Hiva OaThis is the first place we made landfall, home of Paul Gauguin and the city of Atuona. More like a village if you ask me, but then again it is the 2nd largest city of the Marquises. Wow, really? It’s tiny but very cute and at least it has ice cream cones! I had two straight away.
We spent 8 days here’s waiting for a crew member that would never show up, to replace Ali who decided to fly home to take care of his shoulder. Apparently it looked like he needed some surgery – ouch! Later we discovered that he had actually broken a bone in his shoulder. Wow.
I don’t know what I expected, maybe sandy beaches and light, turquoise water, but it was nothing like that. Our anchorage was crowded with many boats and the water was so murky that Brian could hardly see more than 1 foot when scuba diving the anchors. So I didn’t go swimming. The Marquises as I would find out are very dark - Dark green water color, dark dirt and rocks (well from the volcanoes that formed the islands), and dark foliage. That is when it was not completely dry, as in California dessert dry. The island seemed to be at opposites, as in either or, and there were not a whole lot of beaches. It was different.
However, the fruit was abundant and the people friendly. Actually, they would usually pick you up when making the 5 km trek to town from the anchorage, and force fruit on you – bags and bags of papaya, starfruit and pomplumuse (a delicious type of grapefruit). Hitching (as in hiking) was the only method of transportation other than walking. Did I mention this place is small? Anyway, there were no café’s and only 2 restaurants in town. One just outside of downtown and so expensive, and another just in town that was only open unusual hours of which we never really knew.
The one thing that is a must to mention is the internet tree. If you sat in this archeological park, in the center of town, by this tree, you could pick up unsecured wireless for free! This was huge. Other than that you had to pay an outrageous amount to use the computers at the post office and let’s just say everyone who tried this method never made it online. Internet tree it is! Just wish there was a power outletJ.
May 11th
Today I went to the Paul Gauguin museum. Although this place had no original artworks by Gauguin it was still a lovely experience & and very nicely done. Highly recommended as it is really the only thing in Altuona. Anyhow, I just wanted to share this quote by the artist in a letter to his wife:
“For I am an artist & you are right, you are not mad, I am an artist that I have endured so much suffering to pursue my quest otherwise I will consider myself a renegade, which I am for quite a few people. Anyway I do not mind. What worries me most is less poverty then constant impediments to my art which I cannot pursue as I feel it & that I manage to do it with out poverty tying my arms. You tell me that I am wrong to stay away from the artistic center (Paris). No I am right. I have known for a long time what I am doing and why I do it. My artistic center is my brain, nowhere else & I am strong because I am never deviated by others and that I do what is with in me…”
Yeah, that speaks volumes to me. I like him more now then ever.
May 14th – Random thoughts
Eating starfruit – pick, wash, & eat – so good, my favorite. They are so orange in color here, not like the states where they import them an unripe yellow/green color. It is so weird to be here. It feels like I lost an entire month of my life. Well not lost but misplaced, like I was in some sort of spatial anomaly where time didn’t exists, just water. Then you arrive in a place and life is normal all around you. It’s just a weird feeling.
