RachelG

Does anyone know what is up with the Navigator? We disembarked yesterday morning, and they were supposed to sail to Moorea this morning, but we just drove by at4pm. They were still at the dock.

It is 4pm. We just drove past the dock in Papeete and Navigator was still there..??wonder what is going on?

February 7,2024–disembarkation in Papeete Late last evening, I received a weird phone message from the Signatures cruise representative who is on this voyage. I don’t even know who she is and haven’t talked to her in my knowledge, but it said that the Air Tahiti flight that was to leave at 11:00 pm had been moved up to 11:00 am. Now George and I and our friends are on United, but my son and daughter-in-law are on Air Tahiti. I alerted my son, and he checked online, and sure enough, the schedule had been changed. No idea when Air Tahiti was planning to notify the people actually on the flight. It was still very humid and overcast. We had the last breakfast in La Veranda, then George and I walked over to the Avis office to pick up our rental van. There were a couple of others from the ship doing the same. The problem was how to get back to the port. We had to take a very circuitous route due multiple one way streets and turns not allowed. Once everyone plus luggage was loaded up, we hightailed it to the airport to drop off my son and daughter-in-law. Then we took off for an island tour. We drove out of the city with lush green mountains on the left and the ocean on the right. We took a few detours and saw some beautiful waterfalls. But a couple of things— first, the Paul Gauguin museum is permanently closed as is the botanical garden beside it. And you can’t drive all the way around the island anymore because the road is closed on the east coast due to a big mudslide, with no projected date to reopen. We had lunch at La Plage de Maui on the little part of the island that bulges off the southeast tip. The food and service were really good, and the restaurant is impeccably clean, but they have a serious problem with flies. Driving back to Papeete, the wind started blowing hard, and it began pouring rain. We could barely see, but we found the Hilton and checked in. The rain slacked but then picked back up, so we took a taxi to L’O a La Bouche for dinner. This was a Michelin star worthy meal. Everything perfectly prepared and excellent service. Very traditional French meal.

February 6,2024– supposed to be Raiatea but Papeete instead We rocked and rolled again through the night, which made George and I sleep like babies. When we woke up, we were at the dock in Papeete with the Azamara ship berthed alongside us. It was very overcast and humid. We had a late breakfast then took off for a wander around Papeete. Impossible to get lost, because you can always just head for the water. We saw all kinds of shops, schools, churches, interesting plants. There are lots of fabric shops here with beautiful fabric which made me want to sew something. We went to the market. After a couple of hours walking, we popped into a lunch place. I had a good but expensive salad. Everyone else had pizza, which had a great sauce and toppings, but the crust was not as good as the one we had in Nuku Hiva. We went back to the ship just in time for trivia. It never rained, but remained very overcast all day with probably 80% humidity. We had a victorious final day at trivia with a resounding win, no tie. We had enough points for George to get 2 new shirts. The Azamara ship left, so I guess they were in the middle of their voyage instead of at the end. Afterwards, we had to finally go to our room and face the sad sight of suitcases laid out on the bed. The show was pre dinner—Tuxedo—which is one of my favorites. The dinner inPrime 7. My crab cake, salad and steak were perfect. George’s lobster was a total disaster. He said it tasted rotten. He got the smoked salmon as a replacement and that was good.

We will be onboard with a group of friends

Nathan. Last name is either Phan or Pham—can’t find the Passages from yesterday.

So happy to hear from you and see you posting!

