Tahiti Cruise--Day 9 (Bora Bora Continued)

Day 9—Bora Bora (Continued) (February 4, 2015)

We had ordered the room service breakfast delivered by canoe for 8:00am, and despite our fears that we would oversleep, we were all up well before 6:00am.  We sat out on our deck and watched the sun rise as the sky turned pink with huge clouds.  There was a light shower that fell for a few minutes, then quickly cleared to blue skies and bright sun.

The waters at each of these ports was the most incredible shades of blue and turquoise and was so clear we could see the sand and coral reefs below.  I can’t begin to describe the colors so that you could ever understand how vibrant the different shades of blue were—you’ll just need to visit French Polynesia for yourself.

Since the canoe wasn’t expected to arrive until 8:00pm, my Dad and I took a walk to the end of the walkway passed the last of the bungalows, where there was a boat dock.

Although there were a lot of bungalows, each one "felt" private

I had heard there was a complementary boat shuttle to the other Intercontinental resort which was located on a long thin motu off the coast of Bora Bora, but still within the barrier reef.  Unlike the other islands, there is only one channel our ship could pass through into the waters of Bora Bora as the island and the many motus were all within a large barrier reef. 

Wandering back toward the beach, we saw tropical fish swimming.  I had purchased fish food at the gift shop and tossing some into the waters had the fish practically jumping out of the water to eat.

Feeding the fish

Walking further toward land, we saw the flower decorated canoe beached on the sand, and watched as two people loaded the canoe and launched. 

We quickly turned around and ran back to our bungalow so we wouldn’t miss it arriving at our dock.  Since it was only 7:30am, we didn’t need to hurry since it wasn’t delivering breakfast to us, but to one of the other bungalows. 

Finally, at 8:00am we watched as the canoe bearing our breakfast slid through the waters toward our dock. 

Breakfast delivered by canoe

The tray was laden with food, and I wasn’t sure how they would get it up the ladder and the stairs to our deck, but they must have done this many times before, since the woman, dressed in a tropical pareo and draped with a flower lei, easily managed it and set up the breakfast on the table on deck.

Breakfast by canoe

She easily climbed the stairs with the breakfast tray

It was a set breakfast and included omelets, potatoes, bacon, sausage, and rice; a plate of tropical fruit; a plate heaping with breakfast rolls, toast, French bread, and croissants; orange juice and coffee; and butter, jams, and even ketchup and Tabasco sauce.  There was enough food to feed six, and since there were only three of us, we only made a small dent in it. 

"Room service" breakfast delivered by canoe

Intercontinental hotels are part of the IHG group, and as I had an IHG membership card, we were allowed a late check out of 2:00pm.  Since we didn’t have to hurry to check out, and the all aboard time for the ship wasn’t until 4:30pm, we decided to go snorkeling (making use of the complementary snorkels available).  The water was a little cooler than yesterday afternoon, but still warm.  This time, there were beautifully colored tropical fish swimming all around us, and even between our legs as we stood in the water.  Sprinkling out more of the fish food had them all swimming around us.  I snorkeled over the coral reef under our bungalow and watched as the different bright blue, yellow, black and white striped fish, and long thin pipe fish darted in and out and around the coral.  We hadn’t been snorkeling for 40 years, and I wondered why I hadn’t done this before since it really was incredible.  I had forgotten how beautiful the sea could be underneath and not just sailing on her.

As the sun was getting stronger and we didn’t want to end up with sunburns, it was time to get out (we were using 50spf sunscreen, but since Polynesia is near the equator, the sun is so much stronger and many people underestimate—we didn’t want to make that mistake and be miserable for the rest of the cruise).  There was a shower on the lower deck, so I rinsed off, then climbed to the upper deck to sit for a few minutes as we took turns showering and getting dressed.  Then we packed up and left the bungalow as we made our way down the walkway to reception to check out. 

We were again told to sit as a taxi was called and we checked out.  Shell leis were placed over our heads and it was explained that flower leis were used for greetings and shell leis for good-byes. 

The taxi arrived and a short drive later we were on the pier and on the tender back to our ship.  We had had an incredible experience staying in an overwater bungalow and having breakfast delivered by canoe!  I had heard some people criticizing that the OWB were created to lure money from gullible tourists, and maybe that is the case as these bungalows are not “traditional” Polynesian lodgings and were built by the large chain hotels.  Was it hokey to have breakfast delivered by canoe—perhaps.  Was it expensive—definitely!  But this experience was the highlight of our visit to the Polynesian islands, and we enjoyed every minute of it.  It was the fulfillment of a bucket-list dream, and it didn’t matter to us one bit if it was a tourist trap…after all, we were tourists in this part of the world.  What mattered was the wonderful memories we would be taking back with us, and a dream fulfilled!

That night was formal night on the ship, so after a short nap, then watching the ship sail out of the channel as it departed Bora Bora, I got dressed for dinner and met my parents in the dining room.  The traditional lobster dinner was featured and we all ordered it—my dad ordered two lobsters!  I had the chocolate souffle for dessert, served with amaretto sabayon sauce.  Afterwards, I went to the Captain’s Circle party, where the most traveled passenger (at over 500 days on board Princess ships) was honored.  Perhaps, some day, I might actually be among those most traveled passengers, but I had a long way to go before that would happen. 

I was back in my cabin by a little after 9:00pm, having just spent two incredible days off the ship.  As much as I love being on board, it was hard to believe how much I enjoyed the time I was off the ship.  Still, it was good to be “home” and back on board and sleep to the gentle rocking of the ship.