#78445 - 01/10/09 07:15 PM
Huahine December 20-January 4
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holte
Expert Advisor
Registered: 11/19/04
Posts: 2417
Loc: Duluth, Minnesota
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First of all, I would like to thank STM for giving me a website where I could purchase a very inexpensive screen "tent" to use in Huahine. We got a bungalow at the Villas Bungalow that did not have a similar ceiling to the one we had before so we could not hang it with the cup hooks we had planned to use. We put chairs up on a table and put the tent over the chairs. Raphael saw that, went to the hardware store and purchased hardware so that our screen tent could be hung properly. My daughter added another length of net to the tent so that it would be long enough. I will have pictures, but not this week. It made it so we could be outside on the terrace at Villas Bougainville from early morning until we went to bed at night. Poehere recommended La Pension Heitiare Inn in Papeete where we stayed the first night. We arrived at 10 PM and were leaving at 7:00 AM for Huahine. We paid $90 American as she did not take credit cards, and we did not have that many CFP. I had ordered no air conditioning, but after a few minutes, even for me, it was too hot. We left it on for only a short while and the room became comfortable to sleep in. It is less without air conditioning.Sylvie picks you up at the airport and delivers you to the airport in that cost. It's only a couple of minutes away. We had stayed at the airport motel in the past, but financially this made more sense. Sylvie is a very nice person. The family has broken up tiles and tiled a vast area of the grounds with the tiles. They also made cutouts from plywood on the balconies. A lot of work. This is not a place for those of you that want high end accommodations,but it certainly is adequate for a few hours of sleep. Also thanks to Hamara who made it so we could phone the pension to come and get us. A great big thank you. We left Duluth,Minnesota on Saturday morning in a brief window of opportunity. There had been a snowstorm on Friday and another one was to come around noon on Saturday. I had been in touch with Northwest airlines (now Delta) and they have their own meteorologist. If they issue a weather advisory, you can change your plane tickets with no charge. But there was no weather advisory listed for us ,so I felt somewhat confidant that it would be all right. We checked our luggage all the way from Duluth to Papeete. I am always amazed when it makes it. We pack our essentials in a back pack and purse. My husband takes a "purse" as well for the many books that we need on our trip. We took Northwest and Air France. Air France is a partner ,so it was easy to have our luggage tagged to Papeete. I imagine we may be considered strange, but we like LAX. The terminals are easy to find, and we can be outside, something I am loathe do do in Minnesota in the winter. The security takes awhile, but we're going to FP so who cares! We went with Air France this time for the first time. I sign up for the vegetarian meal because I feel that there is a better chance of getting better food, which has happened on other airlines such as ATN. I eat just about anything that anyone else prepares as I hate to cook. But the food on Air France is truly grim. I know from speaking with a friend who is an Air France flight attendant, that they taste test the food and choose the best, but it must be before it is packaged. I had a sandwich one meal and if it had been packaged separately and then the customer could put it together, it probably would have been good. But other than the food, the flight was fine. Air Tahiti did not weigh our backpacks. The Air Tahiti area was crammed. I learned my lesson from last year when we were canceled by Air Tahiti unbeknownst to us, and this time I had paper tickets that I received from their website. There was a woman who had our name on a clip board and she found us in line, so I was confidant that we would get on the flight. We arrived around 8:00 AM and Raphael Matapo of the Villas Bougainville was there to meet us and give us the keys to the car. He said that our house was being cleaned and was not ready yet. Now really-who would expect it to be ready at 8:00AM! We are perfectly capable of entertaining ourselves until it is ready. Raphael invited us to his parents home for a meal. There were many relatives and friends there. We had many delicious things to eat such as goat from the Marquesas, chicken, beef, cooked red bananas, poisson cru, just to name a few yummy yummy items. I curse the days that I did not pay attention in my French classes. The Tahitians speak quite a bit of English and they all claim that the French will come back as their English has, but it just isn't working for me. It's such a disadvantage not to be able to speak a foreign language! We still had a fabulous time. One of the Tahitians told us that many Tahitian words are not really Tahitian at all. He said that Tahiti had the English first. So "Ia Orana" is not Tahitian. It's actually "Your Honor" which the Tahitians could not pronounce. He gave many examples of Tahitian words that are like English, so maybe we can learn a little more Tahitian. The first three days were kind of rainy. We were actually chilly sleeping the first three nights. It only was the steamy heat we love so much a couple of nights. We were also invited to Raphael's another day for a traditional Tahitian meal. Raphael invited all of the people that were renting at his villas and the Huahine Vacances next door. They cook in a special pit they have in a shed. One of the people we met was an interpreter for the United Nations and NATO. They all had a great time