Before it becomes a big blur, I've decided I'd better jot down a bit about our time in Huahine! We got off the plane from Tahiti and were immediately struck by how small the airport was. We then met Flora, the pension caretaker, who was buzzing with information; she was a little stressed from our plane's delay and decided the way to make up for that was to speak super quickly. We didn't realize, or more likely didn't remember, that we had decided to stay on a motu (small islet) instead of the main island. What this meant was that we had to stop at a supermarket and buy all our food for the next four nights, so that we could be ferried out to the motu where we would apparently have the island to ourselves for the next two nights.

Flora quickly warned us that the mosquitoes were terrible, dengue had been found on the neighbouring island, the dropping coconuts were plentiful and deadly, and though sharks were not an issue, we'd better watch out carefully for the stone fish that if stepped on would make you wish you were dead. We were left wondering what we'd gotten ourselves into!!

As it turned out, the motu was beautiful, but it was indeed isolated, rustic and VERY mosquito filled!! Our bungalow had a sand floor and cut out windows. Our private bathroom was in another hut just behind our sleeping bungalow- surprisingly with a flush toilet, cold water shower and also a sand floor. We loved making use of the kayaks to get around to the nearby pearl farm in the middle of the lagoon, the odd traditional fish traps in the salt water river, the temple ruins, even the sacred blue-eyed eels. We even got a boat taxi over to the main island and rented a car for one day to see everything else, vistas, a vanilla plantation, and the main town of Fare, but we had to be back on the motu by 5:30 because it gets dark here so early.

This meant that Brian was asleep before 7:00 every night, and I spent time reading trashy novels other travelers had left behind. If it hadn't been for the terrible mosquitoes, the uncomfortable beds and the crazy humidity that left everything damp…always…including the uncomfortable beds, the place would have been wonderful. As it was, we got tired of being dirty and sweaty and salty, so three nights was enough, and we stayed in town for our final night. Hooray for hot water, much needed laundry, a chance to see the first night of the Heiva festival, not cooking for ourselves, air conditioning, and a couple of hours of bad TV- the only show that wasn't in French was Bull.

Overall, Huahine is a beautiful and sleepy little island. We very much enjoyed our time there, but three nights was definitely enough. Time for Raiatea! We've heard mixed reviews about it, so it'll be interesting to see how we feel!