Once we turned inland, the road rapidly deteriorated into a paved but pothole littered narrow road.  This river supports the island’s hydroelectric power plants and I’m sure the road would be much worse if maintenance and employee vehicles didn’t have to use it. 

 

As we ride up to the center of the island, we made several stops to photograph waterfalls, plants, flowers and other scenery.  Our first stop was in a narrow part of the valley to view the mountains and another shorter waterfall.  Unfortunately, it was back in a small valley and totally shaded while the area all around was in bright sun.  Not ideal for pictures.  A few miles later on we crossed the river on a concrete fording slab.  Some water was running over the top but not enough to cause concern.  Just upriver was a semi-suspension bridge that does not appear to be in use anymore although it appears to be in reasonable condition.  Maybe they use it in time of flood.  The signs at the end give it a 3.5-ton weight limit. 

 

The first waterfall we stopped to view was across the broad valley.  It was very tall but with nothing near it for perspective, I have no idea how tall it was.  If I were to guess I’d say somewhere between 200-250 feet.  Our driver/guide took our picture holding a water bottle at the base of the falls as if we’re filling it.  He’s good with a camera because he captured it just right. 

 

The next area we visited had a broad view across the valley and on the uphill side of the road; we walked to a traditional family religious site.  They don’t really have temples.  They have both a burial plot and a shrine for rituals honoring their ancestors and other religious ceremonies.  It was a bit of a climb to the site over an uneven, sometimes steep; path so quite a few of our fellow travelers didn’t go.  There were several areas that were on raised stone platforms, one that was three tiers high.  One of the rocks at the site had a wilted bouquet of flowers resting atop it.  Someone had been here fairly recently.  Alexi found a large hibiscus that I had never seen before.  In typical Russian fashion, he picked it.  They have very different rules in Russia for behavior in public places, so I wasn’t surprised.  He gave it to Diana and I got a great picture of it.

 

From there we proceeded up the valley and passed the first hydroelectric dam.  This is not Hoover Dam; in fact, the dam was very small as was the lake behind it.  Apparently, the constant supply of water or the topography makes a larger dam either unnecessary or impractical.  Just above the dam, falling into the small lake was a much closer waterfall of the same type, long and thin, as the first one. 

 

From there we continued upward and passed a second hydro facility.  This one created even a smaller lake but just above the lake was a series of rapids formed by boulders in the river.  The lake above them was large and clear.  It was a swim spot if anyone wanted to and several did.  Alexi and Elizabeth were the first two in the water.  It was very clear and with the cliff directly behind it, a very picturesque spot.  About 5-6 other people joined them.

 

Our next stop was at the head of the valley.  It opened up into a broad valley in what was the central caldera of the volcano that formed the island.  This is the Papenoo Valley proper and it’s huge!  Once again, I prevailed on our guide to take our picture with the valley behind us.  Another good job.

 

The ride down was not as rough but it rarely is.  Gravity is working with you instead of against you and the obstacles don’t have the same impact.  On the way through Papeete, I saw a Coke billboard with a very nice Santa urging everyone to drink Coke to have a good time at Christmas.  Coincidentally, directly between our truck and the billboard was a young Tahitian woman driving an SUV.  Of all things, she was wearing a Santa hat.  I waved and wished her a “Joyeux Noël!”  I don’t have much French, but I have Merry Christmas.  She smiled and returned the sentiment while I took her picture.  Too bad the geometry and lighting didn’t allow me to get both the billboard and her properly lit in the same shot.

 

We had a local Tahitian show on board the ship for our evening’s entertainment.  They were great!  One of the girls was not very Tahitian in appearance and much of the time she was at the back of the group although they did rotate quite a bit.  Usually in any Polynesian show, they have a solo by the “hip specialist”; at least that’s what I call them.  This is a dance where the hip movements are highlighted while most of the rest of her body is stationary although forward movement is allowed.  The head shoulders and chest stay very still in the best of them.  Well the Anglo looking girl was the one and she was very good. 

