I have been watching the clip below in slow motion as I am sure some of us (see left) are in it.
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My Way
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JJ's Le Mans 24h
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Tortoise classic
My new vintage glasses have arrived thanks to eBay.
9×8 bits
Bits being the operative word. I have opened the box containing numbered packs containing in total over 1.750 pieces as well as a 377 pages manual.
I am already stuck with page 1. There should be a manual on how to understand the manual.
And I thought this would be a relaxing pastime.
The video I found on the met might help a bit understanding the logic:
Lego Technic
May 7th
I never thought I would consider, at my age, purchasing a Lego set. Then as I was setting up my computers to be able to follow the WEC (World Endurance Championship) season, the first race in Portimao -Portugal is today, I came across this add.
It is a monster scale model with over 1700 parts to be assembled. That shoud keep me busy for a while and it should at the recommended price.
It is not available before May 1st and I am seriously considering pre-ordering it
May 17th
A couple of weeks later, in other words this morning May 17th, the postman brought a packet sent from Denmark…
Posted in Cars and bits, Scale models, Toys
Tagged 9X8, Hypercar, Lego, Pastime, Peugeot 9X8
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Here we go!
Had a very pleasant and fast road trip to Barcelona. Now sitting at the airport with time to spare, especially since a 1 hour delay has just been announced.
First beach day
Following the now established early May tradition, the season at the beach was opened today with a lunch at O’Pieds Nus in Canet en Roussillon.
Followed by a very pleasant nap. The water is still too cold to my liking. We shall wait a few more weeks before going swimming.
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Polynesia – Conclusion
After thoughts
I am extremely glad I went, the time spent planning ahead was really worth it. Everything ran according to plan. It was also extremely well budgeted. I suppose our day to day experience in a previous working life had something to do with it.
I agree that Polynesia is as close as one can get to paradise. It is of course another way of life, “island life” so to speak where nature has priority over anything else. I am convinced it takes a lot of getting used to but I can understand people abandoning everything and settle in such an environment. I doubt it is everyone’s cup of tea.
I only visited islands in the western Leeward Islands. There are 115 to go in the other four archipelago. The main and largest island of Tahiti with the capital Papeete is like any major town and even major town in the south of France with its French supermarkets and DIY shops (Carrefour, Leclerc etc etc). The nature and the ever changing colours of the sky and sea are of course very different.
The largest and most impressive difference for me in an extremely positive way is the people. Welcoming and friendly to an extent I have encountered nowhere else before.
All the other islands are very much smaller, all within their fantastic looking lagoons. As a rule they are extremely clean and well kept with a luxurious vegetation and exotic plants. A possible exception is Bora Bora. Due to the relatively large tourism industry the island is not as tidy and clean as the others visited. However the views from the air and the lagoon itself is simply out of this world.
The flora on the islands and the variety of fishes in all the emerald lagoons is incredible.
We have been told by some locals that the good news is that the coral is growing. This is excellent.
The same people told us and actually showed us that the water is rising and some of the smaller motus (small islands around the lagoons) are disappearing and lost half of their size in the past 10 years. This is a disaster.
From a political point of view there is a strong independents’ party wanting to pull away from France. We saw quite a few of the “independent flag” on houses and cars. Polynesia is certainly not very rich, I really wonder what would happen without the financial support from France who ensure the infrastructure (roads, hospitals, etc) is maintained and from what I have seen to quite a high standard.
The team
Some souvenirs
(Click the pics below for short videos)
The sharks
My very first time with sharks. Quite a special feeling
Coral gardens
This incredible feeling of floating in the current which pushes you through this gigantic aquarium
The Lagoons
It is almost impossible to relate the real colours with photos and videos
The flora
Wherever you go, it is lush green with exotic flowers and fruits growing everywhere.
The views
We walked to the top of the Magic Mountain in Moorea for the 360 degrees view
From the air
Brilliant views of the lagoons and islands when you fly over them.
The Rays
The majestic rays. Quite an experience to swim near them. They are so impressive.
The Beaches
This one on Moorea was particularly satisfying and needed after the climb shortly before on top of the “Magic Mountain”
The Catamaran
Smooth and relaxing. The ideal way to discover the surrounding lagoons.
Photos
All photos have been uploaded in myCloud at this location day by day. Now begins the editing and discarding task.
The trip
I am still working on the day to day summary / travel blog
I intend to make a paper photo album (carnet de voyage) to keep memories alive
🏝🏝🏝
French Polynesia
All posts are drafts to be completed when home
🛩️ The journey – Getting there
🐠 Day 1 – March 17th – Tahiti
🐠 Day 2 – March 18th – Tahiti
🐠 Day 3 – March 19th – Tahiti & Moorea
🐠 Day 4 – March 20th – Moorea
🛩️ Day 5 – March 21st – Moorea & Huahine
⛵️Day 6 – March 22nd – Huahine – Catamaran.
🪸Day 7 – March 23rd – Huahine – Raiatea (Catamaran)
🪸Day 8 – March 24th – Catamaran Raiatea & Taha’a
🪸Day 9 – March 25th – Catamaran – Taha’a & Raiatea
🐟 Day 10 – March 26th – Raiatea
🐟 Day 11 – March 27th – Raistea
🛩️ Day 12 – March 28th – Raiatea & Bora Bora
🦈 Day 13 – March 29th – Bora Bora
🪸Day 14 – March 30th – Bora Bora
🛩️ Day 15 – March 31st – Bora Nora – Maupiti
🪸Day 16 – April 1st – Maupiti
🛩️ Day 17 – April 2nd – Maupiti – Papeete
✈️ The return Journey
Polynesia – The Journey back
Day 1
7:40 am scheduled departure. I have been up a couple of hours after a not so good night. I shall find sleep on the plane for sure.
I have a feeling I might be comfortable enough for the next 8 hours.
Very nice flight, excellent service
Then hell broke loose. Landed in LAX and were faced with the long long immigration queue and long long wait for the shuttle to the hotel.
The hotel shuttle driver offered to take us to one of the local Mexican eatery and to pick us up when finished. After checking in and dropping our luggage in our rooms, we took his offer. I have to say that I have never been a fan of american eateries and fast food places (I refuse to call tehm restaurants).
One quick call and the driver was there to pick us up again to take us back to the hotel.
The next morning going out for a walk I discovered that next to the hotel was a Carvery which looked a bt more up market… I should have consulted my phone before we decided to take the driver’s offer.
Day 2
2:30 am and wide awake, making the most of the relatively fast Wifi to update files, download boarding passes etc etc
Breakfast at 9am after a few hours of deep sleep.
There are 6 hours to go before our flight and 3 before we depart for the airport so a walk around the block to get some fresh air is a good idea.
Airport shuttle booked for midday
Speedy check in, even more speedy security check
It gives us time to enjoy a nice drink in the lounge.
It is another Air France 777 (Business Class) which is taking us to Paris in just under 12 hours
Click pics for video
After another excellent flight and a few hours of deep sleep, we land in Paris late morning. We have a very tight connection for our next short hop to Toulouse, fortunately the flight is delayed an hour or so and we can relax.
We arrive home after the hour’s drive from to Toulouse mid-afternoon
End of a brilliant holiday
Posted in Holidays, Places, Travel
Tagged Air France, FAAA, LAX, Los Angeles, Papeete, Polynesia
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I do it my way 