hillary chapman: French Polynesia '06: Huahine Island

French Polynesia is a territory of France in the South Pacific that includes the Marquesas Islands, the Tuamoto Archipeligo, the Leeward and Winward Islands, the Austral Islands and the Gambier Islands. Including the ocean, it has a surface area the size of Western Europe and a population of a little over a quarter a million. Its most famous island is Tahiti, the subject of much fantasy and myth for Europeans. To know more information like this, scroll down to “Goodbye, Siberia, Hellooooooooo Tahiti”.

I had the good fortune --- and knowledge of French --- to be able to return there to visit Baha’igroups on the islands of Huahine and Rurutu, as well as begin a recording project of the Baha’iScriptures sung in Tahitian style. Here are some pictures and comments:

Huahine Island, Leeward Islands, French Polynesia

After arriving in Tahiti, I was asked to travel to the scenic and rustic island of Huahine to teach classes on the Baha’i Faith. A world wide curriculum is being used for this. The Baha’is of Huahine had set a goal of having at least one person go through the whole sequence of courses. One of the participants was a Polynesian man who worked as a laborer and was Catholic and a very eager seeker and student of spirituality. I taught course #6 in the afternoon, went snorkeling, ate fish, then taught course #7 in the evening. After that I stayed up late in the Center with the cool late night air, learning Robert Johnson on the guitar. I brought the new transcriptions (see below).

I lived at the home of Ioane and Evelyne Vahinemoea . He is a fisherman and small farmer. We ate outside once a day in the late afternoon, usually a delicious meal of freshly caught fish and rice. Also there was time for papaya and small sweet bananas from New Zealand. Huahine has a population of about 5,000 people and some tourism, mostly in the forms of little hotels with bungaloes on the beach. There are one or two buses a day going around the island. On the horizon you can see the traditionally sacred island of Raiatea and its neighbor, the Vanilla King, Tahaa. Vanilla is grown all over these islands, and its sweet smell is everywhere.

Huahine boasts the only Baha’i Center in French Polynesia. It was built by hand by the local Baha’is who are mostly fishermen and artisans. One Baha’i had been a prominent politician before becoming a Baha’i and was able to arrange extensive coverage for the opening of the Center. It is built in haito, a very dense and heavy wood with an aluminum roof and walls open to the outside. There is a beautiful hand-painted wooden sign in front of it. It sits on the property of a local Baha’i family who also maintain a beautiful garden in which they plants seeds from trees brought from the Baha’i Gardens of the Holy Shrines in Haifa, Israel!

The islands are heavily ‘churchified’ having been evangelized exhaustively by the London Missionary Society and the Mormons in the 19th Century. There is much discussion about the Bible, and social life is tied to the Church. The Baha’is of Huahine are planning a public meeting titled, “Jesus has returned – what are you waiting for?” which they hope will create some discussion on the Bible.

Around Huahine

The plane to Huahine

From the sky

The coast of Huahine

(need I show more?)

Ioane next to a Haito tree--very dense wood which can burn for long periods of time and grows almost anywhere, so it is used by the side of the sea to strengthen the stone borders.

Hubert Bremond and granddaughter on the right

Tina and her daughter Kaia under a fishing net

A 'snack' --eatery across the street from the house. See the beautiful colors above.

Aluminum rings around the coconut trees to keep the rats from climbing all the way up and eating the fruits

Around Ioane and Evelyne's house

Ioane and I in front of the hand-painted sign for the Baha'i Center

Tema and Jan's sons and Tina's son

Welcome lunch with Ioane, Evelyne, son Haumanu and his wife, Jeva

The property of Ioane and Evelyne --their home on the right was built from scratch, the Baha'i Center is on the left

These two trees on the right and left were grown from seeds brought from the Baha'i gardens in Israel.

Ioane with his fishing gun. It has two prongs beneath the main arrow so that the first fish can be stuck on them, thereby attracting more fish with their blood.

The back area with the cooking area (24hr wood burning fire under the kettle) and about 20 roosters and hens which make an unbelievable racked at 2 a.m.