...And Hello Bora Bora

Time to travel!! We got up early and finished packing; T.J. also snuck down to the beach and out to one of the remote bungalows to toss in a couple of “message in a bottle” wine bottles, with a stamped envelope asking whomever found it to mail it to us with who they were, when they found it, etc… Here’s hoping the bottles get caught up in a current that takes them someplace far, and doesn’t just push them back to shore. We were up early yet again, and pretty much packed and ready to go by 7am or so. We tried using our last little bit of internet time to send out the summary email but it wasn’t going through, and we decided to just wait until we got to Bora Bora (note: somehow though the nhl.com web page got refreshed with the Flyers scores, although T.J. didn’t see this until late Sunday afternoon… bring on the Penguins/Rangers!!) We headed to the airport and got there with plenty of time to spare (for once) so settled into a little game of 500 Rummy. The airport isn’t exactly what you would call “modern”, we have the pictures to prove it.

Once we got on and got airborne we had a quick stop to make in Huanine before heading to Bora Bora. We’re actually glad we got to stop there, even if we didn’t make it off the plane, as it was one of the places we wanted to go as a third island. It looked beautiful from the air, and was bigger than we had anticipated. Our next trip I guess… We finally get back up in the air and were only airborne for maybe 15 minutes before we started to descend to Bora Bora. We got a pretty good view of the island and the surround motus (our hotel is on a motu) on the way in, and yea, it was as amazing as people had described. The airport itself is pretty cool – it’s on a mutu also, so once “inside” you get your bags and then you hop on a boat to wherever your hotel or destination is. Baggage claim is about 10 feet away from crystal blue water… pretty cool.

We got on the Intercontinental’s boat and headed through the lagoon for a 15 minute trip to the IC Thelasso, passing the Four Seasons, the St. Regis, and the Meredian on the way, all with amazing overwater bungalows. Checking in was pretty much a breeze; we had paid for the “Ambassador’s club” which got you a free upgrade, so we went from the basic OW bungalow to their middle-level ones that had a view of the lagoon and island of Bora Bora instead of a beach/lagoon view. Considering we got upgraded at both IC hotels, it was a great $150 to spend. The room wasn’t quite ready yet, so we hit the casual restaurant for some lunch and a drink. After lounging at the pool (another amazing view) for about 5 minutes, they came and picked us up and brought us to our room. The staff here has been exceptional; everyone has been beyond friendly and helpful and they/the entire place has that extra special touch of the little things done right. When we walked into the room (well, “room” is a misnomer, since the bungalow is 1,000 sq. ft.) we were both amazed at… the entire package. The rooms were fantastic, huge, with spa-type showers, walk in closets, modern amenities, and a huge king bed that had a plate glass window at its foot overlooking the entire lagoon and island of Bora Bora. There was a big deck (which got plenty of shade!!) and then a SECOND lower deck that let you into the lagoon. T.J. has already scoped out the best places to high dive from… :) The entire setup is first class all the way, and the little things really do make a difference. The A/C isn’t fuel-generated – it comes from 40 degree seawater they pump in from 900 ft. (or meters) deep. The A/C turns off if you open up the windows. There’s a clear glass coffee table that lets you see right into the water below the bungalow. It’s just amazing.

We finally got to go for a swim, which was needed since we’d been traveling in the tropical warmth all day. Jen got her first-ever “get thrown in” by T.J., and it was a little easier to take than getting tossed in the Somers Point Bay (which will happen at some point too…) :) The water here is a little more cloudy than it was in Moorea, possibly b/c the bottom is all sand and doesn’t have the amount of coral that Moorea had, and maybe because there is a decent amount of boat traffic on the lagoon that moves the water and the sand below it. It’s still an unreal shade of aqua blue, and although the snorkeling isn’t as good as Moorea, it’s great to hop in and swim around. We relaxed for the rest of the afternoon, getting stuff unpacked, reading, and taking lots of pictures of the scenery. It was tough to leave the room, but we heard there was a happy hour special at the South Beach-ish bar here at the hotel called Bubbles, so *of course* we had to check that out. Turns out their specialty drinks are 2 for 1 for an hour, so something tells me that wasn’t our last trip to Bubbles.

To get from the IC to the main island, there’s a water taxi that runs, for the most part, every hour back and forth from the two IC hotels. After a slight schedule misread, we were able to get it over to the other IC property (the Moana) and then walked about 10 minutes to Le Bounty, which was recommended by several people. It was a neat little place (not on the water though) that served up some good mahi for T.J. and veal for Jen. The food was very good and reasonably priced. We had time to kill so we decided to stop at a little beachfront place for dessert and some wine. (the name is escaping us right now) Jen had coconut crème brulee that was REALLY good, and we shared another bottle of wine before calling it a night and heading back to the Moana for the boat ride home. When we got back the staff had turned down our bed, left a little muffin for us, and put a picture of us from when we first arrived on our pillow. Another great little touch. We opened the windows and sliding doors and let the breeze come through and then hit the pillows hard. A great first day in paradise, part II.