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54th Birthday

Birthday Bash

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It’s 6:00am and I am just waking from a restful night.  I relish the quiet of the morning.  The seas are calm and unmoving, the breeze is light, the sun slowly rising, and it’s my birthday (back in January, this post is late).  As I linger in bed, I hear a slight ruckus outside and then the unmistakable tune of Happy Birthday.   Matt is greeting our guests as I stumble outside a little bleary eyed (it’s just 6:15am).  Two neighboring boats came over with a birthday surprise.  They had a super fun rendition of “Happy Birthday” blaring on a little speaker, a large bowl full of hot, freshly baked raisin bread and a cold bottle of prosecco!  Sweet.  I hug each of them before jetting downstairs to put on proper clothing!

We spend the next few hours enjoying the prosecco and bread and telling stories.  Marieke and Thomas from “Scooter” and Mirko and Nikko from “Yum Yum” bestowed upon me the sweetest gift of their company first thing in the morning!

Early Morning Birthday Celebration

Early Morning Birthday Celebration

Matt made a beautiful birthday post it card on our window.  Keep in mind we do not have access to Hallmark cards in the remote islands. – it was touching to see this thoughtful note first thing in the morning.

Birthday BBQ

Valerie and Herve host Sunday fun-day each week and this time it landed on my birthday!  So, we combined the two into a giant celebration.  Over 15 boats showed up to the anchorage (normally we have 5-6 boats) and well over 35 people.  Of course, I did not know most of them and some only spoke French, but they were all very kind and jovial.

We had a ton of tasty foods from all over the world.  Fresh caught Polynesian fish dishes, German and Swiss food, French food, and of course jello shots!

My birthday is one of the rare occasions that I will play volleyball. I am not naturally gifted in sports and tend to make a fool out of myself when I play.  But everyone humored me and our team won (probably a gift for my bday).

Several days prior to my birthday we had lots of rain and a few squalls.  But lucky for me, my birthday was a gorgeous day with just enough sun to keep us warm, but not too hot to wear you out.  We had the most beautiful sunset and moonrise.  That is the moon on the top two photos!

Spoiled Rotten

Valerie surprised me with a new, beautiful sand art.  It is a portrait of Matt and I.  Keep in mind that this is made with local sand and dirt only.  Sure, Matt has a mustache in the image and I have a flavor savor, but you can still see the likeness.  Did you see the detail of my Keishi necklace?

Another local friend, who is a jeweler, gifted me with a gorgeous pearl on a gold chain.  It completely surprised me and knocked my socks off!  Visit her at www.tainakeishipearl.com.

I do not know how to put into words the love I felt today.  From my amazing local friends to all of my American friends.  The love that flowed freely across Facebook, Instagram, text, and emails was overwhelming.  I needed it, cherished it, and reveled in the pureness of it all.  Thank you for filling my soul with so much love!

Bon Voyage to Alan

Valerie and Herve’s oldest son is leaving for France to join the military.  He will be studying to become a pilot and will commit to 10 years of military service.  They had a HUGE going away party and sent him off with a spectacular celebration.

Hiking and Exploring

Matt and I go on a few hikes to explore the islands.  We’ve done these hikes several times, but they never disappoint.

The hike on Taravai between Valerie and Herve’s house and Edouard and Denise is a fairly easy and short hike.  It is about 5 miles round trip on a clearly marked, albeit small trail.  One side is a steep drop off, but easy to navigate.  We come across a few old houses with nothing but a few stone walls remaining, a few small beach coves, and lots of overgrown plants.

We also take a beautiful walk to the lookout point where the “Queen’s Throne” is located.  Most of the walk is along the road and is fairly flat.  It’s not until you get to the last .5 mile that you go off roading and uphill.  But then you are rewarded with such a pretty view.  This entire hike is about 6.5 miles round trip.

The rock “throne” I’m sitting on is called the “Queen’s Throne” and with this view it makes sense!

We visit the weather station and set the weather balloon free in our last blog.  Events from this blog post occurred in January.  Our blog posts run 10-12 weeks behind our adventures.

Happy New Year 2022

Polynesian New Year

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Matt and I decided to ring in the New Year Polynesian style with our friends Valerie and Herve on Taravai.  They promised a Polynesian BBQ and we could not resist.

We have enjoyed plenty of Polynesian BBQs but we have never been around during the preparations.  So, this blog is me sharing the process with you so you can be a part of this cultural event too.

First, we prepped the property.  Valerie and Herve have a beautiful sandy beach, but it often gets cluttered with seaweed and leaves.  One group cleared the beach to properly welcome visitors and to create a space for fireworks.  Herve dug a hole and Tony chopped the wood.

Cleaning up Taravai

Cleaning up Taravai

Preparing the Polynesian Fire Pit

  • 1: After the hole is dug, all rocks, tree stumps, and leaves are removed leaving behind a clean, flat bottom in a round hole.
  • 2: Add coconut husks already prepped and torn apart
  • 3: Gather a pile of sticks
  • 4: Add dried palm fronds on top of the Coconut husks

  • 5: Add more coconut husks on top of the dried palm fronds
  • 6: Add more dried palm fronds on top of the dried coconut husks
  • 7: Add the sticks
  • 8: Add the blocks of wood

Then we add small river rocks and then the large river rocks.  The pit is ready to light in the morning.

