Monday, December 22, 2008

Le Truck: Tahiti's bus service


While taxis, shuttles, trains and buses are the usual modes of public transportation in most developed countries around the world, Tahiti has its own unique version of public transit: Le Truck.

Basically a six- or four-wheeled truck converted into a bus, these vehicles are usually painted with unique designs and bright colors. Some also carry commercial advertisements on the left, right and rear sides just like buses in some US cities. Most will also have blaring sound systems to complete the unique riding experience. Le Truck is more readily available in more populated islands of French Polynesia. Because of that, it's no surprise that most of these vehicles can be found in Papeete.

What's inside: Passengers basically sit on two parallel benches that run the length of the back carriage. You get on it from a side entrance and pay your fare (around $1.25 francs or so) to the driver. These vehicles usually have predetermined stops, you can get on one from anywhere as long as there's a place for them to pull over the side of the road to let you get on. The same can be said when disembarking: just ring the bell and they'll pull over at a convenient road shoulder.

Service routes: If you're in Papeete, Le Truck service covers the entire island. It's really a cheap way to get around and see the sights and convenient enough that you can hail one within less than five minutes or so.

photograph by Charles F. Urbanowicz [2005]. Taken from http://www.csuchico.edu/~curbanowicz/Tahiti2005.html

Thursday, December 18, 2008

We're on Flickr and Twitter!





Yup, that's right. We've added some of our beautiful Tahitian pearl photos on Flickr for all of you to see. Check us out on Flickr here. Don't be shy!

We're also on Twitter now. Stop by, say hi and if you want, follow us!

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

The Poisson Cru

Meet the Poisson Cru: Raw fish cubes or slices (usually tuna but any fish is used) mixed with lime juice coconut milk, tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, and a few other things, depending on where in the Pacific you are and the preparer's personal preferences.

This dish is usually served immediately after preparation. As a result, the lime juice only cooks the surface of the fish, turning it into a white color, leaving the inside raw.

Visitors to any of the French Polynesian islands have probably encountered this dish at least once. However, it's not exactly native to French Polynesia alone. The Cook Islands have their own version of the same dish called Ika mata. The Fijians know it as Kokoda. Still yet, the Philippines and the Chinese have their own versions as well.

Poisson Cru image from http://polynesietahiti.canalblog.com

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Iaorana!

For those of you who are not familiar with the Tahitian language, iaorana simply means "good health and is the standard greeting in Tahiti. Sort of like the word Aloha is for Hawaii and Talofa for Samoa. And since this is our first post, we found it to be the perfect greeting to all who may come and join us in this interesting journey through Tahiti's cultural fabric and one of its strongest threads, the Tahitian black pearl.

Stay tuned. We've got lots of exciting stuff in store for you!