11-29 Nov Papeete, Tahiti, French Polynesia

This post is based primarily on Don's notes, occasionally supplemented with MT's notes from our cruise in November-December 2023. When information from other sources is added—for further explanation to readers or to satisfy our own curiosity—that is set off in a text box (as this one).
Most of the photos that accompany this post are from Don’s camera (with a caption indicating the time it was taken); those from MT’s iPhone are indicated by “MT” placed at the beginning of the photo caption. Photos from any other source (such as the public domain Wikimedia Commons), occasionally used for clarification, indicate that source in the caption.

The Viking Daily newsletter showed today's weather forecast as "Cloudy 84° F" and "Sunrise: 6:18 AM."

 We got up around 6:00 am.

Wednesday, November 29, ‎2023, 7:02 AM - Tahiti: first view of land from our veranda.

The Viking Daily newsletter describes our stop at “Tahiti (Papeete), French Polynesia” as follows: “One of the world’s most visually stunning and romantic destinations and the cultural hub of French Polynesia, Tahiti is perhaps the archipelago’s most famous island. It is easy to imagine the astonishment of English captain Samuel Wallis when he came upon it in 1767, the first European to do so. But he certainly was not the last, as the island’s continental flavor will attest. Here, swaying palms skirt dramatic mountains, striking a breathtaking pose in shimmering Pacific waters. While in downtown Papeete, awe-inspiring architecture displays its glory—from the arched stained glass windows of Notre Dame Cathedral to the neoclassical design of the palatial Town Hall, it is no wonder luminaries such as Paul Gauguin and James Norman Hall found the island so inspiring.”
 
Tahiti (Tahitian: Ta’hiti) is the largest island of the Windward group of the Society Islands in French Polynesia. It is divided into two parts, Tahiti Nui (meaning “big Tahiti,” the larger, northwestern part) and Tahiti Iti (meaning “small Tajhiti,” the smaller, southeastern part). These two roughly round parts are centered on two basalt shield volcanic mountains and connected by the short isthmus of Taravo. Tahiti Nui is heavily populated along the coast, especially around the capital, Pape’ete. The interior of Tahiti Nui is almost entirely uninhabited. Tahiti Iti has remained isolated, and its southeastern half (Te Pari) is accessible only to those travelling by boat or on foot. The rest of the island is encircled by a main road that cuts between the mountains and the sea. The highest peak is Mount Orohena (Mou’a ‘Oruhena) at 7,352 ft. Mount Roonui or Mount Ronui (Mou’a Ronui) in the southeast rises to 4,370 ft.
 

Map of Tahiti, also showing Moorea at upper left (https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2c/Tahiti_Map.PNG)Changed to jpg.

