This morning we went with a friend that we had met at church the day before on one of his company’s free shuttles to go to the Gauguin Pearl Farm. They offer these free shuttles from the pier and the various hotels and pensions on the island. We got up early to tidy the boat before motoring the two minutes to the cement pier. We picked a great location to moor our boat. I think the reason most boats stay a bit further away from the pier is because there are some large coral rocks below the surface of the water. We anchored in water that was 35 feet deep but our boat drifted to a position that was only 10 feet from the top of a large piece of coral. This got us close to the dock that we frequently need to motor to if we want to go anywhere.
Our drive to the Pearl Farm took us 10 kilometres down the only road on this side of the island. Once at the farm we were guided to an outdoor thatched roof shelter where we were given a demonstration on how each clam is inserted with a mother of pearl from the Mississippi River after it has been perfectly rounded in a factory in China. They showed how they manually inspect each clam after three months to make sure the pearl starts to form. If it works then they are left for two years before the harvest of the black pearls commences. Larger pearls are created with second and third generation pearls using the same clams if they are determined to have generated a first generation pearl of high quality. It was quite interesting for all of us including the kids to see the process that is involved to create the famous Black Pearls that this region is so well known for. After the lesson on the forming of the pearls, we were able to watch their technicians that were harvesting two year old pearls and re-implanting second generation pearls.
When it was all done they took us to their showroom where they talked about how they grade the various types of black pearls based on their symmetrical shapes and the lustre of their finish. The kids of course would have loved to get a pearl for themselves but I think it was the couples rather than the family of the group of participants that ended up purchasing black pearls to take home. Besides we already have some Gauguin Pearls that were given to each of our kids the last time we came to Rangiroa. A treasured memento of the island.
Later in the day after returning to our boat we walked over to Tiputa Pass to watch the massive waves that were being created as the current exited the pass while the waves were being driven into the pass.
As we sat there watching we were pointed to some dolphins that were playing in the waters of the pass. These resident dolphins are well known to play in the waves and to swim up and down the pass during the strong currents. As we watched carefully we watched as the dolphins started to slip along in the rough waves. Then they started to jump over the waves and into the air. It was incredible and like watching a show at SeaWorld except in a real life environment. Teyauna and the other kids were absolutely in awe watching the dolphins as we sat there for 15 or more minutes just watching them. We set a plan to come back later when the dolphins were supposed to be a bit more active.
