Landfall in Atuona

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Hhhm, where exactly are we now?

The Marquesa Islands are also called "Te Henua Enata"  (Land of Men).

It is the group of islands in French Polynesia with the farthest distance to continental land (about 4800 kilometers from California).  Due to its remoteness, the island chain is mostly left to itself... 

There are twelve islands, of which six are inhabited, forming two groups: North and South.

The islands beauty is tropical, but rugged.  Unlike other islands in French Polynesia, the Marquesan coast has no fringing reef or coral-clad turquoise lagoons, and the pacific swells crash right onto the rocky coast.  Of volcanic origin, the islands consist of eroded and partially submerged peaks of extinct volcanoes. Jagged mounts and peaks transverse the interior rising to over 4,000 feet.  Narrow strips of black volcanic sand beaches form at the valley mouths while on flanking sides, sheer ridges plunge steeply into the sea.

The climate is subtropical and much affected by the prevailing winds. Moisture-laden clouds carried by the southeast winds water the coasts on the south and east sides of the islands, providing for a dense mantle of exotic vegetation. The northwest coasts are relatively arid with scattered groves of stunted trees, dry grass and patches of struggling ferns. 

More information about the history of the Marquesan Islands can be found at http://www.tribalsite .com/articles/marque.htm

The website of the Marquesas' visitors bureau has good general information about the islands: http://www.marquises.pf /2index.htm 

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The island of Hiva Oa is best known for its wild, untamed landscape; endless and unearthly vistas; ancient cultural sites with tiki; and as the final resting place of poet Jacques Brel and artist Paul Gauguin.

For most visitors, it is the vertical terrain and the lost world it conceals that make Hiva Oa worth a visit. Once heavily populated by people of a highly advanced Polynesian culture with its own language and customs, most of it was ravaged within the 200 years following the first European contact in 1595.  What is left are vestiges of its history standing in the jungle:

• Taaoa valley: Biggest archaeological site of Polynesia, partially restored, this site boasts more than one thousand pae paes, a big tohua, many me'ae. A tohua is basically a plaza which could accomodate special village activities, and is both unique to the Marquesas and represents the most sophisticated architectural complex in all of Polynesia. Me'ae refers to a religious shrine or temple, an area that was taboo.  Here the skulls of dead ancestors and other sacred objects were stored.
• Hanaiapa valley: HAKAIKI ROCK, covered with engravings , southern part of the river Vaipeehia. Tohua and me'ae.
• Hanapaoa Valley: Tohua and big me'ae Tapuhoe, great banyan, skeleton bones , engraved stones , crowned tiki.
• Puamau: Here the Tohua Oipona can be found, the biggest tiki of Polynesia, Takai'i 2.43 M high. Many me'ae found closeby.The tomb of a chief watched over by 2 tikis Mani and Pauto is found at the Tohua Peketa.
• Atuona valley: On the Hanamenu track ,the tohua Pekia, a me'ae with tiki is found in an area called "ATIKUA", an old cemetery dating back to the pre european period.
• Tahauku: Near Atuona, in Tahauku valley, "Hakaua" fortification of nine layers of enormous boulders, featuring an enormous megalith carved with many petroglyphs.

The Polynesian Cultural Center of Hawaii's website contains some interesting information about the traditional life in a Marquesan village: http://www.polynesia.com /islands/marquesas2.html

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We are anchoring in the Bay of Traitors, close to the city of Atuona.  Atuona is one of the two places where sailors can check into French Polynesia in the Marquesas.  For that purpose, a visit to the Gendarmerie (police station) is required.  Richard dons his best (aka unstained, but wrinkled) clothes he can unearth, grabs our passports and the boat documents and trots off to the gendarmerie to ensure we'll be legal visitors.  The crew is not allowed to step ashore until the boat is checked in. 

Non-EU citizens may have to post bail, just in case they like it so much that they refuse to leave. (I guess since Gauguin they think this is a habit of foreigners.)

The anchorage is in a very scenic bay, but the 2-mile hike into town takes at least 30 minutes, especially since I am still limping.... but often the friendly locals stop their cars to give us a lift.

There are only a few roads on the island, and only so many places one can go, but amazingly enough almost everybody drives a sparkling new pick-up car. The only gas station on the island is at the ‘harbor’ of the bay where we are anchored. Somewhere on this island there is even an airport! Gas runs at about $5 per gallon, which is not bad considering how the gas gets here. The price seems to be standard European.

Compared to the shiny new cars, the ‘residences’ resemble large shacks, with tin roofs, unpainted walls, no driveways, and no attention paid to the yard.

In town we change money and then go shopping for food. Groceries are expensive of course, and in the stores hardly any fresh produce is available. Fish or meat are only available frozen or canned and very expensive. It all makes sense to the locals: they grow their own produce, and they catch their own fish. The baguette is cheap, and beyond that there is not much need to purchase anything.  Nevertheless, we still find plenty to stock up on!

There are two famous French men who lived and are buried in Atuona: Paul Gauguin, and Jacques Brel. The Gauguin museum is a let-down: there is a replica of the house he lived in, but it is unfurnished. His invaluable paintings of course are at renowned museums all over the world. At display here are renderings of Gauguins paintings by local artists.

When we left Atuona we had a close encounter with a catamaran that had anchored way too close to us the day before.  When we slowly pulled up our anchor to leave in the morning we came within a few feet of them.  We were glad that their anchor chain wasn't covering ours, or this could have turned into a very messy situation.  Fortunately there was also almost no wind or currents which would have made it even more tricky to control the distance between the boats.  When the crew of the other boat realized that we were preparing to leave they certainly got very nervous!