Long, long time ago, in previous life, so about 2013 I saw a photo on instagram. The photo stayed in my mind and I was hoping to see the place with my own eyes one day. This day was today. Moorea is beautiful, a volcanic island with sharp, green peaks rising suddently from the sea. Lush green tropical forest and tiny villages tightly fitted in between the mountain and the sea. Endless space of the blue sky dotted with clouds moving swiftly above your head. And the stars, so many of them and The Milky Way shining brightly in the night. You can spend hours just enjoying the view.
We always wanted to go there yet from Poland’s perspective this is an adventure for the rich with flight only costing not less than $2000 for one person and then accommodation – think super expensive resorts with wooden huts in the water – coming on top. Nevertheless we were still looking for options and luck. Finally on a cold and damp evening in Vietnam I was randomly clicking through Google Flights and then boom… a flight from Hawaii for all 4 of us costing less than a single ticket from Poland. One wine later we decided to go for it and figure out the rest later. I still do not know if Vietnam’s weather did not contribute to the decision. Nevermind – we got the tix.
After 5-6 months on the road we already knew that it is possible to find cheaper, not so popular options to stay even in the most expensive places. It just takes some patience and google-fu to find them. So it was this time. An airbnb with hardly any photos popped up. It had great reviews though and we decided to go for it again. Now we know it was a great choice. Our hut is wooden even though it is not in the water, just some 200 meters from it. Green garden, friendly dog and two cats (the playful Simba and the unknown one). Open kitchen and quite basic living conditions but we do not need more. In fact, given the weather here, you do not need more at all. It is just perfect.
The addresses here are divided into those on the sea side of the road and the mountain side of the road. We are on the mountain side, second house, opposite the bus stop. Opunohu bay, next to Tropical Garden. The taxi driver did not need more directions. There is one road around the island and it took us less than two hours to do the trip. Tiny villages dot the map and life is very lazy here. This is probaby the best place in the European Union, it is just well… on the other side of the globe. The French knew where to have their colonies. This place is so similar to Mauritius that I instantly feel I belong here and do not want to go back even more. A choice of living just for the sake of living and enjoying every day versus a life off scoring achievements in a game that the society taught us to follow.
Tomorrow is snorkeling day.