 
The island was formed from volcanic activity; it is high and mountainous with surrounding coral reefs. With a population of 191,779, it is by far the most populous island in French Indonesia. Pape’ete, the capital of French Polynesia, is located on the northwest coast of Tahiti.
Tahiti was originally settled by migrating Polynesians. They still represent about 70 % of the island’s population. The island was part of the Kingdom of Tahiti until its annexation by France in 1880, when it was proclaimed a colony of France, and the inhabitants became French citizens. Tahiti as called Otaheite in earlier European documents. French is the sole official language, although the Tahitian language is also widely spoken.
Early Settlement
The first Tahitians arrived from Western Polynesia sometime around 500 BC (some sources say 400 AD). Linguistic, biological, and archaeological evidence supports a long migration from Southeast Asia via the Fijian, Samoan, and Tongan archipelagos using large outrigger canoes that could transport families as well as domestic animals. Before the arrival of Europeans, the island was divided into territories, each dominated by a single clan.
First European Visits
The first Europeans to arrive at Tahiti may have been Spanish or Portuguese explorers in the late 16th or early 17th century. The next stage of European visits to the region came between the period of intense Anglo-French rivalry in the 12 years between the Seven Years’ War and the American Revolution (i.e., 1763-1775).
Bounty Mutineers and the Pomare Dynasty
In 1788, the HMS Bounty, under the command of Captain William Bligh, landed in Tahiti looking for breadfruit trees to carry to the Caribbean. Three weeks after leaving Tahiti with seedlings, the crew mutinied on the initiative of Fletcher Christian. A group of mutineers then went back to settle in Tahiti, after which the Bounty, under Christian, sailed to Pitcairn Island. Although various explorers had refused to get involved in tribal conflicts, the mutineers offered their services as mercenaries and furnished arms to the family of chief Tū. As a result of his alliance with the mutineers, chief Tū succeeded in considerably increasing his supremacy over the island of Tahiti. Around 1790, he took the title of king and gave himself the name Pomare. Thus, he became Pomare I, founding the Pomare Dynasty. He and his descendants founded and expanded Tahitian influence to all the lands that now constitute modern French Polynesia.
Unwelcome Visitors
In the 1790s, whalers began landing at Tahiti, soon joined by merchants coming from the penal colonies of Australia. These interactions with westerners introduced infectious diseases that were catastrophic for the Tahitian population, which shrank rapidly.
English Missionaries
In 1797, representatives of the London Missionary Society landed in Tahiti with the mission of converting the natives to Christianity. The arrival of these missionaries marked a new turning point for Tahiti, having a lasting impact on the local culture. Following the death of Pomare I in 1803, his son Pomare II allied himself more and more with the missionaries. The conversion of Pomare II to Protestantism in 1812 marked the point when Protestantism really took off on the island. In the 1820s, the entire population of Tahiti converted to Protestantism. In 1835, Charles Darwin visited Tahiti aboard the HMS Beagle and was impressed by what he perceived to be the positive influence of the missionaries on the sobriety and moral character of the population.
French Protectorate and the End of the Pomare Kingdom
In 1842, a French admiral landed in Tahiti and made friends with Tahitian chiefs who were hostile to the Pomare family and favorable to a French protectorate. Within the framework of the protectorate, France recognized the sovereignty of the Tahitian state. However, while Queen Pomare IV was responsible for internal affairs, the French commissaire (commisioner or governor) would deal with foreign relations and assure the defense of Tahiti. In 1843, the French admiral announced the annexation of the Kingdom of Pomare. During the first years of the Protectorate, the Protestants managed to retain a considerable hold over Tahitian society, striving to indoctrinate the locals against the Roman Catholic French. The Tahitian War of Independence (1844-47) ended in favor of the French, resulting in an end to the British influence. In 1863, the French replaced the British Protestant Missions with the Protestant Mission Society of Paris.
Late 19th Century
After the death of Queen Pomare IV in 1877, her son Pomare V seemed little concerned with the affairs of the kingdom. When the French governor, supported by other Tahitian chiefs, pushed him to abdicate in favor of France, he accepted and in 1880 ceded Tajhiti to France.
20th Century
In 1903, the Établissements français d'Océanie (French Establishments of Oceania) or EFO were created, including Tahiti, the other Society Islands, and other islands. In 1946, Tahiti and the whole of French Polynesia became an autonomous overseas territory of France.

7:02 AM - Tahiti: view, from our veranda, of waves breaking on reef.

7:03 AM - Pape'ete: view, from Track on Deck 2, of cruise ship port.

7:04 AM - Pape'ete: view, from Track on Deck 2, of pilot boat approaching aft end of Viking Star.

We were scheduled to arrive at the Main Cruise Pier in Pape'ete at 8:00.

Papeete (Tahitian: Pape’ete) is the capital city of Tahiti and of French Polynesia. The commune of Pape’ete is located on the northwest coast of the island of Tahiti. It is in the administrative subdivision of the Windward Islands, of which Pape’ete is the administrative capital. The old name of this town was Vai’ete. The name Pape’ete means “water from a basket.” This was a result of a naming taboo during the reign of Pomare I, where the Tahitian word for water (vai) was substituted with pape. Pape’ete is one of the largest urban centers in the South Pacific. Its excellent harbor made it, by the 1830s, a place of trade and a favorite port of call for whalers. After the annexation of Tahti by the French in 1880, it was made the seat of the governor, and in 1890 it became a commune. (A commune is a level of administrative division in the French Republic, analogous to civil townships and incorporated municipalities in the US.) The commune proper has a population of 26,654, and the urban area of Pape’ete has a total population of 124,724.

7:04 AM - Pape'ete: view, from Track on Deck 2, of cruise ship port.

7:12 AM - Pape'ete: view, from Track on Deck 2, of town near cruise ship port.

MT 7:14 AM - Pape'ete: view, from Track on Deck 2, of town and mountains near cruise ship port (mild telephoto 39 mm).