 

It was a very nice day and not too hot because there was a nice breeze most of the day.

 

Bora Bora in the Water #2

5987 Much later I saw the shark following his buddy around the lagoon.  Every time I saw this shark he was with the same fish.

6012 I thought I’d missed my shot at this Peppered Moray.  Just as I was about to swim on, he came out to say goodbye.  The fuzzy stuff all around him, sort of purple and green, is live coral.

6029 Rays are hard to photograph because they are always on the move and come at you from all angles.  This is the most complete picture I was able to get.  Couple of sharks were coming to see what all the fuss was about.  The one on the left at the top of the picture came in for a pretty close look before he figured I wasn’t that interesting.

6044 These Lemon Sharks arrived in a bunch.  This one went by showing me his teeth. 

6058 This small clump of coral plays host to small schools of Blue-Green Chromis and Humbug Dascyllus.  I love that name.

Bora Bora in the Water #3

5813 This Pinktail Triggerfish let me get pretty close.  Only fish I got closer to were the rays and sharks.

5861 This is a better side shot of the Threadfin Butterflyfish, he’s the large one at the top left with the herringbone stripes and the thin orange thread trailing the back of his dorsal fin.  The Pacific Double-Saddle Butterflyfish is below on the right and the Scissor-Tail Sergeant is top right.

5980 I like the shadow in the picture of this Black Tip Reef Shark.  They like to patrol the sandy area between the reef sections.

6059 This little section of reef is home to a school of Yellowtail Damsels and a few Blue-Green Chromis. In the upper left hand corner is a Puffer facing away from you and to the left.

6096 In a shaded section of the lagoon I came upon these sharks interrupting a game of follow the leader the Spotted Trevally were playing.

Bora Bora in the Water #1

5798 This is a reef with several features of interest.  The column that looks like macaroni stars is a soft coral,  The white round structures to the right and left are hard corals.  The blue squiggle is a giant clam embedded in the coral.  The blue membrane lines the inside edges of his shell.  Below and to the right is his more boring cousin, not as easy to see. 

5832 His attractive green cousin is rarer, at least in these reefs.  I only saw two.  All the structures you see in this picture are live corals.

5852 I’m holding a piece of fish to attract some suspects.  The group above my hand are Pacific Double-Saddle Butterflyfish.  The black striped fish are Scissortail Sergeants.  Below my hand you can see the crosshatched pattern on the Threadfin Butterflyfish.

5974 Sea Turtles racing to the food.

5985 This Black Tip Reef Shark has a traveling buddy.  Just above his pectoral fin is a small yellow with black stripes fish I can’t remember the name of. You’d think this shot was just an accident but wait until you see what I saw later.

Vaitape, Bora Bora, French Polynesia - My Favorite Island Anywhere!

5932 Just above there red flowers on the hillside you can see the barrel of a WWII canon, one of several still around the island.

6209 This is Vaitape on Bora Bora.  Now you’ve seen as much of it, Vaitape that is, as I have.

6243 Your intrepid travelers sailing out of Bora Bora.

6252 The sunset as reflected on the clouds and behind the outer reef of the island.  Looks a bit like an oil slick on the surface of the lagoon but I assure you it’s just the sun.  The water here is so clean and clear it’s hard to believe.

Bora Bora Map – The reef in the last picture is right at the Tapu Dive Site on the center left of the map.  We’re sailing through the gap in the reef there.  It’s the only way in and out for a ship of any size at all.  The other gaps in the barrier reef are all to shallow no matter how wide they look on paper.

5870 This is the lady that was feeding the fish, apparently for the first time.  She was really having fun.  I forgot to mention that a stray stingray apparently caught the scent of the fish and snuck up on her.  It startled her when it flew by and brushed against her.  I took the fish from her and led it away from the boat before I opened my hand and gave the fish to it.  Win-win all around.

