I'm Baaaaack...A few quick pics & then I gotta unpack

[SoCalDem]

Our hotel lobby/bar/restaurant (taken from the beach)


The little "motu" (island near the hotel)


A local guy with the sting rays (they actually come up to you and "sit" on your lap)


The beach (looking west towards the reef)


I have tons more pics, but I have been "in transit" since 11 am YESTERDAY, and I am pooped :)

I never found a reliable internet hook-up, so I wasn't able to check in like I had hoped.. They did have internet service at the hotel , but the staff did not speak understandable enough english for me to be brave enough. It sounded to me like it was $5.00 a minute, and I am too cheap to pay that... I DID miss you all though, especially when Ahhhhnold became my new governator :(

[ewagner]

1. Welcome back

I'm sooooo jealous.

Great pics..........

[MuseRider]

2. Welcome home!

You pics are just beautiful. I want to hear much about it, I have always wanted to go there and scuba. From land locked Kansas, please have pity and give us a few stories after you rest up.

[greatauntoftriplets]

3. Welcome back!

What great photos. Are you happy you went, even though it was such a long flight? Happy you went, SoCal. Sorry what happened in California while you were gone.

[KittyWampus]

4. Thanks For Sharing

Great photos... it looks like paradise... but then you're an angel

[Booberdawg]

5. Welcome back!!!

[SoCalDem]

6. Here's a link to some of the others.. Haven't uploaded the other disc yet

http://socaldem.smugmug.com/gallery/29393/1

(or edited them yet).. I only found out I had a viewfinder on the next to last day, so there are lots of duplicative-ish ones :P

[KoKo]

30. How was the food. Looks scrumptuous from pics, but what's most popular

dish there? I would think Pork and somewhat oriental, but am curious. What spices do they use the most.

When you have time to answer. :-)'s

[SoCalDem]

34. The local cuisine is very "pork-ish"

and of course heavy on the local fruits..papaya, mango,ginger, vanilla, coconut,the best little pineapples in the world, and little finger bananas..

The tahitian pineapple is about half the size as a hawaiian one, and the core is completely edible..just a bit crunchy.. We gorged on them :)yum::

They have a few local veggies, but they are rather tasteless.. One is a potato-like veggie that grows in a tree..

The breadfruit was as tasteless as I remember from childhood..

Most of the food has to be brought by ferry from Papeete, and only gets there from NZ by ship..

Most things that they need come from New Zealand.. There is very little agriculture there because uf the extremely vertical mountains.. The whole island is very small and the valleys are few..

They fish outside the reef for bigger fish, and import most everything they need.. Prices are HIGH... The food at our hotel was typical for a 5 star hotel.. expensive, and middle of the road ..Not ethnic by any means.. Some french food, but mostly things your could find anywhere.. We paid 11.40 US for hamburger and fries..(yikes) and there are NO REFILLS on drinks.. Iced tea was $3.70 a glass and when you finished, they took the glass away, and you had to either order another, or sneak sips of your husband's..:)

The food was good, though, and the group organizers were aware of the high prices and gave each of us $540.00 cash for the meals that were not provided as part of the package.. The beach extravaganza dinners were really something... more food than you could consume..:).. The pastries werre almost too pretty to eat, but I "forced myself"..

We ate away from the hotel one night and Bill had a shrimpy pasta dish and I had lasagna & we shared a salad.. Iced tea for both.. dinner tab $78.00 US..

Be happy with our resaturant prices :))

We will never again complain about a $6 burger :)

[Wonk]

7. Welcome back. Here's some of what you missed.

NSMA quit (hopefully she'll be back when she gets her second wind).

Last night's candidates debate was pretty interesting. Click my sig pic if you didn't have your vcr set to record it :-)

Nice photos. Thanks for sharing :-)

[Cha]

8. Lucky you! Could you stand it ...it was so Nice!

Love the Islands!

[madmax]

9. Welcome back!! So where is my

sand?? :evilgrin: Glad you're back safe and sound. :loveya:

[SoCalDem]

10. Customs confiscated it???

:P

[WannaJumpMyScooter]

11. Cool. Did you have dinner with Brando while there?

Or is he secluded somewhere.

