Food and Drink
Our Romantic Dinner for Two in our own private gazeebo
Last post I talked about the overwater bungalow that we stayed in on Bora Bora. As I mentioned then, you could almost spend your entire vacation without ever leaving your hut. But eventually you need to come out to eat. And food and drink can be a major source of enjoyment on vacation.
The Intercontinental Resort and Thalasso Spa is remote and isolated. It is on a motu on the east side of the lagoon. Other than a few shacks owned by locals there is nothing on the motu except for the resort. The only access for the resort is a boat dock. There is a shuttle that runs to and from the airport. There is also a shuttle several times a day to and from the Intercontinental Le Moana, the sister resort to ours which was located on the main island. Other than that if you wanted to leave the resort it would mean a long swim. So it was pretty clear that we were going to be eating all of our meals at the resort.
Two nights there was a Polynesian dance show after dinner
On vacation we usually like to try different restaurants nearby. We are not adventurous eaters so we usually stick to pizza places and Italian food if we can find it, or standard fish and seafood. That was not an option this time. There was a main restaurant for breakfast and dinner. There was a pool side restaurant that served lunch. That was it. The breakfasts were a large buffet with lots of fresh tropical fruit. So that was really good. Every day we both had a good breakfast to start the day. For lunch at the pool side restaurant we found some items that we liked. There was a salmon sandwich that I thought was good. I had it for lunch a couple of times. Sandy liked their salads. So lunch was ok. Dinner was uneven. Some evenings it was good. But some evenings they had "theme nights" with a cuisine we didn't like. Those nights we ended up eating light. But we always found something that was ok. I was trying to lose weight for the hiking season this coming summer anyway.
One positive thing. Since we were in French Polynesia, there was always really good french wine for Happy Hour and for dinner.
Our picture afterwards with the dancers
Included in our vacation package was a special Romantic Dinner for Two. Instead of eating in the main dining area we had our own private table in a small gazebo set apart from the restaurant. That night the food was exceptional and we really enjoyed the dinner. It was something special that fit the mood of the resort and added to our vacation.
Two of the nights that we were there featured a Polynesian Dance Show after dinner. Usually I am not very interested in those kinds of shows. But these were actually pretty interesting. Each night was a different dance group and they were quite different. The shows weren't very long - only about 45 minutes. Sometimes those kinds of things can drag on and on, especially when you pay money so they feel they have to give you your money's worth. But these were just about right. Towards the end guests from the hotel were invited up to participate in the dances but we weren't that adventurous. We did go up after the show one night to get our picture taken with the dance troupe. I included the picture. See if you can pick us out of the group.
Sandy with her "Pearltini"
I mentioned earlier that since French Polynesia is a French territory, they have very good French wine. And it isn't that expensive. Well, what passes for not very expensive at a resort like we were staying at anyways. Everything is relative. Most nights we would go to the beach about five o'clock and get a glass of wine. Then we would sit on the beach and watch the sunset over the lagoon. Most evenings there wasn't anyone else there but us. Then later we would go for dinner. Usually we would have some more wine with dinner but one night they had a special offer that Sandy couldn't pass up. Their special drink for the evening was a "Pearltini". The South Pacific is famous for pearls, especially black pearls. In fact, pearls are the largest export from French Polynesia. So the featured drink for the evening was a martini but instead of an olive, it had a black pearl in it. Sandy isn't a great fan of martinis but she went for it this time. It was even a nice pearl. Way better than the prize I used to get in my box of CrackerJack when I was a kid. (If you understand that reference - you're old!) The next day she took it to the jewelry store in the resort and they arranged to have it mounted for her. She got a nice piece of jewelry out of it.
