This morning, National Geographic Orion dropped anchor in the beautiful bay of Hapatoni on the island of Tahuata. The birders got an early morning start and left the ship at 6:30am in search of the critically endangered Marquesan kingfisher. Meanwhile the rest of the group enjoyed a leisurely morning and went ashore after breakfast. As the Zodiacs approached the landing, we could feel the vibration of the music and energy radiating from the shore. We followed the band in a procession to a gathering place in the village and the song and dance that followed told the stories of their culture.
The great grand finale was the rally of the men in our group to perform a haka, which was very entertaining. From there we browsed the amazing collection of art they had for sale and some of us made significant contributions to the community.
After lunch we remained at anchor and enjoyed some time in the water snorkeling and hiking on the road that headed up and over to the next village. An excited bull cow gave one member of the group a run for the banana thicket.
