Tales of the Marquesas

At the moment we are tucked up in a sheltered narrow inlet with steep green slopes on both sides.  Last night we watched hundreds of fish and the occasional shark and ray feeding around the boat, visible because of the trail of phosphorescence they caused.  This afternoon there are half a dozen manta rays feeding nearbye, they have a 'wingspan' of at least six feet, and strange horn-like flaps on each side of their mouths.  They feed on plankton, so swim with their mouths wide open as they filter the water. 
  On land all is activity too.  There is a very small settlement at the head of the inlet, and this afternoon the mayor has called for a party (at least we can find no other reason for the celebrations).  Yesterday a temporary shelter was being beautifully decorated with plaited palm leaves, and long tables had fringes of palm fronds along the edges.  This morning huge red ginger flowers and multicoloured leaves were being tied around the support poles.  A pig was being baked, whole, in a pit, evidently covered with aromatic leaves.  Beside it a calf was roasting on a framework over a glowing fire.  There is a big boom box, but the music playing is quite quiet and tuneful, we have never heard loud music playing in any of the towns or villages, in huge contrast to the Caribbean islands where one house will compete with the next.
  We spent the morning walking up to a 'marae' or old meeting place with several stone tikis or statues.  Tikis, both old and new, are scattered around all these islands, and with a good supply of rosewood and other hardwoods, and suitable stone, carving and sculpture are at a very high standard among these very artistic people.  This site consisted of a platform of large stones, with the tikis standing guard around the edges, and marking the corners of the surrounding walls.  There was a good, well maintained path up to the site, but it was difficult to find - necessary to go up to three houses, and then stop a passing truck.  We disturbed a couple of wild pigs on the way up, but they were very shy and ran off fast.  These islands have very few tourists, a few visitors come on the supply boats, and there are quite a lot of sailing boats, but that's it.  And the locals don't really want more - there were plans to build a Club Med on one of the bays we've visited, but it was firmly opposed as it was felt it would disrupt the traditional way of life of the inhabitants.  Hence the lack of signposts or info, everyone is very helpful and willing to provide instructions, you just have to ask.
  The Marquesas are the home of tattooing (though some say it came from Samoa originally).  It used to be part of the rites of the onset of manhood, and of social status, as well identifying which island group someone was from.  Now, it is enjoying a revival as everywhere else, and traditional designs and patterns  are used with great artistry - no hearts and arrows and "I love Tracy" here.
  On a more practical note, we have at last been able to buy onions and potatoes - the first since leaving Galapagos.  The supply boat only comes in every few weeks, and all supplies were running low in the two grocery stores in the main town of Taiohae - no butane in the island for example.  No problem for the locals who cook on wood burning stoves, but quite a few sailing boats were getting a bit worried.  The shops don't sell any fruit and vegetables.  There is a small market at 4.30am on Saturdays - well before dawn - which sells locally produced vegetables, wonderfully fresh.  So in order to buy a lettuce it is necessary to set the alarm, take a 5 min dinghy trip, climb a 6-ft quay wall on a very rusty ladder, and use a torch to sort out notes and coins in local francs which have an alarming number of zeros.  However it's possible to be back in bed by 5am!   Fruit is another matter.  Everyone has fruit trees in their gardens, so no one needs to buy.  Consequently you just have to ask the locals if they will sell you some lemons, mangoes or grapefruit.
  There are quite a lot of sailing boats, like ourselves making their way to New Zealand or Australia. Both boats and owners encompass the full variety of boats and sailors.   There are the tiny boats strung around with fuel and water tanks and all the other things that there is no space for inside.  Many have no frig, though most, these days do at least have GPS, and are not reliant on sextants.  At the other extreme are large smart boats with generators to run everything from microwaves to washing machines and satellite communiations.  In between are the rest of us who live quite comfortably, but still have to wind the winches and pump the toilets!  At a fairly typically mixed pot luck dinner on a beach last week we were in the company of a young French couple with an 8 month-old baby, a retired French couple who had been sailing for years all over the world, a NZ couple who had been living in London for 10 yrs and are returning home the slow way with 2 children, and an American couple, both lawyers, on a year's sabbatical.  One of the great pleasures is meeting up again with boats and friends last seen in the US or Bahamas or Panama, who happen to turn up in the same anchorage at the same time as us. We compare notes on routes, weather, speed of travel, and fish caught with tales getting taller as the evening progresses.
  In a few days, when the winds look as though they are blowing in our favour, we will be making the 3 or 4 day crossing to the Tuamotos.  Coral atolls, very different from these steep volcanic islands.