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| Chris at the wheel with his wife, Greta, next to him. |
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| Ninamu on the right |
Chris is a person worth meeting. Left school in Australia at 14 to become a carpenter, made a successful construction business, became a chef in Qantas First Class in the days when chefs flew on the plane, captained an 80-foot motor boat running cruises in the Tuamotu Islands, founded and still supervises a leading surfing competition and designed the scaffolding system now used widely to set up the judges and media in the water at those competitions.
Ninamu is a special place, worth visiting, notwithstanding the lack of air conditioning and the mosquitoes, discussed in more detail later.
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| Guest and host |
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| Host and Creator of Ninamu, Chris O'Conner |
It's nice to be welcomed with a coconut containing cold coconut water and then have the "bartender" crack it open around the middle with blows from the back of a cleaver and cut the inside meat into small pieces. The bartender is Hina, a young woman who also serves meals, sweeps the common areas (with a cockatiel in her hair) and does all sorts of odd jobs. In April she is moving on to run the entertainment program at the Brando, the super-expensive resort island which desecrates the actor's name under the guise of eco-luxury.
Chris designed and built all the bungalows with mostly local material, wood and coral. They remind one of the work of Gaudi, African and Polynesian native styles and Piccassiette in Chartres. It is all definitely the work of a creative man who does not repeat himself. Each bungalow is different and quirky.
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| Interior with stairs leading up to bed. Unused bed on right. |
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| Porch |
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| When the French building inspectors require an emergency stair exit from our bedroom loft, Chris added this . |
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| Shower |
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| Toilet |
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| Dining area |
Every shell one sees on the beach is usually occupied by a hermit crab from small to large.
On Friday, the day of our arrival, six guests had left and we were alone with a couple from Los Angeles. James the art dealer and Susan the epidemiologist. James did not endear himself to me by asking soon after we were introduced, "What is in your collection?"
The dinner meal proved that there was a decent chef on the island. Chris told us Jean Francois was formerly the chef of the Intercontinental in Bora Bora but had to stop due to heart problems. Now he cooks for a maximum of 20 guests at the same salary, under much more relaxed conditions. Jean Francois told us he loves to play in the kitchen, constantly creating new dishes. Given the relatively limited ingredients he has, he does an excellent job. Of course, even the finest chef can only do so much with all-fish dishes and few vegetables.
When the internet was restored the day of our arrival after a three week interruption, Jean Francois learned that his mother had died in France. This did not stop him from preparing a dinner with a marvelous shrimp cocktail, a fine main course of a fish whose name I do not know and a fruit tart for dessert. His seared tuna and rice pilaf at lunch was excellent. His tuna sashimi was the best we have ever had and that includes our experience at a restaurant in the Tskuji Fish market in Tokyo.
On the morning of our first full day we first dropped Chris and James at a surfing spot and moved on for snorkeling at the Coral Gardens. We both got some coral scrapes, (Emma at the back of her heel, while adjusting her fin over the coral, and me while getting back into the boat after my fins were removed). These have required ongoing care with alcohol, antiseptic and protective bandaging over the following days. In the afternoon we did some easy drift snorkels off the island beach.
On Saturday, the second day, we went deep sea fishing, and I mean deep. We watched Chris catch fish using a motorized reel which handles line at depths of 200 to 400 meters, too much to reel up by hand. A 4 1/2 pound sinker takes the six hooks (baited by bonito) down very fast. It took five tries to get three suitable fish. First time, the rocks spoiled the attempt at 400 meters. The next time, currents at the bottom were too strong for the fish to swim to the bait. On the third try, sharks took our catch as it was reeled up (not the kind of sharks you can swim with.) On the fourth, fifth and sixth we got dinner fish and a few toxic rejects. Sure, we had to cover ourselves from the merciless sun and get bruises on our ass and back from the boat ride, but it was worth it.
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| In front, a toxic Red Sea Bass, A good fish on the left. All caught at a depth of over 600 feet. |
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| Pressure change from depths makes the eyes pop. |
On Sunday, the third day, we started with snorkeling at a manta ray feeding location. We had the satisfaction of seeing the first ray return after an absence of more than a month. We watched her for about 15 minutes as she circled around beneath us. Then we went to Eden Isle an island owned by members of a religious sect known as the New Testament Church, based in Taiwan.
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| Part of their credo - which I found quite compatible with my thoughts. |
They run a highly ecological farm - just four adults and six children. Supposedly, they have ten-thousand members worldwide.
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| All sorts of beneficial plants, including ginseng |
Then came the isolated and appropriately named Bird Island.
Finally, a barbecue in a fabulously idyllic location with snorkeling.
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| No nest. Bird sits on egg directly on tree branch. |
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| A paradise within a paradise |
Kai, Chris's assistant, and a fine boat captain, did the cooking and Hina taught us how to make our lunch plates from coconut leaves.
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| One coconut leaf is sufficient to make a plate (or a hat) |
On the fourth day, we snorkeled outside the reef, the first and only time I used my underwater camera. It conked out after one use.
We fished by trolling near the surface and caught different fish that live in the shallows. Then we snorkeled again back at the Coral Gardens, ate lunch back at the island and rested. Rain in the late afternoon. The weather has been remarkably good.
Fifth day, we looked for dolphins unsuccessfully, snorkeled outside reef, spotted a grey shark (unusual, unaggressive) watched surfing and paddle boarding.
The mosquitos were the devils in this paradise. Weeks of rain before our arrival had encouraged them. We believe those who tell us they are not usually a problem. We often had to burn coils in the bungalow to deter them. The heat and humidity could also be uncomfortable. At night a mosquito net was essential along with a fan blowing into it. The steady trade winds usually kept the deck pleasant and free of mosquitos.
On very hot nights we placed the fan inside the mosquito net.
Here's how a homo sapiens looks after spending a hot night inside a mosquito net:
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| Homo sapiens after a bad nights sleep |
But skilled use of mosquito coils and insect repellent plus the trade winds constantly blowing on our deck helped us survive. And the charms of life on the island as led by Chris, far outweighed the discomforts, believe it or not.
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| Three or four of these helped |
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| Artistic residue |
And on the seventh day we left for Bora Bora. Actually feeling a bit sad.
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