What a finale! Guests awoke for breakfast and sunrise as the ship positioned to our anchorage within the lagoon of Bora Bora. Our early start allowed us to get to a local hotspot to observe elasmobranchs while snorkeling before we moved to a neighboring motu. We were serenaded by local musicians and treated to a local dance whilst relaxing in the turquoise shallows.
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La orana and greetings! Welcome to beautiful Tahaa Island, known as the vanilla island of French Polynesia. Today National Geographic Orion anchored in the lagoon of Tahaa Island in French Polynesia. To start the day, we ventured to a vanilla plantation where we were hosted by plantation co-owner, Bryan. He explained the intricacies of planting, caring for, and harvesting the vanilla bean. Our visit was followed by snorkelling in a pristine lagoon off the shore of Mahaea Islet and a fantastic beach BBQ put together by Chef Lorenzo and his team. Needless to say, our guests welcomed the great variety of delicacies provided, not to mention the service from our incredible hospitality staff, led by Hotel Manager Fran and maître d’ Mio. The day’s outdoor activities ended with a swim with the whitetip sharks of Tahaa. An experience our guests could not stop talking about. Expeditions with Lindblad/National Geographic are about sharing unique moments and today was no exception. Photos by Alex Joesph and Tua Pittman
We awoke to a stunning sunrise as National Geographic Orion made her way through Tiputa Pass at the beautiful atoll of Rangiroa. What a way to start the day! The South Pacific swell greeted us as well, but that did not deter us from an amazing snorkel in the morning. We swam amongst the fish in Rangiroa’s Aquarium. The black and white striped sergeant majors were everywhere, joined by glistening blue fusiliers. An army of fish made for an incredible visit. After having lunch back on board the ship, we ventured off to Paul Gaugin’s Pearl Farm where we learned all about how to grow, harvest, and grade pearls. It really is quite an elaborate process. After our visit to the pearl farm, it was time for farewell cocktails on the sundeck with music from our cultural specialist, Kura. What a jam-packed perfect day. It is hard to believe the trip is nearly over. What a whirlwind of beauty we are so lucky to have experienced together!
This morning National Geographic Orion arrived at the beautiful island of Makatea. This uplifted coral island is a geological rarity, and its exposed cliff walls are topped with lush green vegetation. This island was once the site of a booming phosphorus mining operation with a couple thousand people residing here but is now home to under 100 islanders. After landing via our Zodiacs, local trucks took us up to an amazing overlook of the island and sea. We then hiked down to a cave entrance where hidden below was the most amazing grotto. Our undersea team used their lights to brighten it up and we had a swim in the refreshing waters. The hotel team from National Geographic Orion had a picnic lunch waiting for us near the beach under the coconut trees. It was a perfect day exploring this hidden gem of an island in French Polynesia.
