Currency:
Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique - Franc Pacifique (XFP)

Highlights:
Pure paradise, amazing diving, transparent multicoloured waters, living our dream

Our Adventure Summarised:

For those of you who know Lara and I you will know that Bora Bora has always been our dream honeymoon destination and when we started planning our World Tour Bora Bora was the first place that we pinned on our travel map! It was truly now time for us to live our dream and visit the magical 'Pearl of the South Seas' which is located in the middle of the South Pacific about halfway between South America and Australia.

Bora Bora is an island located in the Society Islands in Tahiti and is part of French Polynesia. French Polynesia with 260 000 inhabitants is located over 18 000 km from France and includes 120 islands spread over five archipelagos covering some 4.5 million kilometres in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

The Society Islands, the largest, is composed of 9 high islands and 5 atolls split into two groups: the Windward Islands (Tahiti, Moorea, Maiao, Tetiaroa and Mehetia) and, further West, the Leeward Islands (Huahine, Raiatea, Tahaa, Bora Bora, Maupiti, without forgetting the uninhibited islets of Tupai, Mopelia, Scilly and Bellingshausen).

After saying some very sad goodbyes to Ian, Sal, Ben, Hannah and Luke Lara and I very excitedly jumped onto our Tahiti Nui flight from LAX and began our 8 1/2 hour flight over the Pacific ocean to Papeete in Tahiti.

Maeva (Welcome) to Tahiti! Tahiti's official language is French, but most of the Tahitians speak Reo Mao'hi amongst themselves however English is also widely spoken throughout.

As we disembarked the plane at Tahiti Faa'a airport we were met with the beautiful sound of Tahitian music emanating from the airport terminal which was being played by three men playing an assortment of various musical instruments. As we picked up our bags and cleared customs we were met with leis and friendly smiles and escorted to the check in desk where we could check into our flight from Papeete to Bora Bora. After immediately being bumped onto an earlier flight we knew that this was going to be the start of one of the most amazing weeks of our lives.

First things first we headed to the ATM to get some of the local currency, Pacific Francs, which actually has a very strong resemblance to Monopoly money. Our flight was boarding soon and we were rather hungry so we spotted a McDonalds which was the only thing that we could get quickly and make it in time to board our flight. Strangely enough McDonalds in French Polynesia do not sell any hamburgers or fries but we did however sample the toasted Panini's and Frappucinos which were both unbelievable. Thumbs up McDonalds, French Polynesia!

We then boarded our plane Tahitian Air plane headed for Bora Bora.

The plane ride was unbelievable and the islands of Tahiti all look absolutely amazing from the air. As we descended on Bora Bora we knew then and there that this was possibly the most beautiful place on earth.

Bora Bora got its name from the Tahitian words Pora Pora meaning 'First Born' and is surrounded by a lagoon and a barrier reef. In the centre of the islands are the remnants of an extinct volcano rising to two peaks, Mount Pahia and Mount Otemanu.

Bora Bora's lagoon is one of the most beautiful lagoons in the world. It s shades from turquoise to deep blue and its string of white sanded islets are worth its fame. The transparent multicoloured waters contrast with the lush greens of Mounts Otemanu and Pahia. The friendliness of its 5 800 islanders, all dedicated to their sacred mission of giving the best welcome to the visitor, is truly unique in this world.

Bora Bora native islanders know that they live in an earthly paradise and their only care, their only true pride, is to share their pleasant lifestyle with their visitors as this place is the ultimate blessing from the gods. Relax and enjoy: that's what Bora Bora is all about.

We touched down at Aeroport de Bora Bora which is located in the north of Bora Bora on Motu Mute (Motu meaning 'islet'). The airport is the only thing on the Motu and we had our own private water taxi waiting for us to take us to Motu Tevairo which is in the north west and the location of the Bora Bora Pearl Beach Resort (which we later found out has been voted one of the leading hotels in the world). As we arrived at the Bora Bora Pearl Beach Resort we were greeted with more leis and welcome drinks and escorted to our overwater bungalow. Three words: Oh my word. The website doesn't do it enough justice but does offer a cool overview of the bungalows: http://www.bora-bora-resort.org/bora/

The bungalow was perfect and had all the luxuries of a top class hotel room with the best feature being the ladder which extended down from our bungalow's deck into the turquoise see-through waters - the most unbelievable coloured water I have ever seen. As well as that, our room had a skylight in the floor where you could view the abundant and colourful fish life - all without even getting your feet wet.

