New Airbnb in Arue, Whales & Moray Eel
After our two weeks of vacation in paradise, it’s already time to head back to Tahiti. JB never thought he’d say this, but he’s “sad to be coming back to Tahiti.” Whereas before, for us, Tahiti = paradise. After visiting the smaller islands, it’s easier to understand why Polynesians find Tahiti as awful as Paris (too many people, too much pollution, too much noise). The ferry ride is very long (departure at 9:30 am, arrival at 4 pm).
New Airbnb in Arue
On top of that, we’re in a new Airbnb in Tahiti, so the next day (Sunday), we have to go pick up the suitcases left at JB’s colleague’s place in Puna’auia to bring them to Arue (our new address). That eats up a whole morning. We discover that Tahiti has been in a drought for two weeks. No worries, as soon as we get back to Tahiti, it pours rain for a week! You’re welcome!
The new Airbnb is exactly like in my dream: bungalow – garden – beach.
Our bungalow is on the road side so it’s a bit noisy. But it’s not too bad when we close all the windows. The garden opens onto a stretch of the beach (the coral side of Lafayette Beach). It’s a very dangerous beach with hidden currents, but our “private” beach has corals that act as protection so it’s not dangerous, fortunately. Even though the sand is black, you can still see the corals and fish quite well.
In the garden there’s even a bungalow where yoga classes and massages are regularly held.
While shopping at Carrefour, we come across 256GB microSD cards that I’ve been looking for ever since mine got full right during snorkeling. Tahiti may be the Paris of Polynesia, but at least you can find the products you need at a reasonable price (64GB U1 sold for €45 in Bora Bora and here 256GB U3 V30 sold for €60!!!). As soon as we got back from shopping, our landlord sends us a message: “There are whales” right in front of the garden. By the time we get there, the whales are already far away, but with our binoculars and the boats circling them, we manage to locate them. They make themselves known easily thanks to their water spouts. We clearly see the dorsal fin then the tail, and they disappear for a long time. That means we’ll have the chance to see them regularly in the area. We’ve booked a whale excursion for next week, I hope we’ll have some nice photos to show you.
The snorkeling is pretty good, JB spotted a small blacktip shark. I’m sharing a short video:
Arue is closer to Papeete so even though JB has unlimited remote work, it’s more convenient for him to go to the office from Arue. It’s only 15 minutes by scooter vs. 45 minutes before. It also allows me to go to the Sunday markets (which end very early) without sacrificing my sleep.
An unexpected encounter
A former business school classmate saw my Bora Bora photos and suggested we meet up again. He thought I was on vacation in Polynesia. I was delighted to learn that he lived in Tahiti, because I’ve always found him intelligent and with a way of thinking different from most people. My school attracted that type of person, a bit neurodivergent, a bit polymath, often the obsessive type.
He settled in Tahiti a few years ago and he’s the very first person I know “in the flesh” who is truly FIRE (Financial Independence, Retire Early). His children are homeschooled because he feels the school level here is too low. In any case, in the middle of the week, we were able to spend long hours chatting (about Claude Code, among other things), with his wife as well, take the kids to the park… all in incredible serenity. It was really nice to be able to share that moment with them, without that feeling of having to chase after time.
I think the main cost associated with children is ultimately their education and childcare. If, in the future, robots and AI become capable of taking care of children in a personalized way, and even more effectively than school, allowing them to spend less time studying while absorbing more information, and therefore more time playing – then educational inequalities could take another form. They would no longer depend only on the quality of the school the child has access to, but on the parents’ ability to make the most of AI for their child.
Moorea
Our inter-island passes are still valid so we do a round trip to Moorea for a day pass at Sofitel Moorea (12,000XPF/person). Passing by the viewpoint overlooking the Sofitel, we notice way too many cars and scooters and people looking at the left side of the viewpoint (whereas usually the most surprising view is on the right side). We stop and discover two whales in the distance. Since we’re up high, we can see very well even though the whales are far away. Too bad I don’t have binoculars with me, I slept little so I didn’t pack my things well this morning.
We first stop at the agricultural high school passing by the Pineapple Road for an ice cream. The tiaré ice cream here tastes like a real tiaré flower, I feel like I’m eating a flower, unlike other ice cream brands. I’m savoring it.
Then, we go to the Sofitel. It’s the third time we’ve come here so we know the place by heart. We have lunch right away. The sky is cloudy, hence the lack of light in the photos.
Before touring the bungalows and the pier. Last time, they were under repair so we only explore them today. We run into American tourists who are so so happy with the hotel, the transparency of the water and the variety of fish.
It’s low tide right now, the water is super calm, unlike the last times we came. From the bungalow decks, we can see all the fish. So no need for snorkeling.
I still go in the water because there are anemones not far from the deck that I’m interested in.
I spend a good while there until JB comes to get me. I go around to show him the anemones and he shows me a HUGE fish. I immediately recognize a moray eel and since my feet are only 20 cm from the fish, I jump back and move away right away. Moray eels always have their mouths open to breathe and we know their bite is very powerful. People can die from the infection. This one is particularly beautiful with spots on its body (you can’t see it in the photo because we’re filming it from 3 meters away ahaha). I’d say it’s as big as a large salmon, which is really scary.
I’ll let you discover all that in video. I couldn’t film the whales though:
I’m starting to recognize almost all the fish we regularly see while snorkeling now. At the Sofitel, apart from 2 very large fish that I’ve never seen in my life, all the others have been seen while snorkeling. The little blue ones are still my favorites, they always hide in corals. The Nemo clownfish weren’t home today, we’ll see them another time, I hope.
Before returning to Tahiti, we go back to the viewpoint and see again 2 other whales. This time, we can clearly see the tail and there were only 6 tourists at the spot. A magical moment!!!
