Papeete-Marina Taina. Photo: Remi Jouan, Creative Commons
I spent the majority of Sunday returning from a lovely holiday and arrived home to find the world has gone mad.
Peter Carr
Messrs Netanyahu and Trump have, in a very careful order, pressed the ‘send’ button to annoy Iran. Clinton et al have been testifying behind an allegedly closed-door hearing in the US. Waipa DC has just wrapped up a week of a ‘first’ – being a major water-related emergency. And the final ignominy of them all the – Crusaders came from well behind and walloped the Chiefs.
Against these headline-grabbing odds what can a poor opinion write do? And against all this I had to watch the reaction of more than 200 Americans on Tuesday embrace (or otherwise) the State of the Nation ‘speech’ by their elected leader.
So, when the back is to the wall – stick to the knitting.
The balmy air on the rooftop bar at my Papeete hotel on Friday nights brought home to me the disparity between the have and have nots. At eye-watering prices the cognoscenti of Papeete’s capital were downing enormous cocktails while, down in the street a number of people were openly begging. But the CBD street-side bars were doing a good trade for the hoi polloi. Two visiting cruise ships were in their berths and the ever-present presence of the French Navy just across the road reminded me from where the strings are really pulled and that their ships can move at extremely short notice.
HMS Spey, Papeete Harbour, 10 February 2022. Photo: Creative Commons
For this is – and I feel will forever remain – a direct outpost of Paris. Gallic flair in the dress of the European-originated ladies bear witness to a degree of affluence that was not present in our earlier calls in Fiji, Tonga and the Cooks. The general standard of mainly French cars far outshines the rusty and aging relics that clutter the unpaved roads on the other islands. Almost daily large jet plane services connect this oceanic jewel with Paris, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Auckland and even Tokyo.
In an earlier opinion I mentioned that the people here have a direct sway in the two political houses in the French capital – France is paying enormous money on education, policing and armed forces to keep everything as it should be (in their eyes). Tourism is a huge factor in the annual GPD, but the general price of most goods is extremely high.
But there is a magic in the air. The sweet smell of frangipani flowers assails the nostrils with pleasing effect. The local beer (Hinano) is extremely popular and also rather good. Numerous large ferries depart to other islands from the well-run terminal for 18 hours a day. Further out in the Tuamotus, Marquesas and the Gambiers the presence of Papeete (and thus Paris) is less directly felt however appropriate social subsidy from a central source is well appreciated.
General behaviour of the people is evidenced by an aura of good manners; we did not witness drunken groups and road driving courtesy and controls were most welcome. Perhaps we have something to learn!
Papeete-Marina Taina. Photo: Remi Jouan, Creative Commons