[SoCalDem]

12. No Brando...but Angie Dickinson was on my flight home

She was very gracious, and looks great too :)

[supernova]

13. Thank you for sharing!!

your beautiful pictures SoCalDem!! :hi:

And Welcome Back!

My it is lovely there. Can't wait to hear all about it. But do get settled back in.

[moof]

14. You came back !!!!!

glad to see you return but still did you check into staying there after the GE candidate was selected ?

[MissMarple]

15. Why am I thinking of Harrison Ford?

It looks like you must have had a great time.

[bearfan454]

16. Nice pics.

Where did you go ?

[SoCalDem]

17. Moorea, Tahiti

It's where they filmed the Mel Gibson version of Bounty..(I did not see that one)..An extremely gorgeous place :)

[Awsi Dooger]

18. Welcome back, 3 AM Pacific Time has been slow

And you're often good for just the right offbeat thread to wake me up, and thru the Excel monotony.

Great pics. Every time I think I've been where I need to go, another (expensive) destination makes itself known.

Not that I believe the dates on the bottom right. Photoshop is a quick learn. You might have been in Upton.

[SoCalDem]

19. Those dates are "for sure"

I was going to take pics at the Papeete airport last night before we took off to return, bt I was too hot-tired-lazy-bummed to be coming home, to even drag the camera out..:)

The first 4 days are on the other disc..(TG4 digital cameras)and the underwater stuff on the other camera..:)

I do have photoshop, but have NO CLUE how to use the thing,. Watch out if I ever learn..I have some scathing ideas in my head regarding our "leadership":evilgrin:

Such a dunce am I, that I found out on the last day there that my digital camera has a viewfinder in addition to the screen thingie.. :dunce:

[Awsi Dooger]

20. I remember the DUer who put GW's image on Bennett's slot reels

That was priceless! But I have no idea how to do that, either.

Last year I bought Adobe Photoshop Elements, which is supposed to have all the basics of Photoshop but much simpler to learn and use. It's for Mac, but probably available for PCs also. One of these days I'll open the box.

[SoCalDem]

21. That was MY idea.. see what I mean

Wonk, Pastiche423,Ivory Tower and a few others sometimes set my ideas to life, but if I could do Photoshop myself, I would be verrrry evil :)

[Kenneth ken]

22. Welcome back!

nice pics!

WOW! :wow: WOW!

what a gorgeous place. must be what much of the world looked like a few hundred years ago.

[VOX]

23. Wow. I mean, wow! Welcome back, SoCalDem...

And thanks for sharing a few snaps of paradise!

That water. That sky. Those palm trees. Sigh...:hi:

[radfringe]

24. Welcome Back!

sent pic of 2nd painting - hope to have the last one done this weekend

[SoCalDem]

25. I saw it.. It's beautiful..

BTW.. do you use paypal?? or do I send you a money order/check??

Whatever you prefer :)

[rasputin1952]

26. Welcome back SoCal...

great pic's! I am jealous, only place I get to go for vacation, is a scorpion pit!

Relax...then tell us all abouot what looked like a great trip.


:bounce:

[GOPisEvil]

27. Tell the truth...you didn't really want to come back, did you?

Welcome home. :-)

[Blue-Jay]

28. Wow! Beautiful!

I think I'll put on my swim trunks and stare at the fish tank for a while. :|

[KoKo]

29. Was just asking about you here, a day ago! Welcome back, great Pics!

If Angie Dickinson still looks great, there's hope for us all! How did Hubbies swim suit work out?

:hi: Looking forward to some trip tales!

:-)'s

[proud patriot]

31. Great pictures

I have to go to Tahiti some day :hi:Welcome back SoCalDem

[1a2b3c]

32. I guess i missed it

Didnt know you went on vaction? Where did you go?

[skip fox]

33. Get some rest, then

give us a caption!

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=270735

or two:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=105&topic_id=274792


(p.s., lovely pics)

[opihimoimoi]

35. WElcome Back, hope hubby got ya some blk pearls

Come, we go eat some fish and poi

[SoCalDem]

37. My husband was lucky.. I don't like pearls

:)

We got tee shirts , pareas and some carvings & a gold tiki thing with black coral inside:)

[SmileyBoy]

36. And here I am in 45 degree and windy Fargo.

Welcome back!! Where were you, Hawaii?? Caribbean?? South Pacific??