April 25
So far there hasn't been much work done on the rudder. Another worldARC boat was in the yard and there wasn't room to lift our boat to drop the rudder. The other boat was due to go in this afternoon so hopefully tomorrow they can really get to work on our boat. Today we had a welcome ceremony at the town hall of Papeete with the mayor, the welcome included native dance performances which everyone enjoyed. All of the children (and some adults) participated in the dancing and really enjoyed it. Before that we had a outrigger sailing canoe demonstration and the kids rode repeatedly. We also had a talk on the Society Islands, recomendations of where to visit, anchoring, where to snorkel.......
It was great to catch up with some people we really haven't seen in weeks, since when we arrived in Hiva Oa a number of boats had already moved on and everyone was cruising independantly until the meeting today.
Tomorrow we have an around the island tour of Tahiti. After the tour the boats will continue to cruise, or in some cases wait for a haulout and work....until the May 13 and May 16 starts in Bora Bora.
Off to sleep in the luxury of our hotel room, probably for another week or just a bit longer......
Pauline