Raiatea, 8-9-2017

By David

Since we haven't done anything exciting yet here in Raiatea, we thought we'd post a potpourri of photos from the past week.

Paradise lost.  This is where we took refuge behind a motu on our arrival to Raiatea, before we were kicked out.  

There's a bocci competition every evening by the waterfront.  The guy in the circle is really good.  Well, not quite as good as my bocci partner Joe Page, but really good.  I'd love to see them in a match.  

 When we checked into French Polynesia we had to put up a bond equal to the cost of an airline ticket out of the country.  Yesterdays task was to get our bond back.  It's a process that starts with getting a form stamped at the gendarmerie, then to the bank to get the cash.  In our case it was complicated by the fact that we now have actual tickets out and want our bond back, but won't be leaving the country for a couple more weeks.  
After some initial confusion with the officer at the front desk, the stern-faced supervisor was called out & we figured we were in for a major hassle.  We were so wrong.  As it turned out, not only did he immediately understand our unusual situation, but spoke English and had a great sense of humor.  15 minutes later we were on our way to the bank.

The bank on the other hand was a study in unbelievable inefficiency.  This is the scene when we arrived at the bank.

So, we took number 45 and settled in for a long wait... 

...since the counter was only at 27...

...and despite having room for 3 tellers, only one was working.  If you could call the glacial pace working.  An hour later when we finally got to the teller, there were umpteen forms to be copied and signed, phone calls to be made, yadda yadda yadda.   Not since Mexico in the old days have we seen such profound inefficiency.
Happily, in the end we did get our bond back.  

Minimus at the dock in the Uturoa Marina, Raiatea.  We hope to hike the trail to the top of the peak in the background once we're out from under our to-do list.