At Sea Day #2: A Sumptuous French Polynesian Feast

Large tuna on display at the French Polynesian buffet

February 18, 2019

ABOARD OCEANIA MARINA, French Polynesia – Got lots of work done and enjoyed an amazing French Polynesian buffet dinner as we spent this Monday at sea sailing from Nuku Hiva Island, where we spent the last two days, to Fakarava Atoll, where we’ll arrive tomorrow.

Got up at 12:30 p.m. This is the second sea day of our 12-night “Pure Polynesia” cruise around French Polynesia. Ate lunch at the buffet, then spent the next three hours working on my blog.

Down to our cabin at 5:44 to join Mom on our balcony for about 40 minutes of reading. Then back to my “office at sea” in Oceania Marina’s Internet center for another 90 minutes of blog work. Love these sea days to relax and get a bunch of work done between ports of call. And it was mostly cloudy today, so not a great day to be out by the pool.

A cloudy day at sea aboard Oceania Marina

Mom and I headed up to the Terrace Cafe just before 8:00 to enjoy a sumptuous French Polynesian feast – the “Chef’s Market Dinner.” One of the best cruise buffets ever!

The service stations were decorated with palm fronds, local pineapples, and other Polynesian items. Tahitian beers for offered for sale.

Tahitian beer for sale at the French Polynesian buffet

I filled a large plate with small portions of numerous dishes.

Sampling a bit of everything at the delicious French Polynesian buffet

Here’s some fun facts about French Polynesia, “Polynesia Francoise” in French, according to the CIA World Factbook:

The French annexed various Polynesian island groups during the 1800s. In recent years, French Polynesia’s autonomy has been considerably expanded. It became an “overseas collectivity” of France in 2003.
It comprises five island groups: Tuamotus, Gambiers, Marquesas, Tubuai, and Society. There’s a total of 118 islands and atolls, 67 of which are inhabited.
Although FP spreads out over a section of the Pacific Ocean the size of Europe, its land area is only 1,478 square miles (3,827 square km), slightly one-third the size of Connecticut
The highest point is Mont Orohena, 7,352 feet (2,241 meters)
Population is 290,373, with about 70% living on Tahiti Island
It has the second-highest youth unemployment rate in the world and one of the highest overall unemployment rates (21.8% in 2012)
Although it’s a territory, FP has voting representation in the French parliament: two senators and three deputies
The territorial assembly is a unicameral legislature with 57 members, 30 of whom are women – making FP one of the few places in the world with a majority female legislative branch
The Gross Domestic Product is much lower than France – just $17,000 per capita
Only 59% of French Polynesians have electricity at home

After dinner, I spent the night watching TiVo, working on my sleep log, reading tomorrow’s cruise newsletter, and posting today’s photos. Fell asleep about 2:20 a.m.

Tomorrow morning we’ll be at Fakarava Atoll in the Tuamotu Islands, our fifth port of call.