Day 8: Living in Luxury

Hello! I’m Leah, a recent graduate of Cal Poly. I earned my Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and am super excited to apply my skills to field work in French Polynesia!

Day 8 of our trip started bright and early, as a bus arrived at our beach house at 5 am, ready to whisk us off to our next adventure: Tetiaroa. We all gathered our lab supplies, packed away our fins and snorkels safely, and said goodbye to Temae and Moorea as we boarded back onto the ferry.

We were among a wide array of passengers. Some were embarking on long journeys, hugging their family at the curbside. Many commute from Moorea to Tahiti for work and school instead of permanently residing on one. French Polynesia’s only university is on Tahiti, and the ferry ride is only about 30 minutes. I think it’s a pretty cool commute, complete with gorgeous sunrises and a café right on the main deck. 

The sky slowly turned a light blue, then pink and purple as the day decided to join us. Just as we got comfy in our seats, the boat docked in Papeete and we gathered our pile of luggage from below. We then loaded into cabs (less chaotic than I thought it would be) and were brought to our next dock, right underneath the InterContinental. 

To get to Tetiaroa, there’s two options: boat or plane. Planes are typically reserved for guests of the Brando (very important people). Typically, a small ship ferries employees and guests of the research station. However, this boat has been broken for an indeterminant amount of time, which means a catamaran (yes, a catamaran!) was set to take us on the island. I’ve sailed on many boats, and I can say that this is the nicest boat I’ve been on. We made sure to take our shoes off before hoping aboard, organizing our luggage into a neat pile and getting comfy as we moseyed out of Papeete Harbor. The boat had lounging areas, tables to drink (free!) coffee, and plenty of views to go around. 

One thing I learned on this trip is that some of the world (sans North and South America) follow a different buoyage system. As we left the harbor, red buoys were on our right, reverse to how they are in the States. “Red, right, return” is a saying drilled into every sailor’s mind as they learn to navigate harbors. Here, it’s flipped! Red buoys on the left when returning into the harbor is the norm here. 

Once we left the harbor, we started to speed up and slowly left Tahiti and Moorea behind. Not much sat ahead in the distance. In fact, I didn’t even believe we were heading towards one until I looked on a map. Around us on three sides was all blue waters. Some in the group sat on the nets down below, while others hung out above. The trip to Tetiaroa took roughly 3 hours by boat, but it went by very quickly. Some of us got some much needed rest after the early wake up. I also learned that Dramamine, while a bit of a miracle drug in terms of eradicating seasickness, also made me very drowsy. I definitely dozed off once or twice. 

We docked on a buoy right outside of the coral reef that surrounds Tetiaroa, and then we were taken to the island in smaller groups. Then we arrived at the research station! Unlike the beach house, we are staying in dorm-like rooms and shared bathrooms. Next to the dorms is the lab, which has both an outside component and inside wet lab. Some groups got all their stuff unpacked and ready to go for more sampling. We then walked around the tip of the island a bit and explored. People immediately started brainstorming projects, including looking at the chemistry of the dredged parts of the lagoon, and following the current with probes and a kayak.  We went to a beach that is so shallow that you can walk out at least 500 feet and only be up to your knees. It’s been amazing to explore and enjoy both Moorea and Tetiaroa, two places so unfamiliar to me yet so breathtaking and steeped in tradition and culture. I have learned so much on this trip so far, most of which being things more intangible than data points. Being able to interact with this place so closely and to learn about it through the lens of local knowledge and impact has been a deeply rewarding experience, and I cannot wait to see what the second half of this trip brings.