South Pacific 2015

In February this year Misti and I took a one month trip to the South Pacific and Australia. 

Our granddaughter Meg was taking a wine marketing class in Adelaide through Cal Poly and we decided to visit her in Australia and take a cruise to get there. 

Our trip began in Pappete, Tahiti where we boarded the Oceania Marina for an eighteen day cruise through French Polynesia ending in Sydney, Australia.   This was our third visit to this part of the world.  

 First, about our cruise through the South Pacific.  After spending a night in Papette, we boarded our ship, Oceania’s Marina, the afternoon of January, 24 and Marina moved that evening a short distance to the neighboring island of Morrea.  Our first morning on board we awakened at 6 AM and started our day in Marina’s delightful specialty coffee bar.  As we slowly sipped our cappuccinos, ate our pastries and chatted with the two baristas, we relaxed and through the massive windows watched a tropical downpour dump tons of water on the ship’s decks and then flow into the sea. The sound of the rain was like a symphony. A nice way to start our voyage.

The storm increased in intensity and was forecast to last all day.  There’s no dock at Morrea, which meant the ship would have to transfer passengers ashore by tender, the ship’s very capable and sturdy lifeboats.  Mid-morning the captain announced the seas were too rough for tenders, he cancelled all shore excursions and said we were sailing to Bora Bora, our next scheduled destination.  Passengers who had booked tours on Morrea didn’t get to go ashore and their tours were cancelled and money refunded.  Misti and I had spent two nights on Morrea on New Years Eve in 1984 so we didn’t feel we were missing anything.

Bora Bora, a part of French Polynesia, is a beautiful tropical island in the Society Islands.  It has a turquoise lagoon surrounded by coral reefs and is world famous for scuba diving and high-end resorts. The setting with the mountains above the sea is spectacular.  But our days of lying in the sun on beautiful beaches, snorkeling and glass bottomed boat tours are over and now we’re more interested in local culture and color and good dining.  We spent two nights in Bora Bora and much of that time was on the ship chatting with other passengers, reading, relaxing and having great meals.  Since most of the passengers were well above 60 and not that interested in water activities, we thought it strange that Oceania decided to devote two overnights to Bora Bora (which we referred to as “boring-boring”).

I don’t know if it was that time of year or if storms occur in the South Pacific year round, but our itinerary was interrupted a second time when the captain announced that a cyclone was headed toward our next destination, Samoa, and we would instead steam to Nukualufa, Tonga.  Because we crossed the International Date Line, we lost a day which meant we arrived on Sunday when everything on the island was closed except the churches.  Tonga is a very Christian country and Sunday is a strict sabbath, with no trade allowed except essential services, which doesn’t include tourist services.  They are very serious about this and it’s enshrined in their constitution.

We didn’t have a rental car and hadn’t booked a tour through the ship but we wanted to get out and look around.  We left the ship late after breakfast, found William, a guy on the pier who had a taxi, and struck a deal with him to take us on a private tour including some of the churches.  He started with his own church in the town where he lives,  introduced us to his wife and two children and we then listened to the singing and saw the beautiful kids dressed in their finest clothes.

We drove around the island and when it was time for lunch I asked William if he could find a restaurant.  Since everything was closed, I boldly asked if he would stop at someone’s house and perhaps they could make us lunch.  While that might sound nutty to some, we’ve done this before in other countries and learned that people are often very hospitable, they like the idea of earning extra cash and for us it’s an interesting adventure.  William said that his aunt lived nearby and was cooking Sunday lunch for her family and he could take us to her house.

His aunt had cooked a chicken stew marinated in coconut milk and wrapped in taro leaves; quite delicious.  We ate sitting on the floor with a mother pig and her piglets a few feet away.  The house and meal wouldn’t get high marks for sanitation and we tossed chicken bones to the anxious pigs, but it was a great Tongan experience and away from the hordes of boat tourists in the tour buses.  

After leaving Tonga we steamed about 500 miles northwest and reached Lautoka, Fiji at eight AM.  The temperature and humidity had increased significantly and we were only able to walk for an hour before retreating back to Marina and its wonderful air conditioning

The following day we sailed a short distance to Suva, Fiji where again our sightseeing was limited by the oppressive heat and humidity.  About six years ago we spent two weeks in Taveuni, Fiji with our kids and grandkids and I remember thinking then that Fiji must be the hottest place in the world.  I find that as I grow older I’m less tolerant of heat and humidity and I appreciate living in cool and dry Northern California.

A highlight of our visit to Suva was my visit to a Fijian mosque.  To deal with the heat, I decided I’d get a very short haircut, which I did at a cost of two dollars.  While wandering  around town looking for a barbershop I happened across a mosque with music streaming into the street, I walked in and saw it was both a school and mosque.  I chatted with a few kids, which wasn’t very productive since they didn’t have a word of English and my Fijian doesn’t go very far, but I did get some good photos.  I returned to observe the afternoon prayers but was told I couldn’t enter the mosque but could watch from outside, which I did.

We sailed two days southwest to Noumea, New Caledonia, a distance of about 800 miles and our last South Seas port before Australia.  We didn’t know much about this island other than it’s being French.  We learned that it’s the third largest South Pacific island and it played a major role in World War II since it was never occupied by the Japanese and served as the major supply point for the allies with more than one million US troops passing through it.  We had dinner offshore at a French restaurant that Misti found online but turned out it was quite expensive and not nearly as good as Jacques, the outstanding French restaurant on board Marina, which of course was free.  We had dinner at Jacques several times and each meal was excellent and better than most pricey onshore restaurants.