 

 

Nov 22 – Bora Bora, French Polynesia.  Today we are back on my favorite island anywhere, Bora Bora.  Well… I guess that’s technically incorrect.  This is our third time here and I have yet to set foot on the island.  I transfer from the ship to the pier by tender; they always anchor in the lagoon here, and then walk down the pier to the dive boat or snorkel boat.  If Diana’s going with me, it’s snorkeling and she’s going today.  It’s a beautiful island

 

Bora Bora was an independent kingdom until 1888 when its last queen Teriimaevarua III was forced to abdicate by the French who annexed the island as a colony.  It remains an overseas collectivity of France as part of French Polynesia.  In fact, our last four ports, Bora Bora, Tahiti, Moorea and Nuku Hiva are all French and use the South Pacific Franc as their currency. 

 

During WWII, the US mounted some sea batteries around the island and you can still see the cannons from some of them above the vegetation.

 

As usual, we are spending the entire day in the water.  This morning we’re heading out on a boat with about 14 other people for a wading spot and two snorkel spots.  Our first stop is on a giant sand bar in about waist deep water to see some stingrays and sharks.  I’ve been in the water with rays quite a bit over the last 50 years but there’s something different about wading in waist deep water with dozens of rays all competing for your attention.  They just have a large suction cup for a mouth and no teeth.  I suppose if one really latched on to you, you might get the world’s largest hickie (sp?) but that’s about it.  The real danger is to the stingray.  If it actually sucks your hand into its stomach, you can do a lot of damage getting it out.  If you want to feed them, you have to have the food flat on your hand and let them suck it off your palm.  They are velvety on top and glide so gracefully that you can get mesmerized watching them.  This is the first time I have ever seen numerous sharks mingled in with the rays.  Usually the rays have the sandbar totally to themselves. 

 

Maybe it’s the reaction of the people encountering a stingray for the first time that gives you a huge smile.  I think it’s more than that because your insides are smiling too.  Next to dolphins, these are my favorite sea creatures to greet up close.  Because there are sharks mixed with the rays, some people wouldn’t get out of the boat.  Black Tips are reef sharks and are not aggressive.  In all the time I’ve spent with them in the water, I have never even seen one exhibit the slightest hint of ‘snarky’ behavior.  In fact, they show such disinterest in humans it’s hard to get a good picture of one.  They are after the chum, not you.  However, with safety in mind, it’s not a good idea to get in the middle of where the fish chunks are being thrown.  Could be nipped by accident I suppose. 

 

After spending a fun-filled 40 minutes with the sharks and rays we moved from our inner reef location to the outer reef that defines the huge lagoon.  You can usually tell where the barrier reef is by the waves breaking out in the ocean for no apparent reason.  The reef of the east coast of Australia is the Great Barrier Reef, although it’s not the world’s largest barrier reef, that’s what they named it.  There are thousands of barrier reefs around the world. 

 

The area immediately inside the barrier reef is dotted with smaller reefs; most are growing on rocky outcroppings that can hardly be seen for the life covering it.  Here there’s a large percentage of live coral.   In some areas, the coral is continuous; in others there are smaller isolated rocks that are supporting colonies of coral with a flat sandy bottom in-between.  Some of the areas are only about 5 feet deep which has a dual benefit.  Those people who are not strong swimmers can walk on the sandy areas, put their heads underwater, and clearly see actual live coral and the life it supports.  All they need is a mask and snorkel.  Actually, we’re in a ‘no fins’ zone and that’s a good thing.  First, inside the barrier reef there’s no surge and very little current.  With nothing to fight, there’s no reason to have fins.  Secondly, unskilled snorkelers and divers do a lot of damage to the fragile live coral with their fins.  All around it’s better not to have them.

