Bumpy Adventure

Aaaaannnnnnnddddd the long weekend continued on Monday morning with a bumpy road trip to La Maroto, nestled in the heart of Tahiti island. All our usual suspects turned up, with the exception of Laurence and Stephanie, and an addition of our four-legged canine family member, of course!

We departed from our homes separately – Xav and I in our sporty Peugeot 206; Feroze and his family in their Citroen; Jean-Michel and family in a Ford 4X4 and met up at the pre-agreed place. The weather did not look as promising as we had hoped. The whole weekend thus far had taken a brief respite from the long showers that rained throughout the island and we looked forward to having continued sunshine for this trip. Thick clouds covered the blue sky and went as far as the eye could see while the gloomy grey that hung across the island threatened a wet day ahead.

Nevertheless, our spirits were high, especially after the wonderful Sunday we had spent together – what did a little rain matter anyway? So we continued our journey to the center of the island, with Xav leading the way. Right at the entrance to the route, flanking either side of the road towards La Maroto, was a sign that clearly showed ‘4X4’ only. Even though we could have easily piled into the back of Jean-Michel’s 4X4, we didn’t…..ah, the adventurous hearts of the young and restless!

Xav, thinking that the Peugeot was a racing car, revved it hard and sped on ahead, others following close behind. It was a proper tar road with loose gravel here and there, so these little rough pebbles just bounced off our car tyres, making loud clinks in the otherwise quiet surroundings. As we drove deeper and deeper into the mountainous terrain, the tar road resembled less and less of a road and more and more of mini swimming pools that Alto would probably have enjoyed immensely. Finally, we arrived at these....

.....and knew that we could go no further by our low-suspension cars. Xav and Feroze, disappointed that their macho racing adventure had come to an end, parked the cars on a flat terrain by the river, and we all climbed into the back of the 4X4.


It wasn’t long before we were back on the road again. Raziah uncovered a platter of samosads that she had fried that morning and we all happily munched away. Prolonged conversation was not possible, unless you understood vibrating syllables and words – the ride on the back of a 4X4 on a progressively bumpy road gave a sensation of being on the verge of getting thrown out! Each bump lifted my bum violently off where I was sitting and displaced me from my original position.

Bumpy roads were not all that were in store for us that day. After about 30 minutes of driving, we came to a large river, which I thought was where we were stopping for our little picnic. Alas, no, the large river was merely a crossing to where we were really heading!

I could hardly believe that there was actually a straight road running through this river. A huge amount of water just flowed over smoothly, covering the tracks of a road. Somehow, Jean-Michel maneuvered us across the river without us falling out the back and splashing unceremoniously in the river. Once we had crossed the river, we found some roulottes (something like our mobile rojak mamak vans back home) parked and the owners handing out baguette sandwiches of all kinds for sale.

It seemed like we were driving on forever, truthfully. The sun showed up here and there, its rays always covered by some clouds. Still it did not rain. I did not fancy sitting ducks on the back of a 4X4, cold, wet and bum-lifting all the way back! Every possible turn that we thought we could go down was either too full of people or too full of holes for us to proceed.

Finally, we all agreed on one exit that seemed peaceful and refreshing. We immediately took the opportunity to lay our picnic mats and blankets on higher, grassier grounds before changing into our swimwear. After a quick brunch (with us, it is always about food!), we went down to the river.

Flowing down from the beautiful tropical mountains all around us and amassing in the wide open land was icy cold rainwater. Gushing across in small torrents and over perfect well-rounded rocks, the river water created several chilly pools into which we dipped our feet hesitantly. For those who are averse to the cold and chilly, this is definitely NOT for you!

We spent the earlier part of the evening bathing in these pools, just enjoying the wild Mother Nature as it was meant to be enjoyed. We couldn’t really swim because the deepest pools only came to our waists, so we just soaked ourselves instead. Later on, we took a long slippery walk over rocks and miniature rapids, through the jungle (there was a well-maintained trek here) and across to the other side of the river. We met some friendly Tahitians who gave us a taste of local cuisine. I don’t know what they called it, but it’s a plate with smoked corned beef and a large smoked vege of sorts. This so-called vege looks like a green coconut and is cooked over a fire. Cracking it open, the yellowish flesh is softened considerably. We then eat it in small morsels, placing heavy amounts of smoked corned beef atop each. The ‘vege’ tastes somewhat close to a yam, but I’m pretty certain it is not yam. When I know what it is, I’ll feature it completely, with photos and full recipes!

Sorry folks, no photos right now, since we did have to cross over slippery rocks, wade through chilly water and get attacked by thousands of insects before making it to the other side of the river!

When the locals handed us another dish – smoked fish (that was green, ugh!) that still smelled raw – we knew it was time for us to leave them. Nice though they were, it was near impossible for us to swallow the fish (yes, we do have some limits when it comes to food, and apparently smelly smoked green fish is one of them!).

Instead of going through the trek again, we decided to chance a walk through the river. Alto, in all his excitement, swam (the water didn’t arrive at his waist, the lucky devil!) and waded through the chilly water like a pro, while the rest of us clumsily stepped on the rocks one by one, feeling our way and trying to keep steady. In retrospect, it was actually dangerous in the river – one slip and we could have easily fallen and injured our heads on one of the rocks.

Though it was a lovely trip, Xav and I were glad that it was coming to an end. Cold and wet, we climbed back into the 4X4 and made our way back to the parked cars. Surprisingly enough, we returned quicker than when we went, as how all trips feel like at the end of the day. This time I had time to look around, ignoring the bum-lifting (there is nothing to do but ignore it), and I even managed to capture a nice waterfall on the digital camera.



We parted company at our parked cars. Alto was quiet on the ride all the way home. Thankfully, he was exhausted and didn’t feel up to his usual cheekiness for the rest of the day and night. Xav and I were tired out too by a very active last two days of the four-day weekend.