Emerging, I looked up just in time to see two enormous humpback whales simultaneously breaching in the distance.
Did you see that?
It was day five of our seven-night cruise aboard thePaul GauguinaroundFrench Polynesia.
A dance performance on board the Paul Gauguin.Credit:Amanda Villarosa
As the only kids on that mornings Sharks and Stingrays excursion, they lapped up attention from our guides.
Most people come to Tahiti and its surrounding islands to celebrate a honeymoon, or a milestone birthday.
But you know who else adores pretty flowers, silky sand, and bathwater-warm ocean?
From left: A hibiscus flower in the sand on Moorea; the author’s daughter Tove aboard the Paul Gauguin as it sails past the island of Taha’a.Amanda Villarosa
Less pointing out the mess in their room, more pointing out the octopus resting on the underwater rocks.
The troupe also leads craft workshops, teaches dance lessons, and runs trivia events for guests.
(Let the record reflect that Jordana led Team Lynx Pups to three consecutive victories in the latter.)
From left: Studying sharks’ teeth with the Moana Explorer Program; Jordana, the author’s older daughter, bones up on her fish before a snorkel.Amanda Villarosa
Afterward we walked back through Fare, pausing to watch a holiday parade.
Dancers in outfits as turquoise as the water performed in the plaza.
Were sharing our way of living.
From left: A Paul Gauguin excursion boat; Tove and Jordana on a Moana Explorer Program boat trip.Amanda Villarosa
After the first few numbers, the group brought volunteers onto the stage to do a haka with them.
The crowd roared as Tove got up and shyly wiggled her knees.
The moment immediately became (and, last I checked, still is) the highlight of her life.
From left: A ukulele lesson on board the ship; learning to braid palm leaves on Taha’a.Amanda Villarosa
It is a pathway, she explained.
For the current members of the troupe, interacting with kids is a major highlight of the job.
They light up our faces.
From left: Jordana tries blowing into a shell on Taha’a; Tove playing in a hammock on Bora-Bora.Amanda Villarosa
Seven of them were Gauguines.
Her favorite waiter, Ian Ramos, was another.
They met when he reversed a jet-lag-induced meltdown under the dinner table by making her a balloon poodle.
From left: A motorboat docked at the St. Regis; a visit to a pearl farm near Huahine.Amanda Villarosa
Tove rewarded him with the unfettered giggles and missing-teeth grins only young kids can deliver.
There are no waterslides or arcades, only elegant wood paneling and old-world craftsmanship.
I have seventeen friends on the ship, Tove declared proudly at the end of the cruise.
From left: Overwater villas at the St. Regis Bora Bora Resort; the pool at the St. Regis.Amanda Villarosa
On our third day, we moored on theisland of Raiatea.
The two- to three-hour afternoon sessions involved a trip to the beach or a snorkeling excursion.
We are not a kids club, naturalist Mai Manceau explained.
From left: The ship in port; a view of Bora-Bora from a cabin on the Paul Gauguin.Amanda Villarosa
Our goal is actually to make children love nature.
As we walked past pearl shop after pearl shop, Tove insisted on constantly stopping to pick up litter.
We have to do this, she explained to me with urgency.
A seating area in a guest room at the St. Regis Bora Bora Resort.Amanda Villarosa
It helps the animals, and it helps us.
I want to pick up every single piece of trash in the ocean.
But other experiences skewed more educational.
A view of Moorea from the pool deck of the Paul Gauguin.Amanda Villarosa
How Bora Bora was formed (by the activity of a now-extinct volcano).
The fact that sharks are fish, not mammals, and that coral gets its color from algae.
But on our trip, my kids were more than just safe; they were pampered princesses of Polynesia.
Coastline views on a shore excursion to Taha’a.Amanda Villarosa
Anything I missed to get to make my daughters memories as happy as possible seemed worth it.
From left: The Paul Gauguin as it sails past Moorea; marine life at the St. Regis.Amanda Villarosa
From left: Exploring Tahiti on a shore excursion; kayaking on Raiatea.Amanda Villarosa
From left: Breadfruit growing on the island of Huahine; vanilla pods on the island of Taha’a.Amanda Villarosa
