October 17, Pago Pago

October 17, Pago Pago

Pago Pago is the capital town of American Samoa and is actually a village. Located on the island of Tutuila, it is a territory of the United States. Tuna caning has a huge place in the economic picture and provides employment for about a third of the population. The harbor is surrounded by cliffs, which plunge almost straight into the sea. The summit of Mt. Alava in the National Park provides a fantastic view of the harbor and town.

Unfortunately, the island was hit by a tsunami a couple of weeks ago, and the local people are still recovering from the devastation. While great strides have been made, it’s quite obvious that there are many months to go before a semblance of normalcy returns.

About 34 lives were lost, four of which were children. There were 39 of us who had booked a tour with Tisa’s Barefoot Bar and Restaurant. As we left the dock area and circled around the bay the devastation was obvious. We saw many houses and buildings totally destroyed, and numerous vehicles crushed like bugs.

But cleanup was ongoing, and great strides have been made. Holland America and the Amsterdam donated over $15,000 worth of clothing, bedding, linens, etc., that were dropped off today.

While taking our pictures today, we purposely did not take any of the destruction, but concentrated on the beauty that still existed. With flowers blooming and fantastic views from the mountain tops, there are still great and wonderful things to see. The people are very friendly and wave to you as you pass by.

As we sail away from the island this evening, we do so with a much better understanding of the people of Pago Pago and know that they will rebuild as soon as possible with the assistance of the United States.

Next up is Suva Fiji, another island hit by this terrible tsunami.

Rarotonga, Cook Islands

October 15, Rarotonga Cook Islands

With craggy green pinnacles rising from the island center, and deep verdant valleys Rarotonga provides all of the elements of paradise. The mountain slopes are fertile, and every known color is represented in the flowering plants. Some are familiar while others are ethereal but all seem to belong.

The rugged Te Rua Manga, known as The Needle, juts dramatically skyward. Add the multi-hued lagoon that encircles the island, and it’s easy to “let go” and slip into the moment.

Avarua is Rarotonga’s capital and largest community. Stretching eastward from the airport along the waterfront, there are a few restaurants, boutiques, and an internet café. There are no high-rise hotels, no beach buggies, and no traffic jams.

Just opposite the town’s much discussed traffic circle, a cluster of seven coconut trees stand as a local landmark. The roundabout and the trees are used to provide relational directions.

We didn’t book any tours here and simply wandered about on our own. The tenders docked at the west end of town, and we strolled along the ocean towards the downtown area. We did some window shopping and wound up at the Salsa Café where we had a couple of Matutu beers which are made on the island. Very good and they were cold. We found the post office and bought stamps and sent off a couple of post cards to the grandkids.

By 1pm we found ourselves back at the dock and returned to the ship. Unfortunately we are here at the wrong time of the season to see a lot of the flowers in bloom, so it wasn’t as pretty as we had expected. Fortunately only three more islands to go before we hit our first New Zealand port.

Next up, Pago Pago (which is actually pronounced Pango Pango!).

October 11-12, Bora Bora

October 11, Bora Bora Day 1

Everyone says that Bora Bora is fantastic, and the best island of the French Polynesian islands. Well guess what? THEY ARE RIGHT!!!!

Novelist James Michener described the island as the world’s most beautiful island. The coral reef surrounding the island defines a spectacular lagoon, and Mount Otemanu towers magnificently above it.

WWII fueling stations, American battlements can still be seen around the island. The South Pacific’s wealth in diverse marine life can be observed in their natural habitat and it is not necessary to be a scuba diver to enjoy it. Most of the species live in shallow water from 3 to 9 feet.

About 30 of us from Cruise Critic had booked a private tour to go out snorkeling. What a fabulous time we had. We made our first stop in relatively shallow water (10-15 feet), and saw plenty of small reef type fish including butterfly fish, angel fish, tiger fish etc.

Next it was out beyond the reef to deeper water (30 feet plus) to swim with black tipped sharks. While there we even saw a couple of lemon sharks lurking along the bottom and were able to get a couple of good pictures of them.

We also made a stop in waist deep water to play with the stingrays for a while. It’s amazing how gentle these creatures can be. While most were about 2 or 2.5 feet wide there were others that exceeded 3 feet across.

From there it was off to lunch on one of the motu’s where we dined on lobster, mai-mai, pig, vegetables, wine, and beer. From there it was a gentle ride back to the dock area and the end of a perfect day.

The second day we had booked a 4x4 half day tour. Lasting a little over 3 hours it went around the island with three trips to higher elevations for some magnificent views overlooking the waters surrounding the island.

We left Bora Bora at 5pm headed for our next destination, Raiatea!

October 10 - Moorea

October 10, Moorea

Just a little more than ten miles north-west of Tahiti, Moorea is Tahiti’s little sister. Shaped like a butterfly with mountain-lined wings, the island’s steep crags cast a silhouette against the dual expanse of South Pacific sea and sky.

Atop the peaks, you will find maraes (stone temples) where the ancient rite of maohi was practiced. Views from the highlands are magnificent.

One of the best views overlooking the shoreline is from Belvedere Lookout. Rising from the Opunohu Valley it offers splendid views.

We took a half day Culture and Nature Tour. We visited most of the important natural and cultural sites on Moorea, including a stop at the University of California Berkeley’s Gump Research Station.

