I'm really happy today. But it has little to do with my new locale. Although very beautiful, there just isn't a whole lot to do in Moorea, the island to the west of Tahiti. And I'm not exactly in a prime spot (more on that below). The prime spot being the Sofitel, which is on the north shore of the island, and which costs $1000/night. If you've ever seen travel guides about French Polynesia featuring the thatched-roof bungalows that sit on top of the water, there's a good chance you were looking at the Sofitel. There are accomodations in between the Sofitel and my rinky dink bungalow at Motel Albert, both in terms of cost and grandeur. But even modest Motel Albert is pushing the limits of my budget. And by saving money on the lodgings, I feel more comfortable booking a tour or a show, or going out to a fancy dinner. It'll be my totally grungy clothes will make me feel uncomfortable at a fancy dinner lol.
I got from Tahiti to Moorea by ferry. On my tour to Uluru in Australia, two of the women were from Tahiti -- Josie and Genevieve. Sadly, they left home for another trip the day before I arrived here, so I couldn't see them again, but they did give me some tips about the area. Like, to take the slow ferry instead of the fast one. I'm glad I did, the ride was so beautiful, it was worth the extra time. And there were only about 10 people on the whole boat, so I could leave my stuff without worrying about it as I wandered around to take photos.
The fast ferry left just before the slow one, and it was packed. It's not like I was in a big hurry to get from one island to another, so why go fast? It did mean I missed the island-wide bus (not sure why there is one after the first ferry and not the second?) but a cab cost only a few dollars more and took me straight to my motel, so no big deal. I did haggle with the lady cab driver; I don't know if that's common here, but unlike before my trip, I now know it's possible to haggle a lot of things, and sort of how to do it. I even did it one night with a taxi driver in Australia, and got a reduction on my metered rate. I can't wait to try out my new skill while consignment shopping back home.
The other tip that Josie and Genevieve gave me was staying at Motel Albert, which is among the shabbiest places I've stayed on this trip (and yet, the second most expensive, after Tahiti). Having said that, it's one of the only places on the island that's less than $100/night, so I'm more grateful they recommended it than disappointed. My bungalow is very big-- almost as big as my apartment in D.C. Too bad it's lit by three 40-watt lightbulbs. It's also clean, although now that it's nighttime, some wormy millipede type bugs are slowly creeping in. And sadly, while wifi is available, it is the most expensive I've found anywhere, far more than the occassional $4/hour I paid in Australia, or the $10/day asked by a few backpacker inns (which I usually didn't have to pay anyway because it was easy to mooch free wifi). I thought those were pricey. But here I could buy one hour for $12 or 10 hours for "only" $60. So I'll see how long I last before I get bored or antsy enough to buy a few hours' worth. I cannot complain about the views, though. These are out my front and of my bungalow:
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| Heading towards Moorea. |
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| Almost as clear and blue as ake Erie. |
The other tip that Josie and Genevieve gave me was staying at Motel Albert, which is among the shabbiest places I've stayed on this trip (and yet, the second most expensive, after Tahiti). Having said that, it's one of the only places on the island that's less than $100/night, so I'm more grateful they recommended it than disappointed. My bungalow is very big-- almost as big as my apartment in D.C. Too bad it's lit by three 40-watt lightbulbs. It's also clean, although now that it's nighttime, some wormy millipede type bugs are slowly creeping in. And sadly, while wifi is available, it is the most expensive I've found anywhere, far more than the occassional $4/hour I paid in Australia, or the $10/day asked by a few backpacker inns (which I usually didn't have to pay anyway because it was easy to mooch free wifi). I thought those were pricey. But here I could buy one hour for $12 or 10 hours for "only" $60. So I'll see how long I last before I get bored or antsy enough to buy a few hours' worth. I cannot complain about the views, though. These are out my front and of my bungalow:
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