French Polynesia – Part 1

January 12, 2013 anchored off Nuku Hiva, Marqueses Islands, French Polynesia – The Real Hawaiian Homelands -- Maybe

Another half-day at sea and at 1:00pm, we finally anchored in Taiohae Bay (a sunken volcanic crater), Nuku Hiva.  Nuku Hiva is not an atoll but was formed by explosive volcanic activity, so it does not have a coral fringe or long, sandy beaches. 

It was our first sighting of land since leaving LA six and one-half days previously.  The weather was still not being very cooperative.   It had rained earlier in the day.  By the time we were cleared to go ashore, it had stopped raining; however, there was no sunshine, only horizon-to-horizon, low-lying, intermittent clouds.  The sun birds on board were becoming ever more restless about the continued gray skies and rain squalls.   At least we were close enough to the Equator that the temperatures were into the 80s but  so was the humidity.

Land Ho!

Nuku Hiva Island from seaward.

Entering Taiohae Bay

The bay is a volcanic crater full of sea water.

We were looking forward to visiting Nuku Hiva, because current theories on the origins of Polynesians in the Hawaiian Islands hold that Hawaii was populated from the Marqueses by peoples sailing voyaging canoes (similar to the Hoku Lea) to the island of Hawaii (The Big Island).  Of course, a two-hour visit to one small island does not confirm or deny such a theory, but it was interesting to visit Nuku Hiva and walk the land that may have been the Hawaiians’ ancestral home.

During the War of 1812, American forces occupied Nuku Hiva and built a stockade on a small hill on the bay.  This stockade was named “Fort Jefferson,” and it was manned by American forces for only 24 months.  Then, it dawned on the Americans that the British had absolutely no interest in challenging the American presence on the island.  Probably mostly out of boredom, the Americans packed up and sailed away, having never fired a shot at the British lion.  For the mouse to roar,  there must be someone to hear!

Site of Fort Jefferson from Taiohae Bay

Luckily, Francis Scott Key wasn’t with this expedition.

Tendering ashore, we began our self-guided tour of Taiohae, the largest village on Nuku Hiva and the French administrative center for the Marqueses Islands. At the Marina Pier, where the tender tied up, we were greeted by local dancers and musicians.  In addition, there were a number of other local musicians, dancers, fishermen, and vendors standing around watching our arrival.  It was all very casual; the ship’s passengers seemed to provide that day’s entertainment for the locals. 

Local Greeting Committee

Excellent drumming, very casual and laid back.

The village is spread along one side of a single, paved road running by the bay for a little over a mile.  There is a cargo pier, French administrative center, post office, police station, and two churches, one catholic and one protestant.  The tourism infrastructure consisted of several pensions and a half dozen restaurants.  Nuku Hiva may be on the tourism map, but it is on the very edge.

The Beach and Beach Road

Not a lot of congestion here.  The horse is real.

Local Infrastructure

The local canoe club seems to be alive and well.

We walked along the sidewalk next to the road, waving to passengers in pickup trucks and offering good afternoon to locals walking along the road.  Spaced along the road were a number tikis (most of which  probably were recently carved).  The original tikis were most likely destroyed by early missionaries, as happened to many of their brothers on islands throughout Polynesia.

Tikis – Ancient and Modern

At least one (upper left) seems to have almost escaped the missionaries.

There were also local handicrafts on display at a large handicraft market near the pier (The Marqueses are renowned for wood carving).  We were not tempted to drag a piece of carved wood into our suite for the three-plus months remaining on the cruise.

The highlight of our tour was a visit to the protestant church.  We chose it because it was closer to the pier than the Catholic Church and the furthest point that we got.  There were many things that reminded us of rural Hawaii, especially Kauai, including free-range, feral chickens and poi dogs.  At the pier, we watched local families loading offspring, pets and produce into their pickups for the ride up country.

Protestant Church, Nuku Hiva

One of two churches, Catholic and Protestant—Christians have arrived.

Local Animal Life

Feral Chicken, Poi Dog, and Goat Kid in truck.

Two hours after we came ashore, it was back on the tender for the return to the Silver Whisper.  Luckily, we had timed our visit so that we avoided the rain that began shortly after our return to the ship.  At 6:00pm, we sailed for Rangiroa atoll in the Tuamotu Islands.