Shawn Pudsey and Stanton Lowe
We stayed at Raimiti over Christmas and New Year's - a total of some 17 days. Raimiti was our only destination in French Polynesia, other than a transit stop in Papeete. The web-site is an accurate reflection of Raimiti except that it does not mention how fantastic are the people who live and work there. I cannot thank enough Junior, Elvina, Vai, Francis, Rua, Madou, Eric and Gregory (and of course, Rutu, the shark-chasing dog!) - and all for teaching us so much about the Polynesian way of life, and the French Polynesian way of life! Communciating with Florian about reservations is as efficient as larger hotels should be, but so frequently are not. The food is fantastic - lots of fish which we never before ate, but is now a significant part of our diet. A vacation at Raimiti is to focus less on "doing" and more on "being". We enjoyed the company of our fellow guests and part of that joy was watching the "new guests" arrive - to see them arrive with stress and tension, and to watch them relax over the next day or two. The excursions to Tetamanu Pass for snorkelling and diving (with such wonderful sights/sounds/sensations that it would not be fair to reveal details), as were the forays to the pink sand beach and to the Moon (the latter another great snorkelling area). We passed the day playing cards, writing in journals, having a Hinano beer (or two), and very importantly, re-introducing ourselves to each other. And as the charter member of the Top Dive scuba operation at Raimiti, thanks to Gregory and to Mathias for teaching me to scuba dive, for my certification and for helping me conquer my fear of the "dogs of the sea". The most important advice is the warning on the first page of the web-site: if you're looking for a resort experience, this is not the place. We were not expecting an earthly paradise when we arrived, but we certainly found it at Raimiti.
Saturday, 25 July 2009 04:38
