Saying Goodbye to Bora Bora

It was sad to leave such a beautiful island.  We loved Bora Bora.  We loved Moorea.  The weather was perfect.  After meeting the dolphins in Moorea, we were ready to open our circle of friends to sharks and sting rays.  Our very young tour guides motored their rickety boat with no life jackets insite out of the bay and into the ocean. The black fin sharks were agressive,quick, and menacing as they circled our boat slashing for bits of food thrown by the guide.  I was a very happy camper to be sitting in our 'very sturdy' rusty little skiff with the thin glass bottom.  Next stop: up front and personal with tourist loving sting rays.  Our young guide assured us that these rays were 'friendly", loved people, and he knew them personally for twenty years..only these same sting rays were in this one part of the ocean like .. forever and ever.....uh huh....Just don't put your hands under the little guys if you treasured fingers.  Steve Irwin never entered our minds.  When we arrived at this special spot with 3 other similar boats, we found the water crystal clear, amazing aqua in color and about 85 degrees. Entering the water was the high point of this tour so far...OMG it was heaven.    As the first sting ray circled around David and lightly touched his leg, I saw  him start to turn and run....in waist high water.  It was so funny, he got a good 2" away.  Then we got more comfortable, but I still worried about those tails.  These rays were like GIANT swimmimg mushrooms with one eye.  The feel was soft and squishy, eerie.  What an adventure.  After the tour we went to Bloody Marys for lunch. It is still a romantic tropically decorated place with a sand floor.  Guess what?  They sell mugs!  As we sailed away that night, we circled a Holland America ship in the bay before we headed out to sea.  We blasted "Bali Hi" and other such songs throughout the ship which just made it that much sadder to sail away. A special sail away drink in a real coconut shell helped soothe the saddness.  (They had the coconuts in a sand bed to hold them upright.  The 'sand' was breadcrumbs...nice trick for future parties..) At sunset, we sailed past Little Bora Bora.  The picture taken here is a lone fisherman headed home for the night.  A perfect day in Paradise once agian.  http://youtube.com/watch?v=81NROmUb7o0