Here’s a quick(?) synopsis of the week’s activities. We awoke on Tuesday expecting to find the Ara Nui cruise ship at the dock, but it wasn’t there. We took care of some laundry (it’s getting easier), baked some brownies for Moana and his family, and eventually headed into town to find Moana and get the scoop on when we could expect to see the dancing and art displays for the tourists onboard the big ship. We located Moana in his backyard building a cage for one of his prized roosters. (This is quite rare here, as most of them roam freely or are tied by the leg to a tree.) He informed us that the Ara Nui had changed its schedule and would be there the following morning. We reasoned that since we had returned to Hakahau just for the show, we might as well stick around for another day to check it out. We were glad that we did.

The Ara Nui is pretty funny looking. The back half looks like a typical but somewhat small cruise ship, but the foreward half is clearly designed for commerce, complete with a crane and a large ramp for vehicles. It brings supplies as well as tourists from Tahiti twice per month and helps to stimulate the local economy.

The Ara Nui

Much of the village appeared to be involved in the activities for the tourists. First there were the artisans and food vendors. It didn’t look like much food was being sold that morning, but the artisans seemed to be doing very well. They displayed several varieties of jewelry, the most unique of which showed traditional Marquesan symbols carved into wooden beads. There were also hats woven from pandanus palm fibers, tiki sculptures made from polished wood that reflected different colors depending on how it was held, some very beautiful stone pieces that were way out of our price range (a small stone fish was $450!), and some wall art made from tapa, the ecru cloth that is created from pressing the bark of the mulberry tree.

Seed necklaces on display

The art was displayed under the tent where we had watched the Tahitian dancing the previous Friday, and tourists started to meander into the nearby restaurants. We spotted Moana inside one of them putting on traditional-looking garments (a fake tattoo across his left cheekbone and nose, leaves around the ankles and arms). He called us over and began to play the guitar for us and the young girls who were also preparing to dance. We were then joined by our new friends from the state of Washington who are onboard S/V Kattywampus. They finished building a new modern though mini (400 square foot) house out of metal and glass (no painting necessary, just get out the hose) just days before their long passage to the Marquesas. I guess they will be highly accustomed to small spaces after 3 years of living afloat.

Then it was time for the entertainment. Moana and several others began to play traditional Marquesan songs on guitar, ukelele, and pahu, while several young dancers began the hip-swaying that we typically associate with Hawaiians in grass skirts. It’s awfully similar, although Moana would probably beg to differ. Anyway, the second part was very unique to us: Moana and three other men with no shirts and leafy adornments came out waving spears and chanting. Moana apparently played the part of the tribal chief getting his warriors ready for battle against the Europeans. He was pretty intimidating as he shouted in the tourists’ faces, many of whom were European! The rest of the songs involved some juxtaposition of the impassioned chanting and sharp, full-body movements of the men with the serene cooing and flowing gestures of the girls.

Moana looking intimidating

Traditional Marquesan dancing

Marquesan men dancing

Moana was pretty exhausted from having to pretend to be so intimidating but wanted to hang out with us anyway. We walked back to his house so that he could clean up at which point we learned that he has been listening to the CD that we made for him on a regular basis. In fact, he listens to Sarah MacLachlan every night before bed! For those of you who aren’t familiar with her music, she sings beautiful songs about lost love, etc. in a very soprano voice that is not intimidating whatsoever. I guess even tribal warriors have their soft spots.

Moana giving us pamplemousse

Speaking of soft spots, all of us on Pura Vida have developed one for Moana during our several days in Ua Pou and were sad to say our good-byes on Wednesday evening. We had been having trouble trying to think of a parting gift for him until he expressed an interest in learning to play slide guitar. Dallas happened to have a glass slide to give him, so now Moana can play Marquesan country music.

Moana and Dallas

One last musical note: Moana tipped us off to two local radio stations, one out of the Marquesas and the other out of Tahiti. We have been really surprised by the variety–everything from traditional Polynesian to reggae to French dance music to American R & B. Right now they just played James Brown’s “I Feel Good” followed by a reggae remix of Pink Floyd’s “Wish You Were Here.”

Yesterday we got up early and sailed 25 miles north to Nuku Hiva. We arrived here in the Bay of Tai Pi well before sunset and anchored in the middle of the large but shallow U-shaped bay similar to a fjord with steep mountains on either side. We relaxed last night and enjoyed the extraordinarily cool breeze…still haven’t figured out the physics of why it is cooler here, but we appreciate it to the extent that we decided to stay for a second night.

The four of us rowed ashore this morning in a zig-zag pattern as a result of the shallow water and current. Dallas and I then went on what the cruising guide had warned was a “death march” up the mountain to some well reknowned tikis. It wasn’t too bad for us young whipper-snappers, and the almost life-sized stone tikis (ancient carvings of the gods thought to offer protection to the village) were well worth seeing. Afterward we went searching for the lake that Herman Melville wrote about in Typee, his account of his two months here in the late 1800’s. He talked of his enchantment with the beautiful Marquesan “river nymphs” gliding effortlessly through the water, so naturally, Dallas wanted to see it for himself! Unfortunately, though, after following one man’s instructions and walking for a couple of miles inland, we were stopped by a group in a pickup who informed us there was no lake along that road. We think the truth lies somewhere in between (i.e., there is probably a lake several miles inland), but we settled for a picnic lunch in the river sans nymphs.

Tai Pi tiki and tourist

Sparsely populated, rural Taipivai (pop. 300 or so) appears to extend several miles inland, and the townspeople seem to have larger spreads than we’ve seen in other villages. Their houses were almost all well maintained with flowers and fruit-growing trees in the yards. And then there’s the animals. Most families in the Marquesas seem to have many of them including pigs, chickens, and even horses ready to be slaughtered. Moana told us that his family eats meat or fish at every meal, and none of it is pre-packaged in cellophane like it is in the U.S. Ever since we were given a hunk of pig back in Hiva Oa, I have been very cognizant of how different our meat-eating habits are from those on the islands. I wonder how many of you would consider vegetarianism if you had to slaughter, skin, and clean all of your meat products?!

Tai Pi Vai (Valley) at sunset

Tomorrow we head to Bay Taihoe, the largest bay in the Marquesas. It should be fun to spend Saturday night in the “big city”. What’s more, we should have a fast, reliable internet connection for the first time since the Galapagos! With any luck, we’ll get updated on posting pics and even get to skype with some of you.