asking who wanted fafaru. My husband volunteered and had some on freshwater shrimp. They all watched and when my husband raised his arm in a victory salute, they all cheered and laughed. Although everyone we have met absolutely loves fafaru, he's not there yet by a long shot. Maybe next year. Once again, it was a fabulous meal and experience. We went out on the boat many, many times. Several times we were caught in a tropical deluge. I am going to do some advertising here. I have large beach towels from the Company Store. It is a 1/2 hour trip back to the Villas from the Coral gardens where we love to go. Those beach towels do not get soaked when I put them over my head when we are in the boat and it is a deluge. They don't stay dry, but it's not too bad. Every year that we go, I look at the weather report and almost everyday, thunderstorms are listed. We have never had thunderstorms on our trips, but this time we did. We were snorkeling at the Coral Gardens across from the old Hana Iti site ,and it started to pour like I have never seen. There was lightning all around and the thunder was booming. My husband said that we had to go back before it got dark as there are no lights on the boat and if you have been in FP, you know how dark it is out there. We left when it let up a little and as soon as we commented on our good fortune, it started in again. Obviously, we made it back, but Raphael was waiting for us on the dock. I imagine he was thinking about all of the paperwork he would have to fill out if we met our demise out there! It was scary to me, but my hubby said that getting hit by lightning was unlikely even in our aluminum boat. I don't believe him. We went to Marty and Moe's , formerly of the Chez Guynette for Christmas day dinner. Marty had turkey and charming guests and conversation. Marty should be sewing again, and I hope that she makes jackets and purses as I want to be a customer. For those of you who loved the Guynette, the new owners are French and customers love them. But for those of us that loved the ambiance with Marty and Moe, it is not the same. Consequently, we started going to a new spot for breakfast. It is unnamed as of yet. It is past the Mayor's office on the corner that meets the main road. Lovina who used to have bungalows owns it. She's looking for a name and we offered "Fafaru". She said with a name like that she would have customers lined up for blocks. She serves a bowl of coffee which is what my Norwegian husband needs several of to get started in the AM. That is after his several cups back at the villas. Lovina was teaching us French and Tahitian. We are able only to learn one word a week. Lovina said that she also hopes to be a person that tourists can go to for info about the islands. She serves until 6 PM. She used to have bungalows until she got sick for years ago. We were invited to a New Year's party at Melanie's who is a fabulous artist. We did not go but we heard that the party was a lot of fun from others who went. She has posters, lithographs, and paintings. Very nice. I used to be an art teacher so I should know, right? We were also invited to the Te Tiare for New Year's and what a fabulous time that was. Honestly, I do not know why anyone goes to Bora Bora when they can go to the Te Tiare. What a beautiful place! And the owners, Rudy and Inga Markmiller love Huahine. The Te Tiare is a labor of love. We had a many course fabulous French dinner which was more than I could eat. I lamented all of those yummy things I was too full to eat for the next day! Each woman got an exquisite floral crown and each man got a lei. After dinner, there were unbelievable fireworks from a barge out in the ocean. I tried to take some pictures, but eventually I felt that I was simply going to enjoy them because they were so remarkable. I recommend New Year's at the Te Tiare to everyone! What a great time! We had our underwater camera that we had last year. It had failed after a few days last year. I sent it back to the company and had it repaired. It failed the first time I put it into the water. I hope that I will get some satisfaction when I return it this time. When snorkeling at the Relais Mahana, my husband followed an octopus around and watched him feed. He also saw a ray there. I like swimming at the beach at Fare and the snorkeling is very decent there also. We met a couple from California who enjoyed drift snorkeling at the old Sofitel site. There was quite a current there when I was there, but it is such a magnificent place, if you can disregard the Sofitel falling into ruin. The couple from California had Citizen bikes which fold up, fit into a bag and weigh 15 pounds. They did not have to pay extra with Air Tahiti, although they said a couple with some back packs (in front of them) got a hefty weight fee attached to them. They said that the bikes cost around $200 something each with the bag and shipping. They said that a comfortable seat needs to be purchased because the one that comes with the bike is not. We also ate at the roulottes-poisson brochettes are the usual around $2.00. Yum Yum. At the far end, the roulotte serves a great Chinese dinner that can be split in half because it so much-1200 CFP-about $15 American. We also ate at Snack Temarra. Fresh tuna with 2 sides is 1600- about $20 US. I had mine with vanilla sauce-divine! And my husband just had his with butter as he feels the vanilla sauce is too rich. There is also curry with it. This is just one of the yummy dishes, but we stuck with our choices as we loved them so much! The French baguette is around 50 cents. I did not want to contribute to the plastic problem, so I did not take a plastic bag with my bread when I purchased it. When I got back to the Villas, I wondered how I was going to store it. We