October 31, 2008 – Happy Halloween! - Ua Pou
October 31, 2008 – Happy Halloween! - Ua Pou
Today was a great day. We spent the morning at sea and then arrived at Ua Pou in the Marquesas around lunch. When we arrived it was foggy and had been raining. I found out later that this was the first rain in three weeks. Throughout the afternoon, the rain stopped, but it remained overcast for most of the afternoon.
The Marquesas have rugged peaks, cliffs and valleys like Tahiti. This is a stark contrast to the Tuamotu Islands that we had just come from, which are low atolls. There is not much coral reef here, so the focus of the next few days will be the land and the culture.
We arrived on shore greeted with music and leis. The assortment of leis was interesting and I ended up with a lei made completely from cherry tomatoes and mint. We then piled into four-wheel drive trucks and made our way caravan style through the island. I was in the last car with three of the performers and the nurse from the college who was helping out for the day. It was fun going with them – the minute I got into the truck, they offered me a beer and we were on our way.
Despite their limited English I was able to learn a fair bit about the island. I wish I spoke another language. The roads were bumpy but the scenery was amazing. There were fruit trees everywhere and it was incredibly lush. Since it had just rained, there were parts of the road that were covered in flowing water, which we easily crossed in the trucks. We stopped a couple of times to look out over the valley and photos just do not do it justice.
Being welcomed with the sound of the conch shell
Once we got to our final destination, the local children performed some songs and dances for us. It was so cute. Here is a photo of some of the kids posing for us after the dance.
Posing for photos
After the dances, we were able to tour the tohua at our leisure.
Locals had set up craft tables as well as food tasting stations. One of the tables had samples of traditional foods, including four different preparations of breadfruit, the most important traditional starch food of the Marquesas. I especially enjoyed the fried breadfruit and was surprised to find that I liked the breadfruit paste soaked in coconut milk. During the car ride, the guys told me I should try the goat meat in coconut milk. It was very delicious.
There was also a variety of raw seafood, including chiton, sea urchin roe, fish and crab. I was one of the few people who ate the raw fish and tried the chiton, which tasted a lot like its relative, the clam.
The other table was set up with fruits to sample, including mango, papaya, pomelo and passion fruit. Of course I tasted them all. Pomelo is a lot like a grapefruit if you are wondering. It won’t surprise anyone that I spent most of my time tasting food – it is all so good! There were also some crafts there, but I did not buy anything.
Delicious local food
Since today is Halloween, we decided we should have a party with the guests. I dressed up as a pirate using some of the supplies that we had on the ship. I was most impressed with the creativity of the passengers. People used their sheets, towels, makeup and creativity to come up with costumes like sumo wrestler and “e” male (mail). We also had a party with the crew later in the night. I think my favorite costume was Quasimodo.
Marcia in her best beauty queen pose as Miss New Zealand, Michelle as a spider, and myself as a pirate.
Today was a great day. We spent the morning at sea and then arrived at Ua Pou in the Marquesas around lunch. When we arrived it was foggy and had been raining. I found out later that this was the first rain in three weeks. Throughout the afternoon, the rain stopped, but it remained overcast for most of the afternoon.
The Marquesas have rugged peaks, cliffs and valleys like Tahiti. This is a stark contrast to the Tuamotu Islands that we had just come from, which are low atolls. There is not much coral reef here, so the focus of the next few days will be the land and the culture.
We arrived on shore greeted with music and leis. The assortment of leis was interesting and I ended up with a lei made completely from cherry tomatoes and mint. We then piled into four-wheel drive trucks and made our way caravan style through the island. I was in the last car with three of the performers and the nurse from the college who was helping out for the day. It was fun going with them – the minute I got into the truck, they offered me a beer and we were on our way.
Despite their limited English I was able to learn a fair bit about the island. I wish I spoke another language. The roads were bumpy but the scenery was amazing. There were fruit trees everywhere and it was incredibly lush. Since it had just rained, there were parts of the road that were covered in flowing water, which we easily crossed in the trucks. We stopped a couple of times to look out over the valley and photos just do not do it justice.
Being welcomed with the sound of the conch shell
Once we got to our final destination, the local children performed some songs and dances for us. It was so cute. Here is a photo of some of the kids posing for us after the dance.
Posing for photos
After the dances, we were able to tour the tohua at our leisure.
Locals had set up craft tables as well as food tasting stations. One of the tables had samples of traditional foods, including four different preparations of breadfruit, the most important traditional starch food of the Marquesas. I especially enjoyed the fried breadfruit and was surprised to find that I liked the breadfruit paste soaked in coconut milk. During the car ride, the guys told me I should try the goat meat in coconut milk. It was very delicious.
There was also a variety of raw seafood, including chiton, sea urchin roe, fish and crab. I was one of the few people who ate the raw fish and tried the chiton, which tasted a lot like its relative, the clam.
The other table was set up with fruits to sample, including mango, papaya, pomelo and passion fruit. Of course I tasted them all. Pomelo is a lot like a grapefruit if you are wondering. It won’t surprise anyone that I spent most of my time tasting food – it is all so good! There were also some crafts there, but I did not buy anything.
Delicious local food
Since today is Halloween, we decided we should have a party with the guests. I dressed up as a pirate using some of the supplies that we had on the ship. I was most impressed with the creativity of the passengers. People used their sheets, towels, makeup and creativity to come up with costumes like sumo wrestler and “e” male (mail). We also had a party with the crew later in the night. I think my favorite costume was Quasimodo.
Marcia in her best beauty queen pose as Miss New Zealand, Michelle as a spider, and myself as a pirate.
posted by Lori @ 12:01 AM
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