Hiva Oa has blown us away

In this trip we keep pinching ourselves to see if we are really as happy and excited as we think we are. Well.  Today was a new high.

We woke up at 4:30 and I looked out our window and though it was dark, could see the outline of an island ahead.  Instead of sleeping again we hurried out and up to the bridge level. We were the only two out there, besides the Tahitian captain inside the bridge.  It was magical. Tahuata island rises so sheerly out of the sea, the top of the Pali is hundreds of feet above the surf line, and the slopes are cloaked in green. We saw the sun come up and pink the sky and watchd the captain deftly slip the Aranui into the bay.  We all hung out on the boat decks watching the handsome Tahitian and Marquesan crew off load to the tiny little villages pier. Then we sailed over to the town of Stuona on the island of Hiva Oa.  

We both agree we have never, ever, seen an island as beautiful as this one. Can't wait to load pictures. We visited the graves of Jacques Brel and Gauguin, then had a sumptuous lunch of sashimi, poisson cru fish in coconut milk, curried goat, freshwater shrimp, all kinds of things.  Then Craig and I went off on our own up the valley from town. Wow, what a valley.  In shape like Iao, in magnificence of greenery like Hanalei or . Well, hard to describe!  We saw wild horses and old ruins and every imaginable fern and flower and breadfruit trees and hala and sharkbite trees and five kinds of ginger and the local Pua kenikeni.  And along a stream with dark boulders and waterfalls. And everywhere the brilliant shimmer of the local coconut palms.  And because the valley walls are so sheer and the tops of the palis have so many turrets and spires, you can't tell whether to marvel at the trees or the cliffs.  Everything is so, so beautiful. 

We went up as high on the wild pig trail as we could safely go, then came back down, trying to reach the rest of our group to go on our own hike....

Whoops! Gotta go as we are getting the briefing about tomorrow, we will wake up and be at the very remote island of Fatu Hiva where they make wonderful tapa, wonderful scented oils, and wood carvings, and about 30 of us will hike for ten miles up, and over, the Pali and down the other side. 

Here is our day:

We can't believe how well take care of we are... Our afternoon hike with the group was also exhilarating, and tiring and beautiful.  Came home to the afternoon snack of french madeleins and other cookies as light as air.  

And meanwhile the Aranui is still doing its own job, loading and unloading giant amounts of cargo including many cars and containers, the boat is so vital to these islands.  Some of us got to look down into the hold today, blown away again by how they deftly maneuver everything in and out, and deftly maneuver the whole ship in and out, of tiny little bays. 

Gotta go... May not be able to edit this til our next wifi connection... In four days we think!