MT 7:14 AM - Pape'ete: view, from Track on Deck 2, of town near cruise ship port, with Paofai Protestant Church at far right (mild telephoto 60 mm).

The Temple Paofai (Paofai Protestant Church) is considered to be the heart of the Evangelical Church in French Polynesia. It is located across from the Paofai Gardens, near the seafront, slightly off the main road (Boulevard de la Reine Pomare IV). It has peach-colored walls and a pale green roof. The windows of the building have plain white pointed arches.The bell tower has a larger window, a clock, and a high, pointed spire.
 

Pape'ete:  Temple Paofai (Par Saga70 — Travail personnel, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=94247463).

 
The church traces its foundation to 1797, when Protestant missionaries of the London Missionary Society landed in Tahiti. In 1820, the first chapel, made of woven bamboo, was built. In 1908, a new, larger building was inaugurated, built of stones from the nearby Tumarama marae (traditional Polynesian open-air temple). In 1981, a new temple was built, preserving only the bell tower-porch of the 1908 building.

From 7:15 to 8:15, we both walked around the Track on Deck 2.

At 8:15, we went to the World Café (Deck 7) for breakfast.

At 11:00, we went to the meeting place on the pier for our (included) shore excursion "Walking Tour of Papeete."

The My Viking Journey web site described “Walking Tour of Papeete” shore excursion as follows:
 
INCLUDED
Day 20 – Tahiti (Papeete), French Polynesia
Wednesday, November 29
8:30 AM / 11:30 AM / 2:45 PM
2.5 Hours
MODERATE
SIGHTSEEING
An Intimate View of Tahiti’s Tropical City
Get to know the capital of French Polynesia up close and personal during a walking tour.
 
One of the world’s most visually stunning and romantic destinations, Tahiti is perhaps the archipelago’s most famous island. Meet your guide and set off to discover Papeete’s major sites and monuments. At the municipal market, explore colorful stalls filled with fresh produce, regional delicacies, Tahitian pearls, and local arts and crafts. Walk past the Town Hall, a replica of the former Royal Palace, and Notre Dame Cathedral—one of the oldest and largest churches in Papeete. See the Territorial Assembly, home to the Polynesian Parliament and the French High Commissioner’s residence, and admire the edifice which reflects Tahiti’s traditional building style. Cap your tour with a stroll through Parc Bougainville, dedicated to explorer Louis Antoine de Bougainville.

11:18 AM - Pape'ete: our guide Gérald on the pier.

MT 11:22 AM - Pape'ete: Gérald talking to our tour group on the pier.

11:23 AM - Pape'ete: yellow fruit on tree near the pier.

11:24 AM - Pape'ete: view, from the pier, of Viking Star in port.

11:24 AM - Pape'ete: Gérald with red "lollypop" (paddle) for our "Viking Star 1" tour group and a basket with his visual aids.

11:24 AM - Pape'ete: lower floors of former Stuart Hotel where Matisse stayed.

The French artist Henri Matisse (1869-1954) traveled to Tahiti in 1930, following in the footprints of his great inspiration Paul Gauguin. However, Matisse said he was “more interested in the search for light than in the painter Gauguin.”
In 1930, Matisse arrived in the Pape’ete harbor and stayed for 3 months at the Stuart Hotel, located on Boulevard de la Reine Pomare IV (Boulevard of Queen Pomare IV), next to the US Consulate. That hotel, owned by the Scotsman William Stuart, was the newest hotel in Pape’ete at that time. Matisse would stay for hours at his second-floor window facing the seafront with Motu Uta and Moorea. From these ink drawings, he produced paintings in 1935, including the famous “Window in Tahiti.” The Stuart was the tallest building of the time, allowing Matisse to dominate all of Pape’ete.

MT 11:35 AM - Pape'ete: upper floors of former Stuart Hotel.

11:35 AM - Pape'ete: Sign at entrance to Parc Bougainville."

