Raiatea and The Taputapuatea Marae

We joined a small tour to visit the Opua heritage on the island that is believed to be the centre of the Polynesian world. It is thought that from this community, the last in the world to be settled by humans, warriors set out across the seas. It is at the centre of a triangle of settlements that they established. Hawaii to the north, Easter Island to the east and New Zealand to the south. Many other islands consider that they are at the centre and the other settlements believe that they settled the islands of today’s French Pacific Polynesia.

       
                                    The flower marks the position of the island of Raiatea

               
                                                              Rob at the Volcanic crater

We started from our port of Raiatea and drove south with several stops along the way including a pearl farm and the crater of a huge volcano.

In the Opoa district we reached the UNESCO World Heritage Marae Taputapuatea. We explored several marae serving different functions. One was for sacrificial offerings, another for burials and a Royal site. This provided a most meaningful insight into this ancient society

                                                                    At the Marae.

                                      It reminded us of Easter Island.

                         This contains sacred objects from Hawaii, New Zealand and Easter Island.

                                                      Rob at the Royal Marae.

                                                               ...and Gail.

                                         The vanilla flower ready for hand pollination.

Later back aboard we heard from an elder and a traditional tattooist. They lamented the approaching loss of the Tahitian language and the fact that the youth didn’t follow the old traditions. An all too familiar tale!awaiiHa