Maggie Shipstead/Travel + Leisure
I wasnt supposed to be in Bora Bora.
I was supposed to be almost a thousand miles to the northwest, in a differentFrench Polynesianarchipelago.
I wassupposedto be on the hybrid cargo-cruise shipAranui 5, sailing around the remoteMarquesas Islands.
Credit:Maggie Shipstead/Travel + Leisure
But sometimes unhappy accidents become happy ones.
Otemanu, tilted into view below.
Its all exceptionally, dreamily pleasant, but it turned out that, despite my infatuation with Mt.
Maggie Shipstead/Travel + Leisure
Otemanu, my heart belonged to Tahaa, the Vanilla Island.
To get to Tahaa, you fly to a different island, Raiatea.
The two of them share a lagoon and are encircled by one barrier reef.
Maggie Shipstead/Travel + Leisure
Were in themiddle of the ocean, Bailey and I marveled out loud.
You really feel it on Tahaa, the way the planet bends away from you.
It was pale and delicious, like a firmer scallop.
Maggie Shipstead/Travel + Leisure
There is a pool with a swim-up bar at Le Tahaa, and a coral garden for snorkeling.
One breezy evening, we paddleboarded away from the beach, around another motu.
There, on the horizon, was our old friend Mt.
Maggie Shipstead/Travel + Leisure
Otemanu, both far away and not far at all.
One morning, we took the resorts boat shuttle over to Tahaa proper for a tour withTerainui Tours.
Here, we have no airport.
Maggie Shipstead/Travel + Leisure
The lagoon is quiet, he said about Tahaa.
He tipped his head at distant Mt.
On Bora Bora, everyone is in a hurry.
It requires a toothpick, a steady touch, and excellent timing.
As rain clouds gathered, we boarded a small boat, and George steered us out into the lagoon.
The lagoon creatures knew him.
When the feeding was over, we hopped off the boat to snorkel among the curious, harmless sharks.
A sting ray appeared and flattened its belly against Georges back in a fishy hug.
He said hed named her Sophie.
The definition of life!
