Sunday, November 30, 2003
pass the stuffing
The annual Thanksgiving get together was great as always. This one was a little different than most. We were lucky enough to have some of my friends from CTS join us this year. Becky and I wanted them to have a chance to enjoy the traditional family get together. In addition to the Thanksgiving regulars, we were joined by Venkat, Padhma, Vallalar, Santhi, and Kirthiga this year.
We hope everyone enjoyed it as much as Becky and I did. There is nothing better than gathering with friends and family to spend time together. Not to mention the fringe benefit of stuffing yourself until your immobile. (Vallalar was a napping casualty this year...)
I hope everyone's Thanksgiving went as well as ours did. Click here for the pictures from our celebration.
Today's Pictures (Day 5, October 22, 2003)
Our third full day on Moorea was a water day. I spent almost the entire day in the water. The morning was a dive out in the lagoon and the afternoon was snorkeling with Becky in the lagoon around our over the water bungalow. Even though the dive wasn't anything spectacular, any time in the ocean is good time as far as I am concerned.
Dive Info:
Time In: 8:59a - 3000 psi Time Out: 9:29a 1000 psi
Max Depth: 70 ft Bottom Time: 30 minutes (3 minutes safety stop)
Temps - Air: 85 F Surface: 77F Bottom: 77F
Visibility: 40 ft
I didn't see anything earth-shattering on this dive, but it was a pleasant dive all the same. We were confined to the lagoon once again because of the previous evening's weather. Our sightings were limited to standard reef fish, a puffer, and a tiny flounder. The conversation with the dive instructor on the boat after the dive was spectacular though. We sat for nearly 45 minutes talking about American and French diving -- their similarities and differences. We discussed travel and living in French Polynesia as well. It just goes to show you never know what the best part of a dive may be; it could be just sitting on the boat discussing your love of diving.
Saturday, November 29, 2003
Today's Pictures (Day 4, October 21, 2003)
Tuesday morning brought our first organized tour. We went out on a boat tour given by Mako Tours around the northern side of Moorea. The tour included two snorkeling stops and lunch on a private motu. It was a great morning and my first opportunity to be in the water with the famous Polynesian sharks.
When we loaded on the boat, we weren't sure how the tour was going to turn out. The weather wasn't looking good at all. It was overcast and lightly raining off and on. A forceful wind was blowing and the lagoon was full of white-rimmed waves with their jagged edges jutting from the surface. With the wind and the rain, the boat ride out to Cook's Bay was a rough, wet, and cold one.
It was while we were in the bay that we saw the dolphins. We were lucky enough to get brief glimpses of their backs as the pods swam through the bay. We would see the curve of several backs rise from the surface at a time. The pattern would repeat three or four times; then the pod would disappear again. After a short wait, they would give you another peek. It is as if they know how fascinated and anxious the visitors are to get to watch them in their habitat.
Sunday, November 16, 2003
Today's Pictures (Day 3, October 20, 2003)
We were up early again after our first night on Moorea. Watching the sun slowly peek out over Tahiti - casting its shimmers across the lagoon - was a sight I'll never forget. I only wish I could capture the right words to do the sunrise justice. In today's pictures, you'll see some of the photos I took of it. I'm pleased with them; I just wish the camera's eye was adept as our own.
I was in a hurry to finish breakfast this morning because I knew the next thing on the agenda was signing up for some dives. Prior to making the trip, I went ahead and purchased a full set of diving equipment, so I was anxious to give it a try in something other than a swimming pool.
I already owned mask, booties, fins, and snorkel -- like the majority of scuba divers. But, before making a journey this far for great diving, I wanted to have a complete set of equipment. So, with the help of ScubaToys here in Dallas, I got the rest of my gear -- a Zeagle Escape BCD, a TUSA RS-130 Regulator with a Dacor Viper Octopus, and a Genesis ReactPro Computer.
Sunday, November 9, 2003
Today's Pictures (Day 2, October 19, 2003)
The warm orange glow of the morning light let me know it was early when we awoke in Tahiti on our second day. However, I mistakenly thought it was around 8:30 in the morning. Only after getting up and checking the travel clock did I realize it was only 5:30. We soon learned during our trip that the sun comes up very early during that part of October. As a result, we found ourselves in bed earlier than we go to bed in the States; and we were up with the sun most mornings of the trip. There is little or no activity on the islands in the late evening anyway. Other than in Papeete, night life is almost nonexistent.
We headed down for breakfast at the hotel and our first experience with Tahitian Pineapple. I've never been much of a pineapple fan, but you can't resist this one! It is the sweetest pineapple I've ever tasted. Even the core is soft and delicious; this fruit doesn't require coring like its larger, spiny cousins. The other tropical fruits were wonderful as well, but nothing compared to that tiny pineapple.
After signing for our breakfast, we decided to spend a the morning at the pool. (At all of the hotels, you simply sign for anything that you want and it is billed to your room. It keeps your mind off the money you are spending, but can make check-out a worrisome experience.) I spent the morning swimming in the pool and enjoying the water; Becky read one of her books and enjoyed the Tahitian sun. It was great just to relax and recoup from the previous evening's transpacific flight.
I'm going to tell the story of our trip to the South Pacific running from the first day to the last. It is probably going to take a while since I want to try and give as much detail as I can without boring you with too much minutia. I'll do my best, but you'll have to forgive me if I get long winded. I'm still so exhilarated by the whole experience that I tend to prattle on.
As I complete each day's entry, I'll also update the associated pictures' descriptions and try to place them in correct chronological order. I'll include a link to the pictures for that day with the entry as well.
Today's Pictures (Day 1, October 18, 2003)
In typical Lennard vacation style, we finished packing the bags just in time to catch our ride with AirCar to take us out to DFW. However, as always, Becky had built plenty of time into our schedule. Even the security checks didn't create any issues for us being ready to board. We still had enough time to stop at TGIFriday's for a bite of "plastic knife friendly" fare before heading to the gate. Our American Airlines 767 took off at 12:15 pm for LAX. Now that we were situated on the airplane, we were able to really get excited about all the unknowns that lay ahead of us. We were really on our way!
Monday, November 3, 2003
back from paradise
Becky and I have safely returned from Paradise, but I can't say we are too happy about it. Our "once in a lifetime" trip to French Polynesia has started a love affair with the South Pacific. We are already trying to figure out how we can return sometime in the future. It was all we could have imagined and that much more!
In order to do the magnificence of the trip justice, I will be adding the complete story a couple of days at a time. In order to fulfill the old saying of "a picture is worth a thousand words", I have gone ahead an put all the photos up. Some of them still need editing and descriptions. I'll fill those in as I update the trip journal day by day. So, keep checking back of the next couple of weeks. I'll try to put in as much detail as I possibly can about the trip itself and the pictures that go along with it. Here are the links to all the pictures:
Off to bed for tonight... More to come tomorrow evening...
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