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Ua Pou
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Language: French and Marquesan, a Polynesian dialect.
Population: About 1200 Polynesians in two small towns, and the countryside
Money: French Polynesian Francs
Landscape: Mountainous, with rocky slopes covered in greenery. Tall spies of sheer rock
create a distinctive profile.
Visited: June 16 to June 23, 2003
History: (See the Nuku Hiva page for Marquesian history.)
Note: You can also read the newsletter (now illustrated) that we emailed from Ua Pou. Being more immediate, it has a different flavor than the impressions listed below. Jon also put together some information for cruisers heading to the Marquesas.
(Jon) Ua
Pou (pronounced Wa Poo) was a delightful welcome to the Marquesas. The
scenery was lush and spectacular, the village was pretty and well kept, and the
people were friendly. Even more importantly (for the kids) of the 7 boats
in the anchorage, 5 had kids! The cruising community sure has changed in
15 years. When Chris was a baby on
Oriental Lady, cruising with kids was
extremely novel. I think we knew of 2 other boats with kids back then.
I suppose what struck me most about Ua Pou was the casual and friendly attitudes
of the local people. They didn't usually come up to us and engage us in
conversation (so no beggars, like in the Caribbean), but they were accepting and
welcoming. They included us in their music festival (and the practice
sessions leading up to it). They were happy to have us share their bocce
ball courts on lazy afternoons. And perhaps most surprisingly, while there
were no fruits to buy anywhere (why charge for something everyone has) they were
happy to give us whatever fruits we wanted, even when we offered
to pay for them.
 The distinctive spires of Ua Pou |
(Chris)
Ua Pou was a really lovely island, and not only because it was the first land
I'd been on in 25 days (not counting our brief stop at Ua Huka.) The island
itself was tall and majestic, with steep slopes covered in forests and thin
spires of rock reaching up well above the trees before coming to sharp
points against the sky. The main town was small but neat, with a good dock
providing easy access. The houses had large yards, and each was well kept. Fruit
trees grew everywhere, and fresh mangoes or grapefruits could be acquired at
little to no cost.
There were several other boats in the anchorage, and a few had kids on board. We
went to a local restaurant with the other boats for a sort of arrival party, and
also went on guided tours of both the town and part of the island with several
other yachts. We also saw our first Marquesan dancing here, during a local
celebration.
Exploring up into Ua Pou was all I had hoped for, and more. The island was high
and lush, but the trails were fairly good. The views, where the trail was not
surrounded by jungle, were superb. our guides were friendly and helpful, and
provided food ranging from pamplemousse (French for grapefruit, though these were
far better than what we had brought from Ecuador) to dried banana to refreshing
'drinking nuts' (young coconuts with little meat but lots of sweet water.)
 The perfect lunch and cool-off spot on our hike high in Ua Pou |
(Amanda) Ua Pou is so beautiful. Tall and green, with a small village
towered over by highly forested spires... The water was murky and cold, warm compared to the
Galapagos, but unless we hooked something with one of our two anchors
underwater, I didn't care. We did scrub off the algae and goose-neck barnacles
from our waterlines, though. I'm just glad that didn't require looking down into the water.
One really interesting thing at Ua Pou is the museum. It's really small, with
free admission, and they change the exhibit every couple of months. We were
lucky enough to be there during the tattoo exhibit, and the museum manager dude
- who spoke great English - gave us a wonderful presentation about the tattoos,
then took us on a guided tour of the town - for free!
Tattoos in French Polynesia are really interesting. Not only was the word
tatu (meaning "bringing the gods") originally Marquesan, that's
where the whole tattooing process began. And not with sterile needles and
processed ink. They used a shark-tooth comb, and ink made from soot from burning
nuts and water. Literally, they dipped the comb into the ink and hammered it
into the tattooee's skin. Adolescents started tattoos at puberty, and it
continued for years, until almost all of the person's body was covered in
intricate designs. Ouch!
 Drinking fresh coconut water on the hike |
(Sue) Wow! What a fabulous introduction to French Polynesia! I had fun pulling out my French again after 6 months in Latin America, and was happy to find that I didn't confuse myself too often! The clearing-in procedure was pleasant and simple with two French gendarmes who've been stationed on Ua Pou for years. The whole island is a garden of of tropical flowers and fruits like breadfruit, bananas, HUGE grapefruit (pamplemousse), avocados and mangos. The little shops along the three streets of the main town sold staples like flour, baguettes, canned butter, canned milk, oats, and other canned goods. No fresh anything. When I asked a shop keeper about the few mangos in a box by the cash register, she said, "Come back tomorrow. I'll have some for you." The next day she had 4 luscious mangoes, and would take no money for them. Our introduction to Marquesan culture at the local museum turned into a wonderful lecture (in English) by the island's one-man tourist promoter. We learned all about Marquesan tattoos, then were enticed into a 6-hour hike a few days later. We climbed high on the pass under the towering spires, and down through jungle to a waterfall for a swim. The guides brought dried bananas wrapped in brown banana leaves, coconut water, fresh pamplemousse and mangos to fortify us. Back in town, we approached some home-owners about buying fruits and were loaded down with a stalk of bananas, and backpacks filled with fruit, all for free!
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