I had some preconceived notions of what Hiva Oa would look like. As I did research to prepare for our adventures in French Polynesia, I had watched videos from others that had already travelled to the Marquesas and Hiva Oa in particular. What Giselle and I experienced first hand exceeded our expectations.
As we walked through the town of Atuona, we noticed the welcoming fragrance of beautiful flowers that were everywhere around us. The people we came across all greeted us with a friendly, “Bonjour” and a smile.
The town looked very tidy and well kept. The scenery beyond was breathtaking. The mountains towered over the town. Clouds covered the top of the highest peak. As we walked further into the town we came across what looks like a park with covered areas on two sides of an open field. There were several Tikis in and around this park or cultural center.
It did not take long for us to walk up an appetite. Neither one of us had eaten breakfast in all the excitement of making landfall. We headed over to a restaurant named “Mokai O Mango” and had a celebratory lunch that consisted of ribeye steaks with mashed potatoes.
The following day, we rented a car and drove to the other side of the island to see the tikis in Puamau, Hiva Oa. The largest tiki in French Polynesia is among several large tikis in the historical site there.
After walking around the site and viewing the tikis, we got back in the car and drove back across the island to the little town of Ta’Aoa, where we found a church in a beautiful setting.
Before we even made it to the town, we looked up and saw a few waterfalls. Once we made it to the church and parked, we looked around and were awestruck by its beauty.
On this side of the mountain, we counted at least ten waterfalls. Beauty was all around, though, in large and small scales.
We took it all in for a while, listening to the waves crash against the shore nearby.
After a while, we got back into the rental car, drove into Atuona, and bought some groceries, including a baguette! This is French Polynesia, after all. We drove back to the port, dropped off the rental car, and made it back to Evenstar as the sun was beginning to set. As we were sitting there, we saw a few outrigger canoe teams out in the bay practicing. That was a quintessential Polynesian scene and a perfect way to end our day on this beautiful island.
We had spent a wonderful day exploring the island of Hiva Oa and getting a glimpse of all its beauty. We had even higher expectations for our next stop, Fatu Iva.
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