Another visit to Bora Bora

 Bora Bora is a stunning island, but like many of the most beautiful places in the world, it has become crowded with tourists and a bit over-regulated. We thought we’d be satisfied with just one quick visit, but then we heard about a traditional kayaking race that was ending there exactly while we were in the area — so we went back for another round.

The race is called Hawaiki Nui Va’a. A kayak is called va’a in Polynesian — long, very narrow, with an outrigger for stability. Each racing canoe has six paddlers. It’s the biggest sporting event in Polynesia, and the name roughly means “the great canoe journey to the big land.” It carries important cultural meaning, tied to the long ocean voyages of the ancient Polynesians between islands (for a great illustration of this cultural aspect — watch the animated film Moana).

The race lasts three days, with each day covering a crossing between islands — about 40 km per day, which takes the paddlers 3–4 hours.

To watch the finish line, we left our anchorage in the dinghy and motored about five kilometers into the wind, through splashing waves, and eventually surrounded by dozens of local motorboats heading to the event as well. I mention this because for me, trusting the dinghy engine to carry us back in those conditions felt like a personal milestone.

At the finish line, located on a beautiful beach, hundreds of people were waiting — mostly locals, but of course plenty of tourists too. Next to us stood a local man dressed in traditional clothing: just a loincloth, a necklace of shells and teeth, and a large conch shell he used like a horn.

The winning crew arrived far ahead of the rest — at least fifteen minutes before the next boats. 

Beyond the race itself, the beach was full of food stalls and lots of happy people celebrating. Speaking of food — the most typical local dish, sold both as street food and in the few restaurants around, is raw fish in coconut sauce. For the less adventurous, there’s always the fallback: hamburger or steak with fries.

We spent the rest of the day with a South African sailing couple we befriended in Maupiti, chatting away for hours about sailing. I was especially impressed that the man had once worked closely with Jeff Bezos, the CEO of Amazon. It felt like meeting someone who’d worked with God.

The next morning we left Bora Bora (early, to avoid the mooring-ball fee they charge if you stay too long) and headed back toward Taha’a. Again, the sail was straight into the wind, but this time it was lighter and the waves gentler, so we actually managed to sail most of the way using tacking. Still, the progress was slow, and for some reason — despite a relatively close angle to the wind — it took longer than we expected.

It’s kind of amazing, and honestly frustrating, that even with all the experience we’ve accumulated, sailing still manages to challenge us. The mix of shifting wind strength, waves from different directions and types, and all the sail-trim possibilities creates so many variables that every time, you have to rediscover the “right way” to use the wind.

When we got to Taha’a, we met again with Adva, Anton, and their little boy Ori. He instantly fell in love with Ayelet, and tried to say her name — it came out “Ai-ai,” which according to Adva was the first time he’s ever tried saying someone’s name.

It’s very sweet to see such a tiny one-and-a-half-year-old growing up on a boat. He runs around confidently despite the limited space and all the obstacles. For anyone worried — the entire boat is surrounded by safety netting so he can’t fall overboard, and of course someone is always watching him.

His father, Anton, is a ship engineer by training, but also one of those people who loves building and fixing things nonstop. To “nudge” Ori in the same direction, he built him a toy made of various mechanical parts that can be opened, closed, pushed, turned, and operated. Ori already knows how to hold a screwdriver and aim it into a screw!

Another practical tip for anyone interested in raising kids on a boat: disposable diapers are not very practical — partly because of the huge volume they take up before use, and mainly because there’s simply nowhere to throw them away. So people use cloth diapers (these days with Velcro — no safety pins). Anton even built a little setup for soaking the dirty diapers in seawater to make washing them easier.