We went to breakfast in the Club Restaurant as soon as it opened at 7am; we had a mission today. We were on a ship's tender by 8:30am, packed for a day on the water. Our intention was to take Hiro's 4-5 hour tour, which included an introduction to Moorea by water, swimming with the stingrays and sharks, snorkeling and then a BBQ on a motu for the unbelievable price of US $60pp. We were the first ones to arrive, and so had a bit of a wait while more tours were sold and the boat filled up, but G took advantage of that time to walk down to the little magazin (store) for another big Hinano beer and this time also returned with a loaf of French bread (about $.55 and three feet long) in a narrow plastic bag (which cost more than the bread, about $.60). He said the locals were buying the bread four and five at a time, and simply walking out of the store with them held in their arms, but he's a little too germaphobic to do that. So he paid more for the bag than for the bread, but, in total, it was still a steal. It provided food for us and the fish, and was a great conversation starter. A bargain.
About 40 minutes after we'd arrived, the boat was filled and we first cruised into Opunohu Bay for a photo op of the Pacific Princess at anchor and an introduction to a bit of island history and geography. Then we swung around to the west and cruised close to the Intercontinental Resort's overwater bungalows. Just off the coast of the Interrcontinental we could see a few other boats moored, and as we pulled up there the sharks and stingrays came rushing over. They obviously associate the sound of a boat's motor with food. We got into the water (about chest deep) and were immediately swarmed by the rays. The sharks were a bit more aloof...but not much. They, too, swam around our legs but stayed closer to the ocean floor.
We had swam with stingrays a few times before- on Grand Cayman and Bora Bora- and I've gotten much better about not being squeamish around them. These stingrays were very friendly, and would swim up our backs and chests in search of the squid the tour guides were chumming them with. We had a good long time with them and then reboarded the boat (nice, easy steps in lieu of a narrow ladder) and continued west along the northern coast of Moorea until we pulled into a motu for a BBQ lunch.
I took advantage of the time it took to prepare the chicken to snorkel just off the beach, and though it wasn't as "in your face" good as we saw in Tahaa and Rangiroa, there were some excellent coral heads and a nice variety of fish. While I was in the water snorkeling, it started to rain for a bit and I decided that 86 degree water felt better than being wet and cold on the beach.
Eventually lunch was served: BBQ chicken, pasta, rice, fresh pineapple and plenty of Hinano beer. Why does BBQ chicken taste so good served on a beach? Also plentiful- live chickens running around everywhere. One of them hopped up on my picnic table and started eating the chicken off my plate which was just...wrong. They definitely had no fear!
After lunch, our guide, Bruno, entertained us with a pareo tying demonstration. The things they can do with the square of fabric are quite amazing! Bruno, his wife and two assistants really made this excursion for us, and I can strongly recommend it. It has to be one of the cheapest things to do on Moorea.
http://www.hirotour.com
Email: wtdmoorea@mail.pf
But you can just book it on the Moorea pier, too. They also had a table set up near the pier in Papeete yesterday, too, but we didn't want to commit until we saw the weather today. It was nice to have spent one day doing a land tour and another doing a water tour. If I was forced to choose, I'd have to say the land tour is more valuable for the first time visitor, and it would be difficult to schedule both in the same day.
Some other things we've learned about Moorea: the lagoonarium that we wanted to visit is on the opposite side of the island from where the tenders come in and might not be worth the taxi cost to get over there. The ferry from Papeete arrives on the southeastern side of the island, and shouldn't be confused with where the Pacific Princess tenders dock. There are shuttles running to Tipanier Beach near the Intercontinental Resort for free if you're willing to first go to a black pearl store, or cheap if you're not. That beach looked nice and there were also some water toys there. It might be possible to kayak from there out to where the string rays and sharks are if the wind wasn't too strong. All in all, there are plenty of things to book right on the pier, and the ship also offers several tours on Moorea too (land and sea).
We returned to the ship and started the process of washing and rinsing and cleaning us, our gear and our swimwear. I'm happy to report that my new mask and snorkel are doing perfectly. I haven't had a second of trouble from either one. And, for the first time today, despite the clouds we had most of the day, my face got a bit sunburned. I'd managed to limit any redness to legs and feet and hands but maybe I was simply more lax today about applying sunscreen. In fact, we've come up with new lyrics to an old song (no doubt influenced by Motor City two nights ago, and sung to My Girl):
I got sunburned
On a cloudy day
When it's cold outside
I have the warmth of May
I'd guess you'd say
What can make me feel this say?
Sunburn (sunburn) sunburn
Tahitian sunburn! Sunburn!
Sung using large Hinano bottles as microphones, we laughed and laughed. (More Hinano anyone?)
By the time we were done showering, a steady drizzle had settled in. I took the time to start this post while G went to a Cruise Critic gathering. We were hungry, but caught in that timeframe where any snacking would ruin our dinner, and so just decided to stay hungry, a not unpleasant feeling on a cruise ship. We briefly dropped by the Elite Lounge and then headed to dinner at our new table, a table for two by a window (yay!) with Jose from Portugal (we knew him from the Emerald Princess) and Aleksander from the Ukraine. It was a wonderful meal, but that side of the dining room is freezing, and I picked up an Americano coffee from the Club Lounge en route to a warm cabin and warmer bed. The show tonight is a repeat for us; I'm going to lose myself in a book instead.