This is a tender port, and where the tenders dock, there really isn’t much. From there you would need to take a taxi over to Cook’s Point to do any shopping etc. The island itself is quite beautiful, and a tour around the island is well worth the money.

Tomorrow we dock at Bora Bora for two days and are snorkeling the first day and then doing a 4x4 half day tour the next. Hopefully tomorrow I will have some nice underwater pictures for your enjoyment!

Papeete, Tahiti

Papeete, October 9

Tahiti is the largest of the 115 islands and atolls that comprise French Polynesia. Mountain peaks tower above dense rain forests, and waterfalls drop into cool rivers and streams.

Papeete means water bucket, and is likely a reference to the traditional method of gathering water from a spring.

Docking at 10am, we were off to find the post office to purchase stamps. Along the way we found some nice postcards, and after locating the post office made our purchase of stamps. Then it was back to the ship to have lunch, and get ready to meet our tour guide at 1:15p.

Our tour was great! We completely circled the island making stops at Point Venus, Arahoho blowhole, through Taravao, past the Gauguin Museum, a stop at the Mara’a Grottos, and then back to the ship. All in all we were away for right at 5 hours and it was wonderful. An absolutely delightful time was had by all, and if you ever plan on coming to Tahiti, we can highly recommend Marama Tours.

We are here overnight and leave at 5am for the short trip over to Moorea, arriving there around 8am.

October 7 - Nuka Hiva

Nuku Hiva, Marquesas Islands, October 7

The Marqueses Islands form a relatively little visited South Pacific island grouping. Comprised of three distinct island chains spread out northeast of the Society Islands, the central group consists of Ua Pou, Ua Huka, and Nuku Hiva. The grouping is officially part or the lager group known as French Polynesia.

Nuku Hiva is the largest island in the Marquesas group, and is the administrative and economic capital. The island is formed from two volcanoes stacked one on top of the other. The main town is Taiohae, which has a vast harbor area and is at the foot of Mt. Muake. Herman Melville spent some time here.

The weather prediction for the day was partly cloudy with showers. As we approached the island the sky was overcast with dark clouds and didn’t look good. We had 20 Cruise Critic members that signed up for a 4x4 tour. We met in the Explorers Lounge area, and got on the first tender going to the island.

As we approached the dock area the sun was trying to break through the clouds so things were beginning to look up. We met up with our tour guide, boarded the vehicles and we were off!

Did I mention that the island was formed from volcanoes? Which means mountains. Sometimes very steep mountains. With winding roads. Most of which are not paved and have lot’s of pot holes.

Definitely not a tour you want to consider if you have back problems. That said, the views from the top of the mountains were fabulous. While we did have an occasional shower, they didn’t last long and really didn’t affect our enjoyment. We have a fantastic lunch with shrimp, wahoo, tuna, chicken, and various vegetables.

The ship did not offer any tours here, and there really isn’t much here. The “town” can be walked easily from one end to the other in about half an hour if you take your time. From there, it’s an uphill climb to get anywhere else. There are only a couple of people that offer tours and they are not the cheapest tours around, but if you want to really see the interior of the island that’s the best way to go.

We enjoyed the area and were quite tired after returning to the ship. After dinner we went up to the thermal spa for a bit to help relax. For those interested, the thermal spa for the entire cruise of 60 + days was $899 for two people. For us that works out to $14.26 per day. As a day pass is $20 per person that made it quite reasonable. And we usually don’t miss very many days. In fact, on this cruise the spa is open until 10pm on port days which is a first for us. What a way to end a day in port!!

Next up, Papeete.

At Sea

October 1, Day One at Sea

We departed LA yesterday shortly after 5pm, to a bright sunny sky and blue seas. Our first meal in the dinning room was very good. Sharon and I had a fillet mignon that was cooked to perfection and very tender.

Then it was back to the room to finish unpacking and putting everything away. Once that was done we were pretty beat after another long day so off to bed we went.

Thanks to a gentle rock most of the night we both slept very soundly and didn’t wake up until just before 7am (which was extremely unusual for us). As we had a 10am Cruise Critic meeting, we slowly got around and went to breakfast.

The Cruise Critic meeting was held in the Crows Nest and it was really nice meeting up with friends from previous cruises and meeting new folks. We had the Hotel Manager and the Shore Excursion Manager there that welcomed us aboard.

After lunch Sharon went to the room while I checked out one of the Digital Workshop classes. The Digital Workshop classes seem to be slanted more toward folks that don’t have much experience with computers (which is fine) and the instructor onboard the Amsterdam (Trish) seems very knowledgeable and very at ease in a classroom environment.

Went I went back to the room there was a horrid smell in the passageway that smelled like paint fumes. It was even worse in our room and Sharon had a really bad headache from it. After complaining about it three different times they finally admitted that they had been painting in the aft part of the ship, and put an ozone machine in our room to clear it out.

Finally, after returning to our room after dinner, everything has been taken care of. We went to the evening movie which was The Proposal. Even though movie critics were not impressed with it, we thought it was quite funny and well worth seeing.

We have five more days at sea before we hit our first port, Nuka Hiva. Unless something really earth shattering happens between now and then, this will be my last post until October 7, after we leave there for Papeete.

Cheers!