Yellow Fish cruises: Day 13: Papeete, Tahiti

The alarm went off at 5am and we were on Deck 16 at the front of the ship shortly thereafter. Moorea was largely obscured by low level clouds, but the sun was beginning to rise behind the familiar profile of the island of Tahiti. We stayed at the front of the ship until it begin to make its 180 degree turn to dock at the first berth in Papeete, and then started down to the International Cafe to meet up with Paul and Marlene. .

Sailing into Papeete Harbor at sunrise

A tug approaches to help as the Ruby Princess enters the harbor

That oh-so-obvious reef common to all French Polynesian islands

Fa’a’a Airport, built on reclaimed land

The outriggers stacked at Plage Hokule’a

The Temple of Paofai (the Protestant Church)

Our first glimpse of the Hotel Tiare Tahiti

And that is when things went terribly wrong. I had not taken crutches, nor cane nor hiking sticks for my early morning trek. I knew it would be windy on the upper decks, and likely crowded, too, and didn’t want the walking aids falling over (which they do, with remarkable frequency) or tripping others. Somehow, I must have stepped wrong, and...OUCH! And just like that, there went our plans for the day (to either rent a car and drive around the island, or to go to the Intercontinental Tahiti if no cars were available).

A bakery shop breakfast in the International Cafe

We sent Paul and Marlene off for their day, suggesting they go to the Temple of Paofai for their 10am services, just to hear the singing. They did, and reported back later that they found it every bit as amazing as I had on a prior visit. Honestly, those rich Tahitian voices just reverberate deep inside your body.

We stayed down all day, with me following the RICE protocol. Though I was improved by evening, this re-injury also scuttled our palms for tomorrow in Moorea, which is truly tragic. However, I am taking much solace in the knowledge that we may very well be in French Polynesia again next year, hopefully several times.