Parc Bougainville (Bougainville Park) was renovated in 2003 with benches, tables, and a play area. Formerly called the Place Publique de Papeete (Public Square of Papeete), it was once a place where festivities and ceremonies were held, such as on June 29, 1880 when King Pomare V ceded the Society Islands to France. In the 1840s, there were several colonial-era administrative buildings in the park. In 1906, all of these buildings were destroyed by a cyclone. The Post Office was rebuilt and remains the only administrative building in the park. In 1934, the park was renamed Place Albert 1er (Albert I Square), in honor of the third king of Belgium (1875-1934). In 1968, a bronze bust of Louis Antoine de Bougainville (1729-1811), the French navigator who in 1768 famously described Tahiti as a paradise untouched by the troubles of civilization, was installed in the park, and the locals gradually took to referring to the park by that name. To avoid a possible diplomatic incident with Belgium, the Pape’ete town council passed a decree that formally baptized the park Place Albert 1er. However, the local population never took to that name, and eventually, in 2005, it was officially re-baptized “Parc Bougainville.” The park stretches from Boulevard de la Riene Pomare IV along the seafront to Rue du General de Gaulle, the next street away from the sea.

11:37 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville - thatched roof of open building.

11:37 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville - closer view of one side of thatched roof.

11:47 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  statue of "Pouvana'a a Oopa" (mild telephoto 42 mm).

Pouvana'a a O’opa (1895-1977) was a Tahitian politician and advocate for French Polynesian independence. In 1958 he was convicted of charges of arson and sentenced to 8 years imprisonment and 15 years exile in France. After being pardoned in 1968, he served as a Senator from 1971 until his death in 1977. His conviction was quashed in 2018 after new evidence showed that French police had fabricated evidence and that the Governor had reported Pouvana'a’s arrest before the fires had even been set. (Wikipedia)
(NOTE: Our guide Gérald said this was a monument to a man who spoke against French nuclear tests on a nearby island and was imprisoned in France until his death.)

11:51 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  sign, in Tahitian, by statue of "Pouvana'a a Oopa" (telephoto 58 mm).

11:51 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  sign, in French, on the other side of the statue of "Pouvana'a a Oopa" (telephoto 58 mm).

The French version of this sign says Pouvana’a was “accuse d’avoir incite a búrler Papeete” (accused of inciting the burning of Papeete) in 1958. It makes no mention of nuclear tests.

11:52 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  Gérald showing us a yellow flower used behind the ear (after squeezing juice out).

11:54 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  Sign for "Taraho'i au Fil de L'Histoire" (Taraho'i Throughout History); the entire sign is in French,  but the picture shows the layout of the park.

Place Taraho’i (Taraho’i Square), also known as the Territorial Assembly, houses the French Polynesian Assembly and the Presidential Palace. It is surrounded by gardens and memorial statues. It was built in the 1960s on the site of Queen Pomare IV of Tahiti’s residence. It became the seat of power for the Pomare dynasty and later the administrative center for the French government in French Polynesia after they took control in 1842. The surrounding gardens were once known as the royal gardens of Queen Pomare IV.
This land was a very large traditional place “Tahua Taraho’i,” on which the famous marae (temple) of the same name “Taraho’i-i-Papeete” was once erected.
The first residence of Queen Pomare IV here was a simple wooden house with no floors. In 1861, the French government agreed to help the queen build a new and vast palace. However, the project was found to be too ambitious and too expensive and was not completed until 1883, 6 years after the queen’s death and 3 years after the transformation of the kingdom into a French colony. Thus, this palace was never inhabited, but it was sometimes used for celebrations. In 1900, it was sold to a local merchant, but that raised so much criticism that the French administration bought it back and used it for government buildings. The building, with its thick cut stone walls, was still in excellent condition at the time of its demolition in 1966.
After the Royal Palace was destroyed, the current Assembly was built on the same site in 1969. Six years after the French colony became an Overseas Territory, this first representative assembly would become the Territorial Assembly of the EFO. In 1957, the Overseas Territory changed its name to French Polynesia. In 1996, the Territorial Assembly became the Assembly of French Polynesia.

11:55 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  Gérald showing us red ginger plants.

MT 11:56 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  closer view of those red ginger plants.

11:55 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville - Sign for "L'Ancienne Place du Gouvrnement" (The Old Square of the Gouvernement); the text accompanying the photos is in French, but the headings translate as follows:

"1. The Banyan of the Colonial Square," saying it may be 300-400 years old (center photo).

"2. The Bust of Pouvanaa a Oopa" (bottom 2 photos)

"3. The Kiosk of Music" (top photo).

Behind the sign, are heliconia plants, similar to bird of paradise.

MT 11:58 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville - heliconia plants, similar to bird of paradise, behind sign for "L'Ancienne Place du Gouvernement."

