Friday, September 12
On Bora Bora we didn’t have breakfast included in our stay but prior to leaving Dammon, our ATV guide, “borrowed” (as he put it) a few grapefruits and a pineapple for us to take with us. So, our breakfast for each morning here was grapefruit and pineapple. It was delicious! The only bummer about breakfast was that in our room we had access to coffee BUT it was instant! However in the end I was able to solve this issue too with the large bottle of Bailey’s we purchased in the Duty Free shop at LAX airport. No more instant coffee taste now! I like my Bailey’s and coffee.

We figured today we would just hang around the resort and check it out in its entirety. We decided to snorkel this morning since the water was crystal clear and very blue! It was incredible! The resort had anchored these little floating docks in the middle of the water by the reefs to rest on from snorkeling or sunbathe at…your choice. As we snorkeled in the shallow waters from our over-water bungalow, we got into a bit of trouble when we realized the water was only about 14 inches deep. Struggling to get our feet below us and avoid touching the sharp coral, Katherine was not so lucky. In a split second that it took her to gain her balance putting a hand down for help, the coral had sliced a small flap of skin on her ring finger. Fortunately it was, for the most part, superficial but still deep enough to bleed. We surveyed our landscape to determine a better way out to the deeper water and begin our marine exploration. We saw a lot of marine life that we had not seen on Moorea. There were all kinds of those squiggly shelled clams with bright red, green, blue, tan, brown, and purple lips (if that is what you call them). Off in the distance I noticed a local man in a canoe who tied his boat to one of the buoys near our hut. He dove into the water and had a bamboo rod drifting in the water behind him. As Katherine and I got closer to him, we realized that he was fishing with a spear gun. As he speared each fish from his gun, he pulled the spear back to himself and pushed the spear completely through the fish and on to the end of the attached rope that the bamboo kept floating. He must have had at least 30 fish when we encountered him!!

The rest of our afternoon was spent eating at the restaurant by the pool, sunbathing, and then partaking in happy hour at the Hiro bar. Lounging by the pool and both of us reading, I finally finished the book I have been on-and-off of, “The Heroin Diaries” by Nikki Sixx of Motley Crue. This book is literally a diary of Nikki on drugs for an entire year and how he got clean. While the book is very intriguing, I think the best part of it was the last 20 pages. He had led an incredible life and it’s amazing that he isn’t dead! You will have to read the story for yourself. At happy hour, Maria took very good care of us and made some really great cocktails! We tried various drinks of all types of concoctions; the Honeymoon, the Moana Iti, and the local beer called Tabu. All were very tasty!

We had made reservations earlier in the day for the infamous Bloody Mary’s. It’s a busy place and if we didn’t make reservations, there would be no chance of just walking in. Outside the restaurant is a photo board with the names of all celebrities that have ever been there. People like Tommy Lee, Denzel Washington, Johnny Depp, and Goldie Hawn have graced the sand floors of Bloody Mary’s. As we walked in, we noticed that the floors were entirely fine, white, beach sand. The bar was made from a huge oak tree with large stumps for bar stools. Prior to being seated, we were greeted by a gentleman that described the food specials and the fresh catches of the day. After opting for swordfish and Mahi Mahi we were seated toward the back of the restaurant. With dinner we enjoyed a few bottles of red wine. Yum!