FIRST IMPRESSIONS

Having arrived at night we had only a vague feeling for our anchorage on Fatu Hiva until the next morning.  It rightly has a reputation as one of the most spectacular bays in Polynesia.  High cliffs rise on either side adorned with coconut palms and crowned with tall pillars of volcanic rock.  Originally called Baie de Verges (phalli) for its topography, visiting missionaries disapproved and inserted an “i” in the name.  A river feeds into the end of the narrow bay where there is a glimpse of a white church and the hint of a little harbour behind a stone breakwater.  Spinner dolphins provide daily entertainment but we didn’t see any of the “enormous sharks” mentioned in the pilot book.

The Marquesas, although inhabited by the Micronesian people who populated Hawaii and Easter Island from about the 1^st Century AD, were first “discovered” by the Spanish in 1595.  On arriving in Fatu Hiva, Alvaro Mendaña, was greeted by the tattooed natives paddling out in their canoes in welcome.  He responded by massacring over 200 of them and leaving syphilis as their legacy.  Over the following centuries the islands’ population was further decimated by disease dropping from 80,000 (early 1800s) to 2,000 in 1926.

After 2 weeks at sea we really feel we have finally reached a completely new part of the world.  Very different from the Caribbean, there is a distinctive “South Seas” feel to the place; it is the archetypal tropical paradise.  The Marquesas are the most isolated part of French Polynesia and we found that much of the economy still functions through bartering and exchange.  A fishing lure or some good rope can have more value than euros here.  The picturesque village, bordering the river, is pristine and all the houses abound with fruit trees and flowers.  We now have about 25 kilos of enormous grapefruits and, after someone shinnied up a tree to pick them, a sack full of oranges.  We also collected leaves from the extremely fragrant lemon trees to make tea.

The people are incredibly open and friendly and gave us a warm welcome.  Wood, stone and bone carving seems to be the major occupation and we visited several sculptors to look at their work.  Robin and Miranda bought a stunning tiki carved of rosewood.  We were tempted but they are too large and heavy for our hand luggage!  Sunday morning we attended the Roman Catholic church service which was conducted in the native Marquesan language.  The singing was fantastic and their lovely harmonies filled the building. 

We managed to go on a couple of walks to get our atrophied muscles moving after our long passage.  The island is breathtakingly beautiful, very lush and green with dramatic mountains and steep roads and tracks.  Following a path strewn with blossoms, we visited a waterfall and had a refreshing dip in the cool waters at its base. 

It has been a wonderful stop before sailing across this morning to larger Hiva Oa to officially check in.