Welcoming committee

February 5, 2024–Bora Bora It was announced late last evening that all excursions had been cancelled for today by the tour operators under order from the French government. When we woke up, it wasn’t raining at all. It was cloudy, but no significant wind or rain. They announced tenders would be running as planned but no excursions. Just as we got to La Veranda, it started pouring rain, really pouring. All the people sitting out on the back outside part of the restaurant had to scurry inside. It came in so heavy and fast that you couldn’t even see the island. But we could see something we hadn’t the entire trip—another ship anchored next to us. It was an Azamara ship. My son and his wife went over on the tenders to do recon on what was available to do onshore. They were able to secure a 6 person van. It had cleared off some and stopped raining. We piled in the smallest 6 person van I have ever seen. There is only really one road around the island, so we turned right and took off. We went to see a huge banyan tree. Next up was Matira beach, a beautiful long white sand beach. The water was too stirred up to really see much snorkeling, so we ate lunch at the very pricey beach club. Expensive but really good with a proper salad. We drove on. In places, water had flooded the road, and lots of people’s yards were flooded. We came upon the shop where I had purchased my pareo 18 years ago. It hadn’t changed a bit. I found a cute little shorts and shirt set for my oldest grandson, but they had nothing for little girls. We stopped at a couple of other shops with no luck. We found one that did have beautiful stuff for babies and little girls, but the onesies were $60! No way. We then found a more reasonable shop which had little girls clothing and got the dress I was looking for. Back to the ship just as it started raining. It had been dry the entire time we were ashore. Trivia was a bust today. The captain came on overhead to say to expect very rough seas. Dinner in Compass Rose featured the really delicious mushroom soup. I could just have this for dinner and be happy. I also had some spinach cannelloni and crème brûlée . Afterwards the magician made a repeat performance, and he was very entertaining. At this point it was apparent that the captain had been right about the sea. We were really moving, so I just came back to the cabin for safety sake.

February 4, 2024–Bora Bora We rocked and rolled a bit through the night, perfect for sleeping. When we woke up, it was completely overcast and pouring rain. We had a lazy morning as we were not to arrive in Bora Bora till 1 pm. George lost in the blackjack tournament. I came in 3rd at baggo. We came in 3rd at morning trivia. We had an early lunch on the pool deck, and the skies started to clear a little. The rain stopped. It was looking positive for our excursion. Soon we could see the signature peaks of Bora Bora ahead. We were anchored quickly, and the excursions set off. We were first off on the Snorkeling and Beach Time excursion. Once at the dock, which hadn’t changed a bit since I was last here 18 years ago, we waited and waited for the catamaran which was to take us on the excursion. Apparently there was some confusion regarding whether the excursion would go or not. After about 30 minutes, which my friend and I spent looking in the little craft shop, the large catamaran arrived. We set off for an area inside the reef which was very shallow and home to sharks and rays which could easily be seen in the clear aqua water. When we got there, the wind had really picked up, so the water was pretty choppy though the catamaran was very stable. George snorkeled, but I climbed the stairs to the top deck of the catamaran where I had a great view of everything in the water. I saw a couple of sharks and rays and some pretty fish, though not nearly as many as in Moorea or Rangiroa. Looking toward the island, there were black clouds and a heavy sheet of rain coming down. It started pouring rain just as everyone was getting back on board. The wind was really blowing too, so the decision was made to skip the motu and beach and head back to port. The crew really made the best of a difficult situation. They brought out all the snacks were were going to have on the motu, and played the ukulele and bongo drums and sang. We got absolutely soaked on the tender ride back, not on the tender itself but on the stairs. Hot showers and a change of clothes fixed that. We had planned to have dinner on the island and had reservations at the yacht club for a sunset meal, but what with the downpour which showed no sign of slacking, we decided to stay on board. The rain was so heavy, we could barely see the island. Very disappointing, but the weather can’t be controlled. Very nice dinner in Sette Mare. I had some really good pasta and the usual appetizers were great. The show afterward was really outstanding. It featured the dancers and singers. I will have to say that usually there are one or two performers that are really good , but the rest just so so. The entire cast this trip has been excellent, and this I am saying from the perspective of someone who has been a professional musician. They are all outstanding.

Have a great cruise! I will be following along.

Coral beach

Snorkeling excursion — so many fish

Breakfast room service

Room service menu— sorry about it being upside down. I promise I was not standing on my head.