MT 11:58 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville - heliconia plants (mild telephoto 51 mm)

11:55 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  Gérald showing us [wauke] tree with bark used to make baskets.

11:56 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  top of that [wauke] tree.

11:55 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  Gérald showing us heliconia plants.

11:57 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  torch ginger plant (telephoto 109 mm).

MT 11:59 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  another torch ginger plant (telephoto 133 mm).

11:58 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  sign, in Tahitian, French and English, for  "Curcuma Longa -Zingibéracées"; the first subheading is for the Tahitian version "Re’a Tahiti"; the second is for the French version "Safran d’Océania"; and the third is the English Version "Turmeric" with the following text:

"Very important food and ritual plant (dying) in Polynesian culture; a fragrant yellow juice is obtained by pressing the roots; it was cultivated and prepared very carefully for rites and also exchanged between islands." (telephoto 130 mm).

Turmeric (botanical name Curcuma longa) is a flowering plant in the ginger family Zingiberaceae.

Turmeric (By SKsiddhartthan - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=57815967).

11:59 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville - lily pond with yellow plant.

11:59 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  Gérald showing us plant by sign for "Tahaho'i Lieu de Pouvoir Royal" (Taraho'i Place of Royal Power).

11:59 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  sign, in French (most of it too small to read), for "Taraho'i Lieu de Pouvoir Royal" (Place of Royal Power); the first sentences of the first paragraph translate as follows:

"It is the presence of Pomare IV at Taraho'i that transformed this legendary space into a place of history. The queen placed there a residence ..."

The heading below that paragraph translates "The Residence of the Queen"; the first sentence of the following paragraph translates (in part): "This modest building ... served as the residence of Queen Pomare IV."

To the right of the photo at bottom left is more text with the heading "Pomare IV." At bottom right is a painting of the queen's original wooden residence.

11:59 AM (Cropped) - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville - painting of the queen's original wooden residence on sign, in French (most of it too small to read), for "Taraho'i Lieu de Pouvoir Royal" (Place of Royal Power).

11:59 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  more long ginger plants by lily pond.

11:59 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  more red ginger plants among longer ones by lily pond.

11:59 AM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  pink ginger plants.

12:00 PM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville - another sign, in French (most of it too small to read), for "Taraho'i Lieu de Pouvoir Royal" (Place of Royal Power); the first  paragraph translates:

"Paradoxically, it is the construction, decided by Bruat, of the residence of the governor and its apparent opulence that incited Pomare IV to build her proper 'palace'. But it took so long to complete this project that she never lived there and her son benefited from it."

The heading below that paragraph translates "The Palace Called 'of the Queen'. "

Below that paragraph in a photo of her son, with the heading that translates "The King Pomare V," with a paragraph about him to the left and a newspaper with headlines about him to the right.

At the top right of the sign are photos of the newer Royal Palace.

12:00 PM (Cropped) - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville - photos of the newer Royal Palace on sign, in French, for "Taraho'i Lieu de Pouvoir Royal" (Place of Royal Power).

MT 12:01 PM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville - more pink ginger plants (telephoto 88 mm).

12:10 PM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  wild orchids by pond.

12:12 PM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville -  Gérald telling us about water baskets. He said the queen used to come down steps into a pool in this garden to bathe. Then people would come to the pool with baskets to carry that water; "Pape'ete" means "water basket." He said that human sacrifices (often political) were bashed in the head and the same plant was used to keep the blood (unclean) from gushing out of the head. Then the ruler would eat the eye of the victim to add to his/her power.

12:13 PM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville - sign, in French,  about "Queen Pomare IV: A Young Girl Became Queen," as  Gérald  told us about "skull water";  stone sculpture at right  (probably Pomare IV) (telephoto 93 mm).

MT 12:14 PM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville - that stone sculpture (probably Pomare IV) (telephoto 91 mm).

12:15 PM - Pape'ete: Parc Bougainville - green avocados on tree (telephoto 130 mm).

12:27 PM - Pape'ete: McDonald's.

12:30 PM - Pape'ete: approching Cathedral.

12:32 PM - Pape'ete: sign, on cathedral façade, for " Cathedrale de Papeete - Notre Dame de L'Immaculee Conception" (Cathedral of Papeete - Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception); the rest of the French text translates:

"Property of the Commune of Papeete since the 27th of December, 1890.