 

Parts of the small reefs in the area are deeper and to see them you need to swim a bit, actually side-paddle is the best way to get around.  It’s almost like flying an airplane to weave your way deeper into the larger reefs, lots of fun and that’s where the most animal life is because it’s more protected by the outcroppings.  At this spot, a few sharks were patrolling the area but they were all in the sandy areas between the outcroppings.  Being larger fish, they like to have more water around them than you find deep in the reef structure.  Another reason the smaller fish like it there, they don’t need as much water and they are surrounded by their own buffet.  I was able to get some good pictures for a change; the sun was bright so light penetrated the water pretty well.  In most places, the reef was no deeper than 8-10 feet and sometimes I had to swim very carefully to avoid touching the coral.  Not that the corals here are dangerous, but the coral is only alive on the surface and the live part is easily damaged by even the slightest touch.  You ‘fly’ between the ‘mountain peaks’ like an Alaskan bush pilot.

 

The variety of fish was good.  There were several species of triggerfish including the aptly named Picasso and the all black, Black.  There was a third species with a black body, slightly purplish tinted head, yellow with black stripe pectoral fine, white with black edge dorsal and abdominal fins and white and pink tail.  (I looked it up, they’re Pinktail Triggerfish.)  It looks like a fish that Pablo would have painted but it’s not the Picasso.  An assortment of butterfly fish, including the Saddled and Threadfin, quite a few fish I couldn’t identify, one had a beautiful bright royal blue body and a lemon yellow tail, several species with vertical black stripes on bodies ranging from white to blue. 

 

When time was up, I swam back to the boat and found a lady, about rib deep in water, trying to get a good picture of the tropical fish that showed up.  Our guide had a bucket of small fish so I asked if I could take one.  He said I could so I took one, tore the head off and dropped it in the water about four feet in front of her.  Then I started rubbing the fish to put some small particles in the water.  Soon a mixed group of fish gathered around my hand, the proverbial ‘ball of fish”.  I could stop rubbing at that point because they were darting in to grab a tiny bite of the fish.  I held it near the surface of the water and she got a bunch of pictures of them.  She was grinning and laughing so I asked if she wanted to hold the fish to feed them.  She seemed doubtful, so I told her that if she makes sure at least half an inch of the fish sticks out of her fingers.  She took the fish and soon all my friends transferred their allegiance to her.  The imperative with fish is, “He who holds the food rules!”

 

I still had my mask and snorkel so, after she got comfortable with the little beggars dodging in and ripping off tiny hunks of fish, I dropped below the surface and took some pictures of her hand feeding the fish.  She was laughing and making little exclamations like ‘They’re tearing the fish up!” and “I think one nipped my finger!  It tickles!”  All doubt was gone, she was having a great time and so was I, just watching her.  Probably her first encounter, up close, with a wild animal of any sort from the look of it.

 

This was supposed to be our last stop of the day but our guide asked if we wanted to make a short stop to see a moray eel.  He said the water was a little deep but we’d be able to see the eel.  We said ok and off we went. 

 

On the way, we passed the Hotel Bora Bora.  When we were here in 1991, it was the only large hotel on the island.  It was the prototype for the South Pacific style, over the water rooms.  Sadly, it was badly damaged by a typhoon seven years ago and never reopened.  All that’s left of some of the over the water rooms are the piles on which they stood.  Most of the buildings spared by the storm are starting to deteriorate.  During the 80s and early 90s large hotels proliferated and all had over the water rooms.  Perhaps the market became saturated and it was not economical to reopen.  The newer hotels were mostly owned by chains, Hilton, Sofitel, etc. and the newer construction took lessons learned at the Bora Bora and improved the rooms for convenience and luxury.  Now there are even large hotels with these rooms on the motus (Islets, most are small but some are not.  The island’s airport is on Motu Mute) around the lagoon.

