The MS Amsterdam arrived in Papeete, the capital of Tahiti at 7am just before the sunrise.
Watching beautiful island Moorea on sunrise was priceless.
Greg and I signed up for a tour organized by our travel agency.
It is called Tahiti’s Natural Treasures.
The tour includes driving around the main island of Tahiti Nui and it takes about 4 hours with few stops for photo shots.
After quick breakfast on board, we were already ready for the tour by 8am.
Greg was quite happy that I ran off the ship quick enough to secure front seats of the tour bus.
Tom, the tour escort at the bus greeted and told me to seat anywhere I like as there is no one in the group requires front seat for physical reason today.
^^;
The local tour guide told us the history of human sacrifice which is no longer in exercise.
Thank goodness!
There used to be a sacrifice of burning a man alive or cut his head.
It was always a man and a volunteer.
Too much for an honor!
Sacrifice was done when a man becomes drunk and hallucinated with cava drink that is Polynesian traditional alcohol.
We stopped by restaurant Gauguin for refreshment that is run by English and Chinese Tahitian couple.
The restaurant is located by the sea with lagoonarium with lots of colorful fish swimming around.
It has a background of beautiful part of smaller island Tahiti Iti.
I noticed that there are big holes around the lawn.
According to tour guide, they are burrows of inland crab.
Tahitians cook everything with coconut milk includes inland crab.
Wish I had an opportunity to try the local delicacy!
Coconuts are protected by metal rings around the trunk so that rats can’t climb the tree and ruin young coconuts.
Most of beaches in Tahiti Nui are black from volcanic ash.
Some are white as they are made of coral.
I was so impressed by the beauty of rugged mountain, valleys, tropical coconut trees alongside beaches and seaside of the island.
This place truly deserves to be called Paradise!!!
Can’t wait to visit Moorea and Bora Bora where the beauty of rush green mountains, turquoise blue water and white coral beaches are much greater than Tahiti Nui!
…one day…
Beautiful Island Moorea can be seen from town of Papeete
Papeete
Welcome performance by local band.
We were all given a white flower (Tahitian gardenia) as we were getting off the ship and placed it on hair
Black beach Papara with few surfers
Coconut and palm trees everywhere…simply gorgeous!
At Les Jardins dÉau de Vaipahi (Vaipahi botanical garden) , our tour guide was explaining exotic tropical fruit trees and flowers.
She is holding is a Tahitian chestnut.
Mangostin fruits ripening on tree
Water lilies blossoming in between rambutan trees and palm trees
Bread fruit tree. Bread fruit can be cooked in many different ways like potato and tastes like potato.
Garden of Gauguin restaurant.
With background of Tahiti Iti (smaller island attached by narrow peninsula).
Restaurant Gauguin with lagoonarium.
Huge parrot fish and Jack fish are in captivity of the lagoon.
Haleconia! Gorgeous!
Les 3 Cascades have three waterfalls and they are 200 meters high!
How spectacle views it was!
One of the main tourist attractions of Papeete, local market Marché Municipal.
Polynesian BBQ on Lido deck is our dinner party tonight on board.
Absolutely bucketing down like cats and dogs after 3pm until we left the island at 10pm. So lucky that our tour finished before the rain!We managed to go out after dinner to take few more photos of the night scene. The town center was absolutely dead at night.
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