August 09, 2012
We planned to sail our boat to Taha’a, but when we had the opportunity to go on a circle-island tour of the island, we grabbed it. Taking a tour would help us decide where we wanted to go, and what we could skip. It included a snorkeling trip at the Coral Gardens, tours of a pearl farm and a vanilla farm, a safari trip to a lookout point, and lunch. I was especially excited to see the Taha’a Resort near the Coral Gardens as I have always dreamed of staying there.
The tour turned out to be a great thing to do. The highlight of the day was, as expected, the Coral Gardens. But an unexpected highlight was the lunch that was included in the tour. The guide’s family prepared the lunch at their home, and it included banana bread, taro and breadfruit side dishes, poisson cru with rice, fresh mahi in vanilla sauce, and fruit salad for dessert. On the table were carafes of wine and water, and the final treat was coffee with fresh vanilla. The food was delicious, as good as the best restaurants we’ve been to and worth the price of the entire tour.
The day ended with a drive up through a tropical forest to a lookout over Haamene Bay. When we saw it, we decided to bring the boat there after we left Raiatea. This ended up being an worthwhile tour! -Cyndi