 

We arrived at the last stop of the day.  The water was about 20 feet deep and at that distance visibility was not great but you could see pretty well, not colors so much but shapes in shades of green and grey.  Our guide when down to the rocks with some fish and started throwing it at the spot where the moray lives.  In a very short time, the moray stuck his head out and grabbed the fish.  Now that he had his attention, the guide went close to the rocks with a fish in his hand and when the moray came out he pulled it back about 18 inches and let it drop.  That forced the moray to come about 4.5 feet out in the open to grab it.  I didn’t catch it at its most exposed but I did manage to get it about 2.5-3 feet out.  The photo doesn’t have enough color to tell exactly which one it is but you can see the mottled pattern and it has a bit of a green tint to it.  Not a great picture but it’s visible. 

 

After that, it was back to the tender pier.  It was too late to take the tender to the ship, eat and tender back in time for our afternoon snorkel trip so we ate some granola bars and trail mix.  We found a small stand on the edge of the pier’s parking lot and Diana had a Hawaiian style shave-ice with mango, coconut and apricot flavorings.  I got a hot dog.  It was about the size of a Costco Hebrew National dog but not as good.  It was too soft, but still tasty.  We found partly shady place and sat down to watch the people coming and going while we ate.

 

Our trip this afternoon is to the other side of the island on a motu that’s in the circle of the barrier reef but is not ever submerged by tide.  The ring of motus and barrier reef is actually the outline of a huge ancient volcano’s caldera about six miles across.  The large island at the center is the central cone of the volcano.  They have a small bay in the motu that has been isolated from the lagoon with a large net so they can keep sea life inside it.  The entire motu is private property but for a fee you can use the beach that borders the bay and also swim or snorkel there.  The have several fenced off pens in the bay where they keep some species that might disrupt the general bay or be damaged by other life there.

 

One pen in the lagoon has sea turtles inside.  They seemed happy to see us.  I’m sure that’s because they associate lots of people with feeding time and they weren’t disappointed.  Our host gave the quite a generous scattering of food.  From there we moved to a separate area where we could snorkel with black-tip, lemon and nurse sharks.  They had lots of mullet in that area too.  I think they were food for the black-tips and lemons.  The nurse sharks are seine feeders like baleen whales.  They strain plankton, krill and whatever micro animals they can out of the water to feed.  We swam in there about 25 minutes before moving to the main bay of the island where there were several fairly small coral beds and many types of tropical fish, including a few black-tip and lemon sharks. 

 

I saw redfin butterflyfish, blue-green chromis, yellow damsels, yellowtail damsels, one puffer, Picasso, pink-tail and black triggerfish, green wrasse, scissortail sergeant, humbug dascylus and blue spotted trevally. There were others but I don’t know their names.  There were several groups of coral in the bay and each had a colony of fish around it.  One had blue-green chromis and humbug dascyllus, the other mainly yellowtail damsel and a few butterflyfish.  It was a great dive spot and I’ll bet they work hard to keep it that way.

 

Since the lagoon was about half way around the island, our guide continued around to give us a chance to see the whole coastline.  He pointed out historical sites and gave us the names of the major hotels we passed.  He sang and played the ukulele while his partner kept the beat on a drum.  It was a fun ride back.  Almost any day is a good day if you’re on a boat especially a small one.

 

Shortly after taking the tender back to the ship the sail-away party started.  It was a great sail-away.  The sun was right on time, or rather we were.  Often when we sail the sun is already down or behind a mountain so it creates difficult lighting.  This time is was just about perfect.  By the time we reached the outer reef the sun was setting but I got a nice picture of the reef through the dining room window.  Yikes!

 

We had a Big Screen Movie night and they selected ‘Life of Pi’ to screen.  I can stand quite a bit of nonsense in a film but this was way over the top.  I don’t mind metaphorical scenes in film but they are difficult to direct and film so most of the time they are so heavy handed in the way it’s presented that it’s tedious, maudlin and therefore boring in extremis.  This movie would be one to show film students to illustrate how not to do it.  There, now I feel better.

