On one of our journeys to the quay on the local transport (a kind of open truck with seats in the back) Nic struck up a conversation with a French economist and found out some interesting information about how French Polynesia works. Apparently 60% of the population are unemployed but everyone receives a “salary” (guilt payment for the decades of nuclear testing) and is able to live extremely well. We have been impressed by the quality of the houses here (not the shacks seen in the Caribbean) the multitude of impressive private gardens (not usually evident in the third world), the number of new vehicles on the remotest, tiniest islands and the prevalence of toys such as outrigger canoes. It would seem the French population is largely unaware of how much money is paid in subsidies to this area. Additionally, French civil servants receive 3 times their normal salaries in “hardship” pay to come and work here; needless to say it’s a popular posting. Sadly the whole set up makes these island incredibly expensive to visit (especially in comparison to somewhere like Thailand) and the economist said that Polynesian culture in the process of being destroyed as no one feels the need to work anymore.
The Hawaiki Nui was a fascinating experience although rather slow, taking a day to reach Huahine about 60 miles away. The quayside at 7am was bustling with passengers and people ready to pick up their incoming produce and supplies. When the ship docked we watched the seamless operation of unloading containers and palettes by a multitude of small forklift trucks racing in all directions with no obvious supervision and certainly none of the worry about safety that one would see in Europe. At 11:30, once the ship had re-loaded, we joined the other passengers on the top deck where most of the locals set up camp in a central area on mats and blankets with their picnics. The views leaving Bora Bora were spectacular and it was interesting to see both Tahaa and Raiatea on our next two stops.
It was after sunset when we arrived at the small quayside of Fare on Huahine. We managed to hitchhike to our pension, Chez Henriette, and were lucky to have a patient driver because it was very difficult to find in the dark. We had our own little fare with a kitchen, basic but clean and sweetly decorated with lots of coloured materials. The next day we hired a car and moved to Pension Te Nahe Toe Toe in Parea, further south. We are now installed in a gorgeous thatched bungalow overlooking the beach and will stay here until we island hop to Moorea on Friday. There are communal cooking facilities in the garden and we have free use of kayaks and bicycles.
Human habitation on the island dates back 1300 years and a number of marae (chief’s encampment) have been found and restored here, easily seen at Maeva. They are made up of stepped coral stone platforms that served as raised seats for the gods; there are also ancient stone fish traps in the river. We stopped in Faie and saw the sacred blue-eyed river eels which congregate under the bridge; legend credits them for bringing fresh water to the village. They were surprisingly large, very similar to morays, and plentiful. So we are happily settling into island life, facing the difficult choice of how to amuse ourselves each day in paradise and feeling very privileged to be here.