put it in the frig and it was great for the day. The next day it was hard through and through. So I have to find a good permanent baguette holder for my trips. There was a mayor's Christmas party out by the fire hall, but it was Monday, the 22. We did not anticipate it, so we missed it. If you go at Christmas, don't forget to ask when it is. One day we watched Dorothy Levy on TV (60 minutes 0n TN) talking about Bobby Holcomb. It was in French so I tried to understand, but the story of Bobby Holcomb is so fascinating. He is a person I would have given a snowball's chance to do anything with his life. His mother had children from many different men, the children were removed by social services and placed in an orphanage. He was taken at age 10 because no else wanted him, by a woman whom he credits with his life. He became a fabulous artist and musician. If you don't know about Bobby Holcomb, his art work is fabulous. He learned to speak Tahitian and sang in Tahitian. He was gifted with languages. It's too bad that Dorothy Levy is in Tahiti, as when she was at the Fare Potee in Huahine (the cultural center) it was a dynamic place. Hopefully, it will open again. The oval house where the locals sold their crafts has been torn down and turned into a parking lot. However, the same items are in a shop closer to the Guynette-maybe in the dancing school which does not exist in downtown anymore. At Pacific Arts, Joe has great tee shirts and pareos and local crafts. He also has a really expanded book lending area. No one was available to play poker, so my hubby was not able to play this time. Joe has a sign for poker players, wanted. Everything was closed on January 1,2, and 3. We planned on getting gas on Saturday morning as we were low low low. Raphael told us to hurry down to Total as they had gas, but they were out when we got there. We went to Mobil and they told us there was a petroleum workers strike in Papeete ,so no gas until Weds or Thurs. Basically, we stayed at the Villas all day until our flight. It was raining off and on all day, so that was OK. I took the lawn chair and sat out on the dock and read. Usually my hubby does his thing and plucks me out of the ocean, and I shower and go to the airport. That is really traumatic. But this year, it was a little less traumatic as I had all day to get depressed about leaving. We left Huahine at 6 PM Saturday and arrived in Duluth at midnight on Sunday to -12 below-only a difference of 100 degrees. I was worried about going on our trip because I couldn't believe that once again it could be fabulous, but Huahine does not disappoint! I do plan on adding our pictures, but since it takes such a long time, it won't be with this report.
Edited by holte (01/10/09 07:16 PM)
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#78446 - 01/10/09 07:50 PM
Re: Huahine December 20-January 4
[Re: holte]
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svenseas44
Member
Registered: 10/26/08
Posts: 82
Loc: Lincoln, CA
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Wow! You guys had some trip. Huahine sounds like a very friendly place. We're going to FP in Feb and will be on the Star Flyer for 11 days (including an overnite on Huahine). When we return to Tahiti, we will be going back to Huahine and stay at the Relais Mahana for a week. We're only about a month away!
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#78447 - 01/10/09 09:56 PM
Re: Huahine December 20-January 4
[Re: svenseas44]
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holte
Expert Advisor
Registered: 11/19/04
Posts: 2417
Loc: Duluth, Minnesota
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Yes, Huahine is friendly. People always wave and smile. I have a picture of the Star Flyer and the little shuttle boat. We saw many people from the ship that went on a bicycle trip. They had a chase car and people with radios that talk to each other and keep things safe. They stopped at the Fare Potee which is the cultural center with all of the marae around it. I will be posting all of those pictures. I understand that there is a woman who is to operate the Fare Potee ,and she has been trained by Dorothy Levy. She was not there when we went to the Fare Potee when the Star Flyer people were there. I hope that the docent is there when you go, otherwise Fare Potee does not have the vibrancy of when Dorothy was there. It still is a truly lovely place, but the exhibits just weren't what they used to be. The Relais Mahana is wonderful. The bungalows are really lovely, the beach is superb, snorkeling is fabulous and the beach goes on for a long way on both sides of the Relais Mahana. I hope that you can rent a car so that you can see more of the island. If you crave a hamburger, the Snack Temarra in Fare has a huge, lovely one with French fries for 800-about 10 American dollars,, depending on the exchange rate. I asked at the airport in LAX last Sunday and it was 93. My understanding is the airport at LAX has a bad exchange rate, so maybe it's better elsewhere. It was between 83 and 86 when we exchanged money in Huahine so it improved even over a few days. The Bank Socredo in Huahine has the best exchange rate for travelers checks if you use them at all. The other bank has a better exchange rate getting cash from your credit card. There is an ATM in Fare and it worked for us, but then we didn't get much cash from it at one time. The Super Fare Nui is a grocery store in Fare and I can't imagine that there is anything that you might want to get that they don't have . Chez Tara, next to Relais Mahana has a traditional Tahitian all you can eat on Sundays for $35 or so. Start early and go hungry if you want to eat something of everything. I hope that you have a fabulous time and love Huahine as we do.
