It is another beautiful day in paradise. The morning is cool enough to pull cover over you up until sunrise. At you lay huddled in your bed you can hear the roosters signaling the new day. It seems the island enjoys a large number of loose chickens, most of them roosters. Once the sun is up the temperature rises quickly. I hope it doesn't rise as much as yesterday. Tonight Donna arrives at 6:30 PM so we have to make the two to three hour crossing to Papeete, Big Tahiti. If it is as hot as yesterday the air conditioner will surely be on for Donna.
After a quick breakfast John drops Ant and I off for a hike into the interior of the island. Ant has already worked out once this morning; he took a long swim in the lagoon before breakfast. The sky is cloudless and dark blue. We walk on the perimeter road to where the bay ends. This is where a left turn takes you to the interior. It is a lot further to the left turn than I thought it would be, at least a mile. I don't know how far Belvedere, the trailhead to Lookout Point, is but I am pretty sure we will have to turn around before we get there; we started at 10 AM and we should be where John can pick us up by noon, giving us 2 hours to walk; it is now 10:30. We will eat lunch and then start the crossing.
We pass several very similar looking cows. I am gifted with the ability to make a sound that sounds like a cow. As I make the sound the cattle turn and look at us. One starts pawing the ground with his hind leg. It is then that I notice all the cattle have horns. All the cows are male, bulls, and I don't know what I said, but they do not seem to be pleased. We move on. Next we pass a herd of horses; there are babies among the herd. One pony sees us and heads straight for us. The mother gets between us as if to say don't go near those strangers; stay here with me.
At 11:25 we turn around far short of Belvedere and head back. By 1:20 we have had lunch and break anchor and head for Papeete. There is no sailing; there is no wind. The good news is the sea is glassy flat and we are able to motor over 9 knots.
Arriving at the airport we have half an hour an hour before Donna's flight arrives. John and I decide to split a croissant with coffee. Suddenly I realize I have been here before. Of course, it was the long layover on the trip home in June. We spent several hours here, long enough for two small meals and several cups of coffee. I remember the difficulty I had getting a cup of coffee. You have to by a token at the cash register; the coffee is obtained from a vending machine with instructions in French. There are three sizes of cups and saucers. Do you know how many people you would have to watch make coffee before you know enough to try and make the cup of coffee you want? I bought three cups of coffee before getting one I really liked.
At a few minutes past 7 PM Donna comes beaming through the immigration and customs door. It must have been a good flight she looks great. I can't tell you how happy I am that she made the trip. As we get into a taxi her first impression of Tahiti is – Hawaiians speaking French. We repeat the short trip to Bella Donna much like the one I took over a week ago. Donna finally meets Ant; she has not been on Bella Donna since early February, so everyone has a lot of catching up to do.
The next day it is cloudy, little if any sun and it rains. You can't even see the islands, just dull grey ocean water. We stay in doors at anchor and enjoy a day resting, reading and catching up with each other. When you see all the green on the islands you know there must be some days like today. It is the dry season so it will not rain forever.
God Bless Bella Donna.
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