 

Nov 20 & 21 At Sea

6190 & 6196 Under the Sea Dinner Balloons.

 

Addendum to Nov 18 – Cross the International Dateline.  (Not sure how I missed noting this in my journal ) Lest you think we got a whole day back for the one we lost I should mention that we lost an hour at 2AM and then another hour at 3PM so this was my first 22 hour day at sea.

 

Nov 20 – At Sea.  We lose an hour today at 1PM.  So civilized to change the time in the middle of the day.  At least it wasn’t like the first 18^th when we lost two hours in the day for the first time ever.  (see addendum above)

 

The dining room was decorated for what was on the on the 1960s huge Prom themes, Magic Under the Sea.  It’s such a cliché that they used it for Marty’s mom’s prom theme in Back to the Future.  I hate to admit it but in 1963, it was the Senior Prom theme at my alma mater, Fountain Hill High School.  Yikes!!  They decorate for dinner almost once a week but this was the best yet.  All the waiters were wearing fish hats and the balloons were shaped like several different types of fish, sea turtles, octopi and starfish.  There were shiny round mobiles with fish at the end of each vertical.  It was great.

 

Our entertainer was Paul Fredericks again.  I love his voice and his mix of songs.  This time he did songs by the Beatles, Pozo Seco Singers, The Eagles, Roy Orbison and some lesser known in the US but big in the UK singer/songwriters.  His voice is controlled, expressive and rich in tone.  He has a four-octave range and he uses every part of it well.  Any weakness is in the bottom 3 notes and maybe the top two but I can’t hear it if there is one in the highs.

 

Nov 21 – At Sea.  Today we have a special treat, the Indonesian Crew Show.  The 200+ Indonesian crewmembers put on a show at least one time on these long voyages and we always attend.  They are so genuine and open in their performance that any deficiencies in style and polish are not even noticed.  This time I decided to just enjoy them and not bother to take pictures.  They did the Saman Dance where everyone kneels in a line on the floor and they do synchronized hand motions.  It’s always lots of fun and they’re laughing and smiling right along with us. 

 

The performed the Kecak Dance next.  It tells the story of the Ramayana (Rama’s Journey), an ancient Sanskrit epic. In the story the Hindu sage Valmiki, a monkey like humanoid, helps King Rama (an avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu) fight the demon-like King Ravana who has kidnapped Rama’s wife Sinta. It’s a great story and the crew obviously has fun doing it. In the version, they did this evening Valmiki uses CPR to try to revive his army who have been placed under a spell by Ravana. In the end, he uses two flip-flops as defibrillator paddles to shock them awake. This was definitely not in the original Sanskrit story.

 

Our entertainer was Martin Ralph, the ‘King of Spin’.  He performs with all sorts of things that spin, starting with gyroscopes, moving on to yo-yos, then to a yo-yo he invented that is not hooked to the string and ending with thrown tops.  It’s an unusual act made more unusual by the fact that he broke a small bone in his foot on the way to the ship.  We’ve only seen him once before and he was just as good this time.  Very enjoyable.

 

 

American Samoa - More Pictures

5600 The Leone Coast and the village cemetery.  The light blue color the water turned when it washed into the semi-circular pool and lapped up onto the flat rock was not captured by the picture.  It was a beautiful robin’s egg blue.

5641 Our taste sampler at the village.  The tuna in coconut and the spinach in coconut was excellent.  The banana is always good.  The taro was a starch, it was fine but like most starches only there to support the rest of the food.

5642 This is a half coconut just in case some of you have never seen the round thing inside.  Not much flavor raw, but it’s soft and chewy.

5664 The dance quartet.  The second lady on the left was amazingly graceful and light on her feet.  They all were but she was extra special, followed by the lacy on the extreme left.

5675 The village princess and the program emcee.  After seeing all these ladies you can see why the title included ‘beautiful people’.  Part of their beauty is their warmth and openness.  Truly remarkable.