Orana!

Another relatively early morning. Breakfast at the Otemanu breakfast buffet and then to the dock at 8:15 am. The hotel taxis brought us to the base again. We had booked a scooter rental through Avis. They had a driver waiting for us at the beach. We were brought to the rental shop to complete the paperwork and get our helmets. Although Alex had driven a scooter before, he made a loop around the building to ensure he still had it before I got on. It took us approximately two hours to loop the outer road of the island, which also included a brief stop at Matria Beach. It is the only public beach in Bora Bora, which is perfect!

We then went back to places that grabbed our attention to explore further. We went to Laorana Gealto.

The Tiare Market.

And of course, the highly recommended Bloody Mary’s Restaurant.

It was just ok. I have had to translate and screenshot a phrase to have it ready. Servers assume I must dislike my food since I don’t clear my plate. We also learned a lesson about being here in the rainy season. Don’t leave your scooter helmets hanging from the handles when you go into lunch 😉.

Initially, the scooter rental was until 4:30, but by 2:30, we were ready to head back. We dropped off our scooter, and Avis brought us back to Le Bora Bora base, where we caught an early boat ride back to the motu.

I stopped at the concierge desk to make dinner reservations at Otemanu restaurant and finalized our Monday plans. Alex unpacked our bounty, and then we got in our suits and floaties for an hour before getting ready for dinner. We snapped some nice shots on our walk to the restaurant.

Dinner started with an amuse-bouchè, a sea scallop with vegetables.

For the starter course, we ordered the pressed foie gras with smoked tuna, coconut brioche, Taha’a vanilla & pineapple chutney, and the Korori carpaccio with mango and pink berries dressing. Korori is the mother of pearl’s muscle. It grows in warm Polynesian waters, in the purest environment. It is a dish loved by all Polynesians. It was served here sublimated by mango, a fusion between Fenwa and France. The foie gras/tuna had an upcharge of $7.50 and gave Alex indigestion for several days.

We ordered the Grilled Black Angus rib eye steak, crushed potatoes with truffle oil and Porto jus, and the Asian-style duck breast, worked carrots, and local citrus touch for our main course.

We finished the meal off with dessert. Alex ordered the Trompe l’oeil, lemon ganache, mint & lemon while I ordered the Chocolate, coconut mousse with a brunoise of Polynesian fruits. Mine was so good I had to move it to Alex’s side of the table so I would stop picking at it. I also ordered two lungo espressos ($10)

Of course we took more photos on the way back to our bungalow including some up-close photos/video of the black-tip sharks.

When we returned to the bungalow, we tried out some mixed drinks with the fruit juice we had purchased at the market and this find.

Nana 🕯️