Last fall my husband's casual comment about Tahiti led to a month-long dream vacation, lasting from mid-December to mid-January. It included Tahiti, its sister islands of Mo'orea and Bora Bora, then Pitcairn Island (think Mutiny of the Bounty), and mysterious Easter Island. From there we sailed to Peru, Ecuador, through the Panama Canal to Costa Rica, and finally Port Everglades, FL, from where we took a plane home.

The flight from Toronto to Tahiti is long, with a time loss of five hours. An almost six-hour flight to Los Angels (LA) needs a connecting flight to Tahiti of almost nine more hours. We did it in one long stretch. Now we recommend that travelers to Tahiti stay overnight in LA to be fresh for the trip below the Equator, across an ocean with no land between North America and French Polynesia. Tahiti is the main island of the colonial group known as the Society Islands. It is home to the group's capital city of Papeete (Pape'ete in Tahitian).

Air travel, once thought glamorous, has lost its sheen. We needed to be at Pearson International Airport by 6:00 a.m. to catch a 9:00-a.m. flight, the early hour made worse by a gray, rainy December morning. Although pre-booking got us fast through US customs and immigration, an almost three-hour wait is still a long time before takeoff. As recommended, we packed snacks for the flight to LA to avoid Air Canada's high charges for inferior food. The travel agent also suggested that we carry an empty plastic bottle through the security checks to be filled with water in the secure waiting area for onboard use. Air Canada provides free non-alcoholic drinks and water, but the extra bottle of water still proved to be a bonus. LA Airport, under reconstruction, made the four-hour wait for the connecting flight torturous. Things became more favorable, however, once we boarded our Air Tahiti Nui flight. The unexpected amenities this airline offers its passengers—once common before the fuel and credit crunch changed all of that—turned into a pleasant surprise: free blanket, pillow, a package containing warm socks and an eye mask to make sleep easy. We also received two good, free meals with a choice of wine during the flight. Hence, in good spirits, we settled in as best we could in the narrow seats for a sleep or to read a book. In my case it was a book, The Sea Captain's Wife by Beth Powning, which I had received just a few days earlier and which allowed me to ask questions in Peru that I would never have thought of without it.

The plane landed close to midnight local time at Tahiti's Faa'a Airport, south of Pape'ete. Our hotel, the Radisson Plaza Resort Tahiti, lies on the North East coast in the commune of Arue, about 15 km from the airport. After a slow clearance through immigration, it took time to find a mini van to take us to the hotel. A drive of 20 minutes despite empty night roads led us around endless roundabouts, one of Tahiti's realities. The $50.00 fare came as no surprise. We had been forewarned that Tahiti is the second most expensive place in the world after Tokyo. By the time we had settled into our hotel suite we had been awake more than 26 hours. A long day indeed.

Was Tahiti worth the long journey and the expense for three full days and nights there? Yes. We wish we had remained longer. It was enchanting. If it were closer we'd go back just for the breakfast yogurt. Our only complaint was that what we consider a queen-sized bed does not correspond to Tahitian ideas. The supposed queen-sized bed turned out to be a slightly larger than normal single bed. Our suite, however, had a spacious bathroom where a quick look confirmed that the water definitely runs counter-clockwise down the drain below the Equator. One also had to get used to doors in the suite opening in the opposite direction we normally expect. From questions asked it appears this has nothing to do with being below the Equator.

Our equally spacious balcony overlooked a beautiful garden and the black-sanded beach along Lafayette Bay, where the crashing waters sounded as if they were hitting the building. While black sand is not unique to Tahiti, it surprised us. Its source lies in Tahiti's origins. This mountainous, tree-covered island consists of volcanic basalt rock. Thousands of years ago hot lava rushed into the sea on its east side where it cooled very rapidly and fractured into small fragments, then crushed into sand by the surf. And there is surf aplenty in the 'summer' months in Tahiti, which last from December to March. It must be noted, though, that the surf is less fantastic than the waves found in Hawaii.

Travel advisories warn that Tahiti is windy, rainy, hot and humid in December. We had luck: no rain, plenty of sun mixed with cloudy skies, and only mild winds with pleasant temperatures. The strong surf that hit the beach below the hotel did not recommend itself to weak swimmers, though many surfers took to the waves. When we first arrived, the sound of the surf in the still night was so loud we thought it was hitting the hotel. But that was just an illusion.

All of Tahiti's beaches are public and there are no guards. Hence, a constant flow of locals entered the hotel grounds to reach the beach. This gave us a glimpse into local customs. Beach soccer is a favorite activity among young males aside from surfing. They are watched by pretty girls, who undo their bikini bras while lying on their tummies, resting on slightly raised elbows to catch the boys' eyes. When a stranger, such as myself, comes along the bras are quickly done up again.

With Christmas close, children of both sexes wore little white-trimmed red shorts and tops, and regular Santa Claus caps while they played and picnicked with adults on the lawns and on the edges of the beach. In the restaurant, local women often wore flower wreaths, an old custom from before Europeans  . . .

Continue to Part II