We reached Brisbane, Australia after a two day sail from New Caledonia (873 miles) and spent the day exploring that wonderful city which we had visited once before.  I remember saying then that Brisbane was a city I could live in and I had the same feeling this time. The Brisbane River snakes through most of the city making everything easily accessible using the small ferries that ply the river, most of them free.  Great seafood restaurants, riverside paths, a comfortable downtown, good seafood, nice people - a very likable and livable city. 

When Marina docked in Brisbane Misti and I got off anxious to explore.  We didn’t have any Australian money, only US dollars; we thought we’d get change at the first ATM we encountered, but none were to be found.  This was a problem since we had to take a water taxi to get downtown.  I stopped a passerby, told him our situation and asked if he would be willing to exchange twenty US dollars for Australian currency so we’d be able to take the water taxi.  He immediately said it would be his pleasure to give us the money without any US dollar exchange and he was sure we’d do the same if he were in the US with a similar predicament.  Nice to find nice people; there are many all over the world and it helps when they speak the same language.

Later in the day we spent several hours in the Queensland Maritime Museum which houses all sorts of vessels including the 120 foot HMAS Forceful built in 1925 and used by the Royal Australian Navy in WWII.

After another day sailing south along the Australian coast, Marina reached its final destination, Sydney, a city that is often described as a cross between London and San Francisco.  It was our third visit to Sydney and we knew we were in store for some good times. This is a city that has lots to offer.  Our plan was to spend two nights in Sydney, not nearly enough time, then fly to Adelaide to meet up with Meg and her friend Rachel.  We would rent a car in Adelaide and take ten days to drive the Great Ocean Road by way of Melbourne back to Sydney, spending our last night there before flying home.

Because of the length of this trip and our many experiences, I decided to write this as two journals, this one about our South Pacific cruise and Part II about our time in Australia.  Before ending this journal, however, I’d like to comment on the cruise itself and particularly Oceania, the cruise company, and our ship, Marina.

We had sailed on Oceania only once before, in November 2013, on this same ship, Marina.  That was an eighteen day cruise from Barcelona to Rio de Janeiro and the reason we took it was the amazingly low price.  The cost was $2,900 per person which included air fare from SF to Barcelona and from Rio back to SF as well as eighteen days on board Marina with a balcony cabin.  As the saying goes, cheaper than staying at home.

Misti and I haven’t been ardent fans of cruising.  For years, we’ve preferred to travel on our own - away from the throngs of tourists.  We like to do our own thing, how and when we want to.  No schedules to follow and we often change our plans along the way.  No tours - I’m not good at following others and would rather blaze my own trail.  It’s a more difficult way to travel but can be quite rewarding with spontaneous adventure and quality experiences.  We’ve balked at the idea of arriving in some exotic land in the morning and then leaving that night; seems more like a brief stopover than a visit to a country.

But as we get older, as air travel becomes more difficult and expensive and as airport security becomes a bigger hassle, the idea of conveniently, comfortably and safely traveling from port to port becomes more attractive.  There is some merit to not having to find hotels and restaurants, not having to get from place to place by car, bus or train, having unlimited quantities of good food available and being able to visit far away exotic places and still have the comforts of home.  Luckily we’ve seen so many great cities and countries the way we like to travel, so now maybe it’s OK to revisit these places via cruise ship. 

When you’re in a very foreign land, hot and humid, dirty (think India) and exhausted from walking all day, it’s nice to return to your air conditioned, clean, comfortable, safe ship where you can have cocktails and a first-class dinner, watch a show, get a good night’s sleep in a comfortable bed, awaken to a great breakfast and be ready for another day of exploring a new place.  No doubt it’s pampering to the nth degree but lots of fun.

I’m happy just lying in a comfortable deck chair with a good book and watching the ship push the sea aside as it slips through the ocean on it’s way to another port.  It’s the ultimate in relaxation.  It’s exciting to wake up, look out the window and find yourself in another city or country knowing that the ship took you there while you safely slept through the night. 

It’s a special feeling knowing you are alone on a vast ocean hundreds and sometimes thousands of miles from anything, with nothing to see for days but the sea.  It’s a bit scary realizing that you’re no more than a splinter on this endless ocean and totally dependent on the ship and its crew.

We’ve cruised on several other lines and feel that Oceania works best for us.  It’s high quality, they do a superb job and it’s not as stuffy or dress-up as some of the higher priced lines like Cunard.  Their staff is the best trained I’ve seen on any cruise line, the food is excellent and well presented, there are four very high quality specialty restaurants at no additional cost, you are not told to dine at pre-assigned tables with other guests you might not like and perhaps best of all, the dress code is always casual and no ties or jackets are required.  No photographers annoyingly taking your picture and no clowns parading through the dining room.  They pamper their guests and have a very loyal following.  I know that many of my friends have never taken a cruise and tell me they have no intention of doing so; maybe they don’t know what they’re missing.

So we replaced a fourteen hour flight to Sydney with an eighteen day cruise.  Marina took us more than 4,000 miles through the South Seas and pleasantly brought us to Australia minus any jet lag.  Could be worse. 

In a second part to this travel log, I’ll describe our journey in Australia, meeting up in Adelaide with our granddaughter Meg and her friend Rachel and our drive from Adelaide to Sydney along the Great Ocean Road.

Art Faibisch

December 13, 2015