Night Sky on Moorea

Just walked back from the long little pier/dock stretching out over
the lagoon on our tip of the bend of the heart shaped coast of Moorea.
It's night and the air and water are warm, a bit breezy, needlefish
flipping around in the water, bright gobs of stars, the Milky Way, and
big constellations that I do not know, again, the Southern Cross.
Claude and Barbara are brave and creative as they reinvent a home on
this quiet part of the archipelago; we talked a lot about design and
material possibilities, about the French, about putting together
futures in a world with a consumer culture that shows little respect
for the past, or for that matter the present or the future.

My flight from Seattle to Hawaii was regular I guess, big 767, full,
lots of Asians, islanders, tourists. We were instructed to close the
windows so we could watch a movie the guy in the window seat
immediately did and then went to sleep, I told the flight attendant I
had to be next to an open window or I would get sick, that is sort of
true, impossible for me to travel over 3000 miles of ocean without
looking at it. So, they found an open seat for me toward the front
and I got to look at the Washington coast and hundreds of miles of
clouds on our way to Honolulu. Then floating in the mix of
atmospheres way up ahead to the left was a big bump, then some more
bumps, then we started descending, this was our approach to Hawaii.

As you near the airport you see the huge military installations, Air
Force, Navy, and probably a heck of a lot more. We land, debark,
5-hour layover, so I jump on a hotel shuttle to Waikiki. Find the
Moana Hotel, the old one, and walk out onto the beach with my carry-on
luggage, barefoot with my pant legs rolled up, Waikiki, with Diamond
Head beautifully in the background. Warm coral sand on my feet feels
so good, so does my stomach after I get a 12" Subway sandwich right
there at the beach. Made some phone calls and head backed to the
airport on a bus.

I arrive one and a half hours early to find out that there is a
mechanical problem on the plane and we won't be leaving until 10 pm.
Oh well, we get a $12 food voucher. I go and eat and have a beer in
the nice grill restaurant overlooking the tarmac. Had to do an
education thing with the restaurant manager and Hawaiian Airlines
manager regarding my bill and voucher payment, they probably won't
have that problem again. Back at the check-in counter all passengers
also got a $200 travel voucher, wow. Anyway the very European,
Polynesian, and actually Argentinean looking crowd boards and we
take-off.

5+ hours later, after getting a little bit of sleep, I see the lights
of Tahiti off in the distance, then I realize we are actually flying
over Moorea, I can see the outline of the island faintly with its
shoreline lights, the darker area just below us is the part of the
island where I'm going. Papeete is just over the on the other side,
much brighter lights and much bigger island. We land, we're down, and
it is very different already from Hawaii. I see many big broad-leafed
trees, low island style buildings, there seem to be no high rises, all
of the cars are smaller and very clean. There is a live band (at 4 in
the morning!) wearing green and yellow playing beautiful Tahitian
acoustic music as we enter the customs area, I am handed a lei.

I get through the line, get a 30 day visa, lots of Europeans, there
are the bags, there are mine, full of tools, heavy as sacks of
concrete, no one checks them, I roll out. Barbara and Claude have a
French speaking Polynesian woman taxi driver with my name on a sign
waiting there for me, all is well. Good, we now have a nice set of
tools for making a few changes on their house.

We drive on the clean little freeway shortly into Papeete, up a few
streets and into the hotel. I can't help noticing how everything here
is finer, delicately designed and looking quite different than Hawaii.
Our hotel feels very European, small and practical yet very handsome
and comfortable. After a short and joyous rendezvous at the room we
all try to get a bit of sleep.

Later that morning we approach the ferry, only a couple of blocks
away, stop and have a great coffee and croissant at a sidewalk café
typical of those in the Mediterranean. The catamaran ferry is big and
sleek, tourists, residents, and mainly Tahitians are lined up and
boarding, cars too. The green covered peaks of Tahiti with the gentle
trees mixed in with the low buildings of Papeete are behind us as we
pull out into the bright clear green lagoon and on to the blue water
heading toward Moorea.

Moorea has an unforgettable shape on the horizon, the ocean is gently
rolling, breeze is warm, everyone is speaking French. Gradually we
approach the harbor, back inside a lagoon again, this surrounds the
island like a ring, lined by the white breakers of the open ocean.
Fruit stands await the debarking passengers, little shuttle busses and
mini-vans and pick-ups too. We get in a small van, same Japanese ones
used in Bolivia, and begin our loop on the alley-sized tree packed
little road around to the far side of the island where Claude and
Barbara live, the northwest shore, a great location a hundred feet
back from the lagoon.

Actually a night has passed since all of this and I wake up this
morning, Monday, to a very breezy but warm day. They say this much
breeze is a bit unusual this time of year, it is supposed to be dry
and clear now, the rains are unusual, but pleasant because it feels so
good, just makes the lagoon choppier. The wind is great for the score
of kite boarders at the beach. Last night, Sunday, we talked about
designs and work processes, we are all excited about getting this deck
and veranda project going, along with a ceiling removal inside too. A
young American guy with a Tahitian wife will be helping me today on
demolition; we'll do as much of that now as possible. I'm still
working on the plans too, but there are clearly some elements of this
place we want removed.

All in all, this is not a big place, but its location is perfect.
Nice mountain view within earshot of the waves, no roads or cars in
sight. Claude and Barbara don't need a car here and can walk to Le
Petit Village, the name of the little town a few hundred feet down the
little road. So, this is the beginning. Today will be planning, some
demolition, connecting with another builder guy, also and American,
who will probably do some of the work. The goal is to have this done
by the time I leave on August 13, in fact, done before that so we can
all have some vacation. We will all be working on this as a team. By
the way, you don't need much clothing around here, day or night,
sleeping with nothing more than a sheet is adaquate. Lots of the
French tourists at the beach are topless, big deal, we are behind the
scenes doing a remodel.