Sunset was getting closer and we decided to head over to the mainland via water taxi to explore Vaitape which is the major settlement on the western side of the island and it is opposite the main channel into the lagoon. We headed into Vaitape and had a little explore and then picked up some cheese, wine and crackers (this was meant to save us money from going out to dinner but that idea lasted two nights!) and then jumped back on the water taxi to catch our first Bora Bora sunset from our own deck.

We spent the rest of the evening drinking wine and eating cheese and soaking up the beauty of Bora Bora.

You can view our photos here:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=356085&id=713415257&l=e6da83fcca

As soon as we woke up the next morning we jumped off of our deck and had a swim in the amazing lagoon where we spotted room service being delivered by boat - absolutely awesome. After a quick outdoor shower on our deck we headed for our buffet breakfast at one of the hotels restaurants called Tevairo which has a spectacular view of the lagoon and Mount Otemanu.

After a truly scrumptious breakfast we decided to explore the resort and spa and on our exploration mission we came across To'A Nui (Coral Nursery), our own private beach, a private dive centre, multiple hammocks, long stretches of white sands, see-through blue seas, palm trees, the magnificent Manea Spa, wet bikes, grass tennis courts, beach volleyball courts, infinity pools, beach loungers… pretty much whatever you could want in paradise, this place had it.

We decided to kick back and relax at the pool and then had lunch at Miki Miki, another of the hotels restaurants. Miki Miki offered a selection of grilled specialties, pizzas, salad, sandwiches and typical Polynesian dishes - all very delicious.

After lunch we decided to go for a snorkel around To'A Nui which is the Coral Nursery close to the overwater bungalows. The coral nursery 'Toa Nui' (which means large coral in Tahitian) offers a unique and privileged experience for hotel guests: It helps with preservation of the endangered coral population, it makes guests aware of the problem and it attracts new fish species to the area. It was truly amazing to be able to jump off of our deck and have some of the most amazing snorkelling right on our doorstep.

That night we headed to the Taurearea Bar which has beautiful views of the lagoon and enjoyed some sundowners at the bar while listening to some live Tahitian music. We then headed back to our deck to have some more drinks while absorbing the serenity and reflecting on a great day in paradise.

You can view our photos here:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=356098&id=713415257&l=296c5a42e8

The next morning we were up bright and early and headed to the Bora Bora Blue Nui Dive Centre to meet our guide Phillipe who would be taking us on our two tank dive for the day. We got to the centre and grabbed our gear and jumped on the boat where Phillipe asked us what we would like to see on our dives and after telling him sharks and turtles we selected the dive sites Muri Muri and Tapu.

Off we set on our adventure and it was great to see the waves crashing on the reef that outlines the lagoon and we headed north towards the airport where our first dive site was. The most amazing thing was that there was not another boat or diver in site and we had the whole of the South Pacific ocean to ourselves.

The two dives that following can only be described as mind-blowing and some of the best diving that Lara and I have ever done. A brief summary of the dives is as follows:

Muri Muri:

• 10 Grey Tip Reef Shark
• 2 Black Tip Reef Shark
• Schools of Barracuda
• Massive Moray Eel
• Sea Turtle
• Parrot, Angel, Trumpet and Trigger Fish
• …

Tapu:

• 3 Lemon Shark
• 6 Black Tip Reef Shark
• Guinea Fowl Puffer
• Slender Suckerfish (which liked me a lot and seemed to think I was a shark so it sucked my legs for half of the dive - unlike my wife who did not like the feeling and gave the little guy a flatty)
• ...

After two absolutely amazing dives we headed back to the hotel and had lunch at Miki Miki followed by an afternoon of chilling by the pool.

As the sun was setting we jumped in the jacuzzi that looked over the lagoon and up toward the mountain and chilled out and took in all the beauty that Bora Bora had to offer.

We finished off the evening with sundowners on our deck and a delicious dinner at the hotel at Tevairoa.

You can view our photos here:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=356101&id=713415257&l=8c7e73a37e

We woke up on our final day at Bora Bora Pearl Beach Resort to another absolutely stunning day and continued our morning ritual of jumping off of the deck into the turquoise lagoon. We lapped up the sunshine and our surroundings before having to pack our bags to head off to the other side of Bora Bora and to our new home for the next few nights, the Bora Bora Sofitel.

Mauruuru (Thank you) Bora Bora Pearl Beach Resort you helped us live our dream and you exceeded all of our expectations.

You can view our photos here:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=356106&id=713415257&l=091c6aa2a5

Nana (Goodbye) Bora Bora Pearl Beach Resort!
Leise + Lara