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Daily Expedition
Reports
27 Mar 2023
Taveuni Island, Fiji, 3/27/2023, National Geographic Orion
Aboard the
National Geographic Orion
French Polynesia & Pacific Islands
Today, we enjoyed the stunning island of Taveuni, both above and below the water. In the morning, it was all about the rainforest and waterfalls. A gorgeous hike led to an incredible viewpoint and a massive waterfall. The water was refreshing, and a nice jump into the pool was enjoyed by many.
In the afternoon, it was all about the ocean. Whether by snorkeling, diving, or tours in the glass-bottomed Zodiac, we experienced a beautiful reef with clouds of fish. Sunny skies and calm seas made it a perfect afternoon. Soon, however, it was time to head off and say goodbye, or “moce,” to Fiji.
Mike learned early on that the best way to escape Ohio was to become a marine biologist. During college at Wittenberg University he attended a semester at Duke University's Marine Lab — that time only confirmed his love for all things oceanic and ma...
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National Geographic Orion had a wonderful visit to the famous island of Bora Bora in French Polynesia! We spent the afternoon exploring this paradise-like island. The activities on offer were diving, snorkeling, visiting a motu (island) via catamaran, spending time at the beach, and a visit ashore to see what the town had to offer. Snorkeling offered the opportunity to spot some excellent marine life in the lagoon area of Bora Bora, including eagle rays, moray eels, octopus, pipefish, and various vibrant reef fish. While diving, we observed blacktip reef sharks, moray eels, reef fish, and stunning corals. The pristine white sand beach made for a great afternoon of relaxing and swimming, and a visit to town offered a great chance to find some Tahitian souvenirs! What a time to be alive! Photo caption and photographer: Visiting Bora Bora, French Polynesia. Photo by Todd Gooding
Today we started early for good reason. We are incredibly fortunate to be traveling with a group of cultural specialists, including Tua Pittman and Jennifer Kingsley. Tua and Jennifer are leading a new program to bring more Polynesian representatives on board as we travel through their home region of the South Pacific. Through this program, we have three other cultural specialists, Kura Happ, Ebony Peeni, and Matahi Tutavae. They have all shared an incredible wealth of knowledge throughout our journey. On this particular morning, Tua and Matahi hosted a navigation workshop. We learned about the use of star constellations in traditional Polynesian navigation. It was well worth the early rise to watch the sun come up over the horizon and learn how these methods were used to cross the Pacific Ocean. Tua and Matahi have firsthand knowledge. After this, we had a fantastic breakfast that flowed into a formal lecture from none other than Tua and Matahi. Their very intriguing presentation left us wanting to hear more about the intriguing subject of traditional navigation and how it is applied in the modern day. Before lunch, we enjoyed a fantastic presentation from Kura and Ebony on Kura’s experience on a modern voyaging canoe. Ebony also spoke about canoes and informed us about the significance of the modern-day war canoe. It was a day full of presentations with hotel manager Fran giving us a behind the scenes look at life on board National Geographic Orion for the crew. The last presentation of the day took place before a wonderful dinner. The topic was “Coral Reef Ecology,” and the presentation was delivered by undersea specialist Chris Cook, who is incredibly knowledgeable, handsome, and funny but still manages to do all of this with an equal balance of humbleness…a true gift to this expedition.
Today we arrived in Rarotonga, and our day started with a visit to the new “Vaka” called Paikea ! Paikea will be a classroom for Te Puna ote Marama, which is set to be launched on April 14. Our cultural navigator, Tua Pittman, and guest speaker Jennifer Kingsley explained the significance of the Vaka and how we can support or donate to this worthy cause. Later, our group explored the local township and visited local markets. The markets were bustling with activity, and we visited several stalls, including Paul's Hotsauce and Susan's skincare business, called Rito Cook Islands. The ukelele music, beautiful colors, and friendly people made the experience unforgettable. In the afternoon, we split into three groups for different tours. One group went on a guided bus tour around the island, and another group took a nature walk with Ariimoana. They saw different plantations of citrus, banana, taro, and pineapple. They also visited secret gardens and tried new fruits. The third group explored the island on bicycles. After the tours, we gathered back on the ship and had a recap of the day's events followed by an island buffet dinner. Overall, it was a fantastic day. We are looking forward to our next destination and adventures in Bora Bora. Photo caption and photographer: Visiting Rarotonga. Photo by Kura Happ