Papeete, Tahiti and Raiatea, French Polynesia

 Papeete, Tahiti, Society Islands, French Polynesia 

Papette is the largest island in the Windward group of French Polynesia, located in the archipelago of the Society Islands in the South Pacific.

It is the economic, cultural and political centre of French Polynesia.
The island was formed from volcanic activity and is high and mountainous with surrounding coral reefs. Tahiti is the most populous island of French Polynesia. The capital is Papeete. The standard of living depends on direct foreign investment and resources from France. The economy is totally reliant on imports and tourism.

We took this little electric train around the city center. Not too much to
see on a Sunday as everything was closed and it rained off and on. 

An overnight stay in Papeete to embark passengers for the second half of the cruise. We enjoyed
a lovely bottle of champagne complements of Oceania as we started our second part
of the cruise. It rained, so we did a quick tour around the city center of Papeete and relaxed
onboard the ship and
our veranda for the day, enjoying the harbor view of yachts and sailboats with
the misty-cloudy-covered mountains int he background. 

                     Raiatea, French Polynesia, Society Islands

                   Raiatea is the second largest of the Society Islands, after Tahiti.
                      The main township of Raiatea is Uturoa. It is where we were docked.
                 Raiatea was one of our favorite islands stops, along with Moorea.

This charming little colonel style town has 3 banks, 2 post offices,
a hospital, pharmacy, a local market, and supermarkets. 

                                

                                                 

We enjoyed a perfect weather day on a motorized canoe with a stop at a pearl factory to learn how pearls are made. Then we went up the Faaroa River (Polynesia's only navigable river) to view wild hibiscus, bamboo groves, chestnut trees and inner flowers. Lastly, we were dropped off at a small
private island to walk the beach and taste some local juices and fruit.
The island economy is mainly agricultural with exports of vanilla, pineapple and coconut. The noni plant is also grown and cultivated.

    

View from the canoe as we headed to the river. 

Hanging on the wall in the pearl shop.

Noni Plant.

Pearl factory and shop stop before exploring the River.

Navigating the river.

Enjoying a refreshing coconut water.

People selling coconut drinks along the river

Our canoe.

A nice way to end a sightseeing day!

The end.