The next morning, we light the Polynesian Fire pit.  After about 90 min more coconut husks are added.  Once everything has burned down (about 2 hours after the fire is lit), the pit is ready.

Food Prep

In the meantime, another group of us start to make the food baskets that will sit in the Polynesian fire pit.  Valerie teaches us how to weave the baskets together using fresh palm fronds.

Making the food baskets

Making the food baskets

Everyone had prepared several side dishes – including manuk (like a potato) top photo, pumpkin and banana dish (bottom right), and the goat (bottom left).

The banana leaves are brittle so we lightly brush them across the fire to make them soft.  They become moldable once they are soft and can be used like foil.  The spines are cut off the banana leaves, food is placed on top, and then they are gently folded.

Herve prepares the goat meet with fresh rosemary and tyme.

Herve prepping the feast

Herve prepping the feast

Back to the Polynesian Fire Pit

The men cut down a banana tree, then cut it into chunks and finally pulverize it.  Then we place the banana tree on top of the hot rocks. It will serve as racks for the food.  In addition, the moisture from the banana tree will create steam to help cook the food.

Next we cover the food with more banana leaves, then a tarp, then covered with dirt.  The food will cook in the Polynesian fire pit for 4 hours.

The Celebration

AT 1400, everyone is hungry and ready to eat.  We remove the sand, dirt, tarp, and banana leaves from the Polynesian pit.

The smell is intoxicating and only makes us hungrier.  

We had about 35-40 people celebrating with us – both cruisers and locals from Mangareva.  Everyone enjoyed a day full of amazingly tasty local food and games.

Some fun photos

Valerie and Herve’s Auntie showed up at 9:00am ready to celebrate the new year.

Valerie and Laura and I pose next to our Happy New Year = Bonne Année 2022

Although it is way past the first of the year, please know we are wishing you all a delightful 2022!  Thank you for reading our posts.

We spent Christmas in Taravai (see post), we truly enjoy our time in Gambier.   Events from this blog post occurred at the end of December 2021.  Our blog posts run 10-12 weeks behind our adventures.

Herve, Valerie, Ariki, Alana

Taravai Christmas

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We arrived Gambier on the 12th of December and took a few days to regroup while anchored in Rikitea (main town of Mangareva).  We arrived the day after the supply ship came so we were able to stock up on fresh fruits and veg, replenish staples, and catch up on sleep.  As excited as we were about the fresh goods and sleep, we really did have an awesome Christmas in Taravai.

The winds dropped and the water was glassy.  We had stunning sunsets and sunrises.

Then as usually the case, we high tailed it out of the main, crowded anchorage and headed toward Tauna.

Tauna

This is a small motu on the South East side of Gambier.  It is known for its shallow sandy shelf and great winds which makes it an ideal spot for kiteboarders.  I do love to watch the kiters but it takes away from the beauty of this little slice of paradise so we tend to not visit this motu when it is crowded.  We got lucky with a few days of very little wind which meant we had the anchorage to ourselves for 4 days!

We rested, explored the motu, swam, and enjoyed the peace and quiet.  After we were well rested and caught up on a few boat repairs, we made the move to Taravai. 

We had super light winds coming from behind us so we put up the parasail and enjoyed a leisurely 3-hour sail.  If you zoom in the photo you can see our instrument showing 3.0kts of wind and our boat speed is 3.2kts (we had a little help from the current).

Parasail downwind run

Parasail downwind run

Taravai

As you know, Valerie, Herve and their two sons (Alan and Ariki) live on Taravai.  They are 4 of the 12 people that inhabit this island. They’ve become good friends of ours and we wanted to celebrate Christmas with them.  We arrived at Taravai Christmas week.  Everyone greeted us with huge hugs and warm smiles.

I spent several days preparing and baking Christmas cookies.  I made well over 600 cookies including gingerbread, sugar, peppermint, white mice, and toffee.  It was a labor of love, but it was fun to pass out bags of sweet treats to our cruiser and local friends.

We enjoyed several happy hours onshore with our friends and spent Christmas morning celebrating the holiday over blueberry muffins.  They are such generous and loving people!

Herve, Valerie, Ariki, Alana

Herve, Valerie, Ariki, Alana

Our Cruising Christmas card

Coral Spawning

In mid-December the coral spawn emitting a gazillion eggs.  Huge patches float and gather all over causing a pretty bad smell and really gross mess.  The wind blew trillions (at least that is what it seemed like) of these eggs to the shores of Taravai.  They leave a trail on the waterline of the boat as well.  Hopefully, some of these eggs actually make it to coral.

Coral Spawning

Coral Spawning

For some reason, there are lots and lots of jelly fish.  These are the non-stinging kind, but it still gives me the willies!

We see man beautiful sunrises and sunsets.  Love the top left photo with the blue shooting out of the mountain in Mangareva.  The cat’s name is Shasha and she is 5yrs young.

After our eventful passage to Gambier (see passage post), we truly enjoy our time in Gambier.   Events from this blog post occurred just before Christmas 2021.  Our blog posts run 10-12 weeks behind our adventures.