"First consecration of the Cathedral the 23rd of December, 1875.

"Inaugurated after restoration the 24th of June, 2005, in the presence of Monsignor Michel BUILLARD, Deputy Mayor of Papeete, and Monsignor Hubert COPPENRATH, Archbishop of Papeete."

12:33 PM - Pape'ete: Cathedral - façade and bell tower.

Cathédrale de Pape’ete - Notre Dame de l'Immaculée Conception (Cathedral of Pape’ete - Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception) is a late 19th-century church that serves as the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Papeete. It is located close to the waterfront esplanade of midtown Pape’ete, on the rue du Général de Gaulle near the Parc Bougainville. Its construction began in 1856, and it opened in 1875. It is the oldest Catholic church in Tahiti and one of Pape’ete’s last remaining examples of early French colonial architecture, mixed with Gothic style. The façade is painted yellow and has two white pilasters, one at each end of the front. There are three pointed-arch stained-glass windows. The center window is the largest, directly above the recessed arched entrance portal. Above the center window is a clock. The hexagonal bell tower is topped with a pointed red spire.
The cathedral was inaugurated by Monsignor Tepano Jaussen, Bishop of Axieri, on December 23,1875. In 2005, Mayor Michel Buillard and Monsignor Hubert Coppenrath inaugurated new stained-glass windows, baptismal fonts and frescoes for the cathedral.

12:39 PM - Pape'ete: Cathedral - PK 0 milestone in front of cathedral.

The cathedral is located at PK 0, which is the point from which all distances on Tahiti are measured. The red and white milestones by the side of the road indicate their distance (in kilometers) from the cathedral.

Our next stop was at the Marché Municipal de Pape'ete (Municipal Market of Pape'ete).

12:43 PM - Pape'ete: entrance to Marché Municipal de Pape'ete (Municipal Market of Pape'ete).

The Marché Muicipal de Pape'ete (Municipal Market of Pape’ete), also known by its original name Mapuru a Paraita, can be considered the heart of the island of Tahiti due to its location in the center of the capital city but also for the multitude of fresh local products on offer there. A dynamic place of exchange since the 19th century, this market has become a true cultural landmark of French Polynesia. The market was created in 1847 on the site it still occupies. The stalls were gathered in 1860 under a wooden building. About 10 years later, it was necessary to expand on an adjoining plot belonging to a lady called Mapura a Paraita, who gave her name to the market. It fell into the hands of the municipality in 1890, when it consisted of two halls, one of which was covered. The current covered market, with its metal framework, was built in 1989, renovated in 2006, and modernized in 2015.
At the bottom of the two-level metal-framework building, there are fresh local products: flowers, fruits and vegetables, fish, and meat. The upper, mezzanine level is dedicated to Tahitian crafts: woven baskets, wooden sculptures, colorful pāreu (a wraparound skirt of cloth worn by men and women in Polynesia), and Tahitian pearls.

12:43 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - flower vendors on ground level, with stairs to mezzanine at right.

MT 12:45 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - clearer photo of flower vendors on ground level.

12:46 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - flower vendors on ground level, with Gérald's back at left and MT's head at right.

12:46 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - Gérald showing us flower arrangement, including (red) torch ginger, orangish heliconia, and some white torch ginger flowers.

12:48 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - closer view of that flower arrangement, including (red) torch ginger, orangish heliconia, and white ginger flowers.

MT 12:48 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - even closer view of that flower arrangement, including better view of (red) torch ginger, along with orangish heliconia and white torch ginger flowers.

MT 12:49 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - more of those white torch ginger flowers, with one (red) torch ginger flower on right.

12:49 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - more ginger, in  center, with buckets from Ace Hardeware at left.

MT 12:50 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - heliconia plants, similar to bird of paradise, and other plants in buckets from Ace Hardware.

12:49 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market -  torch ginger (Etlingera elatior).

12:52 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market -  crafts for sale on bottom floor, including club-sword combinations made of swordfish bone at far end of table.

12:52 PM (Cropped) - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - club-sword combinations made of swordfish bone.

12:59 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - baskets and hats woven in various styles.

MT 1:01 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - more baskets and purses woven in various styles; the sign "Vahine Chic" for this booth is a mixture of Tahitian and Frence.