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#78448 - 01/10/09 10:04 PM
Re: Huahine December 20-January 4
[Re: svenseas44]
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Finnano
Member
Registered: 12/25/05
Posts: 188
Loc: Novato, CA
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Welcome back, Inese! I was thinking about you there in Huahine on Christmas...
Did you hang out at Relais Mahana at all?
_________________________
* Life is a beach *
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#78449 - 01/10/09 10:33 PM
Re: Huahine December 20-January 4
[Re: Finnano]
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joan k
Member
Registered: 06/17/03
Posts: 164
Loc: Kilauea, HI 96754
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Thanks for the trip report, sounds like you had a wonderful trip. I'm heading back in July, My Polynesian flu symptoms are flaring up. It sounds like the holidays are a great time to visit.
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#78451 - 01/11/09 06:03 AM
Re: Huahine December 20-January 4
[Re: joan k]
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Old Wife
Expert Advisor
Registered: 02/21/03
Posts: 2369
Loc: Burlington, Ontario, Canada
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Ah, you make me miss Huahine so much! I want to go back.
For those looking for Banque Socredo, it's on the road behind the main street (there are 2 banques on the main street...Polynesie and Tahiti, I think?). They're fancier-looking & the Socredo is not...but it's packed with people so that tells you something.
Gosh, holte, that 100 degree change of temperature must have been a shock to the system! We've been colder here than normal (especially with windchills) so I can well imagine.
Thanks for the tip about La Pension Heitiare Inn...I'll probably be asking in the future for that name again (I hope!!!...hubby thinks we need to see more of the world instead of going back to FP, but I know he misses Huahine a lot). I just wish it were cheaper to get there (we can well afford staying there for a month, it's just the 'getting there' from here that's so expensive).
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#78453 - 01/11/09 08:17 AM
Re: Huahine December 20-January 4
[Re: Old Wife]
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BarbiJKM
Supreme Advisor
Registered: 02/14/07
Posts: 6150
Loc: Mesa, AZ
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What a great report, Holte! It's nice to see some more written about Huahine in general, and also about staying in reasonably-priced places there. Thanks!
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#78457 - 01/11/09 12:41 PM
Re: Huahine December 20-January 4
[Re: BarbiJKM]
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holte
Expert Advisor
Registered: 11/19/04
Posts: 2417
Loc: Duluth, Minnesota
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Finnano-we only went to the Relais two days. Where does the time go when we are there in Huahine? It was absolutely beautiful as usual. For some reason, no staff seemed to be around when we were there, so I did not see Lucille. You will have to go and greet her yourself! I don't know if they had the new porch furniture when you were there, but if they didn't, it is very cute wicker porch furniture. The snorkeling was fabulous and the water was clear and warm. I had planned on walking down the beach this year, but I just couldn't resist the water all day. Maybe next year. Joan K-this is the second year we were there at Christmas time and I do recommend it. Don't be shy about asking about what is going on. Melanie has a party every year. Her place is on the way to the Sofitel, and I know that she invited other tourists to it- a couple of very interesting people that we met later ,including a landscape contractor from Kaui or Maui. Now I forget. Old Wife-I'm sure that you have traveled around a bit as we have, but nothing compares to Huahine for us. We've tried places in Mexico and Costa Rica. I've been to Europe a couple of times. So, my travel dollars are for FP, although we try an auxiliary trip in Feb. My daughter was supposed to get tickets for us to Tobago while we were gone and she didn't. Now they have gone up $200 a ticket even though all the reports are that airline flights are going down. We are looking at Puerto Rico and Costa Rica if Tobago doesn't go down pretty soon. I hope that ATN's $860 flights produce a lot of tourists so that they will keep the flight cost down. Barbi-you have all of the tips for a less expensive trip to Moorea. With the exchange rate up and the flight cost down, now seems to be a great time to go!
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#78462 - 01/11/09 01:15 PM
Re: Huahine December 20-January 4
[Re: holte]
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BarbiJKM
Supreme Advisor
Registered: 02/14/07
Posts: 6150
Loc: Mesa, AZ
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Ines,
What was the exchange rate when you were there? It had gone back down to 82 when we left in November, right before Thanksgiving.
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#78464 - 01/11/09 01:44 PM
Re: Huahine December 20-January 4
[Re: BarbiJKM]
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holte
Expert Advisor
Registered: 11/19/04
Posts: 2417
Loc: Duluth, Minnesota
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The exchange rate was 82 December 22 and it was 86 December 30. I asked in the airport in LAX on January 4 and it was 93. My understanding is that the exchange rate in LAX is not that good.
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