Departing Bora Bora Bound for Nuku Hiva

February 14, 2019

BORA BORA ISLAND, French Polynesia – Oceania Marina sailed away from Bora Bora early this afternoon and we’re now en route to Nuku Hiva in the remote Marquesas Islands. Mom and I experienced a beautiful departure from Bora Bora, a quiet rest of the day at sea, and a fantastic Valentine’s Day dinner at the ship’s Italian specialty restaurant.

Got up at 12:06 p.m. after sleeping 12 hours while Marina was anchored at Bora Bora. I had a busy day yesterday, taking a land tour with Mom in the morning and then snorkeling a gorgeous coral reef as well as swimming with sharks and stingrays in the afternoon. Ate breakfast on our balcony, then went up top at 12:48 to watch our sail-out from the beautiful lagoon of Bora Bora.

Kicking my feet up above the Oceania Marina pool prior to our departure from Bora Bora — Kicking my feet up above the Oceania Marina
pool prior to our departure from Bora Bora

We had a wonderfully sunny early afternoon as we sailed shortly after 1:00 past Bora Bora’s outlying motus (islets), home of several world-famous five-star resorts with over-water bungalows.

Oceania Marina Sails Away from Bora Bora

Mom and I sat on Deck 14 above the pool reading and taking in the scenery as Bora Bora faded from view.

Ate lunch at the Terrace Cafe buffet, then returned to our cabin and sort and post today’s sail-away photos. Went up at 4:25 to the library on Deck 14 to set up my “office” afloat in one of the work desks between the book stacks and the ships’ Internet cafe. Got to work on my blog. It’s the first real downtime we’ve had since boarding Oceania Marina four days ago in Papeete, capital of French Polynesia.

Stepped outside at 6:23 to watch sunset, then continued blog work until 8:15.

Nearing sunset while voyaging from Bora Bora to Nuku Hiva

Mom and I went to dinner at Toscana, Marina’s Italian specialty restaurant. Toscana’s menu is enormous and includes these categories: Antipasti Freddi (Cold Appetizers), Antipasti Galdi (Hot Appetizers), Le Zuppe (Soups), Le Paste (Pastas), I Risotti (Risottos), Le Insalate (Salads), I Secondi (Main Courses), and Contorni (Side Dishes). Oh my goodness, so many choices! It’s overwhelming. Our server explained most people do not select one of every category but mix and match as desired.

For an appetizer, I ate fried calamari. Next came my pasta dish: “Trio Toscana” – tortellini, fettucine, and risotto.

I selected “Aragosta Fra Diavolo con Taglionlini Freschi” for my main course: “Succulent Lobster Tail sautéed with Fresh Garlic, Spicy Crushed Chili Peppers, Italian Parsley, and Vine Ripened San Marzano Tomatoes, served over Fresh Tagliolini Pasta.” Quite the description, and quite the delicious course!

Finally came dessert: “Cannoli di Ricotta con Salsa di Ciliege al Marsala,” which is translated to “Hand-Rolled Cannoli Filled with Sicilian Citrus-Infused Ricotta Cream Served with a Marsala Cherry Ragout.” Yeah, I’ve never seen such a detailed menu listing for the traditional Italian dessert!

Stuffed, Mom and I headed down to our stateroom to get ready for bed. I read the cruise newsletter and watched TiVo on my laptop and phone before bed at 1:22 a.m.

There is a time change tonight of 30 minutes forward to Marquesas Islands Time, which is GMT-9:30. That makes the time now 1:52 a.m.

Tomorrow we have our first full day at sea as we continue the lengthy voyage to Nuku Hiva Island, which is 948 miles northeast of Bora Bora.