Lazy December......I wish!

Early December was hot and sultry, real Christmas weather, finding us lazy and craving the beach, even before the school holidays began. But, being lazy was not on the cards, particularly as Viriamu disappeared to Tahiti and Moorea for a few weeks, leaving me to juggle the guesthouse, the kids and my translating deadline for Air Tahiti magazine! It was hectic, but I'm still standing, so it can't have been that bad.

Here are a few pics from the school fete - got to love our Polynesian Father Christmas!

Amai was relegated to the back row, too unpredictable to be at the front. Heimana was right at the front and petrified (as usual!) singing about Rudolph.

.....and Mato, she was the queen of poise......no idea where she got such grace and beauty from (not me anyway!).

 In the end it was worth all the juggling, I definitely appreciated a short break and time-off the rock!

A decade on, our land in Moorea's still there, and with a bit of effort Viriamu cleared the several meter high acacia brush that had sprouted up! The old 'house' is also still there, albeit much the worse for the neglect! Some nice men with diggers helped build the holding wall, and we can maybe do something with it in a few years time. Me and the kids, we showed up to plant a few new coconut palms, and enjoy a few days holiday, before heading back to Tahiti and ultimately Rurutu.

 

Moorea is way too mosquito-infested for me, the Christmas hols under the season's heavy rain was too much, I did appreciate a Christmas meal of oysters and breadfruit with a bottle of bubbly eaten behind the mosquito netting. The kids opted for rice and lentils - they were fed up of pizza and, steak  and chips at that point - topped off with a super sickly mass-produced Christmas log, their treat!). We didn't even try to do turkey this time, apparently I'm the only one who really cares, and frankly this year it was just too hot to bother.

 

 

The kids also enjoyed going to the cinema (Disney's Moana was showing in town), the playground, pony club for Mato, shopping (the bank account sprang a leak!) and a little less being dragged around sight-seeing. I wanted to visit exhibition called 'tiki' currently at the Musée des Iles.                                                        

 

 

Here we are at the Belvedere in Moorea, just like we were over ten years earlier, Mato us and the grandparents, just before our wedding! 

Gosh I am suddenly feeling all nostalgic!