We took a wonderful tour of Hiva Oa with Glen and Mary and Pifa as our guide and teacher for the day. Cruising the half finished roads in his excellent Toyota 4x4, as Pifa spun yarns that we could hardly believe, yet loved for the story value. We passed the point where beautiful virgins were sacrificed for the annual rains, missionaries were eaten to absolve drought, the gorgeous bay where Pifa’s grandad still lives, visited his uncle’s farm, left there laden with a bushel of pomplemouse, a bottle of honey and bunches of sweet bananas. His grand dad immigrated from Ireland, hence his name, Pifa O’Conner! What fun...every vehicle we passed on the road contained a cousin, an auntie or an uncle! We ate lunch at Auntie’s place....local goat, pork, yellow fin tuna, rice, fried breadfruit (my personal fav Marquesan food!), coconut cake, starfruit juice! OMG! We left there satiated....needing a nap! Pifa took us to the giant Tikis. Wow! Tikis had big eyes to see into the future, big ears to hear afar off, big mouths to speak wisdom, big heads holding big brains full of wisdom...well....you get it. Tikis are big in a big way.. very fascinating culture, and we really only got a glimpse into it. We finished by visiting the graves of Jacques Brel and Paul Gauguin. Lovely place....high up overlooking the sea, with sweet breezes and trees all around. A very fantastic day in a magical land, then back to our Sweet Dream for a peaceful night.
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