Home » French Polynesia » Tahiti

Tahiti

Tahiti

Bec
2004-09-17 15:56:10

Displayed times (last time: )

art for art's sake has been reserved for a small privileged elite while the masses struggled to survive. In my view, the extent of popular access to art for art's sake is also a measure of the relative degree of civilization of a given society.

Bringing all this back to the subject at hand, which is food, I will state that although I have the greatest respect for the French and Italian cuisines I think that neither of them are a match for the Chinese art of eating well. I leave it to you to use the criteria of creativity and refinement to evaluate your own national cuisine and to form an opinion about the American fast food madness that is presently invading the world.

Faaa
Regular hotels are rather expensive in Tahiti so I stayed at the Pension Fifi which is very conveniently located just across the highway from the airport in Faaa. I shared a dorm with a dozen other people but it only cost 11 $US a night. I can recommend it if you don't mind sleeping in a big dorm.

The Pension Fifi was not only cheap, which is rare in Tahiti, but it was an easygoing, pleasant place with lots of atmosphere and a great crowd of fun-loving people who knew how to cook good food. Around the table, starting on the left, we have, Olivier Ben Meloud, Jean-Luc Collomb, me, Frank Donin, Bruno Sallé, Yves Souillard, Maté Azai (the friendly Polynesian who ran the place with his wife), and Eric Duter. We had a ball!

Impromptu parties like this one just don't happen in big hotels!

Punaauia
The Museum of Tahiti and the Islands at Punaauia, a few km south of Papeete, has four halls covering the natural environment, the origins of the Polynesians, Polynesian culture and the history of Polynesia. Definitely a must see!

In ancient Polynesian society, power was hereditary and the genealogy of leaders expressed the history of each community. The memory of outstanding leaders was honored by carving images called "Tikis" said to represent them. This practice reached its extreme expression in the giant "moai" that characterize Easter Island.In the distance can be seen the mountainous island of Moorea, the second most popular tourist destination in French Polynesia.

Papara
This fine grained black volcanic sand beach is only one of many around the island. This photo was taken near the village of Papara, on the south coast of Tahiti .

Here, like in Hawaii and Rarotonga, there is very little left of the original Polynesian culture except some names and fine museums. Cannibalism and tribal warfare are a thing of the past. The ancient gods have been completely eradicated and replaced by various flavors of Christianity. Social customs and values are now definitely modern... and are becoming more and more global every day.

Copyright Bernard Cloutier

All rights reserved.

Please visit my website