Bora Bora

With a single island in the center and a towering peak Bora Bora is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to (beautiful; yes but it is also very touristy). The whole island is covered in tropical plants due to the rain that pours over Bora Bora almost every night. We had multiple adventures around the island that were all very exciting.
The first one was a short hike up one of the ridges to World War II guns overlooking the bays bellow us. We started up a muddy and rocky hill and the farther up we ascended the muddier it became. Eventually the mud was sticking to our shoes and it felt like we were walking with an extra five pounds on each foot. One thing led to another (aka I don’t remember how it started) and Eoin and I began throwing the mud at each other. That ended in a few bruises and a very dirty coat that it now clean curtesy of mom! When we arrived at the top there was a gorgeous view of the bays, motus and extensive barrier reef. From that height the water looked so turquoise blue and you could see all of the coral bombies in the water. We sat on the huge guns and enjoyed the view before making our descent back to sea level.
The second great adventure happed over many nights and one eventful morning. During the time that we were in the Society Islands there was a month-long festival happening called Heiva. It was a big festival on each island but because we were at Bora Bora they had huge dancing troops, choirs, and other musicians performing every night. So, each night at around eight pm we would head in to town and watch the traditional Tahitian dancing. Some nights they told stories (in Tahitian), other nights had slower dancing and some had fast dancing but all of it was fantastic and showed off the skill of the dancers. The women were amazing at moving their hips in separate motions than their upper body and walking while doing so. We also attended the parade one morning. It was mostly a parade of people in different shirts sponsoring hotels and other businesses around Bora. All in all, the Heiva celebrations were very entertaining! We saw the dancers almost every night and one-night Kyra didn’t want to go mom asked, “How often do you see Polynesian dancing?” and Kyra mumbled, “Every night!” (one of my favorite things she’s said)
Another escapade we embarked on was a dinghy trip around one of the motus on the other side of the bay, out across the reef and around the far side of the island to an outer motu for a snorkeling trip. We came around the small motu and into an outer anchorage and there, near the reef, was a mast sticking out of the water. We pulled the dinghy up to a mooring ball right next to the sunken sail boat and plunked in the water. We snorkeled around the 30-foot boat for a while before continuing on to a recommended snorkel site. It was full of fish and tons of different types and colors of coral. I could have stayed there much longer if I hadn’t gotten cold and had to get out.
The last jaunt we went on before leaving Bora Bora was a circumnavigation of the island via bike. We got up that morning and prepared everything for a day on the road but when we got to Avis they told us that they had already rented out all of their bikes for the day. We continued to look around town but couldn’t find anywhere else that rented biked and so Papa rode our folding bike around the bay to where there were more resorts. There he found and place that we could rent bikes from so the rest of us took the dinghy across the bay. After a delicious lunch at a restaurant on the beech our day on the bikes finally began. We rode around the island on the main road by the water. The road was mostly flat except for one hill that allowed as a view of the tall mountain. We continued around the island making for a 20-mile round trip ride with gelato as a treat at the end! Those were four of my favorite times we had in Bora Bora!

One Reply to “Bora Bora”

  1. I loved the descriptions of your destinations and of your adventures. It’s fun to read about these interesting and beautiful places I will probably never see myself.
    Cherish every one! Thank you for sharing your adventure.

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