A vahine (plural vahine) is a Polynesian woman, especially one from Tahiti. The women of Tahiti are all Vahines whose beauty is said to equal that of women in the rest of the world. The word wahine came into English in the late 18th century from Maori, the language of the Polynesian people native to New Zealand; it was originally used for a Maori woman, especially a wife. The word is also used for a woman in Hawaiian and Tahitian, although spelled vahine in the latter.

1:02 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - fruits.

MT 1:03 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - fruits, including avocados.

1:04 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - fruits, including mangos and avocados, and one small breadfruit (bottom right).

MT 1:05 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - small breadfruit and ginger root.

1:06 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - ginger root and tomatoes.

MT 1:09 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - fish for sale; 2 kinds of "espadon" (French or Tahitian for swordfish), "bianc" (French for white) and "haura" (Tahitian name for swordfish); at right is taea (doesen't translate from Tahitian or French) with sign that says "vide et ecaille" (French for empty and flaky).

MT 1:10 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market - more fish for sale.

1:12 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market -  view down from mezzanine, with elevator (topped by clock) and stairs at far end; there were also escalators.

MT 1:18 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market -  baked goods for sale.

MT 1:36 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market -  colorful cloths for sale.

These colorful cloths are probably pāreu (a wraparound skirt of cloth worn by men and women in Polynesia). Similar cloths also seemed to be used as tablecloths for booths in the Municipal  Market.

MT 1:36 PM - Pape'ete: Municipal Market -  more colorful cloths for sale.

Then, our tour group (what was left of it) left the Municipal Market. Nearby, we passed  the Pape'ete City Hall.

1:38 PM - Pape'ete: City Hall.

The City Hall, also known in French as Hotel de Ville or Mairie, was completed in 1900. It is a replica of the Royal Palace of Queen Pomare IV, built when Tahiti was a French Protectorate, but demolished in 1966.
 

Pape’ete: City Hall (By mmojojojo1 - _DSC4260, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=85612060).

 
The building is painted in buttercup yellow and has wide, wrap-around terraces with cream-colored balustrades and columns on two floors. A grand staircase leads to the main entrance. The roof has dormer windows and a hexagonal tower with pointed-arch windows and a pointed red spire. The overall architectural style is Neoclassical.

MT 1:41 PM - Pape'ete: City Hall - view from inside gates, with Christmas trees.

MT 1:42 PM - Pape'ete: City Hall - Don and MT inside gates.

Then, MT and an oriental lady from the tour group went shopping for Tahitian black pearls. Don came along.

2:13 PM - Pape'ete: One Pearl store.

MT finally got earrings at the One Pearl store. Before going back to that store, we also tried Herman Pearls Design next door.

The Tahitian pearl (or black pearl) is an organic gem formed from the black lip oyster. These pearls derive their name from the fact that they are primarily cultivated around the islands of French Polynesia, around Tahiti. Tahitian pearls actually come in a range of colors, from white to black. The true black Tahitian pearl is extremely rare. Most Tahitian pearls that are identified as “black” are actually charcoal grey, silver, or dark green. An advantage of the Tahitian pearl is that the oyster inside which they grow is quite large. This means that a Tahitian pearl can more easily grow to a larger-than-average size.
According to Polynesian legend, Oro, the god of peace and fertility, would use his rainbows to visit the earth. He gave the oysters’ mother of pearl its iridescence and thus gave Tahitian pearls their wide spectrum of colors.
The Herman Pearls Design and One Pearl stores are located on Boulevard de la Reine Pomare IV, along the waterfront.

Back on the Viking Star, too late for lunch at the onboard restaurants, which all closed at 2:30, we went to the Viking Bar (Deck 1), where Don had roast beef and MT had shrimp sandwiches.

At 5:45, we went to The Restaurant (Deck 2), which was scheduled to open at 6:00, for our pre-ordered dinner. We finished in record time, by 6:48.

6:02 PM - Viking Star: Don's "Heirloom Beets and Cherry Tomatoes Confit" starter at The Restaurant; the description on the menu said it consisted of "roasted young beets with arugula, shaved feta, oregano vinaigrette."

After dinner, we went back to our stateroom to get books to read before going to the 9:00 Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" in the Star Theater (Deck 2). We had leaned from earlier such performances that it was necessary to line up outside the theater ahead of time in order to get a good seat. So we joined the (front of) the line at 8:45.

