A taxi driver told us it had been raining for a month. I did not doubt it because I had seen big pools of water alongside the runway as we landed. I assured her (based on my Google weather research) that we had brought the sun - and sure enough, the sun broke through and over the course of the morning, gradually dominated. The Tahiti Nui hotel was ready to let us into our room at 7 AM because we had paid specially for early arrival.
After refreshing ourselves, we were on our way to the main market at 8:30, already feeling the humidity and heat, but taking advantage of the shade offered by the arcades of the slightly decrepit buildings along the way. The town has a run-down feeling but still is sprinkled with good shops. And the people are noticeably calm and agreeable.
The market is a large hanger-like structure with a second, mezzanine floor around its perimeter. It contains fresh fruits, vegetables, meat, fish and crafts stalls and a few prepared food stalls. Handmade grass skirts and coconut-shell brassieres are available. The grass skirts go for about US$100.
The market was not as abundant as some we have seen but still had an interesting character. I suppose this was primarily due to the women selling the fruits vegetables and flowers. This in turn was due to the flowered "tiaras" with which many of them adorned themselves.
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| A member of the security patrol greets a vendor in the market |
There were about a dozen men in blue uniforms with "Agent de Proximite" written on the back. They had the appearance, but not the demeanor, of police and they were not armed. They were methodically going around the market approaching every one of the vendors men and women and greeting them warmly, sometimes bumping heads together with them, first one side then the other, or kissing women on top of the head or shaking hands.
The people often closely resemble those painted by Gaugin and there is a noticeable presence of very large-bodied men and women. Here, at one of the entrances to the market are two contrasting body types. That's a woman sitting in the chair.
Another woman was engaged in cutting thin leaf strands to be used in the flower-arranging process.
Following the example of Donald Trump, an American businessperson, I licensed my name to be used in a patisserie in the market.
The sidewalk outside the market was filled with flower craftspeople (and textile vendors.)
These dreadlocks were unusual but photogenic. This gentlemen was chilling on one of the bridges which run across the market connecting the mezzanine levels.
Here's a bit of what I saw from a similar vantage point: It's a rather nice four-cornered composition, showing four stands and the women running them. Money changing hands in the upper left, one on the telephone and the other doing accounts in the upper right, one sitting and one standing, arms akimbo, in the lower left and one either snacking or cleaning fruit in the lower right.
Two of these vendors had very fine tiaras. (A flower over the right ear indicates availability.)
In the market, I saw only one thing I coveted. That was a mysterious gourd sitting in solitary splendor.
So far, one of the good things about this place is that the heat and humidity makes anything but indoor activity inconceivable in the afternoon. That gives time for napping, reading and writing this blog.
At about 6 PM we walked to a waterfront section filled with food trucks with tables set up, known as Les Roulettes. We noticed that the Wind Spirit was docked. We had considered and rejected that very pretty motorsailer, 145- passenger, French Polynesia cruise boat in our earlier trip planning. And now, seeing how big it was, we felt we had made the right decision.
Our hunger and the fact some of the food wagons were already set up led us to make the mistake of eating early, without full examination of the possibilities. Most of them seemed to be burgers and crepes. We chose an unsatisfying Chinese wagon for chicken tofu and curry chicken. The food was a quarter as good as we are used to and twice the price.
Had we waited we probably would have eaten at a wagon where a whole roasted veal was displayed.
After a short walk, Emma satisfied herself with a mixed salad from a French restaurant which had set up in the meantime.
I had forgotten to take insect repellant and a flashlight. To my relief, they were not necessary as there were no mosquitoes and the streets were adequately lit for our walk back to the hotel. [Although mention must be made that the sidewalks are not world-class, to say the least.]
In the shop windows I passed I saw only one thing I coveted - a tie made from the black pearls which are a speciality of the Polynesian Islands. It might have been intended for a woman.
The unbelievably long day ended with unsuccessful attempts to connect to the internet in the hotel lobby because their router was not working. [Actually, it turned out to be something weird with my Mac Air because the Ipod Touch had no trouble connecting.] But, on the whole, a good first day. I would give the Tahiti Nui the highest rating were it not for: a shower floor which does not slope to drain properly, no mirror in the room other than over the sink in the bathroom, no wifi in the room and intermittent in the lobby and an extremely overpriced, mediocre breakfast.
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