Big announcement—there is a huge storm coming, so we will be at Bora Bora as planned, but then will head straight to Papeete, missing Raitea. Disappointing, but the tour operators in Raitea had already cancelled even before the decision was made.

February 3, 2024- Rangiroa French Polynesia When we woke up, we were able to see a long atoll with palm trees and a lot more infrastructure than Fakarava. It was sunny and hot! As we ate breakfast, Ray came on overhead and announced there would be delay in tendering as the crew had to make some repairs at the dock since not that many ships come here, and it didn’t meet Regent’s safety standards. The repair was quickly made, and tendering started about 30 minutes later. We were on a morning snorkeling trip. The boat we boarded was small but not crowded. We had brought our own snorkels. They had some for loan on the boat, but you never know what quality they will be. There were lots of fish—zebra fish, parrot fish, mullet, red snapper, surgeon fish, butterfly fish, a few small sharks, a grouper, plus a bunch of others I don’t know. After an hour, we headed back to shore. There were ladies with jewelry and pareos for sale. I bought a couple of things. We walked to the other side of the island, all of maybe 500 ft. When we came back, we ate lunch at a place called Snack Juna. These little “snack” places are open air restaurants and really good. I had a fish burger. George had a fish curry with coconut milk. Our friend had ceviche. All really good, plus some hot perfectly crispy French fries. We had a glass bottom boat excursion for the afternoon, and I thought it would be just the same as morning, but it really wasn’t. We got to see some nice coral as well as a lot of fish. Back on the ship, we totally bombed at trivia. Tonight was Ray’s pre dinner show. He had some really good new stuff, and it was awesome as usual. Dinner in Prime 7 was about as perfect as could be. My smoked salmon was definitely smoked as it was enclosed in a glass dome with smoke inside. I don’t remember this from previous cruises and think it is a new thing. There was an Abba Dance party on the pool deck, and it looked super fun. But I could hardly keep my eyes open.

Thanks for the instructions, Mitch. Yes, too late for this trip, but I will use in the future.

Seven Seas event

February 2, 2024–at sea The captain had warned us the seas would pick up during the night, and his prediction was correct. Lots of movement, nothing terrible, but it woke me up a few times with a lot of creaking noises. We had the 30 minute time change again and gained back the 30 minutes we had lost. Of course, none of our devices changed the time back yet, so again, I will spend the day not knowing what time it is. It was totally overcast and pouring rain when we went up to La Veranda for breakfast. There were not a lot of people up there, and we had a leisurely breakfast. They had 3 types of sangria on offer. It looked lovely, but I did not partake. We really had nothing planned for the day, and the weather ruled out my morning walking. We played cards for awhile. The magician gave a lecture and taught how to do some simple magic tricks. It stopped raining in time for us to eat lunch on the pool deck. Today was Asian themed. George was disappointed with the sushi though thought the sashimi was good. The hot and sour soup was delicious. My friend and I took advantage of the temporary stop in the rain and were able to get in a good 30 minutes of brisk walking before it started raining again. There was a cocktail mixing talk at 2:00. They told how to make all the Regent Signature drinks. We did terrible at trivia, mainly because Ray gave 2 points for the first and last name in 2 questions and we missed both. Had he not done that we would have placed 3rd or higher. I have expressed my displeasure. The Seven Seas Society reception was tonight. It actually was one of the best I have attendee as the singers and dancers did a mini Abba show. There are 12 plats onboard (including George and me) and 2 titaniums. We (all of us) had dinner with the captain and the assistant CD. I think he was somewhat overwhelmed with the whole family thing, but we had a really good time. The food was delicious, as usual. George went to donate money to the casino afterward. Enough said.

Nuku Hiva is very special. We were there yesterday. Walk down to the left and eat lunch at Moana Nui. So good. We had fish that was caught that day. And really good pizza and fresh salad.

“New” being a relative term compared to the “old” church in Papeete

Snack time