The O Tahiti e dance troop was created in 1986 by the emblematic ‘Ori Tahiti (Tahitian Dance) figure Marguerite Lai, who named the group after the original name of Tahiti or “Otaiti,” which was used on early navigation charts to describe the island of Tahiti. It is one of the oldest dancing troops in French Polynesia and its members are the greatest ambassadors of Tahiti around the world. Under founder and choreographer Marguerite Lai, they have won the “best professional group” category at the Heiva I Tahiti (the most important traditional dance competition of Polynesian culture) several times. ‘Ori Tahiti dances are sometimes soft and slow, sometimes breathtakingly fast. There are soft and sensual movements, breathtakingly fast hip circles, colorful costumes, and exotic music.
The sensuality of ‘ori Tahiti was too much for the early Protestant and Catholic missionaries in what is now French Polynesia, so they simply banned it, and the art almost completely disappeared in the 18th century. Fortunately, Tahitian mothers continued to transmit the gestures and movements to their daughters, so that, when Madeleine Moua decided to revive the forbidden art in the 1950s, the gestures and movements had not been lost.

Madeleine Moua (1899-1989), descended from the Tahitian royal family, was a French Polynesian dance troupe leader and a major choreographer of Tahitian dance. She was featured on a French Polynesian postage stamp in 2016.

Margeurite (“Mamie”) Lai was a schoolteacher who loved to dance. She retired after a final victory at the Heiva in 2019, where her troop won the Madeleina Moua Prize.

See https://bora-bora.org/french-polynesia/ori-tahiti-dance/ for descriptions of the most famous dances.

9:03 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - female singers and male musicians with drums.

9:04 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - male and female dancers. (Note that the women had bare backs for this dance. They were also bare in the front, except for green leaves hanging from around their necks. Our cruise director Katie said she had never seen Tahitian dancers with so little underwear.)

9:05 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - same dance.

MT 9:06 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - same dance.

MT 9:06 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - same dance (mild telephoto 34 mm).

MT 9:07 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - same dance, featuring women (mild telephoto 50 mm).

MT 9:08 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - same dance, featuring men (mild telephoto 57 mm).

9:17 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - another dance with a solo male dancer.

MT 9:17 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - same  solo male dancer (telephoto 98 mm).

MT 9:17 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - same, very energetic, solo male dancer (telephoto 88 mm).

MT 9:17 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - same  solo male dancer (telephoto 68 mm).

MT 9:18 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - same  solo male dancer, showing the tatoo on his back (telephoto 68 mm).

9:18 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - same solo male dancer, taking a bow.

9:19 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - another dance with women in skirts, but with same tops as in first dance.

MT 9:20 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - same dance with women in skirts (mild telephoto 58 mm); NOTE: 2nd dancer from right is proof of what Katie said about lack of underwear; she has a long tatoo reaching from her ankle up to the underside of her naked breast.

MT 9:25 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - another dance, with men in short skirts (mild telephoto 34 mm).

9:26 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - another dance with women in full-length dresses.

MT 9:27 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - same dance with women in full-length dresses (mild telephoto 47 mm).

MT 9:34 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" - solo woman dancer (mild telephoto 51 mm).

9:38 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" -  colorful finale dance with men and women.

MT 9:39 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" -  same colorful finale dance with men and women; woman at right with belly tattoo (mild telephoto 52 mm).

MT 9:44 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" -  that woman showing off her tattoo (telephoto 104 mm).

MT 9:44 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" -  those women dancers flanking the one who had done the solo.

9:46 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti e" -  male dancers taking final bows.

9:47 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti  e" - drummers coming forward at final bows.

MT 9:48 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti  e" - drummers and dancers at final bows.

MT 9:50 PM - Viking Star: Destination Performace "O Tahiti  e" - older woman joining dancers at  final bows (mild relephoto 33 mm).

10:49 PM - Viking Star: Don's menu for The Restaurant on November 30; on the front side, he circled only "Fresh Fruit Plate" under Deserts.

10:50 PM - Viking Star: Don's menu for The Restaurant on November 30; on the back side, he circled "Feke" (grilled octopus in coconut sauce) under Destination Menu, "Chicken Consumé" (semolina gnocchi & chives) under Starters, and "Riso Carnaroli con Ricotta Affumicata e Gamberetti" (carnaroli rice with smoked ricotta & shrimp) under Main Courses.