POLYNESIAN ADVENTURE – PART 3 

Six days at sea might sound like a long time, and it would be were there nothing to do on the ship. Every day, we receive a detailed three-page program with activities ranging from tai chi classes, to religious gatherings, to knitter’s meetups, AA meetings, art classes, movies, how to play bridge, how to get the best out of your smartphone, trivia contests, classical music concerts, mainstage performances, even learning to play the ukelele. Elva and I spend time in the library, she walks every day and I go to the fitness center every second day, and there are walking tracks, two pools, two hot tubs, a full-service spa and several dining rooms. We attend lectures every day on a variety of interesting topics as well as presentations on what to do in the ports we visit. These “port talks” are essential sources of information on what to see and how to get around for those of us who like to make our own arrangements and travel independently.

So far, seas have been tranquil on our voyage across the Pacific. The photo below shows how calm it was as the Zaandam crossed the equator. Known to sailors around the world as the doldrums, the Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone is a belt around the Earth extending approximately five degrees of latitude north and south of the equator. Here, the prevailing trade winds of the northern and southern hemispheres collide, resulting in a zone that is usually very calm. Sailors baptized this region of the Pacific Ocean the “doldrums” because their ships could be stranded here for weeks at a time.

While we’ve met a few Canadians and have heard accents from Germany and Portugal, a strong majority of passengers on the Zaandam are Americans. Given the state of affairs between our two countries, we tend not to get into deep conversations with them. One man, I’ll call him “American”, sat down at our table at lunchtime one day and the conversation went something like this:

American: Where are you folks from?

Me: Canada

American: What part?

Me: Prince Edward Island

American: That’s on the West Coast, right?

Me: No, it’s one of the Maritime Provinces

American: I know a couple of Canadians; played golf with them

Me: Is that so. And where are you from?

American: I’m from Michigan; live just north of Detroit

Me: I don’t know anyone from Michigan

End of conversation

As I’ve said, there’s really not much to talk to Americans about. Upon learning that we’re Canadian, some apologize for the behaviour of their President and his administration. To avoid unnecessary drama, we just keep our counsel. But, in the back of our minds, we’re wondering who they really voted for. Thank the gods the midterms are only a couple of days away. The onboard TV has three news stations, BBC World, Fox News and CNN International, and you can imagine what the talking heads are rambling on about. If it wasn’t so serious, it would be funny!

And speaking of funny, our last day at sea ended with a Hallowe’en Ball, a fun event held on the deck of the Lido pool accompanied by the very good onboard band. Elve and I enjoyed dancing to the tunes and examining the many colourful costumes. The onboard experience this far has been better than we’ve experienced on our last few cruises with Holland America.

La Polynésie française is an overseas collectivity of France and its sole overseas country. It is classified as a non-self-governing territory by the United Nations, in other words, a territory "whose people have not yet attained a full measure of self-government". Other non-self-governing territories we’ve visited that are recognized as such by the UN are American Samoa, the US and British Virgin Islands, the Falkland Islands, and Gibraltar. It comprises 121 geographically dispersed islands and atolls with a population of 282,596. The total land area of all the islands and atolls of French Polynesia is only 3,521 square kilometres (1,359 sq mi), making it about two-thirds the area of Prince Edward Island.

Our first stop in La Polynésie française was the island of Rangiroa, the largest atoll in the region and the third-largest in the world. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, an atoll is a ring-shaped coral reef, island, or chain of small coral islands (islets) that completely or partially encircles a central body of water called a lagoon. The coral islands are one of two types of islands in Polynesia, the other being islands that are volcanic in origin. We’ll be visiting both in La Polynésie française.

Now, we had a lagoon where I grew up in Wellington but it was no match for the crystal-clear waters of Rangiroa’s. No sir! It being the repository of the village’s raw sewage, ours had more of a brownish colour. It was a great place to skate in the winter though, as long as you stayed well away from the “hole”!

Anyway, back to Rangiroa. The atoll consists of a narrow ring of islands with a circumference of about 200 km and a total area of just about the size of La Région Évangéline. The highest point of land is about 12 meters. At its widest point, the atoll measures only 500 meters from ocean to lagoon, about the length of a par 5 golf hole. That very narrow strip of land circles a lagoon with an area of over 1,400 sq km, about 85% as big as Kings County on Prince Edward Island. In other words, it’s one very big lagoon, as the photo below illustrates. The gray area is the lagoon and the atoll surrounding it looks like a necklace.

We went ashore by tender and walked toward one of the island’s two villages, Avatoru, turning around at the Rangiroa airport, an open-sided building that is the principal means of entry for visitors to and from the island. A flight was coming in from Tahiti, so the place was buzzing. From there, we walked along the island’s only road to the other end, Tiputa pass and watched the MS Paul Gauguin, a smaller cruise ship, sail through the channel and into the lagoon. Sitting on the deck of Les relais de Joséphine, we each had a Coke Zero to quench our thirst and watched the channel traffic, hoping for a glimpse of the dolphins that frequent the area. After walking 10 kilometers or so, we were glad to get back to the ship and rest our tired feet. Before we knew it, the Zaandam had slipped through the channel, leaving behind the lovely lagoon, headed for the open sea and our next stop, the island of Huahine. The first photo shows just how narrow the atoll is, with the lagoon in the foreground and the ocean in the background.

Unlike Rangiroa, the island of Huahine is of volcanic origin and has little flat ground. It has a population of about 6,500, 1,600 of whom live in the main town, Fare. The Zaandam anchored in a bay and we tendered to a small village before boarding a local bus called Le Truck for the 20-minute drive to Fare.

It was a hot and sunny day and we enjoyed walking around the sleepy little town, watching the locals go about their business and kids enjoying the water. They seem to be born on the water here and learn to swim and use outrigger canoes from a very young age. I couldn’t resist joining them for a dip and enjoyed the warm clear water immensely.

Huahine isn’t overrun with tourists and the fancy resorts that go with the trade. We did come across a few visitors and saw a few small pensions but Fare looks like as it probably did fifty years ago, only with a few more cars. Properties are well kept and there are flowering and colourful shrubs everywhere. And the church is beautiful and lovingly cared for.

Next, we’re off to Raiatea, an island we visited in 2019.