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Hiva
Oa in the south-eastern group is the final resting place of French artist
Paul Gauguin and there is a museum dedicated to him. In the village of
Puamau are the largest 'tikis' found in Polynesia.
The island is best known for the spectacular Tahuata,
the visible remains of a huge sunken volcano. Above the steady rumble of the Pacific surge, the
sharply sculpted mountains of Hiva Oa hide their summits in the mists of
rain-filled clouds. The largest and most fertile island in the southern
group of the Marquesas, Hiva Oa has deep valleys, lush plateaus and thickly
wooded forests.
Located 740 miles northeast of Tahiti, the town of
Atuona is the administrative center for the southern Marquesas. Frames in a
theater of mountains with the Bay of Traitors providing safe anchorage,
Atuona is a favorite port of call for yachts and copra ships.
Atuona village has a gendarmerie, small hospital,
post office, banks, weather station, Ait Tahiti office, pensions,
restaurants and snack bars, stores and chops, telephones and TV. There is a
Catholic mission with a boarding school and a Protestant church.
A path up the cliffs behind the village leads to Calvary Cemetery. Here
are the simple graves of two men who chose the Marquises as their final
home and resting place the French painter Paul Gauguin and Belgian singer
Jacques Brel.
Points of interest
Sightseeing highlights include a visit to
Puamau Village, where Gauguin descendents live. In the steamy jungle above
the village is the Oipona me'ae temple and the 8-ft. tall tiki Takaii, the
largest stone tiki in Polynesia. Several other stone carvings adorn this
quiet spot. Visit the very picturesque village of Hanaiapa; the
petroglyphs carved in stone in Eiaone and Punai; the me'ae temple and
black sand beach of Taaoa and the pretty bays of Nahoe and Hanamenu.For
more general information
on French Polynesia, go to: |
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We have included French Polynesia
in some of our specials to the South Pacific, eg. our Kontiki
Voyage
and South
Sea Dream Voyage. Another option is to create your own package to French Polynesia by utilizing the seperate travel components, like hotels,
flights and excursions
on the islands.
For a legal wedding the legal requires
in French Polynesia that you remain at least 30 days in French Polynesia
before the marriage. In practice this means you may only have a ceremonial
wedding in French Polynesia (see also Tiki
Village).
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