Day 143 - Palm Paradise

Being a little reluctant to leave LA and board the red-eye to Tahiti, we were luckily met with a restful, 60%-full flight. We departed at 11 pm, each having a whole row to ourselves stocked with sanitized and packaged (yes!) blankets, pillows, eye masks and slippers. Note: removing shoes and wearing slippers on a plane is a total game-changer. I can't believe I've waited this long to try it! The mere thought of it always sparked visions of John Candy removing his shoes and socks in the movie Planes, Trains and Automobiles. Surprisingly comfortable, we all fell asleep quickly and awoke to breakfast being served an hour before our arrival at 5 am. Kate was amazed she slept the whole time because she swears she has never fallen asleep on a flight before, even for a minute.

My dogs are barking!—One of our family's favorites watched every Thanksgiving weekend

Stepping out of the airport, the first thing we noticed is how good Tahiti smells! The aroma of sweet flowers and fruit fills the warm, humid air. It's winter here which means sporadic tropical rains—or shall I say torrential downpours—but they have no chill and are very short-lived. Other than that, it's been a steady 84° every day and 75° at night.

What is so striking about Tahiti is its natural beauty. The interior landscape protrudes with lush, green jagged mountains and spires, sharper than any I've seen before. The deep blue ocean and the picturesque palm-studded black sandy shore is a true paradise. The palm trees are the ones I've been obsessed with drawing ever since I was Kate's age. I would draw palm trees on deserted islands over and over, trying to perfect the fronds, trunk and coconuts. I think this love came about after watching countless episodes of Gilligan's Island as a child (Can you tell I was an 80s kid?!) I still find myself doodling palm trees on notepads and napkins while on a phone call. So, to say I am enjoying Tahiti's scenery would be an understatement... and the locals are just as beautiful! We have only been greeted with warmth and friendliness since we arrived. Seeing the women walk around in their colorful floral dresses with flowers in their hair makes me smile.

FUN FACT: Tahitian women are often sighted wearing a tiare, a Tahitian gardenia, in their hair. When the flower is tucked behind the left ear (over the heart), it means the wearer is taken; worn behind the right ear, it means the wearer is available.

It took us a few days to figure out how we were going to make an extended stay here possible because Tahiti is crazy-expensive. We knew things would cost more for most products are imported, but we didn't know how high the price tag would be. Of course, dining at our hotel is expensive, but we thought buying groceries would be significantly less. We were wrong! For example, a package of strawberries is $22.95, a large bag of Doritos is $12.90, a box of cereal $9-13. We did find a cheap meal hack after spotting the best deal in the grocery store—a pre-packed whole roasted chicken with potatoes and a few green beans for $12. We added that to their equivalent of a "Cup o Noodles" along with some fresh green onion which provided us with two meals for $26. Once we figured out transportation (which is very limited without a car rental) we discovered a goldmine of fresh, cheap eats in the main town of Papeette's market. The large outdoor market is filled with fruit vendors, poke, fried rice, chicken, and tasty beef sandwiches ranging from $3-8. The non-food side of the market offers a variety of everything related to coconuts, palm leaves and pearls, pearls, pearls.

Enjoying sandwiches at the Papeete market

Strawberries are $22.95 USD

A large bag of Doritos is $12.90

It always takes us a few days to find our groove in every town we have traveled to, no matter the country. Usually, our first impression is that towns/cities are a little grungier than we anticipated, but once we walk around, they glisten up as we become more comfortable and familiar. Finding the grocery store with the best selection and the local restaurants without tourist prices takes a little time, along with the best means to get around. Clean drinking water is sometimes a luxury we have to plan for and load up on. Many places rely solely on bottled water, which is hard for us to be responsible for so much plastic waste. Thankfully, Tahiti has perfectly safe tap water to drink and also provides it to you free of charge at restaurants. Europeans must pay for water at a restaurant so it's a treat to drink up at our leisure.

On an isolated, beautiful, desolate beach on the Canary Islands, I was saddened to see this endless, thin line of plastic residue washed up on the shore.

Even though the grocery stores are on the smaller side, there is no shortage of chocolate bars!

Walking through the outside of the Papaette market

Chickens and roosters are as common as pedestrians.

We have eaten a lot of fries at our hotel!

View from our balcony. Our hotel is approximately 25% full.

We swim multiple times a day.

We stayed at a hotel for the first five days where we could easily report our Self-COVID Test given to us at the airport. A negative Covid test is required to enter French Polynesia along with a mandatory self-test on Day 4.

My bed from LAX to Tahiti.

---