Travels

10/25/01 - Today would be our last full day on Bora Bora. Sad, but not too sad. To tell the truth, we were ready for a change. There was nothing missing from this leg of the trip, and nothing I could think of that would have improved it, but we were beginning to get bored. There is only so much to do, and we could only do so much sitting around in the sun. Originally we were supposed to spend 4 days each on Bora Bora and Moorea, but because of some room-booking difficulties, we were forced to drop one night from Moorea and add one to Bora Bora. This ended up being sort of a bonus for us money-wise, because accomodations (and everything else for that matter) are significantly pricier on BB than on Moorea. However, we had made up our minds that we like Moorea better, and would have preferred to spend more time there. Bora Bora is as beautiful a place as you can imagine, the lagoon more striking, and overall a more exotic and enchanting place, but to my way of thinking, it's more spoiled by tourism, and less authentically polynesian than the other islands. Our experiences with the locals were more genuine and warmer on Moorea. Something to keep in mind for our next visit (right!).

We stayed on the motu today, never venturing across the lagoon. We figured we had seen all the main island has to offer (or enough anyway), and since we would be hopping on another plane the following day, why not REALLY take it easy. So we did. We did some more snorkeling of course, and Meagan got in some more rays on the sun deck. We both had our share of naps throughout the day. But there was one "honeymoon treat" left coming to us, and that was the romantic dinner served at the Motu hotel. So at some point we wandered up to the restaurant/front desk (the same place), and made resrvations for the dinner. We didn't know what to expect, but free is free, and we were pretty excited about having another gourmet meal at the Manu Tiki (the motu restaurant), especially since it would cost us nothing. The place is NOT cheap.

So after a long, hot and lazy day, we enjoyed another sunset before getting ready for our dinner. After a shower and a change, we headed up toward the restaurant. On the way up, as we passed by the motu beach, we saw that they had set up a table right out there on the water, fully set up with tablecloth, dishes, place settings, candlelight, the whole nine yards. And leading all the way down the path from the restaurant to the beachside table was a series of candles. It looked like someone was in for some special treatment. We figured some guy had slipped the waitstaff a fat bankroll to make the night extra special for him and his lady. Maybe he was planning on popping the question. So on up the hill we went, glancing back in wonderment at the idyllic table setting behind us, with the candles leading the way. When we got to the restaurant, the hostess (who by this time knew exactly who we were) greeted us with a huge smile on her face and appeared to be very excited that we were there. She called out to another girl on the waitstaff, and the two of them led us to our table. Guess where it was. Yup, it was out on the beach. That table we saw was set for us.

This dinner was undoubtedly one of the high points of the whole trip. Words cannot explain just how nice the whole arrangement was. Pictures might help, but unfortunately, we weren't expecting anything special and therefore didn't bother to bring along the camera. But everything was perfect. The candles lighting the way, the warm but breezy night air, the bright moonlight and stars above, the chilled champagne on the table, and the pleasure the beautiful polynesian girls seemed to take in serving us such a special treat. They poured us champagne, over and over, until we finished the bottle, and then they poured more, from a new bottle! There was apparently no limit to what we would be served, with one glaring exception -- we had to pay for the drinking water!! We both thought this was very funny. And there was one other slight problem -- there was supposed to be a Tahitian ukulele band serenading us, but unfortunately they were a no-show. I think this might have been our own fault, because we had re-scheduled our dinner reservations twice during the course of the day. They never said to us "but the band needs to know what time to be here!" because they didn't want to spoil the surprise. And I'm glad for that. It was a terrific surprise. I think I would have swooned, or maybe even fainted, if the band had made it. Too much to handle. Even for a jaded and bitter fella like myself.

Regardless, even without the band, this dinner would end the War of the Roses. Put an old and tired couple on Bora Bora, seat them at this table, and the magic will come right back! You might consider us an old, tired couple -- we had been together for 10 years before we tied the knot, and this night under the stars felt like a first date, but without the awkwardness. It was truly amazing. We kind of felt bad for the waitresses, because it was a long way for them to go from the restaurant to the beach, and they must have made 15 trips, but they did a great job, and they were never gone for long. Nor were they interfering at all. I guess these two girls were assigned to our table exclusively, while we dined. They were always there to refill our glasses, check on dinner, bring more food, etc., but as I said, they managed to do this without being intrusive at all. Some of America's finest eating establishments could learn a great deal from these people. Needless to say, the experience helped to make this the perfect honeymoon night. If only we didn't have to pack up our bags for the morning flight to Tahiti....

Thanks for writing about your wonderful experiences at the Sofitel Motu, especially the private beach dinner. Based on your experience there, I surprised my wife with the same beach dinner - and the evening was magical. This was back in October 2003 and I'm just now remembering to thank you almost three years later. Mauru'uru, Rod June