Bora Bora-Resorts, resorts, resorts…and checking out of French Polynesia

We didn’t really plan on being in Bora Bora too long but I think we all got use to having internet and feeling torn between wanting to stay in French Polynesia and wanting to continue our adventure else where.  The Bora Bora lagoon is deep so we were lucky enough to find a mooring ball at the Bora Bora Yacht Club (BBYC).  All in all, we didn’t do much exploring but rather provision, internet around town, hang out with other cruisers since Bora Bora is a place many cruisers check out of the country. 

The Bora Bora Yacht Club…we were told that “technically” we could not be charged for the use of the mooring balls…however there was a charge to dock our dinghy, use of their internet, showers (cold but we are all use to that), and of course dump our garbage. Let’s just say for $20 a day we fully intended to use all the ammenitites they had.
The really expensive (white table cloths) restaurant at the BBYC. You can see all our boats in the lagoon.
Right next to the restaurant, the dinghy dock…many hours spent here : )
Ok….Jill on SV Me Too found a yoga instructor who teaches at fancy resorts. Jill organized a cruiser yoga session at the BBYC. Trevor even participated! The instructor (originally from Spain) was incredible. We got to the end of the session and she said she usually says to close our eyes and think of a beautiful place….we all laughed!
The BBYC had a few “in water’ seating which we took full advantage of. Here is Jill, Ian and his daughter Lauryl, and me (kimi)

Town was small but we of course wondered the streets to get a feel for the island.  We were met with many opportunities for tourist activities but opted to just wander and seek out fun restaurants, wifi, and laundry.

Lots of rental cars in Bora Bora…we liked these little ones from Avis. Jill and Briley (SV Me Too)
We visited the post office (finally) as I had collected a few post cards to send. The stamps were AWESOME! It cost about $1 per post card… not bad.
We heard about a local artist studio who we saw lots of thier work in stores, business offices, and had to check it out. The photo does not give the art justice but the art work was really unique and had a very nautical theme (paintings over nautical charts). The couple were/are cruisers but have made a home herre in Bora Bora. They were excited to share their story and hear ours,
As most of you know, Trevor is a HUGE fan of Bloody Marys (the drink) and we have failed miserable to find a good one in French Polynesia. So when we heard of this place…we had to go! This place is famous in that many famous people go here…so we hit it up. Check out their website:

http://www.bloodymarys.com/bloody-marys-history.html

Call us crazy but we were unsure about the quality of the famous beverage. Any bloody mary drinker knows it is all about the garnish! So Trevor and I cooked up some bacon and brought it along just in case…..we were glad we did. (Dinkins family and Jeff, we thought about you and our bacon shots in Whistler).
Hanging above the bar were these license plates….Go Washington State!!!!

We did do a few activities while we were in Bora Bora:

We hiked to some old WWII cannons. SV Zatara, SV Me Too, SV Wiz, and SV Slow Flight.
Boom!!!!!!
Take Cover!!!
The view from the hike-you can see the anchorage at the BBYC below. Slow Flight is there somewhere. You can also see the pass (deep blue part between the coral which is light blue) we had to go through to get into the Bora Bora lagoon.
4 boats decided to take our dinghies around the lagoon (SV Sweet Pea, SV Me Too, SV Fandango, and SV Slow Flight). We found this incredible coral that had a small current so we could float along these shallows. We floated just above and around this amazing life.
The photo does not give this any justice….the coral was really healthy.
We had to walk along this coral so we could “float down”….Lauryl didn’t have shoes so she borrowed Jill’s gloves : )
“Anyone home?”

 

Checking out- was very simple.  We said a few “see you later” and commenced with a great Chinese dinner.

Gendarmerie in Bora Bora
Captain Trevor filling out clearance paperwork….the French guy is stamping our passports
2 very important peices of paper…Our Zarpe and custome clearance paper…every country we go to needs this for us to check into the next country we visit.
Our going away dinner at of course…a chinese restaurant with a real lazy susan in the middle of the table…truly family style to share with our cruiser family!

Next…..Maupiha’a-the best kept secret in French Polynesia…in our opinion!

4 comments

    1. Well…we are still waiting on parts in American Samoa…our fingers are crossed they will show up tomorrow….Weather is crazy right now in the area so we won’t be leaving for a few days…maybe this weekend we’ll be headed to Tonga?!

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