Mini-Guide --------------- Vacationing in Tahiti Travel Tips General Information Calendar of Events Weather in Tahiti --------------- Baskets Birds Black Pearls Black Pearls Farming Black Pearls Culivation Black Pearls Mystique Bligh, William L.A, de Bougainville Bounty Mutiny Breadfruit Canoes Churches --------------- Coconut Palm Contemporary Art Marquesan Artistry Cook, James Dance Diving French Polynesia Fare Fish Hooks Food --------------- France & Polynesia Gardens of Eden Gauguin, Paul Hall, James N. Heiva Festival Hinano History Island or Atoll? Lagoon Fish --------------- Language Leis and Hei Le Moine, Charles Literature Mamaru Gowns Marae Matisse, Henri Melville, Herman Michener, James Monoi Movies in Tahiti Musical Instruments --------------- Navigation Omai Operation Bobcat Pandanus Papeete Market Pareo People Poisson Cru Polynesian Art Raau Tahiti Rock Art Les Roulottes Shells Shopping --------------- Stamps Stevenson, R.L. Tama'ara'a and Ahima'a Tamanu Oil Tapa Cloth Tattoo Tattooing Tiare Tiare Apetahi Tifaifai Quilts Le truck Vanilla Wallis, Samuel Weddings Woven Hats

France and Polynesia Although Louis-Antoine de Bougainville didn't actually "discover" Tahiti, he nonetheless claimed it for Louis XV. Bougainville had awakened French interest in the Pacific, and although title to the islands was not resolved with England until 1847, the French never once hesitated in the heartfelt belief that this paradise was meant for them. Gardens of Eden Lush and exuberant, Tahitian gardens are a combination of many different foliages. Flame trees, in bursts of fiery red, breadfruit trees with large, delicately-etched leaves, and bougainvillaea mingled with lacy green and yellow thevetia peruviana form the upper layer of a vast bouquet, towered over by coconut palms and ylang-ylang trees. Frangipani, starred with pink or white blossoms, mix with canna, hibiscus, torch ginger, bird of paradise and lustrous tiare to create a festival of breathtaking beauty... a true Garden of Eden. Paul Gauguin Without doubt, Paul Gauguin is the most celebrated artist ever to have visited French Polynesia. After a first stay from 1891-1892, he returned in 1895 and set up home at Punaauia, on the main island of Tahiti. He then moved to the Marquesas, where he died at Atuona in1903. The Gauguin Museum on Tahiti is dedicated to the memory of this legendary impressionist painter. James Norman Hall Adventurer, author and poet, Hall was born in Iowa in 1887. He came to Tahiti in 1920 with Charles Nordhoff and started the most famous collaboration in modern literature. Many of their best-known works, like Mutiny on the Bounty and Hurricane, were written in his home at Arue on the island of Tahiti, where he lived until his death in 1951. A kind and gentle man, Hall was described by James Michener as "the most beloved American whoever came to the tropics." Heiva Festival The oldest and most popular of all the yearly festivals, the Heiva is a month-long celebration of Tahitian folklore, with outrigger canoe races, javelin throwing, fruit-carrier races, copra preparation, stone lifting, weaving and dance competitions, which takes place during the month of July. Hinano Brewed in the Punaruu Valley on the island of Tahiti, this refreshing local beer with its attractive vahine label is a popular accompaniment for meals and feasts, with an annual consumption rate of about 65 liters per habitant! History A quick glance from the arrival of the first Europeans in 1595, to the opening of the international airport in 1960. 1595 Mendana discovers the southern Marquesas. 1767 Samuel Wallis discovers Tahiti. 1768 Bougainville, convinced he is the first to arrive, takes possession for France. 1769 First stop in Matavai Bay by Captain James Cook. 1789 Mutiny on the Bounty. 1793 Pomare I becomes king of Tahiti and Moorea. 1797 First missionaries arrive in Tahiti. 1803 Death of Pomare I. 1819 Pomare II converts to Christianity. 1827 Sudden death of Pomare III. His young sister becomes Queen Pomare IV. 1847 Queen signs a protection treaty with France for Tahiti and Moorea. 1864 Irishman William Stuart brings a thousand Chinese laborers from Canton to work a cotton plantation at Atimaono. 1880 Pomare V makes a gift of his territories to France. 1887 The leeward Society Islands annexed to France. 1908 Exploitation of phosphate at Makatea. 1914 German warships bombard Papeete. 1942 American forces establish a base on Bora Bora. 1956 General de Gaulle visits. 1960 Opening of Faaa International Airport. Island or Atoll? The archipelagos of French Polynesia are formed of both high islands and atolls. All extinct volcanoes, islands (e.g. Bora Bora) slowly sink and, through the action of builder corals, a barrier reef forms. When the island has completely disappeared, all that remains is a necklace of coral islets surrounding a huge lagoon (e.g. Rangiroa). Lagoon Fish Tahiti's calm lagoons are home to more than 800 species of fish. Swim or snorkel these sun-warmed waters, ranging in color from the palest turquoise through the deepest blue, and you'll likely encounter parrotfish, butterfly, angel, and triggerfish, rays, and even a couple of sharks (though most are varieties not dangerous to swimmers!).