10.2.09

10.2.09

I think we’ve reached the part of the trip where we’re ready to go home and we’ve still got 6 days left. This happens on pretty much every vacation I’ve ever been on. I think vacations have two purposes: they give me a break from my routine back home, and at the same time make me miss and appreciate what I have back home.

I don’t know if I should fully go into what I am tired of in particular because I’d probably sound like a jerk. I’ll just say it has to do with certain people we’ve encountered on this trip and the way they have treated us. I am proud to be an American. My husband and I are both nice, patient, open minded people who always treat others with respect. Maybe these certain people have treated us a certain way because we’re Americans, or maybe they’re just living up to their stereotype of being citizens of the rudest nation on Earth.

Anyways, right now I’m relaxing with a Hinano beer (the only beer made in Tahiti) in our room at the Raiatea Lodge on the island of Raiatea. Not many tourists visit this island so we’re really feeling out of place now. There’s not much to do here so I imagine I’ll be doing a lots of laying around here and drinking Hinano over the course of the next 4 days. I guess I could go snorkel but I’m pretty burned out on it after Bora Bora.

Our lodge is in a remote area close to the ocean. There’s a pier we can hop off of to go snorkeling. There’s a few kayaks we could use and a restaurant downstairs that serves the typical French fare. The owner is renting us her car for the next four days. This afternoon we drove to the tiny village of Uturoa to stock up on food and poke around. It’s apparently the second largest city in the islands but it’s tiny. I think we were the only non-Tahitians there.

Which reminds me, I wanted to discuss the necessity of renting a car in French Polynesia. The public transit on the islands is nonexistent, the taxis are prohibitively expensive, most places are too far to bicycle or walk to (not to mention the bugs will gobble you alive,) so you absolutely have to rent a car if you want to go anywhere besides your hotel. You could stay at your hotel and eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner but I guarantee you will get bored of the food and the same scenery real fast. All the islands have one road that loops around it. That’s it.

We left Bora Bora this morning. I was very sad to say goodbye to that place. It was so beautiful and the Tahitian staff of the Sofitel were so nice to us. It was a very American friendly hotel so we felt quite socially comfortable. This trip has taught me that although I like to think that I want to be in a non-touristy remote area off the beaten path, I generally enjoy myself more when I’m staying in luxurious lodgings full of other people similar to me. I feel so lame admitting that. (rolls eyes)

When we woke up, the winds and waves were very high. I was almost certain our flight to Raiatea would be delayed. The breakfast buffet at the Sofitel is quite pricey and they serve a lot of food. Neither of us wanted to deal with it this morning, so we cobbled together a breakfast of peanut butter, biscotte (a sort of dried toast they sell here,) tomato juice from the mini bar, and a piece of chocolate cake from a roulotte. I ate an orange, he didn’t. I suspect this was what caused the problem. Shortly after we’d finished our breakfast, I began to feel severely nauseous and my intestines began to cramp up. I kept having to run to the bathroom. I was worried I’d caught the same bug Mike had. This terrible feeling continued until we reached the airport. The tiny airport was relatively empty while we waited for our plane, so I found a bench and layed down. When I got back to the bathroom, a man had seated himself on the end of the bench. I curled up on the other side, trying not to throw up. He kept scooting closer and closer to me, hacking and clearing his throat. I said pardon, since I knew he spoke French (I had heard him talking to his wife on the boat to the airport.) Then for some reason he kept shoving me down the bench and said in English how I shouldn’t lay on the bench. I told him I was sick and he told me to lay on the floor. I looked around and saw the airport was full of empty seats. I suspect he had something personal against me since I’m an American. I was so angry so I just kept laying there in silence. When I saw another bench nearby clear of people, I moved over there. Michael was already there since he didn’t want to deal with the awful nasty man. I couldn’t believe the incredible rudeness. What a truly terrible and sad individual to target me like that. I should have thrown up all